I write stuff for kids...and muse on writing, children's books, and the publishing industry in general

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Blogging Tips: Link your blog to your user profile

I thought I'd do a series giving some tips and tricks to help you get the most out of your blogging. I'm focusing mainly on Blogger rather than WordPress or LiveJournal, though some of my tips might help users of these other blogging platforms as well.

Today I'm talking about linking your blog to your user profile. During my travels around the blogosphere, I've noticed that a number of bloggers haven't actually linked their blogs in this way. What this means in practice is that, although I can see their name and some personal details when I click on their avatar (either in my Followers widget or on my Dashboard or when they leave me a comment), I can't follow them back to their blog.

To put this another way, it means that those who don't have their blog linked to their user profile are missing out on followers and possible comments for their blog. So you should check this to make sure.

Here's how to do it:

Checking your user profile - is your blog linked up?

(1) Open your blog

(2) Click on "View My Complete Profile" if you have an "About Me" sidebar gadget


OR

(3) Click on "View Profile" in your Blogger Dashboard



(4) This takes you to your user profile


(5) Look down the bottom of your profile, under the heading "My Blogs"

 
(6) Is your blog name listed below "My Blogs"? (NB, you can have multiple blogs linked here)


(7) If "Yes," that's great, you're all good. If "No," keep on reading.

Linking your blog to your user profile

(1) In your user profile, click on "Edit Profile"



(2) Next to the heading "Show my blogs," click on "Select Blogs to Display"



(3) Check the box next to your blog name (that's "Rach Writes..." for me, the other blog is my old blog which is no longer operational)

 
(4) Click "Save Settings"


(5) And that's it. So relax, have a cookie, and enjoy!!! (Though I'd probably pop back to your user profile and make sure the link has gone through, just in case)

19 comments:

The Sisterhood said...

Good tip! I didn't notice this at first until a friend brought it to my attention. I've noticed a lot of other bloggers out there who don't link back and it's frustrating because I'd like to see what they're all about. Thanks!

♥ Mary Mary

Kathryn Rose said...

Interesting that you mentioned this. I intentionally hid my profile because I prefer the cleaner look to my blog. Instead, if people want to know what I'm about, I have an About Me section they can click. As for missing out on followers, I never realized that before. I was always the one to copy/paste the link onto my dashboard. I didn't know you could do it from a user's profile. Thanks for the post! :)

Kittie Howard said...

Oh, Rachel, this post should be mandatory reading for every blogger. Before I post a story, I usually have an update paragraph. I'm constantly (like today's post) reminding folks to check their profile. I can't get to them. Very frustrating! Now, there are probably some who like life that way, but I think most are unaware.

Unknown said...

Very user-friendly! Well done!

DL Hammons said...

Thanks so much for this!! I can't tell you how many times I get new followers and I can't return the favor because their blog isn't linked to their profile.

Very useful post!! :)

Jess said...

Ditto what DL said - I really like getting to know my followers better by following them back, so this is great advice! Thanks!

Also, I have something for you at my blog. ;)

Jolene Perry said...

THANK YOU! It's SUCH a pet peeve of mine.

Adina West said...

Great tip Rach. I know mine is linked but I've come across plenty of bloggers out there who haven't done so and it makes their blogs that much harder to find!

erica and christy said...

good tip! will one of the next ones be how to do these fancy, techy blog posts??!!
erica

Christopher said...

I'm not sure how that happened but it was already hooked up on my blog. Thanks for making me check anyway.

Okko said...

thanks for the cookie it was delicious ;)

Mr. Hate said...

thanks for the tip! good stuff to know! Following and supporting!

obi said...

great tip! can someone check if mine is working ;)

Blog Master Flex said...

Thanks for the tip! Mine was already set up? I guess I got lucky!

Thanks again :)

Aldrea Alien said...

Hmm ... I didn't even know you could do this and yet I'd already done it ... sweet!

J.C. Martin said...

Great post, love the step-by-step pics!

My only problem is I don't have a Blogspot blog. Is there nay way of displaying my blog on my profile apart from under the "Contact Me > My Web Page" section?

Rachael Harrie said...

Hey JC, thanks :) Not sure I know of any other way for non-blogspot blogs.

Hugs,

Rach

Jess | A Whole Nine Months said...

Great advice. Thanks!

Unknown said...

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