If you are getting started with blogging on WordPress you might be wondering “what in the heck should I put in the sidebar?” While the answer is a personal choice, there are many things that are typically found on the sidebar.
Below is a list of typical items that are found on a sidebar. You do not have to have all of those items, but you might want to pick and choose what items you would like to have.
Call-to-Action
What you want your readers to do. This should be placed at the top of the sidebar. If you want them to go to your Etsy shop, contact you, join your newsletter– put this front and center.
Your Brand
Let the readers connect a face with the blog. A picture of you along with a few sentences about who you are and what the blog is about.
Newsletter Subscriptions
Connect with the readers on a regular bases. Maybe offer a free download or ebook for sining up. There are many options for your choice in newsletters. I will cover options in detail in another post.
Social Media
Get your readers to connect with you on a regular baises by getting them to like on Facebook, following on Twitter, following on Pinterest.
Search Box
Makes it easy for visitors to use keywords to find items on your blog.
Category List
The specific topics that your blog is about. This should be narrow! Think about it like a library you have Fiction and Non-Fiction. Keep it simple. For example, if I had a blog about Dogs my categories my include: Training, Proper Care, Diet and Nutrition.
Tags
These are small key words that you write about regularly but aren’t really categories. For example, using the categories from above, if I did a post under training I might have tags with Cesar Millan. He isn’t a category but I might talk about him enough that a reader would want to click on that tag to view all post that mention him.
Recent Posts and/or Popular Posts and/or Archives
Let the reader know what you have been up to recently, what is the most popular or to go back in time. Have 1 or all of these options.
Advertisements
Many times this is google ads or 125 X 125 px ads. There are many options for this. I will cover options in detail in another post.
Blogroll
Other blogs you follow that will let the view also know more about what you are like and what the blog is about.
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