< How to get readers to comment on your posts :
There's nothing worse than spending ages writing a great post only to find that nobody comments on it.If your site is new, I'd suggest joining Entrecard to put your site out there. Have a read of my Entrecard guide if you need help.
So what do you do if you have readers who aren't commenting?
1. Don't fill in all the blanks.
Writing is an art. You should aim to find a balance between writing content that informs and interests your target audience, and writing content that provokes thoughts and ideas.There may be areas of your articles that you can write more easily than others. You can do some research to fill in the blanks, but if you want comments, don't be thorough to the point that there's nothing left to comment on.
If you still want to be very thorough, you can still present both sides of an argument and leave your readers to decide which one is the right one for them.
2. Conclude with some direct questions.
I often include a "What do you think?" section at the end of my posts. Sometimes it feels like I'm testing to see if people actually read to the end. But there's more to it than that.Asking direct questions not only gets readers to say if they understood your post, it also helps them to relate to the topic in hand. For instance, if I write about monthly targets, I might end the post by asking what your monthly targets are.
Many people love to talk about themselves. Giving them the opportunity to do this can make the difference between whether someone leaves a comment or whether they just read and move on.
Remember, you're not raising questions for the sake of it. You're raising questions that will get people to leave a comment.
3. Participate in discussions.
When a reader takes the time to leave a comment, don't be put off if they disagree with you. Actually, this can help to take your post in a new direction.Replying to comments is a good start, but in some cases you may end up replying to replies. As long as you listen to a person's opinion and answer it rationally (i.e. don't just say "I'm right and you're wrong") you can get a great discussion going.
4. Mention other people and their sites.
In some cases it's a good idea to look at other sites as examples. This can help to illustrate your point, but more importantly, a lot of site owners will come and read your post if you mention them - and they're more likely to comment, too.Bear in mind, though, it's not as simple as posting a list of sites you like. This can be a nice thing to do, but if you do it too often and you feature too many sites in one post, it can devalue the quality of the links.
It's much better to write a post where you mention two or three sites as examples. Ideally, focus on the smaller sites - big sites get linked to all the time. The smaller sites are more likely to notice, and more likely to thank you for it as they probably have more time.
5. Comment on other sites.
Writing great comments on other sites is a good way to get people reading your posts. If your comments are good and your posts are good, people may end up commenting on your site.One thing to avoid is writing a lot of short comments for the sake of getting your name on another site. Also, put your link in the URL field that most comment forms provide, but don't put your link in the text of the comment. It just looks like spam.
Be prepared!
I often see people asking how they can get comments on their site. If your goal is to get lots of comments, I would strongly suggest that you prepare for these before you get them. Basically, don't go hunting for comments if you don't have time to reply to them.If your site becomes really big then that's one thing, but there's no excuse for not replying to comments if you only get a few. If you don't have time, consider if this is the right thing for you to do. Blogs and websites are not things you should neglect unless it makes no difference to you who is reading, or how many are reading.
What do you think?
Do any of these tips work for you?How many comments do you get on your posts?
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Tags: reader interaction, comments, direct questions, discussions, participation, community, engagement, linking out
Posted by Ben on April 10, 2008 20:16 / Edited: Never
Comments
I think your advice is great. I love getting comments! Since I have a recipe blog, I realize most comments are left on recipes with photos. It is not always possible for me to have a photo, juggling a full time job and running home to cook a great meal and capturing it on film before the sun goes down (natural light is best to photograph food) I'm not sure which is better, having a new recipe each day? Or having a new recipe every few days with a photo. I am still trying to figure this out.
I'm not sure how it started but I have always had the feeling that you don't comment on your own blog. I've broken this many many times but the feeling never leaves me and I am careful about how many times I comment. Must be some old fashioned idea from somewhere.
I think the best way to make your site interactive is to comment on blogs which have left a comment on your own. I never keep up with this. I do try! Just don't have enough time and things to say. It's the one thing I feel most guilt about when blogging. :)
Really good post Ben.
I agree that is what I think, since starting my blog there is so much I have learned, infact today I posted a blog about American Idol, but some where half way through it turned into a post about why I blog, and how much work it is. How glad I am to be doing it, and that I appreciate my readers and viewers.
I like your site I think I have said that before, but anything that is good bears repeating. Take care!
I totally agree with you. I love gettings comments. Good, Bad at least I know they read it. I try to leave comments when I see something to comment about.
Great tips! Thanks for the info. Who knew that blogging could be so hard!
I agree with you, especially the participate in the discussion -- that is what blog about interaction with your readers.
Thanks for the great tips...definitely will apply to my blogging.
What about bribery? We're trying out the contest model to get comments and feed subscriptions. (As in , you could win $25 just by commenting on our site.)
Does it pull in new commentors? Probably not. Does it reward the people on your blog who comment anyways? Sure.
Is it money out of my pocket? (Not really- I payperpost to fund the contests. We made $75 last month, so we're spacing that out $25 per month for the next 3 months).
Do you think comment contests are a legitimate way of building comments on your site?
Hershey - you really caught my attention with this phrase: Anyone that comes our way and becomes a regular reader is just icing on the cake. However, when we get that icing, we tend to forget about the cake. Excellent analogy and it's so true. I'm not sure I agree that bloggers should write only for themselves and not for other people, though - in doing this you run the risk of appealing to nobody. Why write if nobody is reading? I strongly recommend establishing focus and determining who your target audience is right from the beginning. Yes, you should be passionate and knowledgeable enough about your choice of subject matter to create an interesting an sustainable site, but ignoring other people can come across as arrogant. Writers who ignore their audience may prefer to do their own thing, but I believe the Internet thrives on interaction - and a new blogger who fails to reply to comments (for instance) is not doing themselves any favours. Don't get me wrong, I totally agree that originality is vital, but I think you can still write great content if you write for a target audience.
Gina - perhaps your best option is to take your time. If you've found that recipes with photos do better than those without, spend the extra time to get the photos on every post if you can. I really struggle to include photos in my posts as it's not always clear what kind of photo would be appropriate. You have a big advantage in that you can take a photo of the food. Maybe if you think about which days are best for you and commit to publishing a new recipe on those days, e.g. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Don't feel you have to write daily, especially if it means you don't have time to include photos.
Laura - well, there's a big difference between saying that you like your own post and replying to other people's comments. :) Sometimes it feels a bit wrong if I have every other comment on a post, which is why I try to let a few build up before I post a long reply (as I'm doing here). As for commenting on other blogs, I've found it can be a bit of a mixed bag - I usually check if the owner replies to comments before I do this. I've seen a few blogs where the owner posts and never replies to their comments, and personally I find this off-putting. That's not aimed at you by the way, I actually haven't had much to say on your posts yet but I do read them in Google Reader.
Rachel - thank you. Out of interest, don't you think it is a bit confusing if you deviate from your original point? I really try to avoid this, sometimes hinting at things I don't want to go into and that I could pick up for future posts. This can stop you from running out of ideas for your posts. That said, some of the comments on my posts - including my replies - go all over the place! It's up to you, I guess. :)
Carol - I'm with you, I don't comment unless I have something to say, and it's always good to hear when people have something to say about my posts.
Regina - no worries. I was hoping that my blog made it easier though!
Iris - participation is a big thing for me. It takes a long time to write these replies but it's worth it!
WebDiggin - have a read of my post, Incentives for subscribing to a site. I think that using contests to boost comments and subscriptions is simply going to generate false statistics that won't be sustainable in the long run. If people like a site, they will subscribe or comment or at least read it. If a reader doesn't want to subscribe, that's their choice as far as I'm concerned - at least they read. If they ONLY subscribe or comment to get into a contest, how many of them do you think will come back? Contests can be good for your existing readers and as a bit of fun, but I wouldn't bank on them boosting your figures all that much.
Thanks for all the comments. :)
@ WebDiggin - I think sites that run contests and give out prizes for comments, subscribers and so on look needy. Just like when you walk into some little store or restaurant and feel pressured to buy something cause they look like they aren't making many sales. It's not creating a good atmosphere on your blog.
great post ben. i'm gonna keep a copy in my box -- when i have more than 2 seconds i can look over the entrecard.
it's amazing to see the stats of my visitors and not one comment. i'm guilty of many of the things you posted about.
thanks again.
lol I don't know why I couldn't stop giggling at the thought of someone commenting on their post saying that they liked the post very much. As I type this comment, I'm still cackling away like a madwoman but I just find it so adorably funny. It's like that little kid that shows Mummy her drawing, and then puts it up on the fridge herself and says, 'great drawing me'. lol
Anyway, back to the post - those are some great tips Ben. I think the hardest one for me is number 3 but luckily, I can think before I type a whole lot better than I can think before I talk! Also, number 4 would be kinda dangerous for me... I mean look at my blogroll (elsewhere page)!! It's so crazy! And you should see my stumbleupon favourites! I think I fave every other site that I stumble on. I got a lot of appreciation to give! lol
@ mlpieters - You need to add a link to your site in comments. How can I find you to comment if I can't find you?
PS- Ben your comment verification is driving me bonkers again. Took three tries and counting to post this. I did register but it lost me. Keep telling it to send me an email but I've yet to see one get there. I only go through this much comment torture for you. :)
mlpieters- thanks. You might want to try one or two things at a time - see which ones make the biggest difference on your site.
fragileheart - I remember a comment from someone who asked if it would frowned upon to pose as other people, i.e. the site owner would have a conversation on their own. I think it's a really bad idea to do that! Even if you were able to fool people with that, surely it would make the owner feel guilty towards the legitimate commenters? As for linking out, having lots of sites to link to is fine, you don't have to link to them all in one go. Just do a few every now and again. :)
Laura - argh, sorry. You are already registered though - it auto-registers when you comment. You have a Gmail address, right? Have you checked your spam folder? If you want to try sending me a message via the contact link at the top of the page, we can try and get to the bottom of this.
Thanks for the comments. :)
I have the login working again. The problem is FF which keeps not saving any of my logins no matter how many times I delete all cookies, passwords, etc to start fresh. Version 3 beta does the same so it is some kind of bug. Flock is ok as long as I don't let it get infected with the user data from FF.
I want a new drug. I'm working on it. Don't want to go back to MSIE and almost wish Netscape hadn't been left to die. I have tried Safari but it is like Opera, excruciatingly plain. I find it hard to see the buttons on both of those. I just use Opera to post on the EC blog.
Once upon a time I was braver about trying new browsers. I liked that my husband lived in fear of my exploring abilities. He loved when something would blow up on me though, rat! :D I did try one browser which did blow up, I had to reformat my PC to get rid of it and all the nasty files it infiltrated on me. So, I am not quite so brave, bold and daring about trying new browsers as I used to be.
Ben, I sometimes get e mails that acknowledge my comments and to be honest I wonder if they really mean the blogger has even read my comments. They are very impersonal. If I want to know if I have received a response I make it a point to go back or I check the box that says notify me by e mail for any response. I think with the advent of the Internet we are all so impersonal anyways. I like to at least put a personal touch on it. One other thing. I did a post on something called a Black Hole on the Internet. Seriously. The scientists are not sure how much information, e mails ect are being lost to this phenom. I noticed a couple of posters mention lost messages. Hmm
Laura - funny you should mention that, I have noticed a few quirks with Firefox too. Sure, no software is bug-free, but I wish they'd release smaller updates more often (besides security updates) instead of doing a big update every year or two. Firefox 3 is on the horizon (as you know) but why is it going 1, 1.5, 2, 3... what about the versions in between? Why do they have security updates that go 2.0.0.x - why the zeroes when they'll just jump from 2.0.0.13 to 3? Seems like someone needs to look at the release plan! I think Firefox is still the best browser, but it's not without its problems. I'm currently extremely frustrated with the amount of times it crashes when using the "new version" of Gmail. Don't know who's more at fault - Gmail or Firefox - but FF2 crashes a lot anyway, and Gmail works fine in FF3. They need to hurry up and get it out of beta!
ettarose - if they're automated emails, they would even go out if the blogger is asleep. So I'd say they are NO guarantee of anything. I don't think we are all impersonal though. I did read your post and I am really sick of email woes, seems like we can't rely on it anymore. :(
Thanks for the comments!
I think most bloggers view comments like tiny pieces of crack: They always want more. We always start out with the same cliche, though, in that we're just writing for us and anyone that comes our way and becomes a regular reader is just icing on the cake. However, when we get that icing, we tend to forget about the cake. My advice to starting bloggers is to continue to write for yourself. Continue to put up quality posts about whatever topic you want and, should someone stumble upon it and keep coming back, great. But once you start writing for an audience and your blogging voice changes, it begins to lack originality and will eventually become lost among the billions of blogs already in existence.