I have the coolest door mat ever made. Check it out:
It was at our apartment when we moved in. We thought it was kind of funny and decided to keep it. The “Leave” door mat turned out to be a great conversation starter.
But, it’s not very inviting. Some people are offended and say something like “rude!” “Fine, I’ll leave”, etc. Most people think they’re at the wrong house because certainly Devin and I wouldn’t have a mat that said “Leave”. Once we talk to them about it, most people agree that it’s funny (are you sensing that Devin and I have an odd sense of humor? You might be right).
So although it is a great way to break the ice, and we think it is funny, it’s not saying, “Hi there! Come on in!”
I know what you’re thinking. What does this have to do with blogging? A lot actually.
There is a trend in the blogging world right now that I think is very similar to my leave mat. It could be a way to converse, but it’s not saying “come on in.” Let me give you a few examples:
This little box popped up on me the other day before I got to read the full blog article. It was small and only on the bottom of the page, so it was only slightly annoying.
Then the next day, this one popped up before I even got to see the blog.
This was the first time I visited the blog. I didn’t know anything about the blog but, I just knew that I was interested in the pin that led me to their site. Before I got the chance to check out their article they asked me to leave to like and view their Facebook page.
Getting social media followers is a very good thing. Giving your readers a way to connect socially is a very good thing. Bombarding them left and right with social media pop ups and widgets isn’t encouraging them to visit your blog and engage with you there.
Once they get to your facebook page they’ll see their other messages and notifications and instantly be gone. They’ll see some of the pins to your blog on your Pinterest page, but they’ll also see pins to every other blog you’ve pinned and quickly navigate away from your profile.
So what’s the big take away?
Invite your readers to follow and share on social media, but don’t bombard them so much that you’re just encouraging them to leave. You want them to explore and interact on your blog!
Visitors will not stop on your blog if article posted in your blog in not interesting or it is too descriptive or too lengthy. Also blog should contains good images which attracts to people.
at Blog Elevated they even were as bold to say to leave your social media off of your site above the fold so that people didn’t follow you on PInterest and never come back and subscribe. Kinda genius 🙂
That’s probably smart. I’ve noticed a lot of people putting facebook or pinterest in the “hello” bar lately and I always think – WAIT! You didn’t let them look at your site yet!
Yes! The immediate popups always turn me off, especially after I’ve already liked/followed 100 visits ago. What are your thoughts about a big header to collect email addresses?
I’m actually okay with a big header to collect email addresses. When done right, they actually tell me a lot about the blog in a quick sentence or two. Plus, they aren’t pop ups or sticky. And, it still keeps me on their site instead of sending me away. In fact, my home page is formatted that way.
YES! Thank you so much for saying that. I can’t stand those pop up messages asking to follow or do something. Hey, let me explore your blog first. Don’t slap me in the face with stuff. I think that goes a lot farther.
You’re welcome. I would much rather decide I like a blog and then follow than being prompted to follow before I know you.
Oh this is definitely one of my pet peeves. It’s pretty much a give-in for me that if there’s a social media popup I’ll leave the website. I wish every blogger had this viewpoint–sharing now!!
Me too, how can we convince them?
I couldn’t agree more! I love the plug ins that are ‘smart’ and only deliver pop ups when the user has scrolled 60% down the page or been on the page more than x minutes. I haven’t installed anything like that yet, but hope to one day.
This is just brilliant advice – sharing everywhere!
Sometimes I’m okay with the smart plugins. And, I’m actually working on a pop up that you click on and then it pops up, but the ones that are just there: BLAH!
I agree with you! I really find those pop ups very unappealing…I usually do LEAVE! I never really thought about why I leave? It definitely is those pop ups. Thanks Kristie!
It’s one of those things that is hard to pin point, but it isn’t very appealing!