My blog is a little over 3 months old and right now I have a total of 107 posts with 1,091 comments. I have tried a lot of things to attract comments on my blog, many which have worked out well and continue to help bring in a lot of comments. Most of these techniques do not require special settings or plugins on your blog, so they will work great for any blogger on any blogging platform.
Comment on blogs similar to mine
Since I am generally interested in webmaster and blogging subjects, commenting on blogs similar to this subject was just very natural and easy for me. I could easily read the articles, actually learn something, and have a useful comment to share. I typically try to only comment if I have something to add to the conversation and this hopefully will show that I am genueaily interested. Bloggers have a very unique radar that can track down people commenting just for commenting sake!
Comment on blogs that started when I started
I don’t know if I did this on purpose, but I defiatnly was very drawn to bloggers who started when I did and who had similar goals to me. Not only was I able to learn a lot by their own trial and errors they were posting about, but I could in exchange share my own knowledge with them. This helped create friendships in the blogsphere and mutual interest in each others new blogs. I still enjoy discovering new blogs and sharing information.
Starting friendships and creating a community
The blogsphere is not like any other community on the Internet. It is very unique in all aspects and you need to be a blogger (past or present) in order to understand what other bloggers are going through. By starting friendships with other bloggers, my blog starting to turn more into a community where other bloggers knew each other and commenting was just like a continued conversation from each others blogs.
Visiting and commenting on my commentors blogs
I enjoy visiting my commentors blogs and leaving comments. I have even subscribe to my commentors RSS feeds, infact 75% of the blogs I’m subscrirbed to happen to be from my commentors. I really do enjoy visiting other blogs where I know the blogger and that the blogger is also interested in what I have to say. I guess in exchange I attract other bloggers who are similar to me in this way. My biggest hurdle now is trying to keep up with visiting my commentors blogs because my comments have kept increasing making this a little more difficult to keep up with.
Answer my own commentors
When I started to get comments on my blog, I was estatic and I started to respond to my commentors on a regular basis. At first it seems a little dopey to say thanks, but once you get into it you will find you have a lot more to say and continue to share more information you may have not included in your post. This also will help continue the conversation and hopefully your commentors will provide their own knowledge too. There is a movement started by Baron Brown, Mark, and Mike called “You Comment, I Reply” which encourages bloggers to talk to their commentors.
List my top commentors on my sidebar
Along with listing my top 10 commentors on my sidebar, I also list the 5 most recent comments on my blog too. Both of these help commentors get a little link love and I often use it to see what conversations are going on in my own blog. A few of my commentors have mentioned getting quite a few visitors from being in the list, so I’m glad it is working out for some of you.
Feature my top commentors
Many of the blogs I visited would feature their top commentors weekly or monthly. I loved this idea because it gave me a chance to give back to my top commentors. I even further decided to start stumbling my top commentors too based off of Pure Blogging’s top commenter post too. This has been well received and my top commentors certainly have been loving my weekly Jar Full of Link posts.
Removing the No-follow tag on my commentors link
Once I discovered that there was a no-follow tag on my commentors link, I quickly removed it with a WordPress plugin. If you comment on my blog, why not get a linkback to your website for search engines too! A lot of people are worried about getting more spam by removing the no-follow tag, but honestly I haven’t had too much of a problem because I approve all first time commentors. Maintenance on my comments has been very minimal.
Comments attract more comments
Once I started to get regular comments on my blog, the comments just kept on coming. I am very appreciative to all my commentors and I thank each of you for taking the time out to comment on my blog. The one downside to attracting more and more comments is that I’m not able to get to know all of my commentors and visitors as well as I used to. But the knowledge that is shared through comments cannot be beat on any other platform!
This post is an entry for The Wrtiers Manifesto’s Tutorial Group Writing Project.
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Very nice. Another way is to use Andy Bailey’s CommentLuv plugin that adds the commenter’s latest post at the the end of his/her comment. Thanks for the mention!
basically you need to comment on other blogs and try to strike a conversation with your readers.
Sarah - this is a fantastic article. I just stumbled it.
I agree that bloggers can only understand what a sincere comment means to the blogger. I also agree that we bloggers have a heightened sense of detecting the intent of the comment.
I’ve been encouraging a blogger friend of mine to consider writing a guest post here at Blue Jar. She’s really good about engaging with the people who comment on her site.
Wow, great list of tips! I also try to only comment when I have something to add to the conversation. If you are reading other blogs and leaving comments like “I agree!” that won’t really add an value to that post.
Glad to see you joined the group writing project!
Great post Sarah. You certainly do get a good many comments. Thanks for the tutorial.
@brownBaron, that sounds like a great plugin, I’ll have to give it a try.
That does sound like a cool plugin, will need to first upgrade all my current plugins :c) and than I’ll probably get to adding this one. Thanks for the tip Baron Brown!
I been meaning to post my entry for a while. Time files!
I noticed the whole “Comment on blogs starting at similar times to you”, can I just say something here.
As a 5 year blogger, I’ve noticed that blogs kinda start in peaks and troughs. At the moment, I’d say we’re coming down from a peak. In 2006, I’d say I picked up 3-4 regular new commenters, this year probably 10-15. I dunno the purpose of it, but maybe that’s just me.
I’m growing to hate do-follow, will blog abotu it next week, but my goodness have I had some dodgy comments recently!
I don’t know what you mean by “troughs”? I know that I have gained a lot of great friends even without their blogs who started around when I did. But I’ve also gained a lot of great friends who have been around awhile. Its a combo of both, or just being active in the blogging world in general that will get you more regular commentors.
As for do-follow, I support this and will continue to. I don’t go out of my way to promote it any way tho. I just simple don’t believe it is my choice to decide whether a link is worthy of link love. I think that the search engines can figure this out without webmasters mucking with syntax. I believe this before I started blogging. So it is just carried on into my blog.
Writing about comments is usually a pretty good way to get more.
Hi Sarah
great article articulating what others probably think but don’t come out and say.
I LOVE comments on my blog and absolutely adore talking back to my commenters - the conversational relationships formed through blogs never ceases to astound me.
There are occasions when I am so busy with my work life (child protection) that I cannot comment immediately. That annoys me, so I often visit the commenters site, bookmark and then revisit and leave a comment when time allows. It is my way of spreading blog karma.
And now….I have to get back to work because I have a client about to arrive. Oh how I long to go pro blogger and talk to other bloggers all day.
@ Brown Barron: thanks for pointing out that plugin. Sounds like a great idea.
A Sarah: I’m glad you managed to write your entry. I know you have been flat out and was hoping you made it in time.
Comments on blogs is what drives me to keep going. I’ve also had some “duds” trying to sneak back a link love, and if I can pick them I delete them. I even had a Chinese one the other day and couldn’t read what the heck their were saying.
Who knows, they might have proposed to me for all I know. LOL
Good luck with the entry Sarah
Monika
This is a great article Sarah. I do answer all of my comments, but how do you know which blogs started when you did?
Glad I could make it in time Monika. It is amazing how much time your children can take when they start school. And my oldest is only 3 1/2 years and only goes twice a week. I am hoping it all balances out soon, otherwise I’d like to find that 36 hour clock.
The only way I knew when a blog really started was when they released their stats. And I noticed that I just somehow was attracted to blogs that started when I did, maybe because they were posting similar issues/ideas as me? I think after a few months I’m not sure how easy it would be to find other blogs that started around the sametime.
Sarah,
What a great list. Like Monika said, comments are what drive many bloggers to keep going. I just recently started reading your blog, and love the information you’re sharing.
Off to check out some of these other blogs.
Heather
P.S. Stumbled
Commenting on blogs that began at the same time is interesting. I have built a few relationships with a similar tactic but it was because a relationship began with each of us commenting and trying to improve our design/posts.
I’ve found that I enjoy the idea of a conversation with comments. It seems very hard to start, but once your regular readers become used to it I think it adds a very unique sense of community to the site.
Great list. I did almost all this things, except “Comment on blogs that started when I started”. Did you look at all blogs stats to see that?
I stumbled this article, too.
I’d like to add that NOT all blogs receive some kind of attention, even if all the “necessary” steps have been taken, e.g. installing the Top Commentators plugin, removing the “nofollow” tag, replying to comments, etc.
But one thing is for sure: Blogs on blogging receive much more attention compared to personal blogs these days.
@pelf, it’s because the personal blogs usually don’t have a fixed topic of discussion. If one post is about the topic A, the next is about topic Z, which makes it hard for the readers to remain interested in the content of a personal blog.
While on blogs about blogging, for example, we have a large audience of bloggers who are constantly interested in our topic because it benefits them, so it’s easy for them to stick around and join the discussions.
I think for personal blogs to make any real progress, it is necessary that they provide value to their readers i.e., provide useful insights, and somehow make their life easier. You see, people value web content based on how it changes their life for the better, and if it’s worth their time or not. Make it worth their time and you’ll slowly build an audience that’ll care about your discussions.
Some really good tips there mate. I think you’ve got to put yourself out there in order to be found. It’s amazing how many people actually click links in comments. Also think the ‘Top Commenters’ plugin is a great way of rewarding your commenters. Keep up the good work!
Peaks and Troughs - Highs and Lows
This is a great way for getting comments and I will defnitely try out those that you have listed out to garner more comments for my blog
I’ve always wondered how important could bloggers be for the marketing of your site. Your post has opened my eyes, so thank you very much and my best wishes with your work.
I’ve recently started to interact more with some of our readers, and have really noticed more in the way of conversations taking place.
A few days ago, we passed the 1000 comments benchmark, which makes us happy, even if a lot of the comments are from people who wish we would die. In a fire.
Sarah, great share. There’s a link error with “Pure Blogging’s”
I like the idea of featuring the top commenters. I think I’ll try that out.
I just recently implemented comments on my blog engine. Not as lucky as you are when it comes to comments.
Great comprehensive post on commenting and how it can contribute to building one’s blog, Sarah! I think this really helped when I started out last month. Unfortunately it is also now my ‘downfall’ as I have not had enough time to visit and comment as much the past few weeks due to some work on other stuff. I hope to resume normal operations soon as I really miss the communication!
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog is written by Sarah over at Bluejar.com and is an excellent turtorial on getting comments. Sarah’s blog is only 3 months old and she has over a 1000 comments on 100 posts. That’s nothing to sneeze at. How is she able to get so many comments? Check out her post, but I think the main reason is that Sarah spends much time commenting herself. Commenting on other blogs is a great way to get new readers to your site, as well as getting them to comment back to you. [...]
[...] BlueJar.com tells you some things you can do to get blog commenters to comment on your blog. He’s also got a way cool logo. It gives me the urge to make spaghetti. [...]
Thanks for the post Sarah! I think my first comment on your blog was “How to you get so many comments!?!?” HAHA So now I guess I have my question answered.
Do you think any blog (whatever topic) can get lots of comments or just some categories like Blogging Tips, SEO, etc??
Aseem
I agree with your points - all of which have worked pretty well for me. I especially like to keep the conversation going with my commentors - people like to be recognised for their efforts of leaving a comment and a simple ‘thanks for commenting’ reward is not much to give.
Nice blog. I’ll add you to my RSS reader
Hi Sarah,
I’m like you in that I always answer comments if for no other reason than it’s plain good manners! I do-follow too because I believe if people go to the trouble to comment, it’s only fair their link gets recognised by the search engines. I like fair!
Ok, I get a lot of spam because of it, but the Askimet plugin takes care of most of it and the sneaky ones that get through I can always spot and head straight for the DELETE button!
This is a great post and I really enjoyed reading it. I look forward to more!
I stumbled too!
Terry
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog by Sarah [...]
That’s a lot of comments and great ways to attract them.
[...] the GnomeyNewt, has a great post about increasing commenting, which is her entry into TheWritersManifesto Group writing project. She also is looking for people [...]
hey cool beans I rarely get comments liken your blog ta
HB~
great advice, I have noticed a lot more blogs using this kind of approach successfully, this should be included in the “your first blog” instruction book
thanks BrownBaron for mentioning the CommentLuv plugin!
@sarah: contact me any time about the plugin!
[...] Sarah: http://www.bluejar.com/how-to-.....your-blog/ [...]
Great article! I picked up on it with stumble and since I just started my blog I am going to try to put it into practice.
Thanks for the advice and thumbs up on stumble!
A nice post, and you’ve obviously had success getting those comments (38 on this post alone as I write!)! I think this one is big:
“Comment on blogs that started when I started”
You’re definitely more likely to get responses from your peers rather than the big name bloggers who get dozens or even hundreds of comments a day not to mention email. Anyway, more people are likely to notice your comment on someone else’s blog (and click through to your site) when there aren’t a zillion other comments on there. So all around it’s a good strategy to establish relationships with other folks who are in the same boat as you are.
Thanks for the tips! I like the idea of the top commentators on the sidebar.
First and important thing is to comment on other blogs to tell them your existence. Good article. I have written many on improving comments.
[...] has gained considerable experience in her stint of 3 months in the Blogosphere, shares her tips on how to attract comments on your blog. The mere fact that this post has attracted over 40 comments as of writing this, is testimony to [...]
I’ve just start my blog and thanks for the tips, now I understand that it’s all about take and give.
i am doing blogging for past 3 months as well but hardly anybody putting any comments on my blogs. i dont know why
[...] Sarah from BlueJar has a interesting post on How to Attract Comments on Your Blog. [...]
Great article and I agree with what you’re saying. Actually, although I’m new to blogging I’ve decided to put myself on a blogging schedule in order to keep up with reading feeds, MyBlogLog pages, comments, etc. in the hopes of keeping things on track.
nice post. Looking to attract more readers to my blog, and stumbled across this article. Seems like it could be very useful. Will browse the rest of your articles too!
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog - Sarah [...]
While all new bloggers are shouting out the PR they recieved, I see no movement here… Congratulations for the PR4!
And just came to know… Congratulations for winning Group Writing Project at TheWritersManifestoBlogwriters…
HI Sarah…i read that u were 3 months old in the blogosphere and have already managed 1091 comments, and went back to mine and checked- i m 5 months old here, and still haven’t managed to get many comments beyond my friends’ circle. I so want to get an honest feedback from total strangers about my writings! I hope your tips help. Thanks for sharing!
Good ideas there. The biggest one for me has just been engendering conversations. If a person has a good conversation with you once, they’re more likely to come back and comment again the next time.
It’s also a lot of fun to do.
sometime it is kind of a big headache to get people comment on your blog with good stuff. but then it is a challenge to all bloggers. that’s what internet all about. the place to show your stuff and be among the best.
Thanks for helping like this. I m really very needy for that. It will be helpful for me.
Your idea is so admirable. I feel as I get something new from your guidelines. Thanks for sharing.
Which top commentors plug-in are you using?
Does it support WP 2.3?
Thanks,jb
Sure, removing no-follow is great to attract web developers and search engine marketers but what if you’re in a niche where most people don’t know about no-follow? Doesn’t do much good there to remove except to invite spammers. I am pretty neutral to this.
The first 3 months my blog was up, I put out some 15 articles. The comments section had nothing but a long string of zeros. It felt like I was talking to myself.
Now, even though I do not serve coffee and donuts, a few people are starting to visit. Appreciate your tips.
Great post. I think you could add “write more posts so there are more posts to comment on.”
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog Posted in Uncategorized | [...]
You have discussed very important matters in your article. I need to follow these. Thanks for your recommendation.
Thanks for this list. It’s useful, since I have always had a bit of a problem getting comments. (I get lots of hits, not many comments.)
From what I’ve seen on other blogs I think the last point is especially true. That is, there seems to be a critical mass of comments that has to be reached. Once it has, the comments never stop. (It’s kind of like people at a dance — it takes a few brave souls to get up before everybody else does.)
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog - Sarah [...]
Seems like all of us bloggers are talking about the importance of commenting lately!! I totally agree with this post and can vouch for it actually working!!
I actually saw one of your comments on another blog and it brought me her to your blog… You wrote that “guess what I found? One of those blogs that steal ‘feeds’. So basically the headline was cool, but it was actually from another persons blog! I don’t know how many of those are on there but they need to check these blogs and they also need an easy way to report it - Unless they allow that sort of thing?”
Now I know this is kind of off topic and I hope your are not annoyed but if you find a way to report these blogs that are a full of other people’s “feeds” will you let me know to… This is a huge pet peeve of mine!
Have a good night!
nice articles , got new insights of getting users to comment more on the blog
blog is succesful only if it has gud nd active commentators
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog [...]
Wow, that great. My blog is about 6 months old and I only have like 5 comments.
Interesting post. I agree that interacting with visitors actually activates them. As simple as it can sound, at least you got me to prove the point.
Congratulations on such a wonderful blog! We just started our blog formortv at blogspot this week. We have enjoyed networking with like minded individuals. Thanks for the great article. I wish you a ton of success and prosperity.
Peace Out………..
I find it a very useful information. All the tips sure comes in handy. Most blogger actually do not answer on the blogs comments posted by others. It’s a great way to have a two way communication.
[...] into a way to interact more with other sites, so I came across Pingbacks and Trackbacks. (Also this post on BlueJar.com is very interesting to get more comments on your Blog.) Pingback is a way of way of [...]
You can attract comments on your blog if you have good article or content. At the same time your blog must be of follow and you should list it in do follow directories or other directories. Giving comments to other blogs will also help.
Blog comment needs a specific measurement. It will modify your thoughts.
sarah
this is a wonderful list.you get many comments.I’ll have to give it a try.
I think that removing No Follow option in your blog is the greatest single thing you can do to improve traffic to your site. Admittedly you need to do a lot more comment filtering to remove posts that are “nice post, I like your work” but translate to I want a link to my blog from your blog as you have a PR of 6.
[...] declares innovation dead, Coolio Jones ground some inspiration, BlueJar explained how to attract comments, The Thought Sponge pondered common [...]
Good ideas! Also, to get more comments in your blog try to post an interesting topic. If readers got interested in your topic, more visitors will read to your blog and make more comments and try to visit again and again. Making your post a little bit conversational is great!
Me too, I enjoy the idea of a conversation with comments. It is not hard to start and give regular answers. And it would be pity to to miss the communication!
depends from topic to topic.. still great article, liked
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog from BlueJar. [...]
Thanks for all the advice, the list is very informative and useful. I learned alot and will definetly be using many of those tecniques. I am new to blogs so many of the strategies you have described, I have never used before.
You bring up some good points. However, I would assume you’d need some decent traffic to in order to get any comments in the first place. In any case, I will try to implement a few of your suggestions to my blog.
Thanks!
Reply to comments and remove do-follow seems the best.
thank you . this post is so good for me
good luck
Nice article - the whole way of thinking about community and relations is very good - i will consider to do a little like u on my own blog
Hi,
I know you did good job in this blog, but the thing that I am wondering is: I know anyone would be happy to get more traffic to his\her site, but what the result? do you make money with this? I really don’t understand it, how can someone makes money by having more traffic to his\her site when it is only a blog site where someone write and others read?
Anyway, you did a good job,
Regards.
Interesting article. Not sure if you have it but offering an rss feed of comments for each post is another good way to increase commenting.
Very good ideas and well written. These are some good ideas for improving comment involvement.
Great tips there - certainly allows me to try a few of these ideas to get more comments.
Those tips were helpful.! Many of them are already implemented.. But havent tried anything like commenting on those who started the blog in the same time as mine
Hey it worked, you got my comment!
You are absolutely correct. Traffic is easy to get, it’s the comments that are hard to come by. You have to nurture them like a garden.
Thanks the advice. I`ll try it!
Wow. What an awesome post with exceptional ideas! Thanks for all the advice. I’m rss-ing you!
I like to leave comments, and I like to read comments after reading the blog post.
after all the whole reason for the internet is to have two way communication and the blogs do even better than that.
They allow for an exchange of ideas ,(and technologies ) that benefit every one involved.
I found it hard to comment when I first started to say anything when I first found out about reading blogs. so I just read them.
But as Knowledge grows so does the ability to say what you want in a relevant manner.
besides it’s fun when the bloggers comment, or e-mail you back! Tommy
I found this blog, and I just wanted to comment I’m happy I had the chance to read it. I have a small tip: when I have been in Berlin, I browsed through berlinshotel.com for my hotel bookings.
Great List, will help gain comments on my almost commentless blog.
Thanks for the good read and advice.
Will be back soon for new articles.
That’s a great list of tips. I think you’re especially right about the need to create a feel of community. That’s got to be a priority.
Going to dofollow and asking questions of my readers made a huge difference in comments on my blog. This also reflected in subscribers.
I think commenting with other bloggers builds a great community and can naturally help to build comments on your own blog as well over time. Nice tips!
Seeing the number of comments that you already got out of this post, I think you very well know what you’re talking about. Been trying hard to attract comments to my blog and these tips are of wonderful help. Thanks!
Just getting started with our own blog, your post will be helpful for getting much sought after comments!
Seems like all of us bloggers are talking about the importance of commenting lately!! I totally agree with this post and can vouch for it actually working!!
I actually saw one of your comments on another blog and it brought me her to your blog… You wrote that “guess what I found? One of those blogs that steal ‘feeds’. So basically the headline was cool, but it was actually from another persons blog! I don’t know how many of those are on there but they need to check these blogs and they also need an easy way to report it - Unless they allow that sort of thing?”
Now I know this is kind of off topic and I hope your are not annoyed but if you find a way to report these blogs that are a full of other people’s “feeds” will you let me know to… This is a huge pet peeve of mine!
Have a good night!
[...] How to Attract Comments on Your Blog [...]
Thanks a lot for this post….I was a bit slow to answer the comments on my blog and post comments to other blogs. Well, now onwards, I won’t be lazy to reply comments and post comments to other blogs…thanks man for motivating…:-)
Thats an useful posts for bloggers like me.
I am running my blog since year, but only 20 comments in total
Great article.
I know that alot of the feedback that I get from my blog really has to be solicited directly. Not many people ever want to leave the good comments but they will leave the bad comments.
Hi.
Thanks for the tips here - I’m going to put these into action on some of my blogs and see how it goes. At the moment I’m struggling to get many comments.
You clearly dont have a problem with getting comments on this blog though! Great work
James
I think those tips are really working and the best one. thanks for the tip.
Nice tips…Controversial posting also attract more comments. So content is also an important factor to sttract comments.
This is one of the greatest summary i was read. I do agree what you are telling and that’s the reason you can getting over 100 comments on this posts.
Nice way of writing about blogging, your content styling is impressive
Wow you really sturred it up with this post. Very nice !
Thanks for the useful info. I have a blog of my own but I’ve gotten what, like 10 comments in the last 6 months lol. Keep up the good work!
I really like leaving comments on blogs and i find it very easy to leave good comments to. When i first started i thought, why am i doing this but it is so obvious to me now. You sure do have some great ideas and TIPS about blogging. Thanks and keep up the good work
I have recently joined the do-follow movement, but have already received a few spammish comments, they are relevent but are blatent advertisments for other sites! Oh well, gotta take the bad with the good..!
Thats an useful posts for bloggers like me. Thanks…