There are 3 main ways you can read a new blog posts from a blogger you follow on WordPress.com as a WordPress.com blogger yourself
- The WordPress.com Reader
- or By Notification.
I have tried all three of these. I started by email and it was fun and enjoyable, and I was able to be keep my email box to zero with no problem – this was way back in 2016 when I started blogging. When we follow a blogger on WordPress.com email notification is the default position.
Then, I started to follow more blogs and stumbled upon the WordPress.com READER ( I was a bit late to realise this existed), then I stopped looking at my emails. My email box got out of control!! I would then spend x hours deleting emails !! This carried on for a good few years, until the middle of last year 2021 when I turned all email notifications off, ensuring my email inbox was only filled with relevant conversations and not a sea of new post notifications. I had to do this, as I was not able to see important emails that I needed to respond to. Turning all emails notification off meant that I used the WordPress.com Reader as my main way keeping up to date with the bloggers I follow. Now even with the reader I was missing some post. Let’s face it, I have always struggled to keep up to date with all the blogs I follow.
Anyway, turning off all email notifications really helped. Using the Reader helped. But, still …
Eventually, I discovered late’ that you can get notification of new blog post via the ‘bell icon’ on our WordPress.com Sites so I started to use that for only a handful of sites I follow, to get use to it. Yes, it has helped.
I created a little Youtube Video on it. I hope it makes sense and you can follow what I am saying – and maybe you can give it a go if you are struggling. Basically, I changed the way I interact with the blogs I follow, because honestly – it was death by email and I was missing really important emails.
Ways to Read the Blogs you follow on WordPress.com Com Easily and Smartly
Managing Comments on WordPress.com
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Thoughtsnlifeblog 
I only use the WP reader to follow blog post updates. I unsubscribed from notifications via email because it was clogging up my emails, and Ive been using the same email address for 18 years later which says a lot about my inbox 🤭
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Wow 18 years. I created a separate email for my blog to keep things separate.
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I tried that but never used the new email. I keep resorting to my main one 😂 I’ve had the same email since I was 12 so that says a lot about my age haha
I tried the notifications on WP but if I go several days without checking WP, the notifications cut off at a certain point and I will miss things. I try to keep notifications only for interactions with ppl rather than blog post updates. Sadly, I do miss new blog posts so I binge-read blog post updates from a blogger if I missed a bunch of them.
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Hilary, I understand. I think it so difficult for us to keep up to date with those we follow and I think it will always be a battle. I find the notification better and easier than the reader. I guess it comes to our individual usages and timing etc.
Wish you all the best in your blogging journey
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Yes, I also find it difficult to keep up with everyone I follow. I also find it easy to fall down the Reader rabbit hole if I’m not careful and end up wasting a lot of time reading blog posts. WP the equivalent of FB to me. One thing I found that really helps is logging out of WP when I’m finished using it, so I’m not tempted to check it constantly.
Notifications is still a good option and I’m glad that you found something that works for you. I might give the notifications another go!
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Just be selective with your notifications then it doesn’t become a rabbit hole. All the best
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Thank you! I’ll subscribe to 10 blogs for now and see how it goes. Right now I’m following over 250 blogs but 60% of them don’t post regularly. Still, the reader can be overwhelming so I will give notifications another try!
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Best of luck
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Thank you!
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I had to turn off a lot of emails too. I was getting dozens a day and was scared of missing personal emails. I’ve narrowed it down to a certain few blogs (like this one!) to get email notifications and for the rest I frequently check the Reader.
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Try the notification thing I show on the video, it is quite useful.
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great clues thanks Bella … I don’t think I’ve ever really done the email follow. I prefer the ‘reader’ but know that some don’t come through so I’ve turned on notifications … I had no idea, thanks!
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Yeah the email follow is automatically set, I believe on wp.com. Honestly the way I started blogging was a joke. I winged-it. Just went in clueless, didn’t read anything , or investigate too much when it came to wordpress.com. and the wordpress.com/wp-admin menu I didn’t know existed, didn’t know how to find comments other than the bell icon. I am still a bit clueless as you know 🙈🤪🤭🧐🤐. Also, wp.com have been so busy lately they have changed so much stuff in a few months, I don’t recognise it. I am so out of the loop. But, it gives more opportunity to create how to videos.
Have a good week Kate. Thank you Kate 😊
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glad you do Bella, many of us need them … I also flew by the seat of my pants. My besties tech kids had told me of two ‘free’ blogs, they claim I chose the hardest but somehow I’ve managed … but still posting in classic editor!
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Oh really wordpress.com is the hardest one. Interesting. But the wordpress.com community is the best, I don’t think we get a community in any other bloggers website tool. I think it doest matter what editor you use, you share such great posts. Just enjoy. Take care speak soon
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thanks
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