Comments play a vital role in fostering vibrant discussions within the blogosphere. They are the lifeblood of meaningful engagement, adding depth and diversity of perspectives to any topic.
But recently, commenting on blogs seems to be going in the wrong direction.
My recent blog post, ‘What Kind Of Comments Are The Best To Leave On Blog Posts?‘ got many of you discussing various types of comments, but more importantly, the non-engaging comments that sadly seem to have become more popular than comments that spark valuable engagement, discussions and conversations.
If you haven’t read the post, please do and add your voice to the various debates.
Today, I have the pleasure of presenting two captivating blog posts penned by talented bloggers about the subject of comments.
These insightful pieces delve into the diverse range of comments they receive on their blogs, offering a glimpse into their personal perspectives and emotional experiences.
The first is from blogger and writer Brenda, who blogs at Curiosities, Castles and Coffee Shops. Click the following link to read Brenda’s post and join the discussions her post has sparked.
I urge those of you who enjoy engagement, discussions and conversations on blog posts to read both posts and add your thoughts to the discussions that Brenda and Erika have ignited on their posts.
I’m closing comments off here so that comments can be left on the posts I’m promoting today.
A big thank you to Brenda and Erika for taking the courage to open up about leaving comments – a subject many bloggers shy away from.
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In her recent post, Brenda talks about using prompts to get ideas for blog posts, especially when we struggle to find something to write about. She mentions the daily WordPress prompt, which asks a question bloggers can respond to in a blog post.
I won’t go into all the details of Brenda’s excellent advice, but it got me thinking about the subject of comments.
What kind of comments do you leave on blog posts?
I left a comment on Brenda’s post, which sparked a conversation with another blogger, Laura, who blogs at Keeping It Creative.
The following screenshot is just a small part of the conversation Laura, Brenda, and I had about the subject of comments.
Are your comments engaging?
Our conversation got me thinking about the overall subject of comments and how I’ve noticed a big difference in the comments being left on blogs.
When I first started blogging, the majority of bloggers had conversations and discussions in the comments section with each other about the subject of the post. But over time, that trend seems to be dwindling which had me asking the question –
‘What has happened to the art of conversation and discussion in the comments section of blogs?’
Gone are the days when many readers left comments that not only proved they’d read the post but also gave feedback that opened discussion and conversation.
Now, it seems, some bloggers leave comments with little, if any, way of responding to them other than with a ‘Thank you.’ Comments such as –
‘I enjoyed this.’
‘Wonderful.’
‘This is a great read.’
‘Well done.’
‘Great interview.’
‘You did a great job.’
‘Another great story.’
‘Great authors and books.’
‘Great post.’
‘Thanks for sharing this.’
Or worse, a comment that includes nothing but emojis.
Yes, some of those comments sound encouraging, but as Laura said in her comment, ‘Sometimes a comment is so generic, it feels like the person leaving the comment never read the post.’
None of the above comments mention anything about the contents of the post.
Why do people leave short, non-engaging comments?
There are probably some genuine reasons for leaving non-engaging comments all over the blogging world, but what are they?
I hope some of the reasons will be left in the comments section of this post. I’m interested in knowing.
Some bloggers claim they don’t have the time to leave longer, engaging comments because they don’t have the time to leave them. Some have too many other blogs to visit. Some rush around the blogging world because they only have so much time to visit and comment on as many posts as possible.
But in contrast, if they didn’t feel obliged to visit these blogs to leave short, non-engaging comments, they could free up some time to leave a few engaging comments that open up discussion and conversation.
Is it no longer trendy to leave comments on blogs?
I was shocked by what Janice told me. Is it really no longer trendy to leave comments on blogs? Are readers only wanting information, not a community?
The other side of the blogging coin.
It’s not only some of those visiting posts at fault for leaving short, non-engaging comments. Some bloggers respond to engaging comments that clearly show they want to discuss the contents of a post by saying nothing more than a ‘Thank you.’ They instantly cut off engaging with their audience.
What are engaging comments?
They contain information that proves the post has been read.
They are written in an engaging, friendly manner.
They are at least a couple of sentences long.
They indicate that you want to discuss the contents of a post further with who wrote the post.
Include any questions about the contents of a post.
And let me reassure you that you should never feel guilty for not leaving a comment or feel obliged to leave one on any blog. There is nothing wrong with clicking the ‘like’ button and moving on after reading a post if you’ve nothing of value to add.
I don’t enjoy having to reply to any comment with just a ‘thank you.’ I want to get into a discussion or conversation about the contents of my posts and what made whoever left a comment say what they said.
For example –
Why did they think the post was good?
What was it that made them enjoy reading the post?
Why was it a great read, story or interview?
Was it the way the post was written or some of the answers given? If so, which ones?
Did the post strike a cord? Why?
What parts did they like/dislike the most?
Was it something new they learned? If so, what, and how will they use the new information?
I’ve stopped leaving comments on blogs unless I’ve something of value to add.
And I never feel guilty for not leaving a comment.
I don’t need to prove I’ve visited a blog.
I don’t need to make anyone think I’ve read their post.
I don’t feel obliged to follow and read posts on a blog simply because that blogger follows me and leaves me comments.
And nor should you.
So, what has happened to the art of conversation and discussion in the blogging world? Is it dead, or have I, as a blogger who enjoys discussion and conversation, become a minority in the blogging world? Is it no longer trendy to leave comments? Join the discussion and conversation by letting me know what you think in the comments section.
The other day, I came across a wonderfully written blog post after clicking a link on Mastodon. But the trouble was that I seemed to be the first visitor to that blog, even though the post had been published in May 2023. But it didn’t end there.
Don’t do this with your blog.
I always find it sad to discover a well-written blog post over a few months old that has captivated me but generated no comments or likes. It’s like it’s been cut adrift, floating around in the deepest, darkest part of the blogging world, where few venture.
Yet there are blog posts I lose interest in after only reading the first few lines that have hundreds of likes and lots of comments.
Not all of those likes will have been generated by people who read the post, and I call many of the comments dead-end comments that fail to ignite any proper discussion.
What are the clues to an unwelcoming blog?
I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the blogger whose post I’d found via Mastodon. I wondered how they feel when they see other badly written posts that have generated lots of likes and comments.
Of course, just because a post has no comments and nobody has clicked the like button doesn’t mean nobody has read it, but how must that blogger feel when they see that their post hasn’t generated any engagement? Do they feel sad or cheated, or do they not care because they wrote and published the post just for themselves?
Looking more closely at the rest of the blog where I found the post, I did find some clues as to why nobody seems to be visiting and engaging with it.
For a start, none of the 15 posts had been categorised. They were all uncategorised. One of the posts was password-protected, so you could not see the contents unless you knew the password. And there was no information about how to obtain the password.
None of the posts had tags attached, meaning they would not appear on any search results page.
Although there was a ‘Contact the Blogger’ page, the ‘About the Blogger’ page contained only a photo. Who is this person? Where in the world are they located? What do they blog about? What are their interests? Why do they want you to read and follow their blog? All you can do is guess the answers to these questions.
Their first post was published in January 2019, meaning, on average, they only publish 4 blog posts a year. Not a lot, you may think, but I’ve seen blogs that publish one post every three months do well.
Imagine my delight when I checked the other 14 posts and found one with a single comment. Somebody had discovered this blog before I had. Somebody had visited, looked around, liked what they had found, and left a lovely comment. But this blog was lifeless, like an uninhabited planet; there was no response to the comment. Whoever was here three years before I arrived had left empty-handed.
The overall look of the blog was clean and simple. No fancy menus or widgets to click, so it was more of a place where visitors could hang out and engage. Yet, the sheer fact that there seemed to be nobody there had probably put visitors off from following and engaging.
I tried contacting the blog’s owner, but my words bounced back as an echo in this deserted, uninviting place. Maybe they only check in to their blog every three months. We’ll wait and see, but I think I’ll prepare my spaceship and visit another new blog where I hope I find some inhabitants who want to engage with more than just themselves.
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