allume

real light living

{Smaller Bloggers} Comments & Comment Etiquette

By

Comments tend to be as measured as stats are. Although, it is difficult to consistently write without any sort of feedback–from anyone.

Don’t base your impact on the number of comments you receive. I have had countless people tell me later that a particular post impacted them so deeply but they just never commented for whatever reason. Their reasons are usually that they didn’t have time or they got distracted and forgot, etc. It happens and we just gotta roll with it.

Only a small percentage of subscribers actually comment on posts. Many are reading through email or a RSS feed and then move on. If you were to go around and take a little survey of comments to subscribers ratio, you’d see it’s much the same across the board; about .7% to 1.5% of readers actually comment. So if you have 50 subscribers and you get 1 comment on your post, you’re within the normal ratio of comments to subscribers.

Still, one of the most common questions for bloggers is

How can I get more comments?

It’s good to encourage comments in order to build community.

One way to do this is by having a “call to action” at the end of your post. Basically, you ask an open ended question that invites the reader to comment. Try to make it personal for them.

Make sure your comment system is user friendly. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to post a comment on someone’s blog on Blogger, and couldn’t because they didn’t offer a Name/url option. I had to have a Blogger account and be signed in. I moved on. I didn’t have that much time to play around with trying to leave a comment. It’s important that you make it as easy as possible for readers to comment.

I highly recommend getting rid of the CAPTCHA code. This is just more time the reader has to spend trying to leave a comment. If spam is an issue, it’s just another of many reasons to move to WordPress. (That’s for a whole other post, though!) 🙂 Unfortunately, these are real hindrances.

Respond to the comments on your blog. Even if you don’t have time to respond to all of them, take time to respond to some from every post. Readers want to know you are engaged with them, not that you simply had something to say and “left the room”, never to return. Answer questions, encourage others. Blogging is about community (you’re going to see me write that a lot). You don’t get a platform by standing on one; the platform comes only by the invitation of those you serve. It’s not a right; it’s a privilege.

Comment on other blogs. You can’t expect people to comment on your blog if you’re not willing to comment on others. It’s just the way it goes. Blogging is a give-and-take community; not a take-take-take community. Comments should add something of value to the reader and conversation as a whole; not merely be a “good post” trail. Be thoughtful and insightful. Do not spam with links.

You don’t need to comment on 20 blogs per day. You simply need to be consistent about it. A little everyday goes a long way.

Don’t miss the point.

If you’re commenting solely to receive comments, you’ve missed the point. The point is to step outside your own sphere and reach out to others. Encourage them in their own posts with your comments. When you are genuine in connecting with people, they will want to follow you back to your blog.

Today, seek out 5 blogs and leave thoughtful comments on each one without any thought of return. Hint: choose people who leave a comment on this post to help build community. Make sure you leave your blog url in the comment form. 😉

Here’s one to get you started: Lisa from Stop and Smell the Chocolates has a wonderful series called “Encouraging Bloggers“. Go check it out for more insights and encouragement. Offer up any tips you might have as well. Work together.

Quick FYI: I have just launched a very inexpensive blog critique & consulting site for any who want to invest in one on one mentoring concerning their blog. You can find it at Joyful Living Media.

Photo Credit

Comments

  1. Christin – I was just reading along (nodding in total agreement) and was totally surprised by the mention at the end!  Thanks so much!  🙂  Excellent post!  Though comments are what encourage us, I think we need to have a mindset that we are posting for those silent readers and that comments are just the icing on the cake!  And yes – we have to spend time commenting elsewhere to help build community.  Love this series – so helpful!

    • “we are posting for those silent readers”

      Just what I needed to hear. As the wife and mother of introverts, I’ve always tried to value them as much the extroverts in the family. I need to translate this to blogging!

  2. Thank you for sharing this information- I just got rid of my CAPTCHA code last week, lol. Maybe I’m a little technologically slow :). Also, your statistics at the top were encouraging :). I am really enjoying this series!!!

  3. Christin —

    So timely for me! I’ve been feeling sorry for myself because I pour so much into my blogging and get so little back. 

    Then I remember, “Oh yeah! I’m not supposed to be doing this to get people’s approval!”

    Then I forget and start feeling sorry for myself again.  🙂

    I really appreciate the statistics you share — I am well within “normal” (in this area of life, at least!)

    I do keep in mind two specific responses to blog posts that never got any comments. 

    The first is a post I wrote about grief over a year ago. A few months ago, a reader forwarded it to 200+ people in her church as they were dealing with the unexpected death of one of their church school teachers. I had no idea such a thing would ever happen and was deeply gratified that something I’d forgotten was being used in the present.

    The second is a post I wrote in January. Fast forward to March, I was FB messaging life with a dear woman I’d met at a recent speaking engagement. She was pouring her heart about some very specific struggles, and I recognized them as what I’d blogged about in January. I sent her the link, and she declared the words exactly what the Lord needed to speak to her. Again, I had no idea when I wrote the post — I just wrote.

    Guess that’s what it comes down to: being faithful to just write.

    •  Exactly, Cheri!! You never know what God might have in mind for the words He’s given us. We just need to get them OUT there and trust Him. 

  5. I admit I often feel discouraged at the lack of comments my little blog generates. I am often equally surprised by which posts get comments.  Like stats, I think we can get to caught up in wanting feedback, not being content with knowing that the writing I did today was “as unto the Lord and not unto men.”  And here I have been following along now for a few weeks and this is the first time I have commented here.  You have really been an encouragement to me, Christin-thank you.

    http://www.tuningmyheart.com/

    •  ((Debra)) you’re not alone. Thank you for stepping out and commenting here. 🙂 We value your input, I hope you know that!

  6. I second the part about getting rid of captcha! I used to have it on my blog, but, I got rid of it when I participated in write it, girl and saw firsthand what perseverance it takes for readers to comment. Sometimes those codes are unreadable, and other times I only happened to notice at the last moment that my comment wasn’t going to post b/c I’d gotten the code wrong. I immediately took it off my blog, and now I’ve got disqus instead. Love it! Plus, it makes it so easy to see when someone’s commented on your comment somewhere, too.

  7. Good advice. I find the one comment to fifty readers ratio to be fairly accurate. Sometimes, it’s more.  A lot of the time, it’s less.  That should be pretty encouraging to someone who feels like they’re speaking to the clouds.

    I have been thinking about community a lot lately.  Commenting becomes “burdensome” to some bloggers. If we are going to be bloggers, however, we should expect to give as well as take.  We need to support women who are on the same journey, seeking to encourage others and glorify God through our stories. Thanks for the push to participate!

  8. Hmmm. I think this might be my first comment here. Hi, to everyone!

    I noticed a big shift in commenting once Twitter became a huge part of blogging. A lot of the chatter shifted to Twitter and away from blogs. Has anyone else found that to be true?

    I also read my RSS feed on my phone now and leaving a comment isn’t as fast (typing with one finger); I know that must affect other people too.

    •  Thank you Monica for those insights. See, I wouldn’t have thought of reading off the phone, because I don’t have Internet on my phone. I don’t need it since I’m always home and have wireless here. So I just don’t need it. But many, many people do have phones and read from them. Great point!

  9. Thank you for the encouragement Christin! As a new blogger it’s hard when you realize no one may be reading your posts 🙂 I also don’t know many other mommy bloggers so it can feel lonely at times. I hope I can connect with other blogger soon, thank you for the tips!

    I blog about the always growing Mommmy resume at http://themommyjob.com

  10. Christin,
    Such beautiful advice all summed up in one post. Thank you for pointing us to ways we can build and nurture community, and foster friendships and support that will grow over time! Just such an encouragement!

  11. Receiving comments is definitely one of those “you have to give, to get” things. Sometimes you just have to give the “love” without expecting anything back. BUT, I know for myself how much it means to me when people comment on my blog, so I always try to take time to respond back to commentors, whether in email or in a thread, and then visit their blog too.

    http://www.lifeinthewhitehouse.com/

  12. Christen-I ditto so much of what the other readers have shared. I too, thank you for this post.

    I am a 2 month old blogger :), and before I hit “publish” for the first time, I wrote down the main reason why I wanted to write, and attempted to figure out how I would go about measuring my blog’s “success.” The reason came easily. The way to measure its success still leaves me stumped.

    Like all of you out there, I pray I can help my readers to grow closer in their walk with Jesus. I pray they will join me as I find renewed hope/encouragement in God and His Word. How can I possibly measure something so beautiful and intimate between the reader and God? I just don’t know if ministry can be measured by Google Analytics! As a new blogger, I am striving to trust God to take my writing journey where He wants to take it. I can assure you, that at least God is doing a work in my own relationship with Him as I need Him to help me live what I write…just another blessing of blogging and evidence of God’s mercy and love.

    Looking forward to reading more of your wisdom Christen. Blessings my fellow bloggers!

    http://www.onedegreeministries.com/blog   

  13. I’ve actually considered turning comments off because I find it discouraging! Thank you for this post, sometimes we just need to be reminded of this. I LOVE comments. When you pour your heart and soul out into writing something and it “seems” like it just sits there it can get very discouraging.

    Stephanie
    http://www.walkingthroughthevalley.com

    • Stephanie! I tried to comment and could not! I even have a wordpress account and for some reason it kept telling me I had my information wrong, but when i went to the wordpress site I was logged in there. I don’t know if it was ME or something going on, but I wanted to let you know!

  15. I love what you said about making commenting EASY!  I get so frustrated with blogger blogs that don’t let me leave a comment!  Another thing I would add to that list is to turn off comment moderation.  I love seeing my comment post right away and knowing that I’m instantly part of that conversation.  Plus other are able to engage and respond to what I have to say if it is published.  That can’t happen if my comment is waiting to be approved.

  16. I have previously had a printed newsletter but in the past year I began blogging. I have struggled with this aspect of blogging, so this article helped me. Thanks. angie webb

  17. Wow! This really helped me today! I got rid of my captcha code and I gave 5 new blogs a comment! I am a small blog, and I am hoping this will help me grow!

  18. These are great tips, Christin! It is hard to write without feedback, but feedback always comes. Sometimes in unexpected ways. If we’re grounded in our mission, it’s easier to “roll with the punches.”

  19. I’m always excited when I get comments on my blog…and yet sometimes I forget to return the favor due to time constraints, captcha, etc. Thinking I need to “schedule” in a few minutes to comment each day! 

    However, sometimes I don’t comment because it seems like everything has already been said in the comments section, especially on bigger blogs, and I don’t want to just be a repeater. This is my first time commenting on one of these posts here–isn’t that ironic? ;)The community aspect totally makes sense–give and take. When I do comment, I do it more often on blogs where I’ve gotten to know the blogger and where they actually respond to the comments people have left. Thanks Christin, these posts have really made me think. 🙂

    • You always have something to contribute. Even if it is how you think you might apply the post, or a variation or twist on it, or another related idea that the post brought to mind. Sometimes I find the greatest gems in the comments on posts I read!  🙂

      • I definitely enjoy reading others comments too and I agree that there is lots of good suggestions to be found there. Thanks, Johanna 🙂 

  20. Thank you so much for this – it helped me alot as I am fairly new to blogging 🙂

    • You can remove the captcha, allow anyone to comment even anonymous, and if you are worried about spammers make all comments after 3 days or so needing approval from you. LOL Least, this is what I do. 😉

  22. Amen and Amen!!  Love it!!  🙂  Especially Captcha.  It drives me BATTY!

  23. If I am honest I read MANY more blog posts than I comment on. I am not a consistent commenter, but I still love the post! Mostly for the same reasons you mentioned, time, etc. Plus if there are tons and tons of comments already I think, “What’s my extra comment going to matter.” I figure that the writer won’t even have time to read it (which can be a false assumption.) I have commented on blogs like (in)courage that had a hundred + comments and believe it or not other readers have responded, so I do think it makes a difference. 🙂 This is something I need to work on. And the comments I get on my blog make me so happy! 🙂 

  24. Great post, Christin!  I used to receive a lot more comments, but that’s when I was blogging a lot more and visiting blogs and leaving comments.  Now I don’t blog nor do I comment as much, lol!  What do you mean by having a name/url so people don’t have to sign in.  Is that the not allowing anonymous comment thing? 

  25.  Thank you! As a blogger who just recently started to realize that more than friends and family are paying attention I often forget that I should respond back to comments. It’s easy to forget that me end of “engagement” doesn’t have to end with the post.

  27. I’ve often just thought, “Well, book and article writers don’t get constant feedback. Why should I expect it?” Though I must admit that there are times I consider removing the comment-ability just so I don’t worry about it! LOL It’s all good.

  28. Well I’m delighted I can get rid of captcha, I didn’t know you could! I find that even when I get feedback it tends to be on Facebook when I share the post there- when I’d prefer it on the blog!  Now and again I have gotten a private message from someone saying that a post has touched their life and that’s only people who have access to me privately so you may never know until the last day how you have affected people by what you write.  I recently got a message about 18 months after I posted something from an international children’s cardiac charity asking me to guest blog for them, I am a small blogger (so far) but they found my posts through a link to a link to a link…that’s the beauty of blogging, you launch the ship and it takes it’s own course, you may never see the final destination(s). Thanks for this.
    Jennifer @ Raindrops On My Head http://jenniferkehoe.blogspot.com

  29. So true about “missing the point” – it’s obvious when people aren’t really interested in what I wrote and just commented because they want a link to their site or they’re fulfilling their comment “quota”. 

    P.S.  so excited about your new site!

  30. Yes!! Please, please, please get rid of CAPTCHA! Blogger does an excellent job of catching spam. I haven’t used word verification on my blog in years and have only had a handful of spam comments actually post. As a blog reader and commenter I hate word verification!

  31. I loved this post, and as a new blogger it was especially helpful. I actually just wrote a blogger that I have been following for 3 years and has greatly inspired me. At some point awhile back I realized that if I were talking to that person IRL I would never take an idea or inspiration without saying thank you! And yet, for years, I rarely commented. I regret that now.

    Also, now that I am a blogger I realize I could have developed a sort of “relationship” with the person behind the blog if I had actually commented. I am seeing that happen already on my blog, but there are so many people that don’t comment. It’s kind of sad. 🙂

    I would like to see non-bloggers comment more. One thing I failed to understand before I was blogging was that I had something to contribute, and while the blogger created the platform much of the discussion can actually take place in the comments. (like on this post actually!)

    Thanks for the post! I am wondering if there is a way to let non-bloggers know that there comments are worthwhile and that they have something to contribute.

  32. I love comments and get discouraged when a post gets a bunch of hits but no comments… am I that boring? haha  I also don’t comment as much as I should. Sometimes I don’t think I have anything worthy to add to the conversation, but I will try to start small! 🙂  Often I’m reading through facebook/email/twitter and it’s not so easy to comment!  Thanks so much for your insight here!
    I blog at http://www.whimsywords.blogspot.com

  33. What a great post Christin!  When I first started blogging about four years ago, I would often find myself discouraged when others wouldn’t leave comments.  I could tell from stats they were reading, or at least “popping in”.  I wanted to so desperately to connect.  So, I began finding other blogs that ministered to my heart and strived to build meaningful community through comments.  I am a little addicted to it actually.  My kids are usually in be by 9:00p and I spend a couple of hours reading the blogs I love and encouraging through comments!

  34. This is somewhat amusing to me as I *just* posted a blog saying how much I love comments but they are so few and far between.  I shared how a lot of times I tend to post the little funny things my kids say on facebook instead of my blog *because* people comment or atleast *like* my post.    But I always have to remind myself why I’m blogging…it isn’t for virtual friends or to gain a following, etc.  It’s because my husband’s grandma lives in IA and we live in NY – she gets to see my kids and hear about our days, it’s for other family to be more involved in our lives – how our family is growing, changing, struggling, triumphing (is that a word?).  It’s for my husband and I and our kids…our family journal of sorts. 

    I comment fairly often on my “favorite” blogs (just a handful) but I need to take more time to comment on others.  I know how encouraging and exciting it is to have new comments!!!

  36. There have been a number of times I’ve tried to leave a comment but have been stumped by the CAPTCHA code or other anti-spam measures. I may give it a second try, but after that I just give up and don’t bother ever trying to comment on that blog again.

    I always seem to be commenting late on blogs, because of the way my computer time is scheduled. I hate feeling like I’m always missing the conversation, so I’m never sure if it’s even worth adding a very late comment (like this one!)

  37. Love the recommendation to get rid of the CAPTCHA! I can’t stand those things, and have actually had comments deleted because I sent it through and clicked to close the window right as I saw it pop up that I needed to do that. So frustrating! 

  38. And if you DO have a Captcha or something, please just keep everything on the same page.  I am usually willing to fill in a captcha, but if I have to go through multiple page loads to get my comment posted, I will probably give up.

    Sorry; comment moderation will have to stay on, though – it’s my way of protecting my readers from the garbage (curse words, spam, etc. – not reader comments I don’t like!) that gets posted.  Mine is set, though, so that if you’ve already had a comment or two approved, any future comments go live immediately.  That way regular commenters don’t always sit in moderation. 🙂 There are options.

  39. As a newbie small blogger I’m happy to take all the feedback and encouragement I can get! Thanks for creating such a great community for women! Bahar @ The Persian Tangent

  40. Thanks for the good advice.  This is something I’m always wrestling with.  Also, I was wondering what do you do with those “sort of spam” comments.  Sometimes someone has poor English or a very generic comment and I can’t tell if it’s a legitimate comment or not.  Should I just let it stay or spam it?  

    Lindsey @ GrowingKidsMinistry.com 

    • I personally always err on the side of posting comments.  If it’s obviously spam, or it’s just plain rude (vulgar language, etc.), I delete it; otherwise I post.  You can usually tell if it’s spam, though, by what URL was entered.  The spammers are usually looking for backlinks, so they’ll have included junky links.  If I’m still not quite sure, I’ll typically strip out the link but post the text.

  41. Hi, Christin.  I am a super beginner at this, and I ran across the Allume conference this morning.  Thinking about going to it.  I’ve read many of your posts in the past hour, as I’m preparing for a phone conference at 9:00, and you’ve helped me to develop my thoughts…it’s been encouraging.  I was becoming REALLY overwhelmed by all that’s going on out in blogland.  Overwhelm is not from God.  Your encouragement through concise posts makes this seem, well, possible.  So thanks.

  42. Excellent advice here, Christin.  I think I must have missed this post the first time around…thank you for posting it again.  I recently went to Disqus on my blog and am so glad I did!  

    It is frustrating to comment on blogs on a regular basis and NEVER have that blogger leave an encouraging comment for me…but I try to remember I am not blogging for comments.

    Thank you for this series!  It is quite helpful and encouraging.

    Mary
    http://memyselfandmercy.blogspot.com/ 

Categories

Archives

Google+