Discussions
Encouraging People to Comment on Your Blog
Posted by inmyheels • 2/18/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic
I have learned that forums are a great place to meet non bloggers as well as bloggers.. non-bloggers tend to email more or comment elswhere
Bloggers and non-bloggers alike, how do you encourage people to comment on your blog on a regular basis?
I notice sometimes people offer contests or something of the sort. Anything else?
oh and, for the advice, drop a link or something. I'll stop by 
User Comments
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I have no pearls of wisdom as I am new to this, but I do always try and make sure that when people comment that I take the time to post a comment thanking them for stopping by, or for their adding to the discussion, etc. -
Me-- I haven't done contests, I just occasionally ask a question at the end of my post, and I also do a lot of blog-visiting and commenting for other folks in my niche. (Relevant comments). People seem pretty happy to share ideas, their humor, etc. I've felt very fortunate. -
I never ask anyone to comment on my blog. I just try to interact with all of the 5 readers I have by asking them questions on my blog or creating polls. -
I agree with TSR and usually end the majority of my posts with a question. Although my comments have been lacking as of late (probably because I haven't done too much visiting
), it seems to work. -
Yeah, building a question into your posts can be helpful, though it needn't happen every time. Sometimes a compelling personal post with no question will bring a response. -
Definitely if your readers have something they can identify with in some way, that seems to help.
I'd say it also helps to respond to their comments (even if you do it a couple of posts at a time wrapped in-one). I've found readers will come back to see the rest of the "conversation." I think there's something really nice about that.-
I've first noticed that through my visitor stats. Certain visitors had commented and were coming back to see if I had responded. If I didn't, they checked back again later. I could take a hint.
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Never did any of that, if I had to do that my blog would not be my blog and it wouldn't be worth the effort. My regular readers would probably not be fond of contests because I had many of them before all this "how to blog" how to get links' mania started. I am not a money making blog though and so could care less, though I was making money with tla before google smacked me.-
You have never asked questions or responded to user comments?
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I do like to answer to user comments - I can agree this is a good tip
The commentluv plugin I have on my site, I find is also useful
It clues you in on what the person who is commenting wrote last about on their blog by adding that person's link and post title to their post
I just want to make sure I am doing all that I can to encourage interaction.
thanks for the tips guys
*back to brainstorming* -
my posts that have gotten the most comments are the ones where I have linked to lots of other bloggers in the post. If you link to someone in a positive way, they will often leave a comment thanking you for the link and it can be the beginning of conversation with other blogs.-
Long time, no see! (I've been in hiding...or something). Hope all has been well!
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I offered up a chance to win something and if brought about comments. This is a good way to get comments. However being apart of a Forum discussion such as this and other refined forums more focused on your blog subject will help draw traffic and the comments that you seek. Commenting on other blogs and leaving you trail with you blog link works, but it is always to leave a sincere comment that shows that you actually read the blog. -
Asking questions in your post when it warrants one, works great and allows you to learn what your readers appreciate about your writing.
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It all depends, there are various ways of getting people to comment. The obvious one is to have interesting posts and reply to the comments. But the more networking you do, the more you'll end up building your readership and a bunch of people will comment.
Plus, if you comment on other peoples' blogs, more than likely they'll comment back, or at least check out your site. I wrote about this a couple months ago, if you want to check it out go to www.datmoney.com/2007/11/reward-those-who-take-time-to-comment.html
Let me know if you ever need help and I'll be glad to do so!
Jay -
My Deepest Thoughts is where I take it upon myself to share my brain with the world without attachments. Check it out: mayasenterprise.blogspot.com/
Please give me a shout out on my blog. Thanks! -
Although I am new to blogging, I am not new to writing. I still have a lot to learn but am having fun finding my way around. I would like for you to check out my blog: the-health-witch.blogspot.com/
Please let me know how I am doing.
Thanks -
Yep you are right- I think that non-bloggers will be more apt to comment. Bloggers on the other hand are spending their time blogging and also creating traffic. Here's mine - comment too! DoYouKnow.typepad.com Thanks Brian Morgan -
I'm trying out a competition this week that people have to comment on to win a prize. thats one way to get more comments i suppose. here's an example:
www.thisblogwillpaymymortgage.com/?p=38
The man that does it best is Problogger though: www.problogger.net/archives/2008/01/16/how-to-run-a-successful-competition-... -
I am new to blogging but I find that a kind comment tends to be returned.
thehealthyhermit.blogspot.com/ -
I am new to blogging, however, I used to be under the impression that blogging was kind of like a journal. Now, I see that it can be for just about anything. I learn something new everyday here at blog catalog from discussions like this. I agree that questions, kind comments, posts about others, etc. are also ways to get others to post comments on blogs. Other than that I am still learning. I don't know anything about the competition thing, but I think I might look into it.
ivonnardonascreations.wordpress.com -
I just recently started doing polls which to my surprise has worked out well to start interaction on my blog. I tend to view my blog as more informative and I really don't care if people make comments or not. The weekly poll seems to be a good enforcer to show that my blog does get some traffic and it makes people come back for more info.-
What type of polls do you do? Just curious as I thought about that but I'm not sure how to do them.
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Hey, I'm rewarding my commentators... each week I randomly pick a winner and give them cash. You can read details at www.datmoney.com/2008/02/new-weekly-cash-and-ec-giveaway-at.html I mean, cash for like 20 seconds of work? Can't beat that!
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I came upon a blog the other day by someone who, at the time, had only had the blog going for four months. The amount of comments she had was amazing. In there someone asked her how she got so many comments for being so new. Her response was quite zen in that she said she got back what she put - it makes a lot of sense to me.
Jemi your post on What To Say To A Grieving Friend received many comments. Your heart and soul was in that post as it is with most of your posts and I believe that that's what people respond to. People respond when they are touched. That's my 2 cents worth.
vickiwolfson.wordpress.com -
ivonnardona, I use blogger and they have polls as one of their features. I think it might be a fairly new element. I also use www.widgetbox.com if I need something more customized that isn't available with standard features. I actually use widgetbox a ton. It's a good tool and you can create your own widgets.
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I always try to ask a question in my post, always respond to my commentators, allow them to subscribe by email to follow up comments, and my top 10 commentator get kudos in my sidebar as being such.
I also have a plug in that after somebody has visited my site 5 times and have not left a comment, it will prompt them to not be scared, I'd love to hear from them.
I always leave comments at other people's blogs. I try to visit at least 10 a day in my niche(a mix of regulars and new) and leave a comment. They are more apt to come over to me and leave a comment.
blog.mawbooks.com-
I have to admit, I like seeing my name as a "top commenter" on a blog.
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Provocative subject matter seems to do it for me. A few weeks back I ran a piece on insurance scams. And, the comments just kept coming, and coming. And, coming. Got another one in just this morning. -
If your curious and like to know more about Norway: our culture, traditions and habits, your always welcome over:
www.terella.no -
I've tried doing giveaways, and they don't always work. I have two blogs. I did a cross giveaway, and only received a few responses from one blog and none fron another.
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I think the key is writing about something that resonates enough with the reader that they feel compelled to leave a comment.
I'm still working on that
www.needlecloud.com -
@inmyheels
You have received some excellent advice above. I would like to make a contribution by coming at this question from a different angle. I believe that this thread contains some useful information for those who want to receive comments on their blog. www.blogcatalog.com/discuss/entry/are-your-comment-settings-welcoming
For argument sake when you read the following assume that I am a visitor to your blog, I'm interested in the subject matter in the blog and I want to leave a comment on a post.
(1) Are the background and fonts of the theme that you have chosen for your blog highly readable or do they pose a reading difficulty for those who are visually challenged?
Choosing a dark background or black theme is cool but if you also choose to have dark blue, gray, green or teal font on a black background then I cannot see the words in your post and I cannot read what you have to say. Therefore I must copy and paste the whole blog post into a text document with a white background to read it. The same is also true of patterned backgrounds that are "busy" and/or that depict changes of contrast within the background pattern.
(2) Is the placement of the comment link "intuitive"? Is the font size such that the comment link can be readily seen?
What I have experienced is that on some blogs one can go crazy trying to find the comment link at the end of a blog post only to come up empty. For example: in some blog themes one must click the title of the blog post for the comment link to display. I do not consider this to be "intuitive". So if you have chosen such a theme then perhaps using a text widget to tell your visitors how to locate the comment link would be helpful.
(3) Are your comment setting set up so that visitors from other blogging platforms can all leave comments?
Setting up your blog so only blogspot ot wordpress or whatever bloggers can comment means that others cannot leave comments. Why place this artificial barrier in their way?
(4) Requiring that bloggers become members of your blog in order to leave a comment is another deterrent. If this is your set up then don't be surprised to see a high bounce rate.
(5) Is your blog and/or your sidebars filled with animated, pop-up or colorful advertising and cutesy sidebar tat that distracts readers away from reading your content?
When I experience being bedazzled by the useless tat on a blog I will immediately click out without even reading your posts. And, I will never return again. -
I try and build an ongoing relationship (in the blogging sense). Reply directly to a comment they have made on your blog or return the comment via their own blog or send them an email.
If they feel some one is behind the blog I think it helps. -
@timetheif
Thanks for your insight on colors. Honestly I had no idea teal on black is a difficult color combination. I chose a black background more because it takes less energy for a monitor to display a black screen than white. I thought the contrast was high enough between those colors. -
I think that there are many things to be taken in consideration when bloging, like the colors of the blog, the entire layout, the way we express our thoughts and our feelings, considertion for our visitors, commenting back and thanking them for paying us a visit, but one thing is for sure, trying to learn from other blogers is the best way to go. There's is always something new to learn from the blog world.
livingstrongandhappy.blogspot.com/
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