Dan Antion

WordPress Rant – 1LinerWeds

Each week, I slip behind in my blog reading as I prepare this post (1LinerWeds) and my Thursday Doors post because I want to announce the Thursday Doors post on the sidebar of this post. Then, as the Thursday Doors contributions start arriving, I fall miserably behind in reading everyone else’s posts.

I let them pile up in my inbox, and I try to catch up on Sunday and Monday. As I was reading posts last week, I grew angry at WordPress. I had gotten used to seeing a block of nine useless, mindless, intrusive and generally insipid ads at the bottom of free blogs, but they had up’d their game. They were now plastering a video commercial above that block.

While normally a quiet, uninvolved introvert, I fired off the following tweet.

My initial Tweet

They responded, as most companies do when the potential to be embarrassed on Twitter surfaces—they denied the allegation and asked me to move our discussion into a Direct Message, i.e. an off the record thread. I did.

WP’s initial response

I sent them links to two blogs where I had encountered the collection of ads.

They—have you heard this before—were unable to recreate the problem and asked for screen shots.

I sent them two.

They replied with an explanation that belied their earlier subterfuge. Apparently, they do (sometimes) put nine ads on free sites—and I suspect they knew that when they directed me into a DM thread.

  • My initial Tweet
  • WP’s initial response
  • Example #1
  • WP’s response to the links I sent
  • I tried to hide the identity of the blogger whose page I was viewing
  • I tried to hide the identity of the blogger whose page I was viewing
  • My final Tweet

My one-liner is the highlighted part of my final reply.

I understand the necessity for being ad-supported. However, my original comment remains valid. This much advertising is way too much. I only want to get past it. I never look at these ads, unless I click on them by accident. You look at providing a free service to the blogger, as if it’s a one-way street. In fact. People are coming to the page to see the content created by that blogger. They certainly aren’t coming to see your ads.

My tweet had a couple minor typos—when do they not—which I corrected above. The original is in the slide show. I’ve received no further response, other than several likes of my original tweet.

This post is part of Linda G. Hill’s fun weekly series One-Liner Wednesday. If you have a one-liner, or if you would like to join in on the fun, you can follow this link to participate and to see the one-liners from the other participants.

“See, the thing is, I might be having babies soon. I need to keep up my strength”
“I think I heard the peanut delivery lady.”
She’s watching the delivery woman walking back to the porch
The pile of peanuts was picked at by blue jays and other squirrels
They all like to be high in the tree
Brilliant sunshine
My first thought was toilet seat – sorry
Windy day for Old Glory
Smokey likes to eat on the fence
The bunnies have ignored the hyacinth, so far
We woke up to a little snow on Tuesday
MiMi was checking out the dusting of snow
Costco needs to gather some carts
In a tree near the park


If you like magical realism with suspense, action and a bit of family sarcasm, you will enjoy these books:

Knuckleheads
The Evil You Choose
When Evil Chooses You

Series page on Amazon

My profile page (and books) on Lulu

All available on Kindle Unlimited!

98 comments

  1. I also fall behind very regularly on reading others posts, sometimes I get half way through one and never finish meaning to go back to it and of course that never happens!
    It’s frustrating talking to anyone at WordPress, well done for persevering.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • I understand, and I agree. It is a business, and they need to include the ads, but enough is enough. Nine ads and a video on a 300-word blog post is way too much.

      I pay for my site, and I pay for other online services, and WordPress is at the low end of the price-to-value ratio. I pay the same for Microsoft 365 as I do for WordPress, but I get access to a world renowned software suite and 1 TB of storage. WordPress gives me a place for my blog and 13 GB.

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  4. I say hurrah for you for having your say. We all understand about paying bills, and I do pay WordPress, but the whole thing about ads on the Internet has become scream-worthy. And that’s MY say. (p.s. I don’t doubt you fall behind in everything because of Thursday Doors, but it’s a great world travel every week, so thanks!)

    Liked by 1 person

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  5. I also noticed the leap from 9 to 9+video, and I also just scroll right past it. It does get more annoying as it continues to grow. I guess scrolling past it is about the same as me pushing the mute button on tv ads which I’ve done for years. Bottom line is that blog posts without ads are definitely more enjoyable, but I also understand to get rid of those ads costs cold hard cash.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Scrolling past is like hitting the mute button, Judy. That’s a good analogy. The bigger problem is that some ads on TV are actually fun to watch. I haven’t seen anything inside those 9-blocks that makes me want to click. What bothered me the most was that they started out saying they don’t put 9 ads on a blog post and wanted to take the conversation off-line as if to solve the problem. They ended by acknowledging that they do put the ads there – of course, that, too was in a private message.

      Liked by 1 person

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  6. I worked in radio in the 80s and 90s as a disk jockey, and it was canon in the business that a commercial break (stop set in the lingo) was no more than six 30-second spots. Any more than that and the listener has assuredly changed the station. Much the same as nine ads on a WordPress post!

    Have you noticed how low-quality the ads are? Who would click any of them?

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks for adding that. It seems like it’s still true. At some point, the ads are going to make you start scrolling. And your right about the quality-I haven’t seen anything I’d want to click on.

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  7. It is all so discouraging, Dan. Good for you for calling them on it. I noticed the addition of a new little gem called ‘Blaze’ available on the ‘all posts’ admin screen. I can now pay WordPress to monetize my individual posts. That’s a good way to lose followers I think. That’s all I need – my posts showing up on someone else’s blog. What are they thinking?

    That mama squirrel looks quite happy about the possibility of peanuts.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • I didn’t notice that, Maggie. A good thing to watch out for. You’re right, a great way to lose followers. It’s tough enough without self-sabotage. That’s like what LinkedIn does. When I comment on someone else’s post, I get a message asking me if I want to turn my comment into a post and take control of the conversation. Sounds like a great way to lose a friend.

      Mama squirrel was very happy. When she pops up, we call her whack-a-mom, but, of course, we feed her. Our neighbor cut down all his trees in December, and so many nests were destroyed. A bunch moved into our woodpiles. Fortunately, it’s been a mild winter.

      Liked by 1 person

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      • LinkedIn has changed so much. It is no longer the same professional forum it once was. And ‘blaze’? It just showed up one day with no notice.

        I hate it when people take down too many trees. It was so horrible in Florida when Hurricane Charley hit. So many habitats were destroyed. Nature is hard enough without mankind helping.

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        • I’ll keep an eye out for “blaze” – that’s weird. We have removed so much habitat in this little town, and then people complain about seeing coyotes, foxes, raccoons, skunks and even bears. People on the town forum complain “we never had these before.” I don’t engage, but I want to add…”before we approved all the development and eliminated the wooded areas.”

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  9. While I understand ads are necessary to provide us with a free site, I agree the high number are defeating their purpose. That being said, the only reason I pay for a premium account is so I’m able to keep flooding my readers with photos. No ads is just a bonus.
    Hyacinth buds! Did the bunnies miss those… or are they just waiting for them to bloom when they’ll be tastier?
    😉

    Liked by 1 person

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    • I pay for the convenience and the lack of ads, but I wish there was an option between 13 gb and unlimited storage. I don’t need the features that come with the premium plan, but I’d pay a little more for more storage. Of course, they want to move us all into the pricier tier.

      The Hyacinths sometimes get as far as blooming before the bunny chomps them down to nubs. The tulips are also poking through. I was pretty stupid when I planted them. I planted two bunches of them right outside of the places they live.

      Liked by 1 person

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  11. For all of you who actually blog, WP must be a nightmare. For me as a reader, it’s extremely annoying to scroll through those endless cheesy ads. Kudos to you for calling WP on the carpet, but it probably won’t improve, will it?

    The squirrel in the woodpile is just too adorable, pregnant or not. You couldn’t possibly ignore her.

    I see the toilet seat, but I also see a strange arrangement of snakes! I think the toilet seat is quite appropriate coming from someone who writes on No Facilities!

    Nice shot of Old Glory getting the dust blown out of her!

    Happy Hump Day Dan. If you have to visit Costco, at least you know where you’ll find a basket! Sheeeesh!
    Ginger

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks Ginger. For those of us in the first paid tier, I’m guessing they will change from being ad-free to limited-ads at some point. The goal seems to be to get us all into the premium (a.k.a. most expensive) tier. I wish Google would take a few weeks and improve Blogger to the point that it was a better platform. I came to WordPress for the community, but WordPress seems to think I came for their service.

      I don’t want to think about snakes and toilet seats at the same time.

      This flag has held up well against the strong winds and rain we’ve had. She’s a grand old flag, for sure.

      Over the hump, and it looks like we will miss the brunt of another storm. Oh well, onto spring, blooms, and baby squirrels. She is a cutie.

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  12. Good for you for saying something about those awful ads. I didn’t notice the video added, probably because I scroll through the ads so quickly. DM you? Wow. Looking to hide something, WP?
    Toilet seat for the win! That’s what I see, too. 😂

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks Lois. Yeah, I knew that’s where they were going, but it made me mad when they said “we don’t put 9 ads on a page” as if they wanted my help to figure things out. They just wanted our conversation to be out of sight because people were liking my original tweet.

      Glad you saw the toilet seat – great minds, huh?

      Liked by 1 person

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  13. I know exactly what you mean, Dan. I noticed in the last week, when I go look at one of my favorite person’s blog, it’s filled with annoying ads that were never there before. I thought she placed them, but she may be unaware that they are there. Are they on mine too? If so, I did not ask for them! Let me know please! I’ll rant to them as well!!

    Liked by 1 person

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  15. While it probably won’t result in any significant change by WP, I hope it made you feel better. Like you, my eyes glaze over when I see ad after ad especially when I specifically pay not to have them show up on my site. And then I get cranky and tweet something about it. It never changes the overall situation but I feel a bit better just being able to release some steam.

    Liked by 1 person

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  16. I skip all the ads. I pay for two things on my blog, but I’m not sure no ads is one of them! I should look.

    We had a little more snow yesterday and there’s a chance for more for the next week. The pile in the front yard next to the driveway is getting high!
    Stay warm!

    Liked by 1 person

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  17. Akkk! How infuriating. I hate those ads. Worse they can cast a disreputable light on the blogger. I’ve promised myself to keep up the expense of paying WordPress to keep the adds off my blog, for as long as I can manage the expense. But I’ve always felt it was a lot like paying protection money to the mob…
    Hugs.

    Liked by 1 person

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  19. I love how your “one-liners” take up a whole post 😏
    That said, WordPress doesn’t give a rat’s ass about anyone’s woes.
    The ice shot DOES look like a toilet seat!
    Lovely photos, of course :)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks Dale. I must be Linda’s worst rule-follower. Every now and then I try to get closer to one line, but I couldn’t get there today. Maybe I should have talked to you first and just gone with “WordPress doesn’t give a rat’s ass about anyone’s woes.” That sums it up well.

      Glad you see the toilet seat ;-)

      Liked by 1 person

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  21. Agreeing on the ice shot but let’s hope we never sit on a toilet seat that cold!! I get that WP rant completely but at least you get responses! I might now that I upgraded to the Pro or whatever because now I’m paying more. Same old, same old. It irritates me to have to click to log in many times when trying to “like” or “comment”. They know everything about us anyway, so why go to this hassle? Everyone is starting to charge for things such as reading more than a few free articles a week from various places, access recipes that are offered in your free subscription, OneDrive charging more to store over a certain amount, etc. Nickle-and-dime-ing adds up to plenty dollars eventually.

    I never pay attention to ads and of course I can’t see them on my site. Had to have other people mention they were there. I’m not going to pay to not have them there. Let the advertisers pay.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • You’re so right. Everyone is looking for ways to squeeze some or more money out of us. They ask for more $$ but they don’t give us any more. WordPress has to be the stingiest service when it comes to storage space. And, yes, it would be better if the service was reliable, but the login issue has been with us for well over a year, and pingbacks break several times every year.

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  22. Dan, I definitely think the number of ads has exploded on certain folks’ sites opposed to a decade ago. Like you, I agree a singular, well placed ad might actually possess value and create interest in me. Instead, it’s like they’ve sprayed graffiti across these web sites. People want visitors to read their thoughts, not have to sift through a maze of advertising. I am sure you felt a measure of satisfaction in WP’s eventual response, even though it was private. Winter storm again missing us. 70 tomorrow. Is this really February?

    Liked by 1 person

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    • It did feel good, although I doubt the people they passed my message onto really care. The storm here will be a rain event. It doesn’t seem like February. The ads are so many and so bad that they really do look like bad graffiti.

      Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks Gwen, and congrats on your new release!

      Seriously, I haven’t seen one ad on any blog that has sparked any interest at all. I can’t imagine anyone clicking on them.

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    • Baby Smoke is harder to recognize since his tail grew out, but we do have one black squirrel that is smaller than the rest. We think that’s him. He was displaced (as were most of them) when our neighbor cut down all his trees in December, but they seem to be finding new homes. Of course, several are now living in our log pile.

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  30. I admire your perseverance. I’ve given up on those happiness engineers. They haven’t got a clue, and furthermore, they don’t care. I also wish they wouldn’t keep changing the format for writing posts. It’s annoying as well as never an improvement. In fact , nothing WordPress does seems to be an improvement…(K)

    Liked by 1 person

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  32. I agree with what you say about there being too many ads, Dan. I can only think they do it to try and persuade some bloggers with free sites to pay for an upgrade to get rid of the ads. But, like you and others on here, I just scroll past the ads on free blogs. I never look at them.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • I think that is WP’s goal, Hugh and I think they would also like to move us all up the food chain to a premium subscription. I appreciate everything the platform offers, but I came here (from Blogger) for the community. WordPress enables the community, but the people make it what it is. I wish they could see that.

      Liked by 1 person

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  33. WordPress can be very obtuse! They do slam lots of adverts on some sights. They don’t like to give straight answers either. I hate the phrase, ” I failed to recreate the problem can you…”
    Typical dodge the point.
    Lovely photos 💜

    Liked by 1 person

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    • I spent 42 years trying to recreate problems users would present to us, Willow and I hated giving that answer. In this case, I think it was misinformation. They acted like they didn’t think I’d ever see 9 ads on a page. Of course, they knew all along that my complaint was legitimate.

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  35. Grrr… WP, own up to what you did (are doing.) No reply from them is terrible. And, don’t feel bad about being behind. I’m the queen of falling behind on reading blog posts. Sigh. Thanks for the windy photo of Old Glory.

    Liked by 1 person

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