Show Related Posts with the LinkWithin Widget

I'm totally digging the LinkWithin widget that points readers to related posts for each entry. Here's a video:

Text instructions:

1. Go to http://www.linkwithin.com/
2. Fill out the form in the lower right and click Get Widget. A page of instructions displays.
3. Click on Install Widget. Youu'll then be sent into TypePad to choose the blog you want to add the widget to.
4. Check the blog you want to add the widget to and click Add Widget.
5. Within an hour, LinkWithin will have indexed and your blog and started adding suggested reading for each post.

How Blogging Can Catapult Your Small Business

A one-hour walkthrough on how a blog can help you build your small business to a global profile. With Six Apart's resident blogging evangelist Anil Dash.

Here's the recording: (PDF of the presentation)

This free call is part of our webinar series for small business. Complete schedule...

Add a Navigation Bar to Your Blog

A common feature on blogs is a horizontal navigation bar of links just underneath your blog's banner. Here's a tutorial to show you how to do just that:

Here's the full text documentation from our knowledge base (scroll down to 'Navigation Bar) and, for designers, tips on styling the navigation bar.

Add a Welcome Message to Your Blog

Here's one way to use the Feature This Post feature:

1. Go to Compose and scroll down.
2. On the lower right, click on Display Options.
3. Check the box for Feature This Post and then click OK.
4. You'll now see a 'Feature This Post' check box on your compose screen.
5. Write your welcome message, back date it a bit.
6. Be sure you check the checkbox to feature the post. Note: You can only feature one post at a time. If you had previously marked a post as featured, this new post will be featured instead.
7. Save and publish the post.
8. View your blog's homepage to be sure the welcome message is in the right place.

Add Your Other Blog to Your Sidebar

Lots of us have more than one blog. Here's how the most recent posts of your other blog to the sidebar of your main one:

First you need the feed address of your other blog.

• For TypePad, users it'll be http://yourname.typepad.com/blog-folder/atom.xml
• For Blogger, http://yourname.blogspot.com/default/feeds/posts
• For WordPress, http://yourname.wordpress.com/feed/ or for self-hosting WordPress.org blogs: http://yourblogsdomain.com/feed/
• If you are using a different platform reference your help documentation to find your other blog's feed address.

Then:

1. Highlight and Edit > Copy your other blog's feed address.
2. Login to TypePad and go to your main blog then Design > Content.
3. Find the module called RSS/Atom Feed and click Add Module.
4. A pop-up displays asking you for the feed URL. Paste the feed address of your other blog into this field and click Save.
5. Next you can specify a title for this module. You can also decide if you want to show the most recent five or ten entries. Click Save.
6. Drag-and-drop the module where you'd like it to appear in your sidebars and then click Save Changes
7. View your main blog and you should see your most recent posts from your other blog in your sidebar.

Here's the relevant documentation for feed widgets from the Knowledge Base (scroll down to 'Your Feeds') as well as instructions for users of Advanced Templates.

Add Your Ad Tags to your TypePad Blog

Our Six Apart Media team put together the latest Professor Wibbles video on how to add your Adify ad tags to your TypePad blog here:

Adding Feedburner Email Alerts to Your TypePad Blog (Video)

Feedburner is Google's service for tracking your blog's feed subscribers and what content they click on. You can also use it to add email alerts so readers that aren't RSS-savvy can get your posts delivered instantly to their inbox.

First you have to connect your blog to Feedburner:

Then, add the email alerts and subscription form to your blog (here's the text instructions Ginevra posted a few weeks ago)

Add Recommended Reading and Star Ratings with the Outbrain Widget

Outbrain lets you easily add a ratings widget so your readers can rate your posts between one and five stars. It also brings up recommended posts based on those ratings. Here's how to add it to TypePad: (text instructions below)

 

1. Go to http://www.outbrain.com/ and click on the TypePad icon.
2. Fill out the registration form and click Register. Your Outbrain account is created.
3. Then click on Get Widget Now.You'll be sent into TypePad to choose the blog you want to add the ratings widget to.
4. Check the checkbox of the blog and click Add Widget.
5. Go out to your blog. You'll now see a one to five star ratings widget, recommendations will appear as ratings accumulate.

Add Search to Your TypePad Blog with Lijit

Lijit is a service that allows you to add a search box to your blog and also include other sources like your YouTube videos, recent Diggs and Delicious bookmarks. Here's a quick video on how to add it to your blog: (text instructions below)

1. Go to http://www.lijit.com/ and click on Get Started. You are prompted to enter your blog's URL.
   Enter your blog's URL and click Get Lijit.
2. Lijit then prompts you to add your bookmarks, photos, videos, feeds and other information into your search. Select the ones you want and then click Save and Continue.
3. Next, you'll be prompted to add configuration options to any extra search sources you've chosen. Click Save and Continue.
4. You'll then create a Lijit account and profile. Click Save and Continue. Lijit goes out to all the sources and indexes them.
5. You can upload a photo to your search results, or not. Save and Continue
6. On the next screen, you can choose from various configuration options for the search box that will go into your sidebar. Fill them out and click Save Wijit settings. A success message displays, close it.
7. Then click Quick Install for TypePad.You'll be sent into TypePad to then choose the blog you want to add the Lijit search box to.
8. Check the checkbox of the blog and click Add Widget. The Widget has been added to your sidebars.
9. Go out to your blog and reload it and you should see the Lijit search box in your sidebars.

To change the position of the Lijit search widget, go to Weblogs > (your blog) > Design > Content and then drag-and-drop the widgets in the order your like and then Save Changes.

Add Social Bookmarking to TypePad with the ShareThis Widget

The ShareThis widget helps your readers bookmark, blog about, share and send your blog posts to their friends and social networks. Here's how to add it to TypePad: (text instructions below)

 

1. Go to http://www.sharethis.com/ and click on Get the Button. The Get the Button page displays.
2. Select your blog platform, in this case TypePad.
3. Customize the widget (or don't).
4. Click on Get ShareThis code.
5. Create your ShareThis account - this will give you customized reports on how readers are sharing your content.
6. Click on Add to TypePad.
7. Go out to your blog (or reload it) you'll now see the ShareThis widget at the bottom of each post.