Twitter's New Layout

Image via CrunchBase
The news and votes are in! Most of the estimated 1 million Twitter.com users like the new site design. In the new Twitter display, Tweet'amis will notice that following/followers/update status is located high on the page. Making this information more prominent allows users ease of access.

Fortunately, Twitter has a link to the "Notice something different?" blog post which details that changes which include customizations and speed improvements.

Overall, this change will most like not shock most Twitter users. Instead the change will be met with appreciation.

If you haven't yet, give it a try. You will be pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to view your replies, direct messages, favorites, and followers.

Most users experience a split second delay while Twitter tech made the change over to the new design. That alone is admirable. For most, a change over causes user anxiety and a subsequent lose of confidence in the platform. Certainly, many other providers could learn something from Twitter. I suspect that the Twitter staff was a flurry of high-fives after the change over. Well, allow us to high five also. Well done, Twitter.com. Well done.

Finding Readers for Your Blog

Image by Getty Images via Daylife It is easy to write about a topic that is of interest to me. I find it difficult to write about a topic that I am not interested in. The same holds true for reading blogs. I find that blogs that hold my attention the most are blogs about technology, business, finance and community organizing. I realize that those subjects are vastly different from one another, but my interests are diverse, also. That is why it is important for a blogger to capture my attention in the first paragraph by either asking or answering a question that he knows many people in his genre would ask. By doing this, the writer will immediately connect with me and I am more likely to continue reading.

Most often I visit the blogs of people I already know. I like to read their perspective on a recent news item. I read blogs that my friends and family members have created. I especially frequent blogs written by people who have attended classes that I've taught. Former students are my key readers, also. I often suggest to bloggers who are attempting to gain new readers that they volunteer to teach a class on their favorite subject at their local community center. Instructors who are an opinion leaders in their respective fields are hard to find. Subsequently, many students would be happy to read the blog of such an instructor.

It is also a great idea to link-to or reference your peers' blogs. Not only does that increase their exposure, but it boosts your exposure, also.

Generally speaking, whether your are a blog writer or reader, it is a great idea to spread the word about blogs that you find to be interesting.