Blog Spring Cleaning – Do Some Pruning!
Blog Spring Cleaning
Yes, you have read right – even a blog needs spring cleaning and pruning at times.
[“To prune”: the objective of pruning is to produce strong, healthy, attractive plants]
You see, a blog does represent you on the web. You want to stay in favor in the search engines and be clean, organized and up to date. If you just keep posting and adding information to it without, for example, changing information that might be out of date, or links that might not work any more, eventually it will become cluttered, unproductive and unattractive.
You need to get the feather duster and the shears out and give your blog a virtual once-over every now and then (it does not have to be spring 😉 ) Just think of the plants in your garden – lots of them require pruning at some stage so that they will keep looking attractive, fill out and grow into a nicer shape!
I noticed on my blog here for a long time that I had links in my sidebars that I did not really support any more, and that a few blog posts were outdated. Also, the picture of me did not really represent me any more (it was taken a few years back), and I want to look as “updated” as possible for you all, even if it means that you will see me with a few more wrinkles, and shadows under my eyes… :-0 So I have uploaded a new photo of myself which is just a few days old, really!
My blog after the spring clean!
Here is a list of blog spring cleaning tasks that I want to do on my blog over the next few weeks, maybe this will give you an idea as to where to start on your blogs!
- check through all my widgets in the sidebar and make sure I display current information and any programs that I still support and believe in. Also delete widgets I don’t need any more;
- change my profile picture – check!
- go through some of my posts and close comments on them – some have grown really long beards and just become little monsters. Time to pull the pin! Also, delete some of my posts that really don’t hold any value any more;
- check all my links and make sure they are all working properly;
- go through my plugins and delete the ones I don’t need any more;
- Same with my blog templates. I had gone wild for a while and downloaded all sorts of templates, but I am really happy with the one I’ve got (Primepress)
- need to possibly go through all my categories and update/organize. I am just at this stage not quite sure what that will do to the URL’s that Google has stored for my previous blog posts that are “filed” under certain categories, and thus for my SERP rankings. Can anybody enlighten me whether it is ok to do so, or shall I better leave the categories alone?
That’s it for starters! Basically, what you want to achieve when spring cleaning your blog is to keep it up to date, fresh and appealing to your audience. There is nothing worse than landing on a blog that seems neglected (hm, mine was, for 9 months..), where links don’t work and where old and not relevant content is displayed.
So get the gloves on and the shears out! Your readers will appreciate it.
Now check out my new definition of “to prune”: [“To prune”: the objective of pruning is to produce strong, healthy, attractive blogs]
I also found a great article on blog spring cleaning on the ComLuv Network right here.
If you like what I have written here, I would really appreciate a little “social sharing love” – please share on your favorite social sites through the slider on the left! Ta.
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As for the categories have a look at your perma link settings, are the categories displayed there? Do they reflect in your url or not? If not it is relatively safe to change them, but be careful, even then Google might get a hiccup for a while with your site. Google, as a rule of thumb, doesn’t like too massive changes in a short while on one site.
Regarding deleting content, make sure to redirect the urls to somewhere else, or, even better, keep them and update the content instead of just deleting stuff.
Hope that helps, SY
Hospitalera recently posted…Build My Rank Closed – What Now?
Hi SY, thanks for your input, I will look into the category changes and maybe leave things as they are. I forgot about the re-direct, that’s a good point. Thanks!
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online music lessons recently posted…1
I have to agree with Hospitalera. NEVER change your url structure, especially if you rely on se traffic. You can try doing 301 redirects after the fact, but in my experience, you will do more harm than good
Henry G. recently posted…Throw Away Those Glasses & Fix Your Eyes Naturally!
Good points have been brought up in the comments. Pruning is a natural process, even our brain does it. It’s the reason why if we try to do something that we knew when we were younger we’ll find we no longer can do it. Because our brain pruned that knowledge. Any piece of information stored in the brain that we no longer use gets pruned after a number of years. The same should be the same with blogs. But I think in this case it would be better just to update the info.
I was a little confused about the title of your post that blog needs spring cleaning at first. But you have given a nice comparison of spring cleaning and your blog. every blog needs cleaning up once every 15 days at least to maintain the blog speed.
kimberly recently posted…How to get rid of scars
Great idea with spring cleaning the website. Oh yeah, the house needs it too 🙂
Abe recently posted…How To Increase Website Traffic Using Keywords – Short Tail vs. Long Tail
Don’t talk about the house with me 🙁 BIG FAILURE! 😉
Hi
This is nice and simple article about blog spring cleaning, great ideas for me. thanks for your article.
It’s always worth going through your webmaster tools to find anything missing/broken.
Plus I know I have half-complete posts and pages that I was almost finished when the phone rang, kettle boiled, kids needed me – so they are just hanging there waiting to be completed …
but spring is also the time to get away from the computer and get outside … so muc to do, so little time!
Polly recently posted…X-Pole Sport
You just have to do it as I do:
– whenever you have time
– whatever you can do in that time
– little bit by little bit
and you will be surprised by what you can achieve over time! – Just be patient, and definitely don’t stop going outside!!! That blows your braincells out and gets you fresh back to the tasks at hand! 😉
These tips are great! I think it is definitely wise to go in and de-clutter your blog every once and a while and make sure things are working properly. I definitely have to do it from time to time. Thanks for sharing these tips!
Amy recently posted…5 Easy Ways to stay Healthy this Cold/Flu Season
I’ve always found that Google have been fine when pages have been moved or deleted, just so long as the redirect is a proper 301, rather than a javascript redirect.
PS In terms of your widget displays, I’d recommend moving your social buttons to the right of the page since when you are using a 1024×768 resolution monitor, they appear over the top of your main content.
Richard recently posted…Artificial Grass
Thanks for pointing that out, Richard. I am not sure how to move my social buttons yet, but I will give it a go! I just hope most people use a monitor that is NOT 1024×768 resolution 😉
Excellent information. This site definitely explains essential concepts to its readers. Thanks for continuing to write such wonderful articles.
drvaughandabbs recently posted…This Is Why Back Hurts – FREE MEDIA KIT
This actually gave me and idea. I’ve been thinking of a way to make my blog better and cleaning it up and pruning is a great idea. The list has been helpful, I’ll surely use it as a guide.
Nice tips Petra. Anyway, I did spring cleaning for our websites by updating my old posts. As we know, information will be outdated hence we the webmaster should update them.
Keith recently posted…What Happens If We Are Over 85 In Age And Living Without Life Insurance?
Hi Keith, yes, I also have a few posts that I should update – the problem is sometimes to find the ones again that are not accurate any more, especially if you have a blog with lots of posts! But you just do it one by one.
Hi. If URLs are changed in any way just install a 301 redirection plugin and make the required redirects. Search engines will see them soon and everything will be fine. But changing urls is something you should do very very rarely. Only when you really need it.
Keep in mind when you do spring cleaning or any changes, it is always best to go to less things, not add more stuff :). Just keep it simple. And first make a complete backup.
Regards.
Nikolay recently posted…Skype 4.2 – Download
Thanks for your tips, Nikolay!
OK, so we should check our who we’re linking to and see if they’re still relevant? I guess as the opinions of our blogs evolve, we should try and represent ourselves differently by changing the other blogs we associate with.
Archie Ward recently posted…Google+ Hangout Updates
Nice article, it´s true that some times we forget to repair the blog, and it´s a important part to offer a good content. Thanks 😉
niño recently posted…VÍDEOS DE NIÑOS EL DÍA DEL PADRE.
Sometimes, it is also important to clean our blogs and check all the things that should be checked…Anyway, thanks for the great tips here…
Jesslie recently posted…Jay Robb Whey Protein Powders
It’s definitely a good idea to do some spring cleaning, I wouldn’t change the link structure though as it might affect your rankings!!
Liz recently posted…Så här går det till att sälja guldsmycken till Guldkit
Yep, I have been told that a few times! 🙂
I find posts with no Alt tags on the images, meta tags that just weren’t well thought-out, and content and data that, while correct at the time, is now a bit outdated. So in preparation for my blog Spring cleaning, I thought I’d put together a checklist of things that I want to do that would positively impact my SEO and I figured I’d share it in hopes that might help you out.
Krobelus06 recently posted…The Ultimate MMA Strength and Conditioning
Thanks, Krobelus! I am also slowly working my way through posts and pages, improving on the SEO.
I think changing the theme can help too, don’t you think? Themes can get outdated pretty quickly in my opinion!
Adrien, with changing the theme you have to be super careful, especially when you have changed a few things over time. By changing the theme, you will often lose certain information on your blog, widgets, changes you made in theme files etc. I should have updated the version of PrimePress a while ago, but am too scared of losing all my carefully changed theme files. Always, always make a backup of all your files before you do change things.
Springtime is a great time to do those outside jobs that you can’t do in the winter. My windows usually get cleaned first, inside and out. My husband cleans the outside and the screens, while I do the inside and the curtains. By the way, CLR does a great on the outside of windows, especially if they’re really grimey.
Charmaine recently posted…Hot Tub Maintenance
Hm, I wonder if you have read my post, or whether you have only read “Spring Cleaning” and decided this was about cleaning the house… I will approve the comment.
Really liked this post! I’ll definitely be pinning this on pinterest!
Ralph recently posted…I have Listerine stains on the wall, how do I remove them without repainting?
This is amazing and easy articles about blog page cleansing, great ideas for me. thanks for your articles.
Really great tips you have shared. First I was mistaken for garden but reading through I learnt what you are talking about. This blog cleaning is not only going to help you but also me. Waiting for flowers to bloom. 🙂
Juliette Ayot recently posted…Télémètres d’occasion
Petra – I like the way you have compared spring cleaning, pruning and making sure our sites are relevant. Good reminders for us all on what to check on our site. There are also good points in the comments. I have enjoyed reading and gained much…I’ll be back!
These tips are great, perfect for the season! It was a good idea associating spring cleaning with blog cleaning/maintenance. Your photo of bonsai, nevertheless, reminds me of luxury condos in our area because the condos are full of plants, feels fresh and clean. Thank you again for sharing this post!
Pruning is important even in websites. You have to keep your website clean, organized, relevant and up to date. You have to earn favor with the search engines so you can continue getting taffic.
Blogging world is dynamic, it demands continuous improvements. This is also one of the cause to attract potential visitors.
Yes, cleaning up your websites and blogs is definitely necessary. Once you’ve done so, I suggest backing up the entire site. Always feels good to do so when it’s freshly cleaned. 😉
By the way, you look great on your new photo!
Oh, thanks! 😉 I got a bit older though… 🙁
Good post. There are many ways to keep your blog interesting & lively like, knowing your audience, one should not apologize about not blogging enough if this happens readers just might float away, Steer clear of politics, and of course avoid excessive quoting.
Interesting tips! The number one reason most blogs fail is simply because they aren’t interesting. The blogger has nothing interesting to say, and well, it’s pretty obvious that no one wants to waste their time reading something they couldn’t care less about.
Jack recently posted…Sierra Nevada
That’s what makes it really hard at times to keep pulling in readers – you need to keep updating, and you need to be interesting. You are right – be fresh, be yourself, and even if what you have to say might not be that interesting, you can make it interesting by putting your individuality in it.