Bringing Some New Themes to TypePad
Results of the Design Poll

Come for the banner, stay for the content

We all know that capturing a prospective reader's attention within the first few seconds of landing on your blog can be a challenge, so what you need is a hook; something that will pull people in and make them start reading. If you've ever noticed a blog with a really special flair, chances are it's all pulled together by a great banner. Your banner is the first thing that people see, so it should be an eyecatching indication of what your readers can expect to find in your blog. If your account level is Plus or above, then you can make your blog stand out with a custom banner, too.

You don't have to be a graphics guru to create a great banner. Simply start with an image that you would like to use as a base. Whether your blog focuses on crafts, business, family or photography, using a relevant image or illustration can really help set the tone. You can use a photo that belongs to you, or search the 'net for a free stock image. Once you have the image that you want to use, you'll need to edit it for size, and add some text - generally the title of your blog and a brief tagline works really well here. These steps can both be accomplished with an image editing program like PhotoShop, PaintShop Pro, or Paint. If you don't have access to these programs, don't despair! You can use an online image editor, such as Free Online Image Editor.

Once your banner is the correct size (you can read about how to determine the right size for your banner in our Knowledge Base) and you've achieved just the right look, you'll want to add it to your blog. For our Plus, Pro and Premium users using a Custom Theme, the easiest way to do this is by going to Weblogs > Design > Change Theme, then clicking Edit This Element under Page Banner. Our Pro and Premium users who are comfortable using a little CSS can add a banner to a Pre-Defined Theme by adding a bit of code to Weblogs > Design > Edit Custom CSS (you can learn more and grab the code in our Knowledge Base).

A great banner design can give your blog an easy, instant upgrade!

Check out a few great examples of TypePad bloggers who are using custom banners below:

HELLO my name is HeatherNo Impact ManPosie Gets Cozy

To get a better idea of how these TypePad bloggers are rocking their banners, click on each image to view a larger version or visit their blogs and show them some love: HELLO my name is Heather, No Impact Man and Posie Gets Cozy.

You can find more tips for creating a weblog banner in our Knowledge Base.

- Melanie and the Support team

Comments

liza cowan

Hi. I have a great banner,too. Do you want to show it?
www.seesaw.typepad.com

eurocarblog

Hi, thanks for the tips and the examples. I mucked around with my own banner on http://www.eurocarblog.net but I'm not sure if it looks professional or amateurish... the hardest thing is to make it blend in with the rest of the site.

Anne Hartman

I agree - a custom banner is important. It would be great if you could include the option to create a custom banner at the Basic service level. Some of the free blog services allow custom banners, and now that I'm at the point where I would like to have a custom banner, I'm not sure it justifies the extra cost.

Seshu

I have posted my custom banner here - http://www.tiffinbox.org. Here is where I need some help. Is it at all possible to embed links within my banner? Anyone do this effectively? I do have a PRO level account with Typepad. Thanks!

Cheebah

I agree with Anne, this should be available at Basic level as it is available to other free blog services. Maybe there could be a once off add on cost to add it or something, but the option should be there.

Shane

Emily Jarkins

I agree with the other comments..this should be available at Basic level as it is available to other free blog services.

pam100

Great article. Banners are fun to create. How about posting the simple (I had it once but think I deleted the file) code to have rotating banners.

The Zen Birdfeeder

Thanks for the post. I wasn't aware that I had the capability to do my own banner! Check it out:
http://wildbirdsunlimited.typepad.com

I love it!

Bari  Ackerman

I just did a post about banners... I call my little obsession with them "Blog Banner Switcharoo Impulse".

The comments to this entry are closed.