Promote Your Blog by Stirring Up Action in the Comments Area
By Richard Goutal
People are attracted to action. They slow down to look at an accident. They are drawn to a crowd. They go out of their way to determine the cause of a loud noise.
So what attracts people to your blog site? Action does! Is there a crowd, or even a small group, "buzzing" around your latest blog post? Or does the post show "zero comments." So one way to promote your site is to ensure that there are a good number of comments to your posts, a sure sign of action!
Promote Your Site With Blog Comments
There are several things you can do to increase the number of comments on your blog. First, you must write a post that is going to generate a conversation. On a practical side, you need to create an environment that encourages people to add comments. And most importantly you need to prime the pump with comments from motivated friends. Let's look at these ideas a bit more.
If you are sitting with a group of friends at a restaurant and you remark, "The sky is blue," it is not likely to generate much of a sustained conversation. In the same way, a blog post with a blah premise will not generate much interest. A lot of posts are like that; just... boring. Same old rehashed content. What kind of content captivates attention? Posts that explain how to do something that the reader needs to do. So you must know your readers. Posts that express an opinion about a topic dear to the heart of your readers. So you must know your readers. Posts that hit on the emotions of the reader - inspires, saddens, or makes them laugh. So you must know your readers!
Once a reader is hooked by your topic and the way you write about it, you must make it easy for them to comment. Ending the post with a question, a controversial statement, or a challenge followed by a blatant request - "I'd like to hear your comments; please add them below." This last part is an example of what is commonly known as a "call to action."
At the very moment the reader is considering the possibility of adding a comment, it is essential that the "comments" area of your post be easy to see. There are still readers who are new to the blogging format (true!) and it is not sufficient to have a small, hard to find link to a comments area. Such a link needs to stand out; so make sure that particular link is uncluttered, for example with a string of "tags."
Finally, you need to prime the pump. No matter how interesting your content, people will tend to discount if it appears that everyone else has as well. Let's put it this way, people find it easier to join a conversation than to start one. So your site needs to have a few comments there to create a safe place for conversation-joiners.
Collaborative Groups Help Promote Your Site
How do you do this? You make a deal with a group of other people: "I'll comment on your blog if you'll comment on mine." That is oversimplifying a bit, but such groups are commonly known as syndication groups, blogging alliances, or tribes. Such groups are a great example of how working with others can speed up your progress. Such a collaborative group is extremely effective when done right.
There are a number of such collaborative groups that already exist that you can join, if just for the purpose of learning how such groups work. After learning the ropes of one or more typical tribes, you can start your own group. The fact remains, however, that beginning blogs can really benefit from some artificial buzz in the same way that an old fashioned water pump can benefit from a little water dumped into the top.
Site promotion can involve many strategies, but one that really helps is to stir up a little action with comments on every post.
I invite you to learn more about how to work with others to build your online business. It is amazing what entrepreneurs can accomplish when they collaborate with one another.
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