DISQUS

Sue · 11 months ago

ok, I'll give this a shot! Chris, thank you for this most excellent post. My husband and I were just discussing an hour ago that we need to get out there and make some more comments.

These tips are really handy .. thank you!

Sue

Jamie Favreau · 11 months ago

Hi Chris,
The editor part is the main thing that I miss when blogging. I need someone to say, "Cut this" or "That is too many words," I really miss that.

I try and comment whenever possible. I am still figuring out my blog. I want to go in so many directions but I can't seem to write a short post. I include pictures and video but it just does not ever seem to be cut down enough.

Jamie

Maria Lavis · 11 months ago

Great tips from the comments master himself! I'll be working on brevity of my blog in next while in particular. :)

Lee Munroe · 11 months ago

Nice tips Chris. Agreed that it has to be super easy. Captchas or having to sign in to comment are a huge turn off

@jyl_momIF · 11 months ago

I have two blogs... one personal and one for a community I co-spearhead. I find that while all of these tips work, some apply more specifically to my personal blog and some to the other. With the community blog, I love to feature and promote the gals in the community. Anything we can do on the site to showcase them and their expertise is great. On both blogs, I think easy access to information is great. What I love about this post, in addition the the great content, is the pics, the lists, the chunked info. While it wasn't the shortest post, it was so accessible that it didn't seem overwhelming and made me want to keep reading. You do a great job with that.

Derek · 11 months ago

Just about two weeks ago, I shared my magic formula consisting of three ingredients that has increased the comments on my blog:
- dialog (answer as many comments as possible)
- plugins (subscribe to comments, commentluv, keywordluv, etc.)
- return the favor (get out and comment)

There were a couple of bonus "ingredients" as well that included reaching out to other bloggers via links and asking your readers questions.

These steps have helped me build a growing community of people and I have a few more to implement from your list now.

Scott Aikin · 11 months ago

Good post, I agree the most with "give to get" and "Reply as often as you can". If I can carry on a conversation with a commenter I know my job was done. Also, for those sites that require registration to post or comment Facebook Connect is a wonderful option. It reduces the barrier to entry and gets people involved with a single click. Pretty soon I suspect nobody will be willing to register anywhere to post, they'll just want to use their Facebook or Google login.

steve hopkins · 11 months ago

great post chris - very helpful. one tactic you left out which I really like for smaller bloggers (such as myself) is to seed each post with some comments from friends or people in your community who may like what you're writing. this way, u get great feedback, build the post with the great thoughts of those people around you and provide yourself the chance to 'break the ice' on your conversation.

i've found this really useful and highly recommend it for any bloggers getting started.

ani625 · 11 months ago

Great tips Chris.
I've done exactly what I do with worthy posts like this, share in every possible way.

Bill · 11 months ago

I don't like these articles much anymore Chris....I just think I am making progress after learning from a past article, and now I have more to do! In all seriousness though, I have found commenting a great way to engage with bloggers, but I have a hard time going through my feeds doing some of the bookmarking/spreading you mention.

The list presented is awesome digestible material to really take a look at one's blog and say: "Am I doing everything I can & should be doing" - my favorite quip the past few days: What POSITIVE VALUE am I generating for my readers and subscribers. That extends into leaving comments, tweets, videos, audio - it has to asked: "Are you creating Positive Value" to engage people with? I have to say that you are doing this quite well. Thanks for all the info you share with us!

Ted Mackel · 11 months ago

Thanks Chris, Great tips!

Scott Aikin · 11 months ago

Wow, maybe you should add "think fast and type faster" because when I started writing my comment above there weren't any yet. After I posted there were 6 ahead of me!

Pablothehat · 11 months ago

Yes, taking the time out to comment is important, though in the myriad of tasks we lone bloggers have to seem to accomplish, it can be overlooked.
Nice post, I needed to be reminded, thanks.

Shawn K · 11 months ago

I'm a BIG sharer. I'm often in a rush to read the mass amount of content I'm subscribed to, but sharing is super easy and takes less than a second.

sujamthe · 11 months ago

Chris, very thorough list as usual! Love the piece about giving your idea handles!
Should we prefer comments over trackbacks? Is there a conscious technique you adapt to get one vs the other?

Also, I notice you don't have disqus built in to get the aggregate of comments here, why? Is there a reason you don't have mybloglog to track who is visiting here?

chrisbrogan · 11 months ago

@Sudha - the only reason I didn't implement disqus is that I have several years of comments here. I don't want to risk losing the database. (If someone smarter than me can SWEAR that won't happen, I'll try. I've heard horror stories.)

@Bill - sorry about that. I do try to make these types of posts a bit "checklisty," so you can at least run through, give yourself a diagnostic checkup, and then run from there. Hey, you can always eschew every piece of advice above and be a lamer like PerezHilton.com . (Lamer like wayyyyyyyyy more traffic than me). : )

@Steve Hopkins - can you explain that a bit more. Might be because it's almost 3AM, but I missed it.

@Lots of you - editors are truly what a lot of us need. Even me. Especially me.

Thanks!

Lori Carey · 11 months ago

Some very good advice Chris.
Would love to hear your thoughts on readers who prefer to comment via e-mail, rather than on the blog. Even though I think that I've made commenting as easy as possible it's one of my biggest challenges right now, and they have always been comments that would add positively to the discussion on my blog (not info that people would prefer to keep private). I frequently reference them in subsequent posts - "a reader asked me..." type thing - but it can be frustrating to receive so many comments via e-mail that no one but me ever sees.

javajive · 11 months ago

Excellent ideas. It's increasingly more difficult to find the time to read and post comments on other blogs, but perhaps it's best to draw the circle a bit smaller and attempt to go for quality over quantity? Reaching out to those that matter most to you and those whose blogs you respect the most.

And I do indeed believe the integration of visuals into a mostly text-related post enhances it for the viewer. Quick question:

How do you encourage those who are reading via RSS / mobile to easily comment? Suggestions for that as well?

Cheers from Indonesia.

gianouts · 11 months ago

Some excellent tips regarding comments and blogging techniques in general. Thankyou.

stevenimmons · 11 months ago

I would also add that Friendfeed's 'liked' function works great for fast social sharing. I've got this linked to Twitter, so with a single click on Friendfeed I can post up that I like the article at the link destination. It occurs to me this can circumvent Retweet, and hence add further complication to the solution to trending and authority tracking.

For 'those what comment' I would recommend getting a gravatar and using the same pic across your web presences and 'comment streams' to have 'brand consistency'.

chrisbrogan · 11 months ago

@Lori - I once had a blogger who's audience was gay Catholics ask me why people only emailed him comments. Some folks prefer the intimacy of email. It's a hard one to shake. I wonder if someone else has ideas for Lori on this one?

@javajive - I get 3-4x more readers in RSS than directly (which is flipped from most sites, I'm told), and yet I get a decent amount of comments. My advice from above is how I get them. Not sure if there's *more* that I'd recommend doing to try and pull people out of the RSS feed. I sure don't like partial feeds.

@Steve Nimmons - agreed, though only usually in the nerd crowd. Meaning, if you blog about fashion or yarn or whatever, prolly not. Agree?

Scott Prock · 11 months ago

Hey Chris, excellent tips. I recently installed the Disqus commenting system on my blog and absolutely love it. It's a personal blog that doesn't have many comments so I wasn't worried about the loss of comments.

I did learn that you can import the older comments into the system and it is highly recommended to back up your blog's database. That way if something goes wrong it can be restored. In your case with all the comments you have, I would go the extra step and back up the site to your computer as a secondary precaution. (in addition to the primary back up)

Another option ... probably the safest ... wait until Disqus has a better way to import old comments ;-) ... Scott

John Taylor · 11 months ago

I especially applaud #13 Chris. I see far too many people recycling the same type of content over and over without getting a response. Showing a willing ness to experiment sets the best bloggers apart from the crowd.

Debasis · 11 months ago

It is bit paradoxical but... if you try to cover *everything* on a topic at hand, then you are leaving least room for your readers to comment back. So sometimes leaving few things about a topic could help! Don't try to prove that you know everything, leave something for your readers. If possible end the post with few questions as if you are really ignorant. I would not be surprised if you suddenly start receiving comments that were lacking earlier. My 2 cents...

Bobby Revell · 11 months ago

I take an ultra-simplistic approach. I leave tons of thoughtful comments on other blogs and reply to 100% of the ones I receive. I despise the idea of doing things for more comments and the entire "marketing, me, me, me--I want more for me" ideology. Many blogs get tons of comments; some because the material is good; some because a particular blogger is popular. On the other hand, any article about marketing or blogging tips is a cliché, and inherently unoriginal anyway; however, usually gets a lot of comments because that niche has many followers.

If I leave a quality comment on a blog and the author doesn't reply to it, I usually NEVER visit that blog again especially if they are considered popular or of stature. Most people that horde around the "big blogs" are sheep leaving comments--respecting people based on popularity--a reflection of cheapened values, greed and self-promotion. My friends always come first even if they write about kitty cats or their new haircut. :smile:

Mary · 11 months ago

I love what you say about highlighting and praising others. I have a Friday Feature Profile where I showcase another mom blogger, sharing her story of her blog and how blogging has impacted her life. While I enjoy sharing my own thoughts, I think it's important to offer something besides my endless ramblings. I really feel like I'm giving back.

Eric Hsieh · 11 months ago

I love this entry. Even when blogging, it's all about making friends, sharing the wealth. Make it easy for me (the reader), help me out (WIIFM), and most importantly, get involved and show me you're a real person (by commenting yourself) and I'll gladly repay the kindness.

chrisbrogan · 11 months ago

@Bobby - aieeee... I'd better reply to you. Interesting perspective. So, you could apply all of that to here, I might imagine.

@Mary - that's a great feature, and I'm sure your community looks forward to it every week.

NEENZ · 11 months ago

Chris,

I appreciate you, I appreciate your reminders. I haven't been as diligent as I was when I first paddled out to surf the social and new media wave. Your post reminded me to start getting barreled, to flash a shaka to someone who wrote a great post and give, give, give.

Aloha,
NEENZ.

Mihai Secasiu · 11 months ago

One thing I would recommend to blog authors is to implement threaded comments. Before wordpress 2.7 it was available as a plugin ( Brian's threaded comments ) and in wp 2.7 it has native support.
Threaded comments helps creating a small community forum around posts.
It's much easier for people to reply to each other this way.

Bobby Revell · 11 months ago

Hahaha! Thanks Chris! Just so you know, I consider your blog to be one of the only ones in this particular niche I frequent (because it's cutting edge and pushes the envelope). To explain: to even come close to originality in marketing/social networking and related information is incredibly difficult, which is why I said most is cliché . . . it's a tough niche.

Your reply means a lot to me. Have a great day :smile:

SherylLoch · 11 months ago

Hi Chris,
I had a real problem that I tend to write my How To type post to complete and people say that there was not really anything to add. I have been working on that! My post also tend to be long, then again so are some of my comments.LOL
I will say that the more I get out and comment the more comments I get back.
I will be working on these things.
I am now off to see what your other commenters' are doing on their blogs. I will follow a link from a comment faster than I will if it is just sent out via a stream.

Conor Neu · 11 months ago

Chris, this is extremely helpful, thank you for the post.

I need to figure out a way to have certain posts resent to me every month or so. I read this, use the great ideas about installing comment software, and take away a great reminder about writing shorter articles. That lasts about a week and then I start to ramble again. The constant reminder to write breifly and to the point always helps.

Conor

Helen · 11 months ago

It's so pleasant to read such practical and useful tips after all these "Just create a good content and ask visitors for feedback". Really good tips, Chris. I gonna try them for my blog, because after reading your post I've understood there are many things I haven't thought of and they're rather easy to do. The only one I don't want to implement now is Disqus, I'm still not sure it's useful. But I'll think it over one more time :) Thanks for the post

Lorilee · 11 months ago

I especially agree with the 'great post' section. I am usually too intimidated to post because I don't want my 2 cents to sound ignorant. Afraid if I post then I'll remove all doubt! Then on the other hand I don't see any value or point in only commenting 'great post'. So there. My fearful is this is a failed attempt to express my appreciation on this post and the topic of saying more than 'great post' : )

Tre · 11 months ago

hey. first. i laughed out loud and woke up my bichon with your tweet "Hmmm. Somehow, I didn't beat @thewhitehouse today. Was something going on? - http://is.gd/gcSo" hysterical.
2nd. you could have titled this "how to be authentic in conversation/life/relationships.'
can't you see it now? tshirts that say 'bloggers do it better" seriously: one has to want to connect with thoughts...and invite them, welcome tem, nurture them, respect and honor them. (she says assertively after writing a rather talking at post today...errrf). good reminders.
what device do you use when leaving comments/vs when you tweet? laptop for both? same laptop or 2? or a mobile device? just interested b/c your timing is rather cool on both.
happy real first day of the new president.

Matt Stenning · 11 months ago

Hi Chris,

Thanks for those tips mate, looking to do/ and get more blog comments so thanks once again for your handy tips :)

Cheers,

Matt

randulo · 11 months ago

Great post! <insert pharm link here>

You've always been the master of eliciting comments by asking questions at the end of your posts.

@toddlucier · 11 months ago

Some really helpful comments about so plugins. I'll definately check them out.
Two points:
1. The more I write, the more I learn. For me commenting helps me process the information.
2. Have you heard of backttype? Big benefit is that it captures all the comments you make across the web. I use a nice little sidebar widget that displays comments like this one back on my blog. For those afraid of wasting keystrokes on someone else blog this makes every keystroke enhance your blog. Also shows folks that you are engaged in a broader community of bloggers. Take a peak at http://www.tourismkeys.ca/blog

Chirag Chamoli · 11 months ago

Thanks Chris, Long time reader first time commenter.

leslie carothers · 11 months ago

Chris:
When I first started, I didn't have a clue what I was doing from a STRATEGY standpoint..I was just following @jowyang's blog and commenting like crazy because I thought what he was saying was just so incredibly helpful and important to my industry-furniture.

Then, through him, I found you. You were so helpful to me when I was just starting on twitter and I haven't forgotten that.

Then, emotionally, I REALLY connected with you(although you didn't know it) the day I saw your video re: your feelings after attending the Orlando tweetup. That's when I realized that you really very sincere.

Then, when you went through the firestorm re: your sponsored blog post, I supported you and tweeted everyone who was dissing you which was the only way I knew to help you. I commented like crazy on blog postings, tweeted a LOT, etc.

So, everything you have said in this latest post rings so true for me. My connections to so many have come simply through curiousity, quest for learning, understanding the power of love AND business that is unleashed through blog comments, twitter RT's, linkedin comments, facebook updates and social bookmarking sites(still learning that one) and commentiing on great video sites. It's the linking and helping that create value for all of us and will, I strongly believe, be the key to creating the jobs of the future.

I won't tell you that you are my favorite rock star along with @jowyang because you already know that ! Thank you for being you.

nicolaquinn · 11 months ago

Thanks Chris, some useful advice both about commenting and how to get them, which I don't have on my blog and now know why. Will try and change my ways as of today :)

John Haydon · 11 months ago

Hmmm - check spam filters... oops, just found 5 comments!

Thanks :-)

John (Human3rror) · 11 months ago

Intense Debate is awesome! You should use it Chris!

http://churchcrunch.com/2008/11/27/top-five-com...

Dave Kerpen · 11 months ago

Excellent post, Chris. Thanks. I will be sharing this with my whole staff. My biggest takeaway: shorter posts.

ImJustCreative · 11 months ago

One of the most useful services I have found is Backtype.

It's so interesting to be able to see what people where people, people you follow say on Twitter or elsewhere, leave comments. And ofcourse what they write.

I have found many a new blog or website through tracking comments by the people I am following on Backtype.

I use the Twitter option to post a daily update of my own comments left, so it encourages people to check what is interesting to me that day.

Every post I read, come across or see on a RT, that I find interesting is ALWAYS bookmarked in Delicious and more often than not given a Thumbs up. As you say, it only takes moments. And will do this even if I have not left an actual comment.

So leaving comments are not the only way to show your appreciation which is the best thing about these other services, you can use what fits in with your routine.

Great post,

Graham

ImJustCreative · 11 months ago

Oh, by the way. If anyone wants to follow me on Backtype, its http://backtype.com/imjustcreative

Sneaky I know, but it serves a purpose which is to help promote the sites I participate in. Including this comment here, people that follow me on Twitter and Backtype will see I have left two comments here today, which should then push more traffic here.

Everyone wins. :)

Eamon · 11 months ago

What I don't get is people who make commenting so difficult to do (i.e you have to login with this user id or that). There is so little time in the day for that that I don't bother. I just comment (and take more of an interest) in blogs that just ask for name / email / website. Have spoken to a lot of other people on Twitter about this, and they have said similar things.

Iris · 11 months ago

The post makes a lot of sense, Chris. I'm something of a reluctant personal blogger - I do it mainly so clients can get a feel for how I write. I find it easier to write about others than myself so comments scare me a little bit. But I have been thinking about how to increase traffic and comments on my blog so this article is really useful.

Leo Wurschmidt · 11 months ago

Chris, some great ideas. I do like the give to (eventually) get back with the concept of comments.

I have used Disqus and liked it. I also like Intense Debate. It is a very solid system and has worked well on my blog.

Jean Ghalo · 11 months ago

I do have a personal blog, I do blog about different topics. In my 2009 strategy is to have at least one post per day, and since than my Blog is revived with new visitors and I got a good nbr of readers for each post, but the problem is that the comments are so rare, I barely get comments.

I do follow most of the listed points above. The editor thing is what I really miss as my english is not that perfect and English is not my mother language, I read my posts twice before posting them and sometimes If somebody is next to me I do let him/her review it. Also since I knew this blog, my posts are getting a better look and always implementing new stuff and strategies but still no comments.

As for me I always try to comment on posts I like or share them through my tweetdeck and blog. Hope I can find what is wrong with my blog to enhance it and get it to a better level.

Should I quit blogging? Change my blog layout? Do some SEO? what should be done?

Again, and again thank you chris for another great post.

Cheers!
Jean

A Friend · 11 months ago

The point "Brevity rules - The shorter the posts, the more likely people will stop and comment." seems a bit ironic considering how long this post is and the number of comments it's getting. :)

Louis Halpern · 11 months ago

Picking up on Lorilee's comment about confidence my additional tip would be that by commenting you are participating which makes it more fun...

Scott Schroeder · 11 months ago

This isn't home depot but you certainly hit the nail all on the head with this one. You could not have served this at a better time for I was just mapping out some ideas that would (hopefully) result in more interaction for me throughout the social web and (mind you :) ), amongst those ideas was to set aside time and offer feedback across the sites that I truly connected with (while also continuing to stumble/share/ink to said sites). I think you just about covered everything that I could imagine at this point with both your suggestions as well as the additional suggestions you generated through the audience.

Rock on, Chris, rock on. I've been digging (well not technically per say, but) what you've been blogging since I found your site a couple of months back.


Scott Schroeder | @scottalk

Doug Firebaugh · 11 months ago

rrrr- captchas reek. I agree with brevity- as the average reader of a site or blog rarely is on the site more than 30-45 seconds if they get bored or are not engaged. Great thoughts- and LOTS of usuable ideas- rocking hot!

Gerald Weber · 11 months ago

Chris,

Everything you said here is great. I think for me the main point is to leave a well thought out comment that adds value to the post. Then other bloggers will naturally want to reciprocate. This keeps it from seeming spammy and often times encourages them to return the favor. It's goes along with your give to get point.

Jane Chambers · 11 months ago

Substantive comments, which add information and value to the conversation, unlike a plain "good post" or "I agree," are so enriching. They are also what makes social media "social." It is difficult to have a conversation and to learn from each other unless everyone contributes from their experiences and thoughts on the topic. (Although adding "good post/Iagree" is positive and affirming; I don't mean to denigrate these comments.)

Norman Roberts · 11 months ago

thanks for the great article, I fully agree with you that comments on related subjects, in my case free movies, tv and cable built up my blog with web traffic within minutes.

Jeet · 11 months ago

@Chris: Some great points there. I specially like the double vision point. I have never implemented in on my blog, but it does look like it can get some people to comment.

Many people don't have digg accounts etc, it will be great to have a built-in post rating. Users can come and just say 'yes i like it', 'that's a terrible post' or 'no pain no gain'.. Easier than getting a comment, offers some interactivity to your users and they don't need to have a digg / stumbleupon account (though those certainly have much more value than just internal rating).

I have had many 'lurkers' who have been following the blog for a long time but never bother to comment, a simple statement like: I would like to hear from my readers about what they think about 'some topic' has gotten some of the lurkers to become active participants.

Gravatar is often good, I have also tried 'defaulting' Notify me of followup comments on a blog and though some people got annoyed, others 'noticed' the option for the first time :)) (It's not a webmaster blog).

David Kowarsky · 11 months ago

I syndicated your blog's feed to Livejournal as "chrisbrogan" so I could read it in LJ, but I'm pretty sure that I'm the only person who reads it there, so, no use checking that stream of comments since I always click through to your site to do so, even though LJ has 1 click comments on it's feed available.

vanhoosear · 11 months ago

The one thing that keeps me from commenting more often--especially when it's ultimately just going to be a "hear, hear" quickie just to lend my support--is the inability to comment directly from my feed reader. It sounds lazy, but very often I weigh the time it takes to click the headline, load the page, add the comment and press submit with time that could be spent reading the next article in my feed, or doing other work.

What I DO do, though, is star the stuff I want to remember in Google Reader, and share the stuff I really like with folks, including my Google Talk friends. It's not perfect, but it's quick.

Philippa · 11 months ago

Thanks for the great advice as always. I don't get many comments at ALL on my blog yet and I am always looking for different methods and ways to verbalize my posts to attract more comments.

Malisia Wilkins · 11 months ago

My motto for life has always been you get what you give. If your not getting maybe you should think about doing a little more giving.

brandonacox · 11 months ago

For me, patience has been a virtue. In another post you wrote recently, you talked about how in the early days you received very few comments as opposed to now, when you receive a ton. I think I'm growing and getting there. The one thing you mentioned I'm going to apply right away is to add the comment link to the top and bottom of every post. Thanks for the awesome article, Chris!

Rebecca · 11 months ago

Why is the advice always, "Brevity rules?" I don't agree with that at all. Of course you don't want something ridiculously long, but the length has much less to do with it than if it's well-written. Write well and you'll get comments. A big part of writing well is editing yourself though. Maybe that's why every one just says to write short posts instead, but that's not the right starting point. The place to start is to write well.

Kathleen Seide · 11 months ago

I just wanted to say thanks. I started a new company in the fall and ran across David Meerman Scott at the NAR annual meeting - and ever since I've been reading up on interactive ways of communicating my worth to my customers & talking to them about THEIR issues. I've learned SO MUCH from people like you and him (and the 50+ other people I'm following on Twitter). My brain is going to explode one day with all the info, but until then I keep taking it in and plotting on how to apply it!

Ryan Stemkoski · 11 months ago

Great tips, I am very pleased with my blog so far. I have a niche web development and online marketing blog. It gets a respectable amount of traffic for being relatively new and has a good number of RSS subscribers. So far it is doing much better than I ever expected but I am having had trouble convincing these users to stay and participate. I know from my experience running a forum that it takes a certain amount of activity to encourage other activity but getting that initial activity can be a real challenge. I have already implemented some of the above strategies but there are a few new ones I am excited to try.

Sandwiched · 11 months ago

I don't have time to write a thoughtful comment, but I DID Stumble it!

Sean Wood · 11 months ago

Chris,
The timeliness of your posts are like you're in my head. So often we expect to get comments by just throwing our textual spaghetti to the wall. If it sticks, we get comments. If it hits the floor, someone is scowling at us as they scroll by. Thanks again for the information. (I tried really hard not to say, "Great post!" even though it was.

Stephanie · 11 months ago

This is wonderful advice. I am somewhat new to blogging and love getting good quality advice. You have provided me with that, thank you!

Have a Wonderful Day!

1timstreet · 11 months ago

Do you ever get tired of having great posts?

I'm always amazed how you live online. I'll be up late on the West Coast and you are still conversing away.

You are a Social Media Maven, Connector and Salesman. You sir are the tipping point. ;)

Eric · 11 months ago

Chris,

I think the tactic of giving comments is underrated. I know many people that only comment on their own blogs and never make it outside their own comment garden - which is not the same as participating on another domain or blog.

I noticed you do not use a third party comment system which obviously lowers the barrier to people potentially commenting. I am obviously biased towards Disqus, and think it would make a great addition. I understand your fears of losing previous comments, but hopefully there can be a rock solid solution for transferring things over and hopefully we can find one.

Diane Lynch · 11 months ago

Chris,
You are the king of Twitter and my mind is spinning trying to learn all this, but your blog has definitely given me vision on how this all works. I have been stumbling around wondering what I am supposed to do. You probably come across a lot of tweeple like me and wonder what the heck we are doing!

Malcolm Bastien · 11 months ago

What I really like while using the comment plugins like intense debate are the threaded comments. It sure as hell beats having to reply with comments like:
@123
@234
when you want to respond to someone specifically.

pdriscoll · 11 months ago

Common sense applies and works here. To Rebecca's comment arguing against brevity, the unfortunate reality is there is a lot of noise out there, so if you want to be heard, you have to grab attention early. Yes, we all should be more attentive and explore things with the depth of NPR-like "All Things Considered", but you have to write for your audience, and the audience of blogs and comments is not amenable to lengthy treatises.

Pixie Stevenson · 11 months ago

The people that I work with and in my community are on the bleeding edge of technology. Many of them are Baby Boomers in that 60+ range that are interested but just a little scared about using internet marketing. One of the topics that I'm offering is "How to Get Friends? Be a Friend!" You've sent the same message to those who are on the leading edge. Thanks.

Pheak Tol · 11 months ago

i try to comment as much as i can when i like the material i read to give the author feedback or to just say a few things in relation to the post.
it's true though when you comment anywhere, majority of the time they will return the favor, come back to your website, read your material, and then put in their 2 cents.

for new bloggers it's important that they read more than they write, comment more than they expect people to comment on theirs. like you said, gotta give to get. .i like this post Chris.

Katie Morse · 11 months ago

I think this is wonderful advice. I personally gain a lot of value from the blogs I read, but often forget to comment, and instead formulate my own thoughts.

I'm amazed at how useful comments can be, and the different perspectives they bring to the post.

I need to be spending a lot more time commenting, and this is a wonderful reminder of WHY.

Well said!

williamarruda · 11 months ago

Chris, you are clearly the person to deliver a crash course in comments. I always check the 'notify me of followup comments' box when I comment on one of your insightful posts. I enjoy being part of the discussion - and it is always a lively discussion - as my inbox fills with followup comments. I'm not complaining - just praising your ability to build community and facilitate enthusiastic discussion!!

Hope you are well.
Best.
William
www.williamarruda.com

Kfred85 · 11 months ago

Chris,
Thanks for the great post. I was just tweeting today about how I had more views than normal but no comments. Thanks for the inspiration!

@KFred85

Casey · 11 months ago

Great Post! LoL!

digiphile · 11 months ago

Great post, Chris, as usual. Interesting to see the discussion around commenting in an RSS reader. When I share and add a note, it goes into Friendfeed and Socialmedian with that comment. I hope some clever greasemonkey finds a way to pipe those shared notes back into an original posts sometime soon. That would complete a virtuous circle.

Give to get. Practice social sharing. I'll be passing this one on to all of the bloggers in my life. Heck, I already tweeted it, which is one kind of comment.

I love that your posts become social objects or artifacts as a result of your questions and community. As you always point out, there's so much value in the audience building upon what you've started. That's the principle that Wikipedia operates upon, after all. Collective learning, collaborative editing and social proof. Whoda thought you'd find that on a pirate ship?

Mary · 11 months ago

I'm so glad I found this post - it's the first I've seen of any advice regarding comments specifically. The blog I write for is associated with an online job board, but is geared toward the employers, (not job seekers).
Because it seems that many people confuse me with a recruiter, however, I often get comments asking me to help them find a job. It can be awkward - I'm often torn between answering them on the blog itself, directly via email, or simply deleting the comment altogether....any advice?

elizabethhannan · 11 months ago

Chris,
This is just great grounding advice especially for someone (like myself) just hitting the ground running in the blogging world. Many thanks!!

It was great catching up with you at CES! We should encourage the "cab-sharing" trend at the next event. (SXSW?)
Its very "green" and a great way to socialize and make new friends! Thanks again!

@ElizabethHannan

Matt B · 11 months ago

Yea, but CAPTCHA is adding books to the digital archive...bummer.

http://tinyurl.com/2w8cvd

ecc1977 · 11 months ago

Great post, Chris. Already followed up on one bit of advice (removing CAPTCHA from my site) and looking forward to doing more. What I've really got to work on is tip #1, though. I don't comment on other people's sites nearly enough.

Katherine · 11 months ago

This is a really good post, Chris. I tend not to comment back to people who comment on my blog because I don't think they'll come back and read the comments - which I now know doesn't really matter. If *some* do, that is enough.

I also didn't respond to comments because I don't want to come across as "too wordy" - which I'm afraid I already do with my posts. I keep trying to cut them down - but when I go to edit the posts, it seems like everything is important and I can't cut anything out without losing important parts.

Lots to think about, though - and I sincerely appreciate it! Good timing as well - I will take this with me as I launch my new site.

Cheryl Allin · 11 months ago

Oiy, now you've given me all this homework to do! Thanks, man - Seriously, tremendous post chock full of goodness. Going to add these tips to my OneNote so I won't forget to do them.

Loralyn Tate · 11 months ago

Hi,
Thanks for this post. I am just starting and getting off on the right foot is wonderful!

Thanks

The Ex-Exec · 11 months ago

I only began blogging a week or so ago. My experimentation is around how to drive people to your site. While my readership is low, it is growing daily. The most beneficial thing I have found is making comments on other blogs. The links associated with the comments do in fact drive traffic to your site.

Chris, thanks for your insight. It has been great following your blog and your posts on Twitter!

Francis · 11 months ago

This is very insightful, thank you Chris. When reading blog, I have almost has much fun reading the comments than the post itself, especially if the latter bring up useful contextual information. I've discovered some great, interesting blogs this way too.
By the way, can I just say that links on your site are a bit hard to discern? The underline almost fades out next to the text. Otherwise I really appreciate your new blog design ;)

Jared O'Toole · 11 months ago

I tend to end each post I make with a question the reader. This always helps generate comments.

I have been thinking about using a tool like disqus but i have yet to really be convinced to install it on my blog. I bet before long I'll add it.

In the end comenting on relevent blogs is the best thing to do. Probably %75 of my hits come from people who click through from another blog to check my stuff out. It's time consuming but I'm learning and coming up with more ideas for me to write about when I read other posts.

Jennifer · 11 months ago

oh great article Chris!

Laura Lorek · 11 months ago

Hey Chris,
Excellent post. I also found this posting from Problogger helpful on generating blog comments.

It states "Jakob Nielsen’s latest study finds that 90% of online community users are lurkers (read or observe without contributing) with only 9% of users contributing ‘a little’ and 1% actively contributing. So 1% of your blog’s users are actively engaging with your blog and the rest are at best occasional contributers."

It offers advice like "invite comments, ask questions, be humble and be open ended." And even though it's from 2006, it's still relevant today.

You can find it here the full post here http://www.problogger.net/archives/2006/10/12/1...

Chris Wright · 11 months ago

Great article from you yet again Chris.
Comments form the basis of a great community, and you should see a correlation between the number of commentators and your "bounce rates" (with respect to site stats).
Providing a method of user participation is one method of reducing your bounce rates.
All of your points above give the reasons why.
Many thanks.
Chris

Sonny Gill · 11 months ago

Great post!.......

Ok ok, my thoughts - I've utilized a lot of these points and they make a HUGE difference on the interaction you get on your blog. One of the things I've remained true to, although it would be difficult for you Chris and the amount of comments you get, is to reply to every commenter through email and thank them for stopping by and add some addtl thoughts. I think it helps in building that relationship between blogger and reader - I think highly of people who have done that to me so I can only hope others enjoy a personal response as well.

Tom Gibson · 11 months ago

Thanks Chris.

I'm new to blogging. Reading a LOT more of them these days, and just put my first one up. Here's what I need to be more aware of:

Double Vision
Brevity rules
Ask questions
Promote others

Tom

Jeff Korhan · 11 months ago

Yeah, I think you missed one. The fear factor. Clients ask me, "What if they say something mean?" I think those may be the best comments because it stirs up the waters and encourages more dialogue. What is there to be afraid of?
In my situation, I speak on the topics of green and sustainability. So, I'll get comments on 'greenwashing.' That's cool. If we don't attract all views, how can we create positive change.
Chris, while I enjoy your blog, its not much help if I say, "Wow Chris, great post:), you've nailed it, you the man, nobody touches you in the blog-sphere!" Then you begin to lose your edge. You start to think you are the man.

So, I just gonna say thanks and leave it at that. Cool?

Jeff

J. M. Strother · 11 months ago

Thanks for the Disqus tip. I'll have to check it out and see if it integrates with TikiWiki. And thanks for linking back to your older post, Using Outposts in Your Media Strategy. That looks very handy too.

I am curios, if you don't use CAPTCHA, how do you protect against spam? I never see a bunch of spam here, so you're obviously catching it in some manner.
~jon

Jim · 11 months ago

Thanks for this post--I've been curious about how to increase the feedback and engagement I get from readers of my blog but didn't know where to start. A lot of your points seem like common sense once you've said them, but require thinking about blogging in a different way than I've been approaching it. So thanks for changing my perspective.

rich whitaker · 11 months ago

great advice... thank you.

TheInfamousGdub · 11 months ago

Here's something that really works well for me:

Post a question that has something to with the topic of a blog post you're working on and get people talking about it. I use Kwippy for this since it's tailored so well toward discussion, but you could use Twitter, or even Seesmic.

When you've completely fleshed out your idea with the help of your social network post a link to all of them so they can see the finished product. Often more discussion will follow.

Mary White-Cornell · 11 months ago

Love your comment on brevity - if a post is long and rambling - I'm out and on to something else. You make some great points - I'm saving it in a file for future reference!
Thanks - M

Nathan · 11 months ago

Having just started a blog myself, this sort of advice is very important.

Heck, even if I was a long time blogger I would have found this useful.

Justin · 11 months ago

I work for a metro news org, and we recently launched a niche site with no sign-in for comments. The bosses were worried, but I convinced them it would be an experiment of sorts. So far, no major problems. Seems we have fewer trolls on our niche sites than we do on our main site. Thanks, Chris.

Romy Taormina · 11 months ago

Thanks, Chris. We are about to launch our newsletter/blog so this comes at a pivotal point for us. I blog for a women's entrepreneurial site, and one thing I value is that I can post the blog and then with a click, upload the blog to Twitter, Facebook, etc. I don't handle the tech side of this feed, but I am able to click and off it goes. One thing that I would love to be able to do with YOUR blog (and others who I value) is to be able to click a button and have it go to my Twitter page so I can share it with others. Can I do that here? Or, do I have to cut/paste the link and then add it Twitter?

J.T. O'Donnell · 11 months ago

Ahh Chris, where was this post when I first started posting!?!? Gosh, I made every mistake on this list...multiple times. The worst was when a well-known blogger actually removed my comment because it annoyed her so much. Ouch! It still hurts. I try to be mindful of it myself when people post on my blog and it rubs me the wrong way. I'm reminded that they are probably where I was a year or so ago. And truth be told, I still make mistakes. It's usually my passion that gets the best of me.

I'm teaching a class on blogs as they relate to professional development to a bunch of college seniors soon and this post is going to be required reading for them - you've saved me a hand out. Thanks!

six9k9 · 11 months ago

Good advice about leaving thoughful comments. I have seen alot of comments here lately that are a simple "Good Job". That doesnt tell the author of the article what you have to add. Nor does it let anoyone else know that you are truly interested in the topic at hand.

I think that you have cover the content in this posting thorough enough so that anyone can get some helpful information from it.

go to <a href="http://six9k9.tripod.com for non-topic related blogs" rel="nofollow">Other Blogs

Craig · 11 months ago

Commenting is a great way to communicate and have fun as well as the beginnings to drive traffic to your blog. I highly recommend bloggers interact with their readers and much as possible. The blogs that I read and authors do I love, the blogs that don't I don't comment on anymore.

Scott Prock · 11 months ago

Something I forgot to add ... If you're using an avatar, or gravatar system, let your visitors know how to add their avatar.

Which brings me to the question ... which system are you using Chris? I have accounts on several systems with this same email address I used to post and I can't figure out why I have a generic avatar here ;-)

Thanks ... Scott

Dennis Lankes · 11 months ago

Chris -

What do you think about video commenting? What are the rules and will it soon overtake the traditional text commenting? Just curious as to your thoughts and why you don't offer it on your site. Love the post by the way I learned some great tid bits.

stevenimmons · 11 months ago

@Chris Brogan,
Yes I do agree, I tend to write from the Nerd perspective, given this is my penchant :-) I just declared on Twitter that I was Silver Iodide and going to seed the Cloud as the Rainmaker. Everytime I add comments I realise I'm another step further from reality...

Tamia · 11 months ago

I recently started a fashion blog, and one of the first things I absolutely knew I had to do was ask questions at the end of my posts in order to engage readers. I don't get a huge number of responses, but I probably would not have known to do that if not for you, so thanks Chris.

Will definitely have to work on applying "idea handles" to my posts as I love the concept.

Also: "Please spammer, don't hurt 'em" = classic.
T

AnthonyF · 11 months ago

I love having conversations, so I tried to make my blogging style as conversational as possible. Unfortunately I switched from Drupal to Wordpress and lost most of my lengthy posts. Funny enough though, I have more comments now than before. I couldn't pin it down until you mentioned brevity. Now my posts consists of more Video AND less words that interests one to join in the discussion. Thanks Chris for highlighting that for me!

Ed Richardson · 11 months ago

Great post Chris.

I am slowly starting to reap the benefits of getting involved in comments and that's not just people following what you write. They should make you question what you write.

I recently installed disqus on my blog and the number of comments left has increased significantly. I am now looking at improving the whole content of the site and particularly my blog area that drives my site and content.

Comments add a valuable element of discourse, there's no point in putting an idea out there if you're not willing to take on board other ideas. How are you going to hear these other ideas of you don't encourage comments?

Here's to comments.

Chrsiti Wharton · 11 months ago

I usually like to visit blogs of people who comment on mine. I almost always leave a comment. It is really a reciprocal thing. People of similar interests . . .

Simon T Small · 11 months ago

@lee I agree your blog needs to encourage it

@Chris, always ending with, please add your comments, like you do helps

@Derek great three points, important one is: On your own blog, respond to comments, your readers will love you (this would be hard for chris with so many comments)

If you're commenting, read all the comments already there, don't duplicate what someone else has already said with out recognition of their comment

Add value to the blog post you're commenting on

@Scott Aikin: I think timing is really valuable, I was involved in commenting on a post by Robert Scoble before anyone else was there, it resulted in lots of traffic, twitter ads and conversations (being first is great, pity I'm late in on this one :P)

Thanks for your strategies/tactics Chris

Good motto: Comment first, blog later.

Stacey Kannenberg · 11 months ago

If you are going to make a comment on my blog post where I just promoted you and your direct contact information -- my name is Stacey not Ann Marie! Seriously, I know we are all busy and multi-tasking but that to me is just not cool! Thanks for letting me vent on this "hot" topic!!

Adriel Hampton · 11 months ago

Wow, Chris, you get so many comments I often feel like mine aren't needed, but, since you ask for them, here goes.
Really just dropping in to say how much I appreciate all the free and valuable advice. I'm telling my Gov 2.0 friends that they should be reading and copying what you do, because what we are trying to do is build community and you're showing us the way. Appreciate it, as always.

Tim Jahn · 11 months ago

Comments are the best way to spread the love in the blogosphere. Thanks for educating us all!

Melodie · 11 months ago

Chris,
An effective way I've generated comments is by offering contests. I have an internet marketing blog but prior to working in digital marketing I worked in Radio for 4 years and learned that people absolutely love to win free stuff. I always integrate my contests into something that corresponds with my blog posts. Here are some examples. I posted the links for easy access.

1. I wrote a new years blog about Online Marketing Education. I asked people to comment with their biggest marketing challenges in 2008 and what they plan to do about it in 2009. Everyone who commented was entered to win a free pass to the Online Marketing Summit: http://www.marketingmelodie.com/index.php/2009/...

2. I just posted a blog about the Inauguration exhibit at Legoland California. I am asking people for marketing ideas on increasing attendance at theme parks in a down economy. Everyone who leaves a comment is entered to win a free pair of tickets to Legoland http://www.marketingmelodie.com/index.php/2009/...

I just started doing this and the unique visits to my blog have more than doubled. I plan to do at least 1 contest everyone month. So ultimately I'm recommending that you offer an incentive but make sure that it ties into the blog post somehow.

Hope this helps! I wasn't able to read through your 100+ comments (got through about 40) so I'm not sure if someone else already had this tip.

Best,
Melodie
@MyMelodie

Wendy Merritt · 11 months ago

"Patrol Your Spam Filter"? I didn't even think about it! I wondered why I have had no trackbacks or pings; they were turned off...LOL I use WP-Spam Free and I do not see a way to check what it marked as spam. I could be blocking real comments. I know there is a huge number of blocked comments. hmmm

Whenever I do research for an article, post or tech I invariably end up reading a few blog posts. I ALWAYS leave a comment on all blogs I read. I get nearly 1/3 of my traffic from blogs in which I have left a comment. My best blog traffic comes from Problogger! (*Don't everyone rush over there to spam him...shame on you for thinking it.)

Think like Pollyanna! You can always find something nice to say about a post. Being negative or insulting is just plain easy and simple minded. Even if you feel you need to correct something in the post...make it an Oreo (I love Oreos don't you?). The chocolate cookies are the positive comments and the cream is the carefully constructed correction. Remember you could be wrong too!

Thanks for the great post...now I must go check my spam filter :)

Blessings,
Wendy Merritt
Twitter: WendyMerritt

Bill Masson (WWAH) · 11 months ago

Hi Chris, i dont' think i have posted a comment on your blog yet but im glad i found you!
So how do you put a "leave comment" link at the top of your post? I like to use as many interaction plugins to my blog like wp thread, comment luv, edit your comment, and so on. I found you through Google Alerts, the phrase "Comment Luv" seems to do the trick. Thanks for the read

Kevin Jacobson · 11 months ago

Thanks Chris. I'm still trying to figure out how to make my blog as effective as possible, which to me means providing information and resources that the public I work with (rural WI health care providers and stakeholders) are interested in seeing. Comments and feedback are the best way to ensure I'm on the right track, so your insights will be useful. Thanks again!

April Robins · 11 months ago

I passed your great information on the my FaceBook group Red River Writers this morning. One member has already thanked me for list post.

Mark Schweitzer · 11 months ago

As always, great thoughts on this subject Chris - I have not been blogging long, but sharp posts like this one and my side-journey onto Twitter has given me a better perspective on the notion of the "conversation." I can see how critical commenting on other people's blogs is to getting noticed and read, and I 'm sure it will pay off over time. Keep up the great work.

Shane Belceto · 11 months ago

Thank YOU for your wise words. I will have to be honest I generally am a pat on the back sort of commenter pointing out how their post has helped me or is good info. After this I will up my game and be a better commenter. Thank YOU!

~Expect Miracles

Carol Cole-Lewis · 11 months ago

Great tip! Very thoughtful and concise. You've got yourself a new follower.

Fabietto's Art · 11 months ago

Great post!

Fabietto

TStrump · 11 months ago

If I say, 'great post', I'll explain why I liked it and how it affects my own life.
Otherwise, I try to add something that perhaps the post left out.

Lin · 11 months ago

Really opened my eyes to some mistakes I'm making. Trying harder now....thanks.

Jessica Swanson · 11 months ago

Great post Chris!

IMO blogging is truly another form of social networking. It is not simply a tool for the blogger to "preach to the masses."

There needs to be interaction with the readers.

However, that being said, those who do comment should NOT be adding their comments solely for the hopes of "being discovered"

I LOVE reading my favorite blogs and leaving comments allows me to interact with the blogger.

Jessica Swanson · 11 months ago

Great post Chris!

IMO blogging is truly another form of social networking. It is not simply a tool for the blogger to "preach to the masses."

There needs to be interaction with the readers.

However, that being said, those who do comment should NOT be adding their comments solely for the hopes of "being discovered"

I LOVE reading my favorite blogs and leaving comments allows me to interact with the blogger.

Nathan Hangen · 11 months ago

Awesome post Chris, but you should really come visit my blog! j/k

Nathan

Kelley Bell · 11 months ago

Cont:
For more from Mark check out his blog at:
http://msco.com/blog/customer-service-in-search...

Also, look for my full review of his seminar next Monday on http://www.applesassy.com

Mark · 11 months ago

Great suggestions on how to generate comments. The more you give, the more you get. Thanks for sharing the magic!

Steve Soucy · 11 months ago

Chris, 2 days ago, my wife read your topic, and posted a reply. Our website ended up with about 100 unique hits, coming from this very blog. I wasn't so sure about your advice until then. Now, I'm responding to everything we get. Thanks!

Steve

Pheak Tol · 11 months ago

@steve soucy

that's awesome how it worked out for you, it pays to comment and of course reply back =]

Sire · 11 months ago

I've always worked on the less is best theory as long as the quality is still up there. I have several posts on my blog on the importance of commenting as well as a comment policy to help promote quality comments. I've also found and continually search for ways to thank my commentators, This includes things like;
Making my comments dofollow
Using the Keywordluv plugin
Using the commentluv plugin
Reciprocating all comments
Making it easy for people to use links in their comments etc.

I've noticed that these all help to encourage people to share what they have to say.

blued888 · 11 months ago

I firmly believe in getting a part of what you give, and in commenting wisely and honestly. Fabolous post!

the wiki artist · 10 months ago

Is this what you had in mind?
--
To what extent do you think you can influence the sentiment of a discussion, if you are amongst the first to post?
If you wish to comment on my comment why now find me on @thewikiartist
--
Mr Brogan you have done it again - a post about comments that inspires lots of people to comment. What will you think of next? You have already written a post about inspiring people to follow you on Twitter that, unsurprisingly got lots of people to follow you on Twitter.

Could you perhaps write a post about how it is a good idea to leave track backs? wait you have that covered.

General wondering....how important is it to write about social media to be successful in social media?

SEO Company · 10 months ago

Great tips from the comments master himself! I have a niche web development and online marketing blog. It gets a respectable amount of traffic for being relatively new and has a good number of RSS subscribers.

fds · 10 months ago

General wondering….how important is it to write about social media to be successful in social media?

Lucretia Pruitt · 10 months ago

Only here would a post about commenting receive so many comments! ;)

Now if only I had something interesting to say...

praveer · 10 months ago

If it's from Chris Brogan, I always know its a great conversation. Thank you for yet another great one, Chris.

Chuck · 10 months ago

I think you've got a terrific blog here, Chris. I forwarded one of your articles to a friend tonight. However, I think one intelligent part of a comment policy would be to consider NOT approving people who have nothing more helpful to say than "Great post, Chris" or other "You are GOD, Chris"-type comments. It takes up space, and doesn't justify a link back (or the potential traffic that goes with it). It's great that you honor commenters and benefit from the additional content, but (in my view) people should have to WORK to earn a spot in your comments section: to share a personal take on your perspective, to argue, to offer examples, to share additional relevant resources.

I don't have an active blog like yours...I simply don't think I have that many fresh things to share, and I've never wanted to make it my goal. It's just a space to share things that interest me from time to time. But I moderate all my comments, and I'm a bit harsher about approving "empty shell" comments. I think you owe your readers (and substantive commenters) similar respect. I believe it's too easy to let the other stuff just flow by. Just my two cents' worth!

chrisbrogan · 10 months ago

@Chuck - super great point of view, and I see where you're coming from. Those kinds of comments kind of look like clutter in a rich comment stream that often has some gems. That makes sense.

On the other hand, it's like a little piece of digital graffiti (albeit with links) that shows others who's come by. You see your own name, the names of your colleagues, and it sparks a kind of "we all hang out here" kind of thing.

I think this is important. What do you think?

Rufus · 10 months ago

@Maria Lavis Godot :-)

infolode · 10 months ago

Great article as usual. I don't have any comments at all, yet, though I know I have readers so your advice is extremely relevant to me.
As for Lori's problem w/gay Catholics, perhaps she could create a group for them to join in which they can select from avatars and nicknames so their real names and pics remain anonymous.
Molly

Lori Carey · 10 months ago

LOL, just had to respond to Molly's comment lest people think my website is something other than what it is (and don't visit). I am a photographer, and my blog is mainly photos and stories about my adventures on the trail in the Mojave Desert, which is why I think it is strange that people would prefer to e-mail me rather than post a comment.

Chris' remark about gay Catholics was in reference to another blogger.

infolode · 10 months ago

Sorry Lori. Went back and reread Chris's post. Oops. :-)
Molly

Girls mats · 9 months ago

I know for those sites that require registration to post or comment Facebook Connect is a wonderful option. It reduces the barrier to entry and gets people involved with a single click.

shutters · 9 months ago

They are the ultimate in social proof, because if we’re all supposed to be about joining the conversation, and yet you aren’t getting a lot of back and forth in the media you’re making,

LaConnie · 8 months ago

Great post!!

Also, thanks for the tip on spam filters. Never thought of that one. Heading over to check my spam box now.

poddys · 8 months ago

Comments are the key I agree. Comments are feedback. The more people comment, the more you know what they think about your posts, plus you get the additional links. Great article, and there are several things I am going to put into place to try and increase the comments to my blog.

Redcentaur · 7 months ago

Thanks Chris.

I currently have a registration on my new blog... I used to run a BB on my site but kept getting thousands of spammers advertising unmentionables and I don't particularly want that to start happening on my blog. Is there another way to prevent that so I can turn off the registration?

Correen · 7 months ago

Loved these tips and appreciate getting your stuff in my inbox too! Brevity is not one of my strongest traits, however what you said makes total sense :) Thank you!

uggs123 · 1 month ago

The editor part is the main thing that I miss when blogging. I need someone to say, "Cut this" or "That is too many words," I really miss that.