How To Participate In Throwback Thursday And Help Your Old Blog Posts Get Noticed

Published on May 19, 2022Jan 18, 2023 by Hugh W. Roberts107 Comments

What is Throwback Thursday?

How do you participate in Throwback Thursday?

Throwback Thursday is the day to bring your old blog posts back to life.

Image for the blog post 'How To Participate In Throwback Thursday And Help Your Old Blog Posts Get Noticed Again' — Are you making the most of your old blog posts?

We all have old blog posts in our archives, many of which are buried bits of treasure that can reward us again. Throwback Thursday is the perfect day to rekindle those old blog posts.

Only use blog posts that are still relevant, although always ensure you first make any necessary changes to the posts you want to highlight.

How to participate in Throwback Thursday

Select a favourite blog post that is at least a few months old.

Share it via a pingback or link in a new Throwback Thursday blog post.

After all, not only will some of your readers not have seen the post the first time it was published, but new followers may also not have seen it.

However, as I mentioned, rather than publish the whole post again, the idea behind Throwback Thursday is to include a link to the post you want to highlight in your Throwback Thursday post.

What you should do with your Throwback Thursday blog posts.

Only publish the post on a Thursday. That may seem like common sense, but I’ve seen bloggers publish them on other days of the week. Some readers may find it odd to publish Throwback Thursday posts on any other day than a Thursday. After all, the clue is in the title.

However, don’t worry if you miss publishing your Throwback Thursday blog post. You can always delay publication until the following Thursday. There are lots of Thursdays to choose from.

Flashback Friday.

If you’re a day late in publishing your Throwback Thursday post, you can always change it to a Flashback Friday post. Flashback Friday has the same concept as Throwback Thursday, where you are encouraged to highlight older blog posts.

Share your Throwback Thursday posts on social media using the hashtag #ThrowbackThursday so that other participants can find your post.

Tag your post ‘ThrowBack Thursday’ on your blog so other participants can find it.

You can also include the words ‘Throwback Thursday’ or the hashtag in the title of your blog post, but always ensure you add the title of the blog post you’re highlighting. You don’t want to end up with many blog posts simply titled ‘Throwback Thursday.’

When creating the pingback to the post you want to highlight, ensure you turn on the ‘open in new tab‘ button so that readers don’t lose the page of your blog they’re on.

Not sure how to create a pingback? Click here for full details.

Is there anything else I should consider when publishing Throwback Thursday blog posts?

Yes, I recommend closing comments on the post and asking readers to leave any new comments on the original blog post you’re highlighting. That way, they can see and read comments already left on the post you’re promoting. They can join any ongoing discussion. It makes more sense to have comments on the same post rather than scattered across several blog posts.

When selecting which posts to promote, choose the ones you believe your readers will benefit from and think they’ll enjoy reading again.

And that is Throwback Thursday.

Do you participate in Throwback Thursday? Do you have any questions about Throwback Thursday? Please leave them in the comments section.

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Flash Fiction Friday – How To Farm A Blog

Published on Mar 4, 2022Nov 18, 2025 by Hugh W. Roberts29 Comments

February 28, 2022, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write about the farm life. Where is the farm and who are the farmers? What are they farming and why? How is the farm life? Go where the prompt leads! Click here for details.

How To Farm Your Blog – by Hugh W. Roberts

“Have you tried farming out your blog posts instead of cluster-publishing them?” asked the blogging genie.

“Farming them out?”

“Yes, another word for scheduling. Instead of publishing too many blog posts and overwhelming your readers, farm them out by scheduling them over a more extended period. Your readers won’t feel swamped.”

“I like that idea.”

“And don’t forget to farm out the posts you want to reblog. Instead of reblogging them the same day the original post is published, allow them to grow and farm them out a week later. After all, farming and blogging are all about growth.”

***

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.

***

Notes

The definition of a cluster-blogger is somebody who publishes many blog posts within a short timeframe and then does not publish the next batch of blog posts for many days/weeks or months. It can result in making readers feel overwhelmed.

Scheduling blog posts in advance and leaving at least six hours between the publication of blog posts decreases the sense of overwhelmingness, resulting in a more manageable and enjoyable reading experience.

Click here for information on how to schedule blog posts.

Enjoyed this piece of flash fiction? Then you’ll love Glimpses

Glimpses

28 short stories and pieces of flash fiction take the reader on a rollercoaster of twists and turns.

Available on Amazon

Paperback – £4.99

Kindle – £0.99

***

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Why I Was Threatened With Legal Action After Reblogging On WordPress – A True Story And Guest Post by Deborah Jay @DeborahJay2

Published on Jan 31, 2022Feb 18, 2024 by Hugh W. Roberts174 Comments

If you’re a blogger who has used or still uses the reblog button to share other bloggers’ posts, I urge you to read this post.

Likewise, if you use photos or images in your own posts that are not your own or do not come from a genuine website that offers free images and photos, this post is a must-read.

Early 2021, during the lockdown, I had a nasty shock.

For me, the lockdown was terrific – I live in a farmhouse in the Scottish Highlands with gorgeous gardens, have a horse and a pack of rescue dogs, and for once, I could legitimately stay at home and not travel for work. This also allowed me to sit and write without feeling like I was short-changing some other part of my life.

What I had not expected, however, was to receive an email from a law firm accusing me of copyright infringement on a photograph I’d displayed on my blog back in my earliest blogging days, somewhere around 2013.

To add insult to injury, it wasn’t even a blog post I’d put together myself, but a collection of inspirational photos on a friend’s blog, which I’d reblogged!

I shared her post using the WordPress ‘Reblog’ button, and, as you may know, the post appears on your blog with a link to the original for anyone wanting to see more.

I had NO idea (this was quite early in my blogging career); this meant that ALL the photographs in that post were downloaded and stored in my own media library. The fact they were downloaded, even without my knowledge, became a potential legal problem.

If this happens to you, DO NOT ignore it.

The ‘Cease and Desist’ email came from an Italian law firm. Their client, the photographer, is based in the UK, as am I. It detailed the blog post and the specific photograph and demanded £1045.00 compensation for using the picture without obtaining a licence. This was justified as:

£195 financial loss (£39 per year for the licence)
£150 damages for flagrancy (putting the photographer at increased risk of having the photo stolen/used without obtaining a licence)
£100 damages for negative financial consequences
£150 for the absence of a picture credit
£50 damages for moral prejudice
£100 damages for consequential losses
£100 damages for devaluing the image
£200 lawyers’ fees

Scary, huh?

This was what I did:

The first step was to check that the law firm existed, looking up their website and digging a little on Google. Sadly, for me, it was legit.
Then I looked at the photographer’s site to find the photo. Yes, it was there, along with the price for an annual licence, as detailed in the legal letter.
So, having established that I had indeed violated copyright, although unwittingly, I checked my own post. As a reblog, I could only see the first picture, which wasn’t the one in dispute. I replied to the lawyer, asking for a screenshot of the image displayed on my site. To my shock, an image of the entire post came back, with all the photos in evidence displayed on my blog. I still don’t know how this is possible, but I couldn’t argue because they had the screenshot.
I removed the post from my site and also delved into my media library, which is when I discovered to my shock, that all the pictures from the post were stored there. I deleted them all, just in case.
I contacted the original blogger and advised her to delete it, which she did. The last thing I wanted was for them to go after her, too.
The next step was to contact the lawyer again and point out I was not the original poster, explaining it was a reblog of someone else’s post.
They replied that while they would consider this, I was still held responsible because the image had been displayed on my site. They dropped the proposed settlement to £800 and gave me 10 days to pay up.
I contacted another lawyer for advice. Her answer was: ‘If you did not download it and post it on your site, then you did not copy it. I would argue that re-posting or embedding is not copying because the image is hosted elsewhere and therefore cannot be copyright infringement.’ Note that last bit? Unfortunately, the way WordPress works, the photo had been downloaded and hosted on my own site, even though I hadn’t known it, so this didn’t help me.
I went back to the Italian lawyer and again stressed that I was not the person who had chosen to use the image. I felt they were being unfair coming after me and not the original poster (which is why I’d given her the heads-up first and ensured she’d removed all traces from her site before typing this message).
By now, this had gone on for 6 weeks, with me leaving it almost to the stipulated 10-day deadline when I replied to the lawyer. I never once refused to pay them, but I did not offer to do so or haggle about the sum. I spent more time researching potential help from legal groups, but…
Nearly a year on, and I’ve not heard from them again! This sounds fairly simple, but it was a time-consuming and stressful experience.

I understand from years ago, mainly when posting paper letters, that sometimes the answer to such events is to continue corresponding. Never offer anything, but keep querying small details and spread them out as long as possible. If nothing else, you may get a reduction (as I did) in the sum they demand.

I was lucky; I know others who have had to pay up. In this case, they apparently wrote me off as too much bother to pursue.

If you should be unfortunate enough to have this happen to you, the most important things are:

Don’t ignore it – it has the potential to be very expensive.
Don’t pay up straight away – always investigate your options.

Deborah Jay writes fantasy and urban fantasy featuring complex, quirky characters and multi-layered plots – just what she likes to read.

Fortunate enough to live not far from Loch Ness in the majestic, mystery-filled Scottish Highlands with her partner and a pack of rescue dogs, she can often be found lurking in secluded glens and forests, researching locations for her books.

Her first published novel, epic fantasy THE PRINCE’S MAN, won a UK Arts Council award and debuted as an Amazon Hot 100 New Release.

Photo of author, writer and blogger Deborah Jay

Connect With Deborah

Blog: Deborah Jay

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Important Reminders About Reblogging from Hugh

Reblogging saves many bloggers time. It’s quick to do and can result in more visits and comments to the reblogged post.

It’s also a safe option, but only when used correctly. Here are several points to consider and note if you intend to reblog another blogger’s post or have ever reblogged another blogger’s post.

If you reblog or have reblogged the blog posts of other bloggers, any images, videos or photos in those posts will have been downloaded into your WordPress media library. You could, therefore, have downloaded illegal images or photos and images that are copyrighted.
Check the small print – Some photos, images, and pictures may have a limited time that they’re free to use. After that, you could face a fine if they remain on your blog or in your media library.
Consider other options for sharing blog posts where images and photos are not downloaded to your blog. The ‘Press This’ sharing button is a good option, as no images and photos are downloaded to your media library.
Another option instead of reblogging is to write and publish a post that includes pingback links to blog posts you want to share. Blogger Sally Cronin does this with her ‘Blogger Weekly’ feature.
If you run a blogging challenge where you reblog posts from participants, consider adding links to those posts in your blog post or in a new blog post rather than reblogging them. Blogger Terri Webster Schrandt does this in her Sunday Stills photography challenge.
If you’re unsure that any content in a blog post you want to share is not free to download or use, don’t reblog the post.
Don’t think that what happened to Deborah won’t happen to you. It can!
If you believe you may have reblogged posts that have images or photos that are copyrighted or not free to download and use, delete the posts immediately.
After deleting posts, remember to remove any images and photos that appeared on the reblog from your WordPress media library, as deleting the post does not delete them.
Remember that copyright laws can also apply to lyrics, artwork, drawings and text.

WordPress offers users hundreds of free images and photos.

If you’re not convinced by Deborah’s experience of copyright infringement, then read Debby Kaye’s post here about a copyright experience she had where she was fined for reblogging a post that contained an image that was copyright protected.

If you have any questions about Deborah’s experience or about reblogging, leave them in the comments section. Deborah and I will try and answer them, although we cannot offer any legal advice.

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Not sure it’s free? Then don’t reblog, copy or download it.

I thank Deborah for sharing her true story about the perils of reblogging with us and for allowing me to publish it on my blog.

Do you have any experience of being fined for copyright infringement?

How Do You Measure The Success Of Your Blog Posts?

Published on Nov 29, 2021Dec 10, 2025 by Hugh W. Roberts149 Comments

How do you measure the success of a blog post?

Banner for the blog post 'How Do You Measure The Success Of Your Blog Posts?' — Which of your blog posts are the most successful?

As we drift into the last few weeks of the year, I find the world of blogging gradually becomes a quieter place. Like thousands of others, I’ll be taking a seasonal blogging break as we head deeper into December.

However, one of the most popular posts I see appearing every December and early January is the traditional ‘My Top 10 Blog Posts Of The Year’ post. It won’t be long before these annual posts drop into your email inbox and WordPress Reader.

But how do bloggers measure the success of those top 10 posts? What is it that helps make those posts appear in their ‘top 10’ lists?

The more hits, the more successful?

Most bloggers who will publish their ‘Top 10 Blog Posts of 2021’ blog post will base their list on the number of hits each blog post achieved. But that always has me questioning if that is the right way to compile a top 10 list.

A blog post may have thousands of hits, but how many actually read the content? Does not reading a post make it successful? Should the number of hits count towards success when we’ve no idea how many times the post was read?

Does landing on a blog post by mistake make a post more successful when some of those who land there don’t stay and read the content?

Search engines are essential for finding something in particular on the web. However, how often have I clicked a link, then moved on quickly after realising the page I landed on isn’t what I was looking for? I’ll be honest and say that I’ve lost count!

It’s made me question whether that click I made should count towards making the post more successful when I haven’t read the content.

Volume V’s Sales

Let’s have a look at it another way. Take these two identical shops:

Shop ‘A’ gets hundreds of customers a day because of its location or large advertising budget. However, it gets few sales a day.

Shop ‘B” gets a much smaller number of customers because of its location or smaller advertising budget but gets a high sales volume.

Which of the shops is the most successful? A or B?

When should comments count towards success?

If I compiled my ‘Top 10 Posts of 2021’ post based on the number of comments every post got, my top 10 list would look very different from the list I compiled for the number of hits or ‘likes’ a post got.

For example, one of my posts that received the most hits did not get any new comments or ‘likes’ left in the last 12 months. Yet the post that was number 21 on my most hits list got three new comments and six further ‘likes.’ Which one should be considered to have been the most successful in the last 12 months?

Then there are some bloggers (like me) who may not count specific comments. Comments that add value or prove the post was read count. Whereas lazy comments such as ‘Great Post’ or comments that only include a line of emojis may not count.

When measuring success, should we include all comments or only those that add value or prove the post was read?

When is a ‘like’ not a ‘like’?

I’ve never been a fan of the ‘like’ button on blogs since I discovered that some bloggers and readers misuse it. However, I see many bloggers basing the success of posts on the number of clicks on the ‘like’ button.

Should clicking ‘like’ without reading a post count towards making a post successful? How many times have you had the same person press the ‘like’ button on lots of your blog posts within seconds of each other?

How many times has somebody clicked the ‘like’ button within seconds of you publishing a post?

Surely Sandra read my 900-word post if she clicked ‘like’ within ten seconds of me publishing it, didn’t she? Otherwise, why would she have clicked the ‘like’ button?

How do we know if somebody who clicks ‘like’ actually read the post?

Unfortunately, unless somebody clicks ‘like’ a reasonable time after publication, and leaves a genuine comment that proves they’ve read the post, we don’t know.

Misuse of the ‘like’ button seems widespread in the blogging world, with some readers even pressing it to ease the guilt of not having time to read and comment on a post. Some click ‘like’ as a sign of support but may not read the post. Should those ‘likes’ count towards the success of a post?

Some see the ‘like’ button as nothing more than a free promotional tool for their blog, without even reading a post. Leave a ‘like’ and, fingers crossed, it will bring in some new visitors.

The only success we should be discussing for these types of ‘likes’ is that the person clicking the ‘like’ button feels the post and blog are successful. All they’re doing is jumping on the success bandwagon of somebody else’s hard work.

If you’re wondering why I still have the ‘like’ button at the bottom of all my posts, allow me to enlighten you. I discovered (and WordPress told me) that it is connected to the ‘reblog’ button. Remove it, and the ‘reblog’ button also disappears from your blog posts.

That’s something I was not willing to allow.

And removing the ‘like’ button from your blog doesn’t mean it will be removed from posts when they appear on the WordPress Reader. If you’ve removed the ‘like’ button from your blog, are you aware that people can still click on a ‘like’ button when reading your posts on the WP Reader?

How do I measure the success of a blog post?

Simple. If I were motivated or inspired to write and publish a post, then it would be a success. Therefore, you won’t find a ‘Top 10 Blog Posts Of 2021’ post on my blog.

Winding-up

At the end of the day, I guess it’s entirely up to the blogger concerned about how they measure the success of their blog posts. What I do question, though, is whether bloggers should be publishing results that are not necessarily accurate.

Allow me to run a final thought past you

Suppose a blog post gets only a few hundred hits but receives over 50 genuine comments and likes. Does it make it more successful than a post with thousands of hits yet very few comments and likes?