Kimber here. Mom says it’s time for a little bloggish housekeeping.(She calls it “housekeeping.” I think it’s more like Rants From the Ole Curmudgeon. Don’t tell her I said that, okay?)

But here’s the deal. Mom gets tons and tons of jun… um, stuff in her In Box. Every day. Lots goes straight to the big kitty litter box in the sky. Never gets opened or read. We’re gonna tell you why and what you can do to fix that.

Here are 5 sure-fire ways to turn off readers and put them to sleep (and how you can fix them):

1. Use Boring, Redundant Headlines

Nothing puts readers to sleep like: “Book Review,” blah, blah, blah in a subject line or blog header. Readers already know you’re a book blogger. Kicking off your blog title with the obvious is like hacking up a hair ball. It’s tasteless and redundant.

Let’s face it. The blogosphere is crowded. If you don’t grab your readers’ attention in a few seconds, it’s goodbye, Charlie. Don’t turn readers off with a boring, dopey headline.

How to Fix

Spend some time coming up with a catchy, intriguing headline. Like, with a verb. Or a question. Maybe a How To or a Why?

Examples: Why I Dropped Everything to Finish This Page-Turner (and you should, too). Or: How to Avoid Putting Your Readers to Sleep in 3 Easy Steps. Maybe Creating Blog Brilliance with Kimber the Magnificent. (Hey. If the paw fits…)

So, unless you want your readers to send that post straight to la la land, lose the “Book Review” in your title. Thud.

2. Make It Impossible to Comment

Mom the Whiner: “I’d love to comment on this blogger’s post. So where’s the Leave a Reply or Comment box? Is that info a matter of national security? What?”

If Mom has to fetch hammer and tong or trowel and shovel to dig up your comment spot, Mom’s outta there! Unless they have the patience of Job or a cat to bathe, most of your readers will be, too.

How to Fix

Make sure you Comment section is obvious and easy to access.

3. Don’t Format for Mobile

Desktop computers aren’t the primary way most people access the internet anymore. They’re using mobile devices more and more. So make sure your blog is optimized for mobile. If you don’t, you’re like to get left in the dust.

How to Fix

For more on this, see my genius post, How Spinach Can Make You a Better Blogger.

4. Bore Your Readers to Death With Overly Long, Rambling, Needlessly Loquacious, and Off Point Nattering So They Fall Asleep or Move On Before You Can Say ‘Jack Robinson’

How to Fix

Keep your sentences short. Paragraphs pithy and on-point. Use bullet points to break up text and make it easy on the eye.

For more, see Is This Blogging Thing Going to Work?

5. Make It All About You

A really great way to lose readers is to make your blog All About Me. Zzzzzzzz. Cuz unless you’re a celebrity or giving away a million buckos, no one cares what you ate for breakfast. Or what today’s OOTD is.

How to Fix

Want your readers to keep reading? Then provide them with some value-added. It’s not about what matters to you. It’s about what matters to them.

For more, see 7 Common Blogging Mistakes (Are You Doing This?).

See how this works?

Love to stay and chat a bit more. But I gotta go wake up Mom. (It’s a tough job. But somebody’s gotta do it.)

XXOO,

Kimber

What are some ways you’ve found that effectively boost your blog’s readership?