Grow Your Blog through Better Commenting
On Day One of your blogging journey some guru told you – no doubt in her or his own blog on blogging – that one of the best ways to grow your site is to comment on the blogs of others.
It’s the proverbial slow road to riches, or even gas money, to be sure. You see a lot of entrepreneurial tortoises crawling slowly down this path, but few hares because they’ve have pretty much been stomped into roadkill.
Maybe you commented on that guru’s life changing post, maybe not. I’m betting not… entering your first comment can be as scary as hitting the PUBLISH button on Wordpress for the first time.
But sooner or later you gotta go there.
Welcome to the Blogging Party
Commenting is very much like attending a party. If you don’t speak up, if you don’t ask someone to dance, no one will notice you. If you do, one of three things will happen, depending on your strategy:
- You’ll quickly blend into the crowd and then just as quickly become anonymous…
- You’ll come off as a dork, or worse, as arrogant or offensive…
- Or you’ll shine as someone people would like to get to know.
Which means, in the latter case, that you’ll be invited back. And if you continue your shiny ways, you’ll become a regular on the party circuit.
Even better, people will want to attend your party. Which, in the non-analogous real world, is already underway on your website.
Here are four principles of decorum that will help you stand out, and in the right way. Because staying neutral is the wrong way, at least if your goal is to leverage your comment into traffic for your own site.
Avoid the “hey nice post” Comments
Someone walks into a party. They look nice. You tell them they look nice. You comment.
This feels good on the receiving end, too. You notice. But that’s all that you do. It isn’t enough to get the polite commenter a first date.
It isn’t enough to post a “Nice post, dude!” comment and expect anyone to click through to your site.
It isn’t a bad thing. It may even be a polite thing. Go for it if “nice post” is what you need to express. Just don’t mistake it for a blogging growth strategy. Because for networking bloggers, “nice post” translates to: not a player.
Don’t Come Off as Overly Contrary
Some people like attention, and to get it they sometimes begin breaking things. A few like to take a contrary position on just about everything, and by airing it out in a comment (going back to our analogy for a moment), it becomes the lamest strategy imaginable for getting asked back or attracting any type of attention other than negative energy.
You can take a stand, but pretend it’s your soon-to-father in law you’re challenging. Be polite, look for ways to be gracious and acknowledge whatever aspect of your target isn’t reprehensible to you.
Everybody likes a self-thinker and a bold advocate. Nobody likes an asshole.
Be Humbly Credible
Blogging is like online dating – it’s a safe place to be someone other than who you are. But be warned, blog readers are extraordinarily perceptive and wary of B.S. They can smell a fraud quicker than a gas leak in their bed partner.
There’s a fine line between making it clear and obvious that you know your stuff and making it clear and obvious that your intention is to make it clear and obvious. Pretend there’s an ego meter wired to your keyboard, and you’re being evaluated on the least amount of bluster possible in what you put out there.
Ego is like an oil leak in otherwise pristine waters. It destroys everybody’s interest, it repels readers and counters whatever shards of logic and creative ingenuity hidden in your post between the heavy-handed attempts to sound smart.
This can’t be taught. But it can be observed, recognized, and them emulated.
Add Value to the Post
People who read blogs are for the most part bloggers themselves, which means they understand this game. They tend to congregate within a specific niche or content arena, which is the wheelhouse of your strategic commenting opportunity.
The right audience is there, in the right place, waiting. It’s up to you to carry the right tune once you step on stage.
Because not everyone is there to propagate a self-serving agenda. Many read blogs with a genuine interest and desire to learn. Which is why the nature of your comments have inherent and significant potential.
If you sound like someone who has something to offer, and if you come off as humble and pleasant and sincere, chances are the earnest blog reader – which is precisely the person you want to attract to your site – will click through to you.
And even with the best of results, you’ll only snag a few. It’s a long term strategy, one littered with the remains of tortoise-like commenters who yielded to impatience.
If you comment, and comment well, they will come. From that point on your blog needs to deliver on that promise. Which makes the comment itself an extension of your blog, and one with important strategic consequences.
Photo credit: David Boyle
Written by Larry Brooks from Story FixPosted on August 21st, 2009 and filed under Blogging
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18 Responses to “Grow Your Blog through Better Commenting”
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Six Figure Blogging
I know why I comment and why it is necessary in my business, but I still think, it is a strange way to spend your time. You have to participate if you want to be in the croud: “People who read blogs are for the most part bloggers themselves”. Is it woth that?
@Chris: You can spend one hour each day building backlinks which brings you a few new visitors through search engines, or you can spend one hour each day commenting on posts drawing the attention of the author which in return can lead to hundred of new visitors when he link to you within a post.
Not only that, but you can also create great friendships by simply commenting on others blogs. Personally I recommend you to both build backlinks and write comments as long as you deliver something useful.
Over to the post then. Well, I agree with all of the bullet points and I sometimes find myself being a bit contrary simple because I get hung up a simple phrase. Because of this I always read through my comment and think twice before publishing it.
@Stefan: Ok, just one thing: I’m sorry my English isn’t that good, I do not get the point of your sentence “I agree with all of the bullet points and I sometimes find myself being a bit contrary simple because I get hung up a simple phrase”?
Interesting post. Very timely as it is exactly what I was thinking about. I have been blogging a lot lately, but was not sure yet how to interact with other bloggers.
On most other blogs I was just a reader and did not comment much. And several of my own blogs where mainly read by non bloggers. But now I am coming more and more in the exchange zone so to speak. I only have Wordpress blogs, but I even got a Blogger account to be better able to comment on those blogs as well.
I especially like your point on the right tone to pick. Giving just comments as ‘nice post’ is not so much what I like to do. Thing is that I also never know how to react on such comments on my own blog.
I love to give my opinion, but finding the right tone is very difficult and I think it needs a level of trust, in the way that you already know that you respect each other and value each others views, to do that.
But thank you for giving a perfect overview of my chaotic thoughts on the subject.
I was wondering if it is better to leave comments on blogs that write about the same subject as I blog about, or blogs that have a lot of traffic?
I am reminded of Brian Clark’s article, ‘Is Commenting on Blogs a Smart Traffic Strategy?‘, and his reply to first 2 comments. The first comment was at 11:36 am, the second at 11:38 am, and Brian’s reply at 11:39 am.
Man that’s funny, but sad. I read Engadget, and I absolutely hate people when they say “First!”. What’s the point of it?
Ive seen the effects of overly contrary with a member (well now banned member) on a forum, i can see how it could happen with blog commenting too.
As a blogger, one of the things I strive to be very mindful of is that other bloggers, probably much like any writer or creative person, crave validation. Sure, blogging should probably be reward enough all on its own, but y’know, without some sort of feedback, how can you be sure that your words are being read. Or more importantly, how will you know if your words meant something to someone? Stats don’t really give you that. Comments do.
So, I do try to comment often – provided that I can leave a meaningful comment or remark. It just seems like part of being a good netizen. And why not treat your fellow bloggers as you yourself would like to be treated?
I think that some of us have to push past our comfort zones. It’s actually intimidating for some of us to get out there and comment on other people’s blogs. In fear that we will not say something of value, or that we do not know enough to comment.
I really enjoy reading your blog.The keyword sniping links are awesome.Keep it up.Thanks for sharing with us.Found the information worthy as I had no idea of posting a comment on the blog.I keep seeing articles like these.
Commenting on blogs is a good technique to improve the blog.I take blogging very seriously. It will help to improve the blogs and also increase the blog ranking.This is a nice way to express our creative ideas.
Being a newer blogger (my blog is less than a year old), I find commenting on blogs to be a great way to bring attention to my blog, build brand awareness, and to meeting other bloggers.
I do use a strategy which I find works pretty well for me:
- Post, at least, 3 comments a day
- Frequently post comments on the top blogs in your field
- Post authentic and useful comments which add to the conversation
- Be real and speak from the heart.
Great post, Larry. I look forward to reading more of them. Cheers!
Wesley Craig Green
The Geek Entrepreneur
Thanks for your tips brother .You have all the valid points that has to be checked while commenting .Thank you very much.
You nailed one of my pet peeves here…
The, “Hey nice post,” comment. If you’ve read the post and taken the time to comment why not add some value? To tell you the truth I’d rather have no comments than those comments.
The comments thing works both ways. If a reader takes the time to add value to your site by commenting, you should be a good host and respond and I don’t mean by just saying, “Thanks for the comment.”
Lesson: All of social media is a party, so make sure you’re party is one that people want to come to.
By the way, Great post =)
I enjoy blog commenting a lot, at best it’s a discussion that really ads value to the post and at worst it’s the pat in the back kind of commenting that Larry talks on the post. I rarely leave comments that just say great post or something similar, but I do give credit when credit is due.
As for this post, it’s not only great post about blog commenting in general, but also a great example of a post that asks for readers to comment, and comment well.