If you’ll notice below each post of my blog, there are links that allow you to perfom different actions.  And you’re probably asking yourself, “How do I choose which options to use there?”

There are bloggers that don’t put anything because the endless options that exist create frustration and confusion.

There is an old saying I like to use when deciding what I want to add and how much I want to add.

“The confused mind does not buy,”

Simply put, this means, if you have too many options, the reader will panic and not do anything but leave.

Ask Your Readers to Subscribe

The most obvious choice when deciding what to place below each blog post is an option for the reader to subscribe to your blog.  Putting it at the end of your post rather than only at the top of your blog says, “Hey, if you really like this article, subscribe and I’ll make sure your notified when I write more like it.”

Only placing the subscribe option at the top of your blog might mean the reader won’t even see it because they are only visiting to do one thing, and that’s to read your content.

Contrary to what you believe, people don’t visit your blog to admire how stylish your new logo or header is.

Offer Social Bookmarking

There really is no right or wrong when deciding which social bookmarking options to add.  Use the ones you enjoy and are more comfortable with.

I chose to use Digg and Del.icio.us because they are extremely popular options and the two that I’m the most familiar with.  Sphinn is a very good one as well, but I haven’t played with it yet.  We’ll see how that goes.

I had someone ask me why I didn’t offer StumbleUpon as an option, and if you know about my Secret StumbleUpon group, you’d understand why.  StumbleUpon brings me a lot of traffic, but I don’t offer the option on my blog because StumbleUpon provides a toolbar for all StumbleUpon users.  In my opinion, offering this option below each blog post is a waste of space.

I’ve just recently added an option from Social Twist to allow a reader to tell a friend using any of the major options available on the web, including the ability to email the link to another person.  I’ll let you know what kind of use I see out of that.

Word of mouth is still the best marketing method.

Provide Feedback Options

Include the option for feedback.  The comments section is the default method below each blog post, but don’t underestimate the power of alternate methods of feedback generation.

Some readers may not be interested in taking the time to leave a comment, or they aren’t sure what to say, but they would like you to know that you did a great job.

Offer something that allows them to rate your post with one click of the mouse button.

When I first implemented the rating feature at the bottom of my posts, I wasn’t sure I wanted it because I wasn’t sure I really wanted others to see the rating results, but I’m glad I went through with it.  I feel like that it shows me what posts others really enjoy as a whole, rather than individually.

Include An Ad Or Two

This is not a mandatory option, nor is anything else I’ve mentioned.  But if you’re putting ads or affiliate links on your blog, why not add one or two here.  Especially if it gets them out of the blog content itself.

Just a few days ago I moved my giant 300×250 ad from the beginning of each blog post to the space at the end.  It still converts just as well, but it also makes the reader feel less overwhelmed when reading your content, which drives subscribers.

Whatever you decide to use, just keep in mind what you’d be interested in seeing at the end of another’s blog post and use that.  Chances are others would enjoy seeing the same options.

It seems I’ve left off one of the most important elements to this post.  You can read about it in my follow-up post here.