Monday, September 05, 2011

Getting More Comments Follow-Up

Happy Labor Day to my American Friends! If you're stopping in from Karen's BBQ Party, welcome - my post for the event (complete with recipe and cats who cook) is HERE 

Last week I posted How to Get More Comments with Matthew, Talli, and Alex offering tips. Nicki suggested that that another great way to get comments was to feature those three superstars! LOL She was right - that was the most comments I’ve ever received on a post. The guests did a fantastic job replying to comments, and I’d like to feature some of those comments today and get feedback from my readers.

“Since I started with Facebook it's harder to visit as many blogs as I used to.”
There are so many social sites now. It’s almost impossible to focus on more than two at a time. Is blogging still a priority to you? What social sites pull you away from blogging?

“I feel guilty if I keep posting and generating comments without being able to return them promptly.” 
With the exception of The Weekend Sillies, I won’t post if I’m gone. I don’t believe in presecheduling a bunch of posts before leaving on vacation, because it’s not fair to expect comments if I can’t give. (That’s also why I now only blog three days a week.) What do you think?

“A certain sci-fi author once told me to keep it short and be myself. Best blogging advice I ever got.” 
After blogging for seven years, I can attest - keep it short. I cap my posts at 1000 words, although most are shorter. I know people are crunched for time and I respect that. What do you think about length of post?

“I like comments, of course, but many of the blogs I visit I'll zip over from a tweet and scan quickly, get the info I need, and move on.” 
“Personally, I would never read a blog post and not comment on it. It doesn't make sense to me not to take 30 seconds to say something that shows: I came, I read, I enjoyed, and I care.”
Do you comment on every post you read? I know how much comments mean, so I always comment. A post with 1000 views but only ten comments is big failure to me.

“I follow a lot of blogs that have never even visited me… An unexpected side-effect though, that I've only recently noticed is that people who comment on those blogs have been coming to visit me…”
 People seem notice those who comment in many places. Do you?  Are you putting yourself out there for others to find you?

“Blogs which have more than 50 comments for each post have owners who… visit up to 100 blogs daily. I find it a bit weird since you can't really leave quality comments and do some quality reading on so many blogs.” 
“It really does take about two hours to visit 100 blogs...I've timed it.” 
Is it strange to comment on that many blogs? All three of the guests visit 50-100 blogs a day, and when I was actively promoting my YA series, I did the same. It’s building relationships and building a platform. As the second quote states, it is possible to visit that many blogs in a reasonable amount of time - AND leave meaningful comments. Do you think it’s possible? Especially if blogging is your main social site?

“I follow and comment on far more blogs than do it in return, but that doesn't matter. I value the real connections I have.” 
And isn’t that why we’re all here? To make connections? It isn’t the hits or page views. Sometimes it’s not even the total amount of comments. It’s the close connections with people we know and trust. Right?

Thanks again to Matthew, Talli, and Alex!

27 comments:

Enid Wilson said...

I still like blogging the best. It's more organised and meaningful to me, than Twitter and Facebook. But I don't have a lot of comments, possibly because I've never joined any blogfest. I've just started my first blogfest and am very happy with the progress so far.

Every Savage Can Reproduce

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

I like Facebook mainly because they have a Daniel O Donnell fans club, but I enjoy blogging better. I get to read all sorts of subjects besides putting my own thoughts down which is better than bottling up emotions.

Have a good day.
Yvonne.

Matthew MacNish said...

It was an awesome conversation, and I was honored to be a part of it.

The only new thought I'm going to leave today is about post length. I know that short posts are well-loved by all, and there is certainly some sound logic behind that, but on my own blog I don't always write short posts.

I think the important thing is to have variety. Short posts are better most of the time, but occasionally something important comes up that requires a longer post.

Just my two cents.

Unknown said...

Is blogging still a priority to you? Blogging is still number one but I love my goodreads bookclub and I will read some posts on facebook and google+. But yes, blogging is still top.

I have learned to drop the guilt. I always worried that if I left for a few days, the blogging community would forget me and I would have to start from scratch. Well, that's not true. You should be allowed to have a break and not feel guilty about it. I hope the bloggers who comment on my site aren't doing it just for my follow and most of my regulars know I'll be back.

Yes, length of post does matter. I try to keep mine short unless it's a how-to blog (but even then, I'm breaking the posts up) or an interview. That said, I don't mind if your posts are long if you don't post everyday.

I do comment on 99% of the posts I read. Exceptions: (a) when they don't allow commenting--in that case, I just read (b) the commenter does not have a blog (c) it's a spammer's blog.

I know that you and people like Talli and Alex comment a lot. I see their icons on various blogs. If you want others to notice you you can do this: (a) have a bright or unusual icon that separates your icon from the rest (b) be one of the first to comment if you can. People will normally scan the first few comments.

I visit a lot of posts every day. Maybe not 50-100 but it's true, it's difficult to leave quality comment sometimes. However, I think quality comments come more from the posts. If a blogger asks good questions, he will get good comments, if not, you will get quick comments.

I have made some real connections with people in the writing community. I hope people feel the same about me.

Anne Gallagher said...

On my own blog, I always comment to those who leave me comments.

I try to get back to those same commenters during the course of the day. I also follow about 200 blogs that I try and get to during the course of the week. I try to comment at least once on every blog that's in my blogroll whether they follow me or not.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Enid, joining a blogfest will help.

Yvonne, if my blog didn't post to my Facebook, then that site would see no action at all.

Matthew, occasional long posts are fine. But those who do long posts all the time probably don't even realize they are sabotaging their own efforts.

Clarissa, I don't visit as many as I used to. Sometimes just the quick comments are good, because I know that person visited my site.

Anne, I am still trying to visit everyone who commented on this original post last week! LOL

Anonymous said...

Yes, I agree 100% that it is all about connection (hence 'connecting' is in my blog title)! I must be slow though. After 2 hours, I've only commented on an average of 10-15 blogs. What's the trick to do 100 in two hours? I need it!!

Jules said...

Can't argue with that advice! Not selling anything just enjoy the connections and your weekend sillies. :)
Jules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow

Yvonne Osborne said...

I think the key is "meaningful" comments. I see some bloggers who comment everywhere, but it's always a quicky generic one. I personally can't leave more than 10-15 meaningful comments a day. Maybe that's why I average the same. It's a good idea to comment often and meaningfully and put yourself out there. But who has time??

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Lynn, I guess it's being a fast reader. I know I read ten times faster than my husband, so commenting on a lot of blogs doesn't take very long for me.

Karen, I still do twitter, but since I have no idea what I'm doing, I doubt it's even effective.

Yvonne, I don't know about other bloggers, but I'll take both kinds. And if someone has a couple hours and blogging is their focus, it can be done. I used to do it!

Lisa said...

This is so interesting. I wanted to follow this site but it told me I had signed in before, so our path must have crossed. No wonder I felt like I know you:) The discussions here are very interesting, and Yvonne is here, and so I know I'll keep in touch better from now on.

Ed Pilolla said...

i find myself constantly reassessing what i want and enjoy with blogging, and, as you say, the connections are key. i can't visit 100 blogs regularly. i just can't sit still long enough. i am constantly narrowing who i read, and i read those i like, which naturally includes those who read me. even if it's not my sort of content at first, it quickly and genuinely becomes my kind of content becuz i am their kind of content. it's weird and neat like that. some blogs i return to in order to see what the reply in the comments is, which is a credit to those bloggers for generating that sort of interest for sure.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I've gained lots of followers who came to my site because they saw me commenting on other sites and finally grew curious enough to visit me.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

I love visiting other blogs and leaving comments. I try to visit everyone who visits me even when it gets very time consuming.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Thank you Oceangirl.

Ed, I am a bundle of nervous energy, too. I don't sit still for long.

Jacline Carter said...

Diane, I'm so glad to have blogs like yours available. Certainly, I started mine because I had something to say that I wanted to share with others, but what really brightens my day is having a chance to read others' thoughts, in the forms of their blogs and comments to other bloggers. Yes, it is all about the connections. Thank you!

Arlee Bird said...

I very rarely read a post without commenting for the reason you've expressed. The only times when I don't comment are when I absolutely don't get what has been posted, when I find the post overly offensive or that my comment might offend if I were to leave one, or I find a site that I don't ever want to revisit and there is nothing I wish to say.

I leave comments on many sites that don't visit mine. That's how you start building a following and a readership and that's how you expand the same after you've been blogging for a while.


Lee
Tossing It Out

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

It's rare I'll read a post without commenting, but I have done it occasionally. I prefer short posts too and if it's not short, then I prefer if it's broken down into headings so it's easier to read.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Jacline, it is! And always a delight to hear from you.

Arlee and Lynda, if I go to the trouble of reading, I'm going to comment. And I've avoided several comments for the reasons you've stated, Arlee.

LynNerdKelley said...

I can't seem to find much time to get on Facebook since I started blogging and tweeting. My favorite is blogging. I learn so much from people's blogs and have made some wonderful friends. I'm a slow reader and I'm just like Yvonne as far as managing to read and leave comments on 15 to 20 blogs a day, if possible. So it blows my mind that some people can visit and comment on 50 to 100 blogs in two hours.

Yes, I like the shorter posts. One reason is that, again, I'm not a fast reader.

I love the comments left on my posts. They make my day, even if it's just a "Hello Weirdo!"

I follow Talli, Matthew, and Alex. Glad you did a spotlight on them. Very interesting posts.

Murr Brewster said...

I write humor. One of the nice side-effects of blogging is that my commenters are pretty dang funny too. Sometimes I think I'll just put in a one-liner and let them do all the work. I don't have the sort of comment section wherein I can reply to each comment in situ, and don't attempt to acknowledge each one. My hope is that they are all happy with the original post, and forgive me. I spend enough time in front of the screen as it is.

p.m.terrell said...

I love your posts about blogging and comments, Diane. I need to stop stretching myself so thin that I don't leave the time to devote to blogging and comments. Especially since the Internet has become the main resource for promotion.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Lynn, if my blog didn't post to my Facebook page, it would be blank.

Trish, it does take time and effort.

Will Burke said...

Thanks for bringing up the legnth of posts. I rarely go over 450 words myself, and appreciate brevity in others.
I have met others through seeing their comments on others' Blogs, and feel a little more "in crowd" when they come to follow me ;)

Sarah Tokeley said...

A few people have said that they don't see how people who comment on lots of blogs can leave 'meaningful' comments. Some of my comments are in-depth. Some of them are just 'well done, that's fantastic news' or 'hope you feel better soon'. No, they're not meaningful but I hope they show I care. I'd rather leave a 'well done' than no comment at all because I couldn't think of something clever to say. Also, whilst I might only leave a quick comment on someone's blog to show I've read and liked it, I often send emails to people if I want to say something more personal.

Anonymous said...

That was a great post and fun to read the comments. Regarding leaving comments, I try to leave something meaningful to let the person know I read their post. True, sometimes I scan a blog because of its length, but I do try to pick something out that I can comment on, rather than saying, "Nice blog."

Denise Covey said...

I really enjoyed your post. Blogging is best, twitter a close second for me. I think they complement each other well. There is no doubt to be a thoughtful blogger takes a lot of time, which means less writing time. I agree, quick sound bites just to show you've been can be shallow, but better than leaving no comment or God forbid, sending emails.

Denise who loves comments...