Why I love the more tag

I’m an advocate of the more tag for a number of reasons – some people don’t like it but I use it where I feel it is appropriate.

What is the more tag?

<!--more-->

The more tag is above. Whenever you see a ‘Read more…’ type of link in a wordpress powered blog it is likely because the author has just inserted a more tag.

Why do I love the more tag?

1. The more tag avoids duplicate content issues – if you don’t use the more tag you have your posts both on the homepage(s) and the post page. Which page should Google serve for relevant queries? You’d think the search engines were smart enough to work it out. They’re not so tell them yourself!
2. I’m lazy and the more tag helps – when I come across a new blog I like to get a quick overview of what kind of things they post to see if I should subscribe or not. If the blogger in question doesn’t use the more tag I have scroll through a see of words to work out what kind of things they post. I know it’s my fault for being lazy but still…
3. I can decide whether or not I want to read more – by using the more tag you’re not forcing me to read/skip your content. I can decide myself from an introductory paragraph or two.
4. It makes your blog look more professional – this is 100% my opinion. It’s not a rule of blogging. I just think it makes your blog look a bit slicker and more professional – this does need to be coupled with quality posts though.

It’s not all great with the more tag though.

Why do I hate the more tag?

1. The more tag affects your RSS feeds as well – by default in wordpress the more tag affects your RSS feed as well as your homepage. I hate this. It is my biggest gripe against the more tag. I subscribed to your RSS feed so I could view your feed when and where I wanted not to just read a bit and then be forced back to your site. If I want to come and visit your site or comment on the post then I will. Don’t force me to – it’s rude! There’s a plugin stop this from happening – Full Text Feed.
2. It’s not so good for people just browsing around your site – especially if some of your posts aren’t very long. I imagine it can sometimes feel like a pointless extra click when all they get is another short paragraph or few sentences. So I would recommend only using it for long quality posts. It’s questionable whether I should be moring this post.

What do you think about the more tag?

Related posts:

1. Treating different content consumers differently!
2. How to write more readable blog posts
3. To run a successful blog you need to invest time
4. Are Madlib Sites Whitehat?
5. Purge your feeds so you can read the interesting things

Tagged as: blogging