Greetings, fellow bloggers!
Owning a website is a liberating experience. Our thoughts, our work, our designs have a home and we’re eager to share it with the world. Cheers to that! ♥
Creating a website that we’re proud to own is one thing, managing it to optimize reach and build connections is just as critical, perhaps more so. But it doesn’t have to be complicated. With just two clicks, we’re well on our way. Yup, it’s just that easy.
♥
In this short tutorial, I’d like to share a simple strategy that will optimize our blog for building connections and, ultimately, a thriving blogging community. That’s what blogging is all about ~ Connecting and Thriving!
This strategy will enhance our blog in meaningful ways. We have this golden opportunity to create a welcoming, engaging experience for our readers, and connect. Let’s make the most of it!
Gravatars Hovercards ~ a win-win blogging strategy!
*Disclosure: These are resources I personally use and value highly. So much so, I became an Affiliate member. As an Affiliate, I endorse the products and services I use and love. If you see the value in these products and choose to purchase via my referral links, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. ♥
For this tutorial, we’ll look at our Dashboard > Settings > Discussion panel.
Under Settings > Discussion, we can optimize our blog for interaction and build lasting connections with just two clicks!
Let’s look at these opportunities:
- Using Avatars
- Viewing Gravatar Hovercards
Avatars are fantastic for blogging and building connections. Once you’ve been blogging for a while you’ll appreciate the friendly faces you’ll see and the connections you’ll make. WordPress users can easily create a Gravatar (Globally Recognized Avatar) via WordPress ~ Gravatar.
In the image below, you can see I selected to Show Avatars and View Gravatar Hovercards, as I see this as a fabulous way to build connections with readers and readers building connections with each other, thus forging an engaging community!
Our Gravatar displays next to our name whenever we post a comment on WordPress.
This is how a WordPress Gravatar appears when we comment on a post or page.
Note: Self-hosted sites require the free Jetpack Plugin. Jetpack is included with WordPress hosted sites.
As shown in the image below, if we enable Gravatar Hovercards this is what readers will see when they hover over a Gravatar profile picture. I love this feature, as it’s a fantastic way of connecting within the blogging community.
As bloggers, it’s ideal to utilize this feature on our blogs. It gives our readers an opportunity to introduce themselves via their Gravatar profile.
Oftentimes our readers are fellow bloggers, so this feature is a win-win for all. We have this fantastic platform to introduce each other, build connections, and thrive as a blogging community.
Now that we know how easy it is to add and use this feature, we want to maximize its use as bloggers.
If you haven’t fully optimized your WordPress Gravatar Profile, I hope this encourages you to do so. We have this amazing opportunity to introduce others and ourselves via the same process.
For more details on creating a Gravatar, WordPress has a great tutorial ~ How to Use Gravatars.
Blogging = Connecting = Community
BLOGGING TIP: Anything that can lead to engagement is an opportunity lost if we don’t implement it.
Have a tip you’d like to share? Please feel free to share in the comments below.
Until next time … happy connecting, my friends! ♥
I’ll have to check later today, I’m not even sure if I have a gravatar, and if I do, iI sounds like I probably have to spruce it up a bit!
Cheers, Jim! Thanks for stopping by today. It’s an easy process to set up. WordPress has a great tutorial. Here’s the link. https://wordpress.org/support/article/how-to-use-gravatars/
Have a fabulous day! 🙂
thanks, Natalie!
I always check gravatar hovercards when I have a new commenter on my blog. It’s a great way to learn about others and connect. Thanks for the reminder, Natalie!
Happy Monday, Mae! They are a great feature for connecting for sure. I didn’t activate the Display Hovercards until recently. I didn’t realize how simple it was. Had to pass the tip along in a blog post, of course. Thanks for stopping by today. Cheers! 🙂
Now I’m not sure If I have them activated. I just always click on the gravatar. I’m going to have to check my settings!
Excellent post, Natalie. Thank you
Delighted to share, John! Thanks for stopping by today. Cheers! 🙂
😊
I obsessively check the hovercards. Great post, Natalie.
Cheers, Staci! I do now, as well. They are a great feature for blogging and connecting. Have a fabulous day! 🙂
Thanks for another awesome post, Natalie! <3 Sharing…
Always a joy to share, Bette! Thanks for stopping by today, and for sharing, too! xo
You hare so much expertise on your blog Natalie. Shared on #CreativeBizHour on Twitter.
You’re so kind, Lizzie. Thank you. 🙂 I really enjoy sharing tips. Cheers to the wonderful world of blogging and connecting! 🙂
Hi, Natalie! I think I’ve already set up my Gravatar (don’t ask me how – I usually figure it out as I go). However, I’ll check to make sure it’s complete now that I have your instructions. Thank you very much, my friend! <3 xo
Delighted to share, Vashti! They are a great feature in WordPress. Thanks for stopping by. Wishing you a fabulous day! xo
Hi Natalie, here’s another tip for all bloggers about the Gravatar. Please, please ensure you link your blog to it. Often, I come across a Gravatar that has no links to the users blog(s) or social media accounts. That makes it more difficult for me to find out more about the person and their blog. Adding our blog and social media links to our Gravatar is so easy to do.
I’m not a 100% sure, but I believe WordPress have the ‘Show Avatar’ and ‘View people’s profiles when you mouse over their Gravatars’ as default settings when you create a new WordPress blog (so the boxes are already ticked). I don’t ever remember having to tick those boxes. However, as I’ve been blogging for almost six years, maybe it’s something i did have to do.
Thanks for sharing, Hugh! I hope this post encourages others to fully optimize their Gravatars. They are blogging gems.
The Gravatar Hovercards option was in place when I was with WordPress.com. When I moved my hosting to Bluehost, I had to install the Jetpack plugin. Quick and easy. I was surprised to see fellow bloggers not using this feature, hence this post. 🙂 Thanks again for stopping by and sharing. Have a fantastic day! 🙂
That makes sense if the blog is self-hosted, Natalie. I guess those default settings I talked about are not in place when installing the Jetpack plugin, so those boxes have to be ticked.
🙂
Hi Natalie
Thanks for sharing the link over at Anne’s blog. Good article. Gravatar is one of those hidden secrets for starting bloggers and regular commenters.
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You do mention that these settings are for a hosted WordPress.org blog with Jetpack installed. They’re also true for those using a free WordPress.com blog. Jetpack adds many of the .com features to a hosted site.
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However, if you don’t have Jetpack installed, you just get the Show Avatars checkbox. No Hovercards…
Thanks, David, for sharing. I’ll include that tip for sure. My bad… I shouldn’t assume bloggers with WordPress dot com know that Jetpack is available/included with their hosting. Thanks again. Have a fabulous day!
I learned a lot about Gravatar, thanks.
Warm welcome, Mark! That’s wonderful to know. Happy to connect with you here, as well. Cheers! 🙂