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Blog Usability Checklist

by Tom Johnson on Apr 17, 2007
categories: technical-writing

Below are some usability tips for your blog. This was by far my most popular post, so you can flip through each tip by clicking the numbers below, or read the expanded version of the post here.

1. Pick a topic for your blog.

Theme

2. Encourage comments.


3. Make it easy to subscribe.

Subscribe to RSS

4. Include an About page.

About page

5. Present your ideas visually.

Present Ideas Visually

6. Keep posts short and to the point.

Keep posts short

7. Use subheadings for long posts.

Keep Posts Short

8. Link abundantly


9. Make headlines descriptive.

Headlines

10. Archive by topic.

Category archives

11. Include a list of Related Posts beneath each post.

Related Posts

12. Allow users to contact you offline.

Contact offline

13. Present your real viewpoint.

Speak your mind

14. Write for your future employer.

Fired

15. Include a Top Posts section.

Top Posts

16. Provide an index.

Index

17. Get your own URL and match it to your blog's title.

Match Title to URL

18. Include a Recent Posts section in your sidebar.

Recent Posts

19. Reward commenters for commenting.

Top Commenters

20. Post often.

Technorati Report on Posting Frequency

About Tom Johnson

Tom Johnson

I'm an API technical writer based in the Seattle area. On this blog, I write about topics related to technical writing and communication — such as software documentation, API documentation, AI, information architecture, content strategy, writing processes, plain language, tech comm careers, and more. Check out my API documentation course if you're looking for more info about documenting APIs. Or see my posts on AI and AI course section for more on the latest in AI and tech comm.

If you're a technical writer and want to keep on top of the latest trends in the tech comm, be sure to subscribe to email updates below. You can also learn more about me or contact me. Finally, note that the opinions I express on my blog are my own points of view, not that of my employer.