How to Create a 'Static' Welcome Post

One potential problem with the dynamic content we provide on our blogs is that a first-time visitor can land there, feeling like they've arrived in the middle of a party and don't know a soul.  A blog might look interesting but sometimes it feels like you have to read a dozen posts before you can work out who it belongs to.

For this reason, I rather like to see a static initial post that complements the banner information and tells me what I might expect to see, and who I might meet, on this blog.

I've created a short 4 minute post that shows you how to create a static welcome post on Typepad.  Click the screen below to watch it.

As you'll see, there are a couple of things to be careful of when creating a welcome post that sits at the top of your blog.  If your blog posts are dated, then it can give the impression that the last time you blogged was in 2007!  For this reason it's a good idea, just occasionally, to change the date to today's date.

Equally, don't make your welcome post so long that it's the only post visible when people land on your blog.  A welcome post should either be two very short paragraphs or, as Chris has done, be continued on a secondary page.

I also believe that you shouldn't enable comments on a welcome post.  In my view, it's your chance to tell people something about yourself and your work - if it's a business blog - and it's not the place for other people to add their thoughts.

This however, is not a welcome post and I always enjoy reading your comments so if you have any views on welcome posts and whether you like them or not, just drop a comment in the box below.

Comments

[Ann Harrison]

An alternative perspective on enabling comments on welcome posts...

I inadvertently enabled comments on my welcome post but I've kept them there because the comments I received are from people who have been saying how nice it is to have found me and how they've forwarded articles etc from the blog to other people.

Apart from the fact that peeps have been complimentary (which is always good for the ego), I always think that that's quite encouraging for people who are wondering if it's worth their time getting 'stuck in' to reading the blog.

Ann x