Comments on: The Art of the Blog Comment and Their Devastating Effects

By: Andrew Wee

Andrew Wee — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 08:30:33 +0000

raj: good points. especially when you combine comments with your web analytics, you get a bird’s eye view of your visitors. if you check out the stuff at crazyegg.com, it generates ‘heat maps’ of where clicks occur on your page too.

do note though, that having too many analystics scripts running on your blog will slow the page loads.
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tony: using comments to springboard entirely new posts can help multiply your blog post output. going beyond reproducing the comments to include new content, or aggregating varied comments can add a lot of value too.
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richard ball: thanks for dropping by!

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mike peters: good to see you here.

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chris cree: tks for the feedback. i dont consciously practise ‘devastating comments’. i’ve seen too many bland comments on blogs, and think that spicing things up helps a blog become more ‘forum-esque’ and fosters 2-way communication.

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ashish: “I will have u included in spawners.” — gee, i hope it’s something good.

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don wilson: heh…going generic doesnt impact the blogger, it can generate goodwill (and possibly traffic) for the commenter though.

what little SEO value there might be could probably be outshadowed by spending time writing an article or press release instead if you’re going down the path of the ‘backlink whore’.

the SEO value from an article or press release is much more powerful than the humble blog comment.

a blog comment, if used effectively, can bring great SOCIAL traffic (as compared to search engine traffic).

By: Don Wilson

Don Wilson — Sun, 24 Dec 2006 07:07:10 +0000

Nice Post!…………..Now really, Andrew. Did you think that after the message you just put up, that I would go generic on you?

I agree with you wholeheartedly. In fact, isn’t there some SEO value to having your link on other’s blogs. I haven’t been around long and don’t know how Google’s algorithms work, but it seems that the link to my website adds search value. Correct me if I’m wrong.

By: Ashish Mohta

Ashish Mohta — Sun, 24 Dec 2006 03:02:38 +0000

Damn You read my mind.I was going to write something on this but no no more.I will have u included in spawners.

By: Chris Cree

Chris Cree — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 13:12:50 +0000

Andrew, You truly do practice commenting to a “devastating effect”. I stopped by this morning to get a feel for your blog as I sat down to write an entire post as a result of a comment you left over at my place.

Your comment was helpful (you pointed out something I could have done better) and thought provoking (you asked a probing question that really got me thinking).

Way to practice what you preach!

Now I’m off to write that post. Thanks!

By: cjcm

cjcm — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 08:56:04 +0000

comments work like a magic… great post about comment…. and great comments about comment too..

By: Glenn

Glenn — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 02:53:24 +0000

Hi there Andrew,

New to IM and know that blogging is essential for a start and so just started to write and get a feel of hows it like.Have been at your site a few times so far and you really write very well.Hope to learn as much as i can from you.

Glenn

By: John Tan

John Tan — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 02:39:37 +0000

Using automated software leaving comments indeed is aweful to me. It does not build an reputation for yourself at all as your comment does not make any sense. Recently one of 1 blog got spam comment and 1 days I got 3000 spam comments. Really waste my time deleting them. I agree with Andrew that leaving using content or feedback really help you to build your “me” branding and will bring you long term traffic. Well explained Andrew.

By: Walter

Walter — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 01:50:57 +0000

Thanks for the true and accurate insights into what makes blog commenting work and what doesn’t. As I go into my 90th blog post (yep, still a newbie lah), I realise that the more you comment - intelligently and purposefully of course - in other people’s blogs, the more they will reciprocate the deed. Indeed, there is nothing I find more effective in building traffic than blog commenting, over and on top of producing useful, interesting and well-written content.

By: Mike Peters

Mike Peters — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 00:11:49 +0000

Hi Andrew,

My first visit to your site. And Yes you guessed it I came through your comment on Shoemoney’s site. So I guess you proved your point It does work.

Bookmarked your site and will be visiting you more often as I’ve heard both your name and seen your face around many of the other blogs I frequent.

Keep it up!

By: Kian Ann

Kian Ann — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 22:49:44 +0000

Great post Andrew, blogs comments and trackbacks are great ways to get traffic, but better of all, create conversations on blogs. The thread of comments following a post can literally become a chatroom!

It is, however, important to always add value (or as your post put it : the interaction value chain) whenever you leave a comment.

By: Rashenbo

Rashenbo — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 20:37:54 +0000

Very true… I remember on one occassion I got in a fairly good argument with another commenter on a blog each of us visited regularly. It was quite invigorating… and we both agreed that even though we were arguing (pretty much over semantics) it was a fun discussion and there were no hard feelings… unfortunately, it ended abruptly when the commenter said they got fired for blogging too much! I wasn’t sure if it was true or not, but I’ve not seen them around for some time so I imagine it was.

I also enjoy insider jokes… when several blog readers share the same interests and start seeing each other on similar blogs… the comments start including references and remarks carried over from other blogs… this links the readers and the bloggers and just brings the social network closer.

By: Richard Ball

Richard Ball — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 19:14:52 +0000

Nice. Interesting post. I like your post. Thanks.

Andrew, I’ve been reading your blog since you joined 9rules. I was accepted at the same time and have been exploring many of the 9rules blogs. Yours is one of my new favorites. Interesting to note that I linked to a couple of bloggers talking about SMO in the note you left on 9rules. A few days later, 2 of those bloggers also made it into 9rules.

Anyway, just thought I’d say “hello” and let you know I’m enjoying reading your blog!

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 19:11:28 +0000

Well it is about leaving a comment insightful enough, to get readers interested in finding out more about you.

Actually I’ve seen some comments reposted as new posts (and have done some myself), as some can really contribute much to the discussion.

On the other hand, using those ‘automated’ commenting systems will have your name end up in Wordpress’ spam archive.

By: Raj

Raj — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 17:57:57 +0000

I always looked at comments from interaction point of view. I prompt and request my visitors to post their thoughts and suggestion through comments. At one time of time I always thought of disabling comments section on my blogs but then I realized that I don’t even have a clue about what the visitors think about my blogs. I wanted to be feedback driven and then I never unchecked comments for any of the posts that I make.

1. Comments are very helpful in understanding visitor’s reaction
2. Visitors come back to see what others have to say about their comments
3. In technology or niche areas, comments do much more than just reacting to certain posts, they help in sharing ideas too
4. Comments help in creating a healthy and long term relationship with your visitors.

Thanks for writing this article. I like it.

By: Andrew Wee

Andrew Wee — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 17:25:41 +0000

Rashenbo: what i like is when the readers are bloggers themselves, then you set into motion a series of interactions between blogs.

that’s when it gets really exciting for me.