I admit it.
When I launched my blog in November 2012, I was a nervous wreck.
I worried about being a lonely voice whispering in the vast ocean of pixels.
Do you feel the same?
Do you get frustrated by a lack of comments?
I had built a list of about 300 email subscribers.
But still I was worried.
Would people read my first post?
Would people leave a comment?
Comments are, of course, social proof
Boatloads of comments suggest a blog is popular, or that at least a specific blog post resonated with an audience.
After last week’s commenting rush, I realized a specific type of posts get more comments. These are my top three:
- 5 Warning Signs You’re a Blogging Wimp (115 comments)
- Here’s How to Find the Courage to Choose Your Own Business Path (103 comments)
- 11 Ways to Sabotage Your Happiness (and What to Do Instead) (93 comments)
While the majority of my blog posts are about blogging and copywriting, the few posts about struggling with running my own business seem to resonate most.
When you show your vulnerability and touch readers emotionally, they’re more likely to comment. When you portray yourself as a know-it-all, readers are less likely to comment. That’s quite logical, isn’t it?
You can try several other tactics to get more comments:
- Write in a conversational style, because it makes commenting feel more natural
- Don’t provide a complete tutorial, so commenters can fill in the gaps
- Try controversial topics to stir up a debate
- Link to other bloggers to encourage them to comment as a thank you (Kevin Duncan is the king of this tactic)
- Set up a commenting group with bloggers and promise to comment on each other’s posts
- Avoid commenting obstacles like Disqus, Livefyre and social commenting systems (see more about commenting systems in this article by Dustin W. Stout)
- Be timely in replying to all comments and provide thoughtful replies
- Let commenters know you’ve replied—I use the ReplyMe plugin for this
- And, last but not least, grow your audience
The tactics above all work.
But how much effort should you put into generating more comments?
Several popular blogs switched off commenting last year, because managing comments had become too much hassle, and because conversations took place elsewhere (so they said). You can read more about why Chris Brogan, Michael Hyatt and Copyblogger switched off commenting.
Are comments not a sign of business success?
Let’s look at a quick comparison between my two latest posts:
How to Write a Sparkling Sentence
Page views in the first week: 3,535
Total comments: 54
Comments excluding my replies: 27
% of comments / page views: 0.8%
Number of signups within 7 days: 17*
Here’s How to Find the Courage to Choose Your Own Business Path
Page views in the first week: 2,741
Total comments: 103
Comments excluding my replies: 53
% of comments / page views: 1.9%
Number of signups within 7 days: 4*
Which blog post was the most successful?
The post with the most page views? The post with the most comments? Or the post with the most email signups?
You might have thought that the post about finding the courage to choose your own business path was more successful, because it received a high number of comments.
But when you look at the figures as a rational business person, the post about writing sparkling sentences is clearly more successful because not only did it receive 29% more views, it also generated over 4 times as many subscribers.
Blog posts with copywriting tips may not get the most comments, but they consistently get most clicks from my emails.
While blog posts about copywriting engage more Enchanting Marketing readers, the posts about self-doubt seem to engage a smaller number readers at a deeper level, creating more interaction.
The tricky truth about comments
As a business owner, I can’t measure business success by the number of comments a post receives. Most of the people buying my courses, for instance, have never commented on my blog prior to purchasing the course.
But for me, blogging isn’t purely about the economics of running a business.
Of course, my blog drives my business growth. My blog allows me to make a living, to sell my course and my books.
But blogging is about much more. It’s about having a voice, a creative outlet. Blogging is about connecting with readers. About inspiring people and making a difference.
Each comment is an opportunity to learn more about you, a chance to engage and have a conversation.
And that conversation is the most rewarding part of blogging.
Recommended reading on engaging your blog readers
How to engage and delight readers (yes, really!)
How to write conversationally
How to captivate readers with personal stories (even if you’re shy)
Dar Henneke, I’ve been writing an email newsletter since 1997 and added a blog somewhere around 2006. So I like to think I’m a pretty good writer. But you are blowing me away with your writing and great ideas. I bought your books and am enjoying them thoroughly. I don’t get a heck of a lot of comments on my blog which drives me a little crazy, but I’ll take your suggestions to heart. As always, great suggestions. Thanks so much for doing what you do!
Cheers, Robert
Thank you for your compliment on my blog and book, Robert. It’s not easy to build an engaged community. Have you tried being more personal in your e-newsletter and perhaps write a message to engage and ask for feedback (without promoting other content)?
Also, I’ve found recently that more people are commenting on social media (for me LinkedIn and Instagram as I don’t have a Facebook account) rather than on a blog.
Hi Henneke,
Boy, you know you’re behind on your blog reading when you come across a post published in MARCH and find you have kindly been linked to and mentioned by one of the best bloggers on the web.
THANK YOU for the kind mention, Henneke! That was very kind of you. Think my wife will mind if I ask her to start calling me “Kevin Kevin”? 😀
Sorry for being MIA for so long. Did you get the email I sent you yesterday? If no, my post for Boost Blog Traffic went live yesterday and your great quote was included in it. 🙂
Hope all is well!
-Kevin
Oooops. That was supposed to say “King Kevin.”
“Kevin Kevin” sounds like a lame musical group from the 80s!
I like your new title. King Kevin sounds great and suits you well 🙂
I’m sure your wife won’t mind – you could give her a royal title, too?
Hello Henneke,
Thank you for your post. I came to this site through another one about SEO. I am looking forward to learn a lot from you!
Welcome, Harry 🙂
I hope you’ll enjoy the site!
Really enjoyed this blog, first time on your site, and now in my reading list.
Anyway –
6) Avoid commenting obstacles like Disqus, Livefyre and social commenting systems
Really agree with this. Whilst it can help to cut down the amount of spam you get, I am often put off by the fact it is yet something else I need to register for.
I found this interesting:
5) Set up a commenting group with bloggers and promise to comment on each other’s posts.
Have you done this, if so, what kind of success did you have?
Hi Ian, Nice to meet 🙂
I’ve not been part of a commenting group, but I’ve heard other people who’ve had success with this.
Instead of setting up or finding a commenting group, I built up an email list before I started my blog (via guest posting). So, I was already getting comments on my first blog post.
Thank you for stopping by!
Hi Henneke, thanks for an awesome post! I find that I get very little comments on my posts, even though I have great content for my niche – Christian Living. I use Disqus, and had no idea that it is commenting obstacle! I will try out CommentLuv; I like the ability to link with the commenter’s last blog post. Perhaps that would make a lot of difference! And by the way, thanks for the 10 tactics to get more comments.
I agree that when its all said and done, conversation is the most rewarding part of blogging!
Hi Pedro – It depends a little on your audience. Some bloggers love Disqus, but they tend to have an audience who are regular commenters and already have a Disqus account. I don’t like the idea that my readers have to create an account before they can comment. I want to make it as easy as possible. Why put an extra hurdle in the way? Also, I’ve often experienced problems with Disqus not loading properly on my phone or iPad. That’s another obstacle.
Let me know what happens when you switch to CommentLuv?
Thanks Henneke! I’d let you know how I get on with CommentLuv 🙂
Comment Luv is the best plugin to use. To get valuable comments i think we should also reply to the comments without fail. As you have mentioned here, during my early days of blogging i used to feel like the posts i’m writing is of no use as i never use to get comments. But now, i have learned how make readers write their opinions. Commenting is a way to interact with the readers. Thanks for this post.
Yes, I agree – I’m also a CommentLuv fan. But as you say – it only works as long as you take comments serious and reply. I always do my best! 🙂
This is my first comment on your blog. Although its one of the few that I have not unsubscribed from and do regularly read your content I appreciate the usefulness of the content. I am also following you as a role model for my upcoming blog.
I love what you say about what blogging is about, not just a business tactic but a creative outlet, a way to make a difference in other people’s lives and having a voice.
Thank you Henneke
I sometimes get a little frustrated with myself, because I can spend way too much time on a blog post sometimes. I tell myself I’m not productive enough. But then I remind myself that creating content is what I love doing most, so I should allow myself to spend time on having fun and experimenting with content. You can run your own business just by following the hard business facts. Well, I can’t. That would take a lot of fun away.
Thank you for stopping by, Christine. I appreciate you allow my into your inbox!
Thanks for the tips, Henneke! Whenever I write, I also experience that kind of fear that maybe the readers won’t find my topics or style of writing interesting enough. We’re lucky that blog sites provide us information which of our entries are read mostly by site visitors. While noting down your tips, I noticed you suggested posting controversial topics. Won’t this have any negative impact? I’m just thinking maybe the post might end up having a stream of negative comments. What’s your take on this? Looking forward to more of your useful tips for bloggers like me! Cheers!
I’ve not posted about controversial topics, but I’m not afraid to take a strong view point.
As you say, controversial topics may cause a backlash. You have to be sure that you can argue your case well. But if you feel strongly about a topic, it can be a good idea to share your view.
We can’t please everyone with our writing. When we choose a stronger viewpoint we often bond stronger with our real fans.
Great post, Henneke. Clearly written, relevant and interesting.
I agree, the ones which display vulnerability seem to attract more comments. Perhaps because the blogging community has become so mutually supportive. When I blogged about how attitude is a choice, and mentioned that my mother had recently passed away, I got my most comments ever.
This is not something to exploit cynically, but it is well worth being aware of.
Thanks for the article.
Yes, I agree with you. We don’t want to exploit our vulnerabilities for sales purposes.
I think we’re all craving real human connections. A lot of the stuff speeding by on Twitter is so superficial. Devoid of humanness. We appreciate it when people share a real story.
I’m sorry your mother passed away.
Thanks.
Quick question for you: I have a wordpress.com Blog, do you know whether CommentLuv would work with it? Looks like a really good plugin to me. but I know wordpress.com is not able to work with all plugins.
Best wishes
Michael
I don’t think you can use it on a WordPress.com website. Here’s what CommentLuv founder Andy Bailey posts about it: https://commentluv.zendesk.com/entries/23345186-Does-CommentLuv-work-on-wordpress-com-blogs-
Sound reasoning and well pointed out. Comments are social proof, but vanity should not take over, business results are what count.
Yes, comments are a vanity metric. But I do enjoy the conversations! Blogging wouldn’t be so much fun without the conversations.
Good to see you again, Kitty 🙂
Wow, the more I blog and the more I read about blogging, the more I see how involved and complicated it is! But its also fascinating and I appreciate you breaking it down into bite-size pieces. Since I’ve started commenting on other blogs, I notice more traffic and I’ll certainly take your comments to heart. Thank you.
Yes, things can get confusing, but the basics are always – think about who might be reading your blog and how you can help them. Then the rest will follow 🙂
Thank you for stopping by again!
Hi Henneke.
You listed some great ideas.
I especially like the first idea about writing in a conversational style. It is definitely a great teacher, and I find that readers often express appreciation for that in their comments.
It was also good that you shared your personal case study. I agree that sharing our own experiences has a strong emotional effect on those who read them.
Thanks for sharing.
Nathan.
Yes, I think a conversational style might have a bigger influence than we think. When readers feel they’re having a conversation with you, when they feel you’re addressing them personally, commenting becomes more natural.
Thank you for stopping by, Nathan.
It’s stimulating and rewarding for a blogger when people take the time and effort to leave a comment. Although there are also some people who do so purely because they want to generate traffic to their own site – so when a comment is obviously a salespitch, I remove it.
I like the WordPress plugin that puts tweets with your blogpost url automatically on your site. Not that all these actually ‘say’ something, so I remove ReTweets. My experience is that people regularly react via Social Media, so it’s nice ik you can link that to your blog.
No comments is just no fun for a blogger. Yes, blogging is important for many businesses nowadays, and will also be without comments, but, as you say, Henneke, the conversations on itself are rewarding and often insightful.
Yes, commenting has been promoted as a traffic generation strategy by some and this makes people try and leave a comment as quickly as possible – often after only scanning a post. They’re not really interested in a conversation 🙁
And yes, that plugin showing Tweets can be useful, when managed properly – as you suggest, so comment sections are not flooded by tweets that don’t add anything to the conversation (because they’re only retweets or tweets of a headline). I guess this is also why some bloggers like to use the Facebook or Google+ commenting plugins, but this only works when readers are predominantly on one social network.
Thank you for stopping by, Sonja (and for all your support on Twitter!)
That’s what you get when you write excellent, usefull and easy to read blogposts… Unfortunately I’m not in the UK and you don’t help Dutch bloggers, so I cannot recommend you over here. But anyway, not surprisingly, we also love you in Holland! 🙂
Hey Henneke,
Excellent tips and I follow the majority of these tips. I believe comments gives your blog additional life besides social proof. It also makes it fun engaging and shows how much some people appreciate your content.
The one thing I lack is replying to my commenters in a timely manner. Sometimes it takes me a week or more to do so. A lot of times it’s due to my limited time. I have to squeeze in the time I have to blog as we’ll as other things
But besides the limited time I have I am consistent as far as putting out quality content and replying. With consistency I still get a decent number of comments!
Thanks for sharing Henneke! I hope you have a great rest of the week!
Oh, yes, I agree. Comments are about a lot more than social proof. It’s about engagement and showing interest.
Comments are even a form of market research. They’ve helped me understand a lot more about who is reading my blogs and how I can help them.
Time can indeed be tricky; and we can never tick all the boxes of what we *should* be doing online.
Thank you for stopping by, Sherman 🙂
Hi Henneke,
Awesome post as usual.
That’s interesting that those types of topics you spoke about generated the most comments. I guess many people go through those type of struggles and issues and could identify with those things more. And like you said, when yo touch readers emotionally, they’re more likely to comment.
I like your list that you provided there, but the follow up question is what really matters to me. How much effort should be put into generating more comments? I welcome comments on my blog, but that’s not my business. I can’t make a living from comments. My focus is to use my blog as a driving force to make money. The amount of comments you get on a post doesn’t reflect much except show that you have alot of engagement going on.
Great discussion here.
– Andrew
Yes, that’s true – you can’t make a living from comments.
But to me comments feel like an essential part of my online life. I can’t imagine switching off comments on Enchanting Marketing or not taking the time to reply.
The conversations are often valuable, and the comments can be more interesting than the blog posts!
Perfect! By this rationale, I must be running a hugely profitable business because no one has ever commented on my blog 🙂 Or maybe it’s because I write such smart-arse posts that everyone hates me??!
Joking aside, I also don’t think blog comments are a measure of success (ahem, but I would say that, right?). I used to write a food blog that would receive oodles of lovely comments, but it never got me a book deal, or earned me a penny. It was rather lovely for my ego, but sadly my sober business mind had to take over and so the copywriting began. Thanks for breaking it all down, it’s made me feel better 😉
I can’t imagine anyone hating you, Mel.
And that’s a good example of how blog popularity and comments don’t always translate into a successful business. Thank you so much for sharing that. Sounds like it was hard to say goodbye to your food blog?
Yes, a little hard to say goodbye to it, but it’s still out there for me to visit from time to time. And it was so time consuming that it was a relief to stop (cake recipes for allergies; no gluten, dairy or egg). But it did teach me the value of authenticity and some of my most popular writing was when I shot from the hip. My finest moments were when people said I’d made them spit coffee over their keyboard as they snorted in horrified laughter. Oh yeah!
Wow, nice to see your figures! Thank you for your openness. Figures I can dream of…
With me it is the same as with you: blogs where I show my vulnarability get the most comments, also on social media. But in the end it all comes down to the number of subscribers, and in the end people who turn into customers.
But is is very nice to get compliments and get comment. So both are very welcome :).
Yes, I agree – it’s lovely to get comments. 🙂
But my posts and guest posts about copywriting (as well as my snackable course) are probably responsible for all my copywriting inquiries.
I guess that’s why it’s good to mix things up now and then.
Thanks Henneke, for insightful advice (both on how to get comments and how to think about their importance) and for giving the detailed stats as evidence. It is interesting to me that many of my most engaged readers never leave a comment at all!
Thank you, Gary. I try to be specific rather than write vague statements. 🙂
Hi Henneke,
This morning I’m rushing and I briefly checked my emails. I saw you had another post. I decided right then, I’ve got to go over and see what Henneke is talking about today: that will be my one stop this morning.
And why?
Because you answer comments and also you are personable through email. You are a friend even though we haven’t met.
So when people ask me about marketing, I think of you first. You bet that communication makes a difference. I’ve purchased from you and overtime will be getting more.
That all said, too some degree I know it has to be tough to answer every email and comment on every post which is why I think some of the bigger blogger names have stopped doing so.
But I don’t understand why, perhaps, they don’t, at minimum, though not the best answer, hire some “clones” to answer their comments and handle their email.
It’s funny how when people are starting out they want comments and they respond, but when they get a strong following they walk away. Yes, not answering back feels like a salesperson who has walked away and belittled me the buyer.
There are so many marketers and copywriters online, so the first emails I’m getting un-subcribing from are those that don’t answer back. As a potential customer, my time is as valuable as theirs.
You have been there for me, and I’m not going to jump ship. I feel like I’ve met you in person. Words are powerful. Your emails will stay in the box along with my family and friends. You can take that to the bank.
And no matter what business venture you start, I’ll be there to get the best information and at the same time support you.
I don’t know why the “big” sites don’t get it. There competition are those that care about their customer. Plain and Simple.
Wow, what a wonderful comment, Sandy. Thank you so much.
Not answering back feels also rude to me. I try to answer all my emails (but not cold sales emails) and reply to comments (also for guest posts). I’m not sure I’d even feel comfortable hiring someone to do that for me, because it’s my voice. But maybe that’s easy for me as I’m only blogging once a week and don’t get hundreds of emails. 😉
I guess some of the big sites operate more as companies rather than as individual people, and that’s when you get a certain distance. They start to think and interact like companies, too.
I mulled over this conversation and read the other comments. And it got me thinking. Could it be that when blogs first came on the scene it was the place where people would share and exchange information? I remember when blogs were just full of links and look at them today.
Blogs were trending and caught the eye of business people who changed over to blogging platforms to get more customers. Some even shut down their websites.
But it seems the purpose, use and platform of blogging keeps changing as each business person changes their perception of what a blog is.
I’ve noticed that many people use the blog structure as a substitute for a static website.
After reading the comments, I wonder if the concept of blogging is murky or clear or represents a change of the internet landscape.
If a customer arrives at a blog they may want conversation but the business owner isn’t using the blog for that reason.
I’m glad you did this post because it makes the point that you need to know why you’re blogging and how, or if, it will help you to achieve your business goals.
Do you think the concept of “blogs” and “blogging” are changing?
It’s a topic worthy of an ebook from an experienced person like you.
Yes, I do think things have changed a lot. As far as I know blogging was originally more like personal journaling.
Businesses jumped into blogging only when it became clear it a blog would support search engine optimization efforts.
Some businesses still purely blog for SEO, but others have made their blog the hub of their content marketing efforts. For them it’s an important channel for engaging (potential) customers.
I also think there’s a difference between small and big businesses, where small businesses are often more focused on interaction with customers and fans, while big businesses perhaps are more focused on spreading the word / increasing brand awareness. Comments are less important in the latter case.
I agree with you that it’s important to understand what you want to achieve with a blog – it can be time-consuming (this is definitely a topic I want to write about some time!). I find that for many solo-entrepreneurs, a blog is about more than generating business. They write because they enjoy writing.
Enjoyed this post, especially. AND lots of your other posts.
Thank you, Kayte. Glad to hear that 🙂
Great post – and interesting what you say about commenters not being matched up with purchasers. I’ve found much the same.
That said, most of my posts are ghost towns in the comment section, but they generate a lot of personal emails from people. I think this stems from writing about memory, a very private topic that requires a personal touch.
For that reason, nearly all of my success and discussion with my readership has come from contact through email. So although I’d like to see more of a community on the site, I prefer growing the basis by which people feel they can get in touch by email. I’ve learned so much from them and they guide much of what I do.
Thanks again for the great post!
Yes, I also find that some people prefer emails to commenting. And I’ve also learned a lot from people who have emailed me with their questions (quite a few of those turned into blog posts!).
I agree with you that some topics are sensitive, and commenting might not be the best method for interacting. Have you considered switching off comments and instead encouraging people to email you at the end of each blog post?
Thank you for stopping by, Anthony!
Now that`s really helpful. There is no doubt that compelling content and comments increase readers engagement on site. Controversial topic and topics that add value to reader`s experience are really helpful. Thanks for sharing a detailed post to get more blog comments.
Yes, I agree it starts with writing content that engages your readers. Without that, it’s difficult to build an online business. 🙂
Hello Henneke
Modern business seems, too often, to be about Google Analytics and so much data that it makes you dizzy. It would be nice if more business owners spent their time on connecting with clients. Then inspiring them and making a difference to their lives.
Agreed! Well put, Philip. Let’s not forget that there are real people behind the Google Analytics numbers. (This is also why I hate it when people quote stats about how effective popups are. Because the numbers don’t show how many people get annoyed. And do they know how many of the people who signed up really really want to get their emails?)
Hi Henneke,
I think one has to look at many metrics to keep track of one’s ‘success’. Email newsletter sign ups are important for future profits, but engagement with one’s readers is (for some of us) good for one’s business soul 🙂
I think some people have realised that ‘vulnerable’ posts have a certain pull – I can think of a number of times where I think they have been used as a sales tactic which I don’t like…
I guess for me, it’s about being ‘all-rounded’ – keeping the focus on serving those I am in business to serve, but also interacting as a human. For me that is the heart of this online business world.
Thanks as always for your insights .
Yes, you make an excellent point.
What is success? To some it might mean just making more money, but for me it’s more than that. I also need to nurture my soul, as you beautifully suggest. So while I do look at all the numbers, in the end I follow my gut instinct, and do what feels good.
And I would never write a vulnerable post as a sales tactic. Yuck.
Hi Henneke,
Great analysis!
I think the most important factor that you mentioned is hitting a nerve of your reader. Sparking his emotions.
I’ve noticed that these kind of posts tend to produce the biggest number of comments.
And as you mentioned many times, bigger traffic doesn’t always mean more subscribers. And subscribers is what I need.
Thanks for this timely post!
Yes, I think subscribers are the key asset for building a business, because you have a chance to build long term relationships with people who sign up to your list. So keeping an eye on open rates and click through rates is important, because they’re the main indicators whether a list is engaged or not.
I guess it also depends on what your business is about — when helping people to leave a fulfilling life, it’s easier to make an emotional connection than when you’re a truck leasing company or selling household appliances.
Yes, you’re right. But still doable. Because even a house appliance customer has a problem that triggers his emotions.
Hello Henneke,
Thank you for these tips! My girlfriend and I run a blog and on every post we’re getting a few comments. We are both really happy with that, because we notice a lot of blogs don’t get any comments.
I will definitely try some of your tips. Especially the one about blogging about your own struggles. I also like the idea of a commenting group of beginning bloggers. It might convince readers to comment if they see other comments on a post.
Thanks for sharing and I love your blog!
Yes, that’s a good point – when people see other comments, they’re probably more likely to comment, too.
Glad to hear you’re enjoying