When it comes to blogging, there are many challenges that can be quite frustrating, especially for new bloggers. Not getting enough comments is one of them. Getting comments from readers is a great way to interact with your audience and get feedback at the same time.
So, how do you increase the number of blog comments on your posts?
Always check your blog comment settings
This might sound like normal practice, but many new bloggers fail to look at their blog settings. Two of the most popular blogging platforms, WordPress and Blogger have options for limiting who can comment on a post. For WordPress, make it easy for commenters by only requiring their name and email address. For other platforms, make it easy by allowing anyone to comment. You can also choose the option of requiring approval before a comment is allowed.
Don’t be afraid to ask
At the end of every blog post, don’t be afraid to ask a question that encourages readers to comment. It can even be as simple as ‘what do you think?” Write a personalised question after every post, instead of simply ‘leave comments below’ so that your readers are encouraged to comment and also know that you will read them.
Create a blog comment policy
Remember that it’s your blog so you can also set the rules for commenting. Make it an encouraging, safe environment for comments. The rules will depend on your business so draft rules accordingly. For e.g. a business blog might have different requirements than a school’s blog. When choosing a policy, keep in mind that you have to decide whether you want to allow people to promote their businesses, or allow negative comments, or even to disagree with your opinions.
Respond to blog comments
This is a great way to show that you are involved and that you personally read people’s comments. It doesn’t have to be a lengthy reply for every comment, but if you reply to at least most comments on your page, it will further encourage engagement. It will also help you to build relationships with your readers as many of them will be returning for more.
Make people feel good when they comment
How you respond to a blog comment says a lot about how you make someone feel. Your attitude will show through your reply so be encouraging or helpful where possible. If you can make people feel good they will more likely come back to read more of your blog posts and value your honest and helpful opinions.
Use your comments to build a community
Managing a blog is all about your audience. By regularly replying to blog comments you’ll be able to slowly but surely build a community of readers. Look for reasons why you can reply to a comment and make commenters feel good about visiting your page. If you are just starting out, read a lot of successful blogs and see how those authors do it. See what they say and how they comment and start doing the same for your own blog.
Get your visitors to subscribe
Another great way to boost your comments is to get visitors to subscribe. Many readers won’t always leave a comment the first time they visit your blog, so by subscribing they will be back to read more posts and hopefully start to comment. You can also give an incentive like a free webinar, video or report if people subscribe to your blog.
Don’t publish too often
Keep in mind that the more blog posts you publish, then less comments you will receive overall. When your post is pushed off of the first page, comments will naturally be less. But readers can also get a bit overwhelmed when you publish too often. Publish once or twice a week at most and you may just see an increase in the number of blog comments.
Ask for links
Visitors are more likely to comment when you have a link from an authority in your industry or niche, as opposed to visitors who simply stumble on to your site. You can even use social media for this and ask for a link, telling them what your post is about and how a link will help you grow your audience.
Write blog posts with passion
People will notice when you write a great blog post. That’s why it’s important to write on topics you are passionate about, as you will put more effort into it and attract great readers. One of your goals with every blog post should be to get your readers energized and excited about what you write. Choosing your topic is essential as that will be the starting point to a great blog with a lot of blog comments from readers.
Try to make people feel more confident
A lot of successful bloggers choose to give their readers a pep talk every now and then. People want to be motivated and guided, so if you have great knowledge on a topic, use that to give people confidence in it. Help them make a great decision or simply feel better about themselves. It’s a great way to attract more opinions and comments too.
Give an incentive to comment
If you still struggle to get the right amount of comments, try to help things along by giving people an incentive. You can give away a free product or even a free consultation, whatever you have available to encourage people to get commenting. Comments will also make readers feel more relevant and part of something, so if you can get them to engage once, they will probably come back again.
Getting more comments all starts with writing a great blog post. We have a premium blog writing service that will help you get quality content published online. For more information on our expert content writing services, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.f
