Ways to become a better comment whore
Okay, so that’s not my most catchy title, but it was meant to be a follow up from my recent article asking for more comments from my blog visitors.
The result has been pretty encouraging so far, with some new readers who dropped by to say hi via comments (yay!) and emails. Here are some valuable lessons I learned from them:
- People whom comment on blogs are usually bloggers themselves. To this, I agree vehemently. Actually I ran this “I am a comment whore” campaign on two blogs - one here, another on my personal blog. As expected, the initial response was greater here on Viral Voices, but not so on You Got Me Blogging. The reason? People on Viral Voices are bloggers themselves, and they understand the importance of commenting to build a sense of community, plus traffic. Readers of my personal blog are generally my friends, and most of them are not bloggers, hence the less tendency to leave comments. (I knew they are reading because when we meet up, they keep teasing me about stuff that I blogged about! :D)
- Another great way to encourage comments - turn off that comment moderation! I didn’t realise that until a reader pointed it out, and I thought, yeah, if I am a commentor, I would love to see my comments published immediately, and not until the blog owner decides so. Immediately I deactivate my comment moderation options on both my blog, and now I am just relying on Askimet to catch those dreaded spammers!
- Comment on others’ blog, and they will return the favour. I left a couple of comments on Untwisted Vortex, and gained some traffic from there (including the fore runner of my comment whore contest - Hari!). I also commented on Kidsblogger Carl’s blog, and conversed a little over email, and this high profile blogger came by and left a comment too. Therefore, do to others what you want others to do to you.
It’s early days yet, and already I am learning more on how to become a better comment whore. Haha.
What’s your personal rule of thumb to encourage more comments from your reader?
January 29, 2008 | Filed Under Blog Traffic
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3 Responses to “Ways to become a better comment whore”
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You’ve forgotten another important rule of blog commenting: the topic under discussion…
I’ve noticed that no matter how well or badly you write, certain topics definitely draw in more comments than others naturally. Blogging about blogging and commenting is a sure draw for comments, while other obscure and usually non-technical topics usually never draw any comments.
@ Hari - Yes I agree. Perhaps that’s why all my previous posts about setting up a new blog draw no comments, but this comment whore series drew quite a number. Something for us to think about. Is it the personality? The provocative angle? Or simply the topic is easier to comment on?
I think it’s a combination of many factors.
Topic of discussion? Most important factor in my book.
Provocative angle? Yes, that plays a part.
Discussion value? Again, depends on how many people have an opinion on the topic. The stronger the opinion the better.
Personality of the blogger? Plays a part, but I think more in keeping existing readers interested rather than in drawing new readers to comment.