Due to the status of the economy worldwide, fru-gals and anyone who want to save money turn to coupons for discounts. There are lots of sites that offer coupon codes and promotional discounts on various types of stores - whether they are online, shops with physical locations, or both.
The Coupon Scoop is one source of coupons for those who are looking to save money for stores that fall under a number of categories. That includes those for baby and kids stuff, books, DVDs, apparel, flowers, jewelry, health and beauty, rental cars, electronics, computers and accessories, even softwares and web hosting.
What I'm going to review today is their blog. I have three words for it -Bland and static.
The url of the blog is thecouponscoop.com/blog, which means it's still under thecouponscoop.com. The first thing that I noticed about this is the layout. The first guideline for making a blog for your business is its connection to the main site. If you visited their main site (thecouponscoop.com), the site is quite lively and full of colors.
From the main site's navigation, there is a link to the blog. When you clicked it, it opens on the same window/tab. So I am assuming it's still a part of the site (plus the URL as I mentioned). But when I landed on the blog, it's like I've visited a different site. There is no logo of the site, only the blog title. It doesn't even have a link back to the main site. (A link back and a bridge - bonus points that are wasted!)
It could be that they do not want the visitors to visit the main site (which I think is not likely). But that's what I'm witnessing right now. No link. But if you would look at the URL (thecouponscoop.com/blog), it's quite obvious that it is indeed a part of the main site.
Another thing, there could be a link to the blog on the main site's navigation menu, but they are missing another great thing! They should include the recent posts of the blog on the home page but they are not doing it! What's the purpose of having a blog then?
Is it just for the RSS thing? So the visitors need to just visit the blog once, subscribe, then never visit it again? (Because they now have the info delivered to their emails/readers.) Unless they included only the summary of the posts, of course.
Despite the simplistic layout, let's see if the contents could neutralize the situation. When I tried to comment though, I still need to log in. (Another no-no for blogs!) Instead of the ability to leave your name and URL, or the easy connect to your Open ID, Google, Twitter, or Facebook accounts, we still need to login. And before that - we still need to register!
Now that the reader is annoyed at this moment, do they still have the patience to continue reading on? It depends on the reader, as for me, I need to review the blog that's why I'm still on this site.
The content. Well, this is their last chance. If in case I find something valuable here, I may continue reading the blog. While making this review, their last post was on the May 30th (not so updated frequently. Tsk. tsk.), the post is titled is "Top 10 Signals Your Coupon Code is a Scam". These type of posts where we included numbers are most often clicked through by our visitors because it should be a list. But when I landed on the post... There is no top 10! It includes the right information, but not the way it has promised on the title of the post!
As much as I tried to pick the positive traits while reviewing, the blog has got deep into my nerves that all my positive outlook in life is in a blur. If they are serious with this blog, they should atleast put some time doing something for it to be better.
Bottomline: Just having a blog for the sake of having a blog for a site isn't enough.
The main site though is full of coupons. Get ready to scoop them!
Another thing, there could be a link to the blog on the main site's navigation menu, but they are missing another great thing! They should include the recent posts of the blog on the home page but they are not doing it! What's the purpose of having a blog then?
Is it just for the RSS thing? So the visitors need to just visit the blog once, subscribe, then never visit it again? (Because they now have the info delivered to their emails/readers.) Unless they included only the summary of the posts, of course.
Despite the simplistic layout, let's see if the contents could neutralize the situation. When I tried to comment though, I still need to log in. (Another no-no for blogs!) Instead of the ability to leave your name and URL, or the easy connect to your Open ID, Google, Twitter, or Facebook accounts, we still need to login. And before that - we still need to register!
Now that the reader is annoyed at this moment, do they still have the patience to continue reading on? It depends on the reader, as for me, I need to review the blog that's why I'm still on this site.
The content. Well, this is their last chance. If in case I find something valuable here, I may continue reading the blog. While making this review, their last post was on the May 30th (not so updated frequently. Tsk. tsk.), the post is titled is "Top 10 Signals Your Coupon Code is a Scam". These type of posts where we included numbers are most often clicked through by our visitors because it should be a list. But when I landed on the post... There is no top 10! It includes the right information, but not the way it has promised on the title of the post!
As much as I tried to pick the positive traits while reviewing, the blog has got deep into my nerves that all my positive outlook in life is in a blur. If they are serious with this blog, they should atleast put some time doing something for it to be better.
Bottomline: Just having a blog for the sake of having a blog for a site isn't enough.
The main site though is full of coupons. Get ready to scoop them!
Visit The Coupon Scoop Blog at thecouponscoop.com/blog.
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This post is a part of
BlogFest 2011 hosted by Loading-Info and
the June 2011 Contest of BlogEngage.
BlogFest 2011 hosted by Loading-Info and
the June 2011 Contest of BlogEngage.
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