And The Winners Are ...
It has been a while since I solicited your suggestion to this site. Thank you for all your replies! This certainly helped me to know what's missing and what can be improved at PFBlog. I found this to be a very useful channel to gather feedback, so I will definitely run it again and periodically (maybe every time I'm on vacation :-)).
The Winners Are ...
Let me first say it is very hard to pick up the winners -- almost every single submission offered some food for thought to me. While I have to cut the line somewhere (to avoid bankruptcy), I am committed to adopt most of the suggestions. Plus, some PFBlog Network bloggers and would-be bloggers gave their invaluable feedback too. I'm equally grateful, but for this round, I'm giving more chances to our readers.
Without further ado, let me announce the winners of this competition (in no particular order):
- Mr. K
- Thejester
- Tony
- Noni
All winners: you will receive an email from me soon with details to claim your prizes.
I'm Listening ...
Now, let me debrief you on some of the feedback and how PFBlog will change:
- The disturbing new windows when you click a link.
It starts with my browsing habit. I usually like to open many articles, and read one by one, hence the multiple windows (batch operation for a computer science graduate). You may already notice in the last few days that this feature is gone. Starting from now, all intra-site browsing should be contained in the same brower window.
- Please let us to navigate easier!
Yes, I recognize this issue. Sometimes, it is hard to surf around. I plan to do two things: first, I am planning a face lift of the front page, so I can bring more visibility to some meaningful posts (including those from the Network). Second, I will write a post about how to use the interface. (Being from an engineering background, I understand my limitation when it comes to user interface design. If you can help, drop me a mail.)
- More PFBlog Network channels and more quality.
I'm working on several front to improve the quality of the network part of PFBlog. First, we will soon have more bloggers with complimenting background. Second, recently I downgraded some dormant blogs (from the gold channel listings), and I'll work with our bloggers to ensure we have better quality of posts.
- Too many ads!
This is what I anticipated. Let me put this way: I continue to think it is a necessary evil at the moment, but I will think about it and see how I can make it less intrusive. I promise, by the time I earn my first million, you will see much less ads!
Again, congrats to the winners and thank you again for all your feedback. We will play this again in several months. Until then, please stay with us in this journey!
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I like your site and in the last day or two of using it all of these improvements came to my mind. Good to hear it will be streamlined!
As for the adverts, I know they are a necessary evil... There are two things I thought of that would improve the reader's experience in regards to ads:
1. Placement. It is disruptive to have an advert right in the middle of an article. Perhaps take a corner out of the article instead of running a banner across it's width? That way we can read a smooth article.
2. Color. Perhaps a subtly different background color (like lite grey or pale pale yellow) for ads would help? You know, just something to say "Hey, this is sponsored content, not my blog!"
On top of that, I just wanted to say I'm loving reading your blog. I've just started to get serious about my money and it has helped me to really get in the mindset that I need to be in.
Nice job.
Oh good, you are back to green. I logged in this morning and I could swear the fonts were teal blue or something. Anyway, I love your blog and I agree with the general comments about the new windows and ads. I don't think it's the # of ads so much as the placement though. Sometimes I am halfway down a post and suddenly there's google in my literature. It's a little disconcerting. Other than that, great job. Both on the blog and on the state of your finances.
