Essential Tips And Techniques For Better Blog Commenting

This post was guest blog by Fabien, a teen blogger from Australia. Check him at Small Fish Big Money.

As bloggers, we all visit each other’s blogs from time to time. We might even leave a comment or two if the blog post is good enough or if it’s about something we enjoy reading. The important factor to note about blog commenting is that anyone can do it – but very few are good at it.

There is no right way or wrong way to comment on a blog, but there is always a better or more beneficial way. This post will outline key facts about the habits of blog commenters and explore the way in which a typical blog comment is structured, it will then explain how you can be a better blog commenter by having understood the elements of better commenting styles.

1. Where Do You Link Your Comments To?

I see so many people out there who take what some people consider the ‘easy’ way out, they link their comments to their homepage. Now, I do not have anything against this, scoring some brownie points for Google Page Rank is always beneficial. I believe that linking the comment to a blog post that is relevant to the one you are reading is both logical and good for spreading a variety of links to your blog. At some blogs you may even have the luxury of linking both to your homepage and a blog post of your own creation via the CommentLuv Plugin or the sheer fact that you included it in your comment.

2. Is Your Comment A Half Baked Job?

I have seen a bountiful amount of meaningless comments in the blogosphere. I highly recommend not leaving a comment like ‘good one’, ‘well done’, ‘great’ or ‘really good post’. Despite the fact that you are praising the blogger, these comments will not do anything for your own blog ranking in the SERPS. I highly suggest making useful and insightful comments on a blog post. You can do this by relating to the post, suggesting some extra content, covering something the blogger has not talked about etc…By doing this you are adding value to the post, as opposed to lowering the quality of it.

3. Being Positive, Not Negative…

By being positive in your comments you are more likely to attain a response from the blog owner. If you take a negative stance, the blog owner may be likely to delete your comment or reply to you in a negative way (potentially damaging your rapport with the owner in the process). You don’t have to always be overly positive, remember, if you are going to criticise, make it constructive, not destructive. Instead of saying something like “This post sucks” you can say something like “I agree with…But I also recommend etc…” The second one does not seem overly negative and comes across as a suggestion as opposed to an insult.

4. Praise the Blog – Thank the Blogger…If You Like It:

If you enjoyed the post, praise the blog and thank the blogger. It is simple and very easy to do. It is important to remember that when you are thanking the blogger, take the time to tell them what you liked about the post and how it helped you – it is far better than a ‘thanks for the post’ or a ‘what a great article’. You could say something along the lines of “This post showed me a side of blog commenting that I did not really care much for about previously, thank you for sharing this and I will definitely take the advice onboard, I look forward to your future posts.”

5. Sharing Your Knowledge In A Comment

Your comment is the opportunity to make a name for yourself. Instead of leaving small one liner think about leaving two or three paragraph value comments. As a blog owner, I really enjoy getting comments that add value to my posts; these comments are usually one or more paragraphs long. Additionally, those comments are the ones that I remember – and this is one of the most important things for you to remember. If you post a comment, a high quality comment, sharing your experiences and suggesting some extra information for the post, you will earn respect, build relationships and heighten your status as an authority about a particular subject or topic.

In conclusion I would like to say that you won’t always have the opportunity or time resources to make huge comments. My advice is to make the comment worthwhile, that means, speaking your mind, suggesting ideas and showing your appreciation. On a more personal note, I would like to thank John Chow for giving me the opportunity to post at JohnChow.Com. It is very much appreciated. Kind Regards, Fabien.