Dear Readers
Each person chooses to write a blog for different reasons. I choose to write because I want to be entertaining for my readers. Now I know I may be brining this up a bit early. I have only been posting on a daily basis for a couple weeks now, but I feel the need to express my (and I think every other bloggers) want and desire for comments. Comments on our blog posts give us feedback, and let us know that someone out there cares about what we are writing about. Sure we can check out blog stats and see that people are reading our blog, but comments allow us an opportunity to interact with our readers.
Not receiving comments on a blog post is one of the most common complaints I hear amongst the bloggers in my circle. We want you comments, we need you comments. Without them some bloggers start to wonder what the point of writing is. Without your comments we have no idea if people like the topic we choose to write about. Many of the bloggers I know get very excited the minute they see a comment has been posted on their blog.
I was thinking about this over the weekend. My wife Terra and I were sitting in the living room enjoying each others company. She and I both were checking in on a few of our favorite sites on the internet. My wife who actually writes two different blogs looked at me and said (as she had SOOOOOOOOOO many times before!!!!!)
Terra: No one ever comments on my blog.
Me: Maybe you could install software that would track when people read your blog. Thats one of the reasons I transferred my blog over to Word-press is for that very feature they offer.
Terra: I did, but its just not the same. I want comments!
Terra and I along with a few other bloggers I know have had this same conversation so many times they are all starting to bleed together. After my conversation with Terra I started thinking that maybe it was just that the readers of our blogs were not aware of the importance bloggers place on comments. So, do you? Do you understand how much we want them? Do you understand how much time you would be saving me if you posted comments on peoples blogs. The time savings comes from not having to have the conversation listed above again! So on behalf of all of us bloggers out there, please shoot us a comment or two.
Thanks!
I have contemplated a bit on what to contribute here, and I think the best thing I can say is that you should contemplate *why* people aren’t leaving comments. As a hint, it isn’t because they are ignorant of your desire to get them…
Matt, I think the problem is people dont know where to comment. I get comments, and am maintaining a good readership from day to day, but the comments I get are not on the blog itself. They are either on Facebook, or email.
I know what you mean. When I started my blog, I was perfectly prepared never to have anyone but me read it, and I was OK with that. But after a few months, I got tired of the one-sided conversations. That’s when I started exploring and finding networks. Comments are very important because it’s not enough to know if people are reading your blog (maybe I should move to WordPress, since I have no idea how many people read mine)–you want to know what people think of it and of the things you’re saying.
I’ve found the most consistent commenters on my blog are people with blogs that I comment on. It takes work, but I think that’s the best way to get the conversation moving.