No matter how big your blog is, every blogger loves and wants comments. Sometimes you write something that you think is awesome and the comment thread is like a ghost town. Here’s the deal, just because you’re not getting a lot of comments doesn’t mean that your posts aren't good enough.
Here are eight reasons why you might not be getting comments – and what you can do about it:
1. Your Posts Are Too Long
There are two things to keep in mind when you’re writing longer posts: 1) most blog posts are short(er) and 2) your readers are busy. It’s not uncommon for them to bookmark your post for reading “when they have time” and move on to the next, shorter post, only to forget to come back and read yours.
2. You Haven’t Asked Them to Comment
Sometimes a post just ends and it’s not clear to your readers whether you actually want a response. Furthermore, if you don’t answer comments at all or regularly enough, it sends the message that you don’t really value comments. When you conclude a post, ask your readers what they think or end it with a question that makes it clear that you’d like a comment.
3. They Don’t Know What To Say
Before you write off a lack of comments as a sign of your utter brilliance, check your post to see if you wrote clearly and simply. Ask if what you wrote was relevant, useful, or interesting to your readers? And if it is a bit of inspirational awesomeness, consider editing it and including a question or statement that lets people know that you’d appreciate some feedback.
4. They’re Doing What You Told Them To Do
If you give your readers a great tip that requires them to do something to implement it, be prepared for the possibility that they might actually go implement it. Similarly, if you’re doing a link roll-up and you tell people to go check out the links you’re talking about, there’s a good chance that they might go do that.
5. They’re Chasing Links On Your Blog
Writing posts that include links to older posts or using plugins that show related posts do have an effect on the number of comments you’ll get. If they click a link that’s midway in your post, they’ll probably read the second post before they comment on the first, and if that second post is linked to others, they might just keep clicking. Change your linking strategy or consider turning those plugins off a bit if you’d like to see if they’re making a difference.
6. They’re Following Your Social Media Trail
Think about how many times you’ve clicked to follow someone on Facebook only to get lost in a chat on Facebook, or how many times you’ve followed someone on Twitter only to get engaged in conversations there. The same thing goes for badges and links that send people to blog network. If you’d prefer more comments than social media connections, consider placing your social media links further down the page or only keeping the ones where you’re active.
7. It’s Hard For Them To Comment
I ran into this one the other day. I wanted to reply to a friend’s blog that was hosted on Blogger and found myself frustrated that I couldn’t just leave a comment like I can on other websites. It gave me five or six different options – none of which I use. The harder your readers have to work to comment, the less likely that they’ll do it. Think long and hard about all the comment plugins you might want to implement – and remember that sometimes the best solution is the simplest one.
8. You’re Posting At The Wrong Time
Figure out when your readers are active and try to publish when they’re reading posts. This takes a bit of homework and observation on your part, but it makes a huge difference in terms of the number of comments you’ll get on your post.
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About the Author: Charlie Gilkey writes about meaningful action, creativity, and entrepreneurship at Productive Flourishing. This article was adapted from his blog post. For more click here!