Why blog comments are not dead

Blogging has changed dramatically since its first years, just like anything else changes these days, but quite differently than anyone had anticipated. While many bloggers and people working with them are still creating content the same way, there are quite a few who have started thinking about paths to get ahead of the changes in the blogsphere. I absolutely admire that. To be on top of current technologies and to brainstorm according tomorrow's possibilities is strongly professional. 

Amongst the ones adapting to changes and trying to establish future wise strategies, there are bloggers who accept that comments in blog posts have decreased dramatically and are often useless to indicate a post's success. It is because of the spread and effect of social media and because of the new content creating possibilities. Likes, shares, thumbs ups, tweets and hashtags seems to be taking over them in no time. 

I have to agree to some degree...

Well, no more than five people have commented on my most popular post of all times (according to Blogger stats).

-Does that mean the rest 3549 readers found the post useless?
I doubt that, as I have tried to answer questions I had myself before starting shopping at Asos. So at least most of them had a few questions answered.

-Did they make it to the end of the post?
Perhaps yes, perhaps not, it's 30 points after all. 

-Did they find it poorly written?
Who knows, English is not my native language and I don't have an editor, so mistakes happen often. 

-Did they click my blog to look for more information?
They could have, but I have not been posting regularly, so it's my fault for not engaging them further. 

-So, why would they not comment?
Frankly, why would they comment? If they came from Pinterest looking for answers, they found them and went away doing their own thing. 

This is something you should expect if you are willing to share free information on internet, so that's why you should love doing it and not feel pissed off when not given back much in return. Even those five comments are enough for me, because two of them thank me for sharing the information, two have questions to ask me and one is a spam promoter.

Now that is a simple example to show you that not a single comment should be taken for grated. If you post about things that catch your eye daily, like a piece of furniture or a newspaper article, most people would have a look and go on. A few might briefly comment phrases such as "Great!", "Cool!", "Wow!", "Awesome!" or some more cool stuff. Only a handful would ask questions or share a personal insight.

But when you blog about issues that are meaningful to most of us, you have more chances to engage with people, make them share their stories and interact with each other. I know many bloggers that are great at this. 

Joanna pops a bizarre question, like "What kind of underwear are you wearing?" and boom! 231 comments. Which is not at all random for her, because her writing is genius. She also asked "Where do you live" and got 773 answers. Not bad huh?

Bri would share a difficult moment of her life and you find 155 girls opening up their own hearts and showing compassion in the comments session.

Mara is a great writer, whose kindness and viewpoint for live, love, marriage have made so many people thank her from their heart in the comments section and share their stories like they were chatting with family. 

There are so many more people who are sharing helpful stuff and creating amazing content. And they deserve all the comments they are getting and more. But it didn't happen overnight and they have worked hard to craft their brand. 

So what about small blogs or special niches? Don't get discouraged. The world does not owe you comments or anything else for that matter. But try to make an impact and touch people in such a way that they would type faster than they can think just to share something with you. 

Make people choose you because the way you make them feel. Make them worry when you're not around. They will comment asking if you're alright. And they will chat and argue with each other, some will insult too but some would pray for you. Is there a better feeling? 

Comments are not dead!

Think of a blog as a plastic yellow duck in a bathtub. Cute, right? Now imagine that yellow duck in an ocean. You'd not even distinguish it in that infinite space. Blogs are becoming infinite and blog posts are created daily, hourly, every minute that passes by. Be the space to deserve comments and treat each of them as special, because no one owes you their time and kindness.

Also, be the change you want to see! If you don't like comments going away, keep making them. Respond to people leaving you a comment. I love writing a paragraph (or more) when I have something to say. Make genuine connections and say nice things you truly believe. Stand up if something seems wrong, but don't harass anything you don't like.

Because of comments people laugh, cry, feel less alone, make friends, keep in touch, fall in love, get inspired, find out new things, and maybe read someone's first or last comment ever.

How do you feel about comments? Are they going away soon? Should we keep them tight or let them go to welcome something else instead?

| Love, Lisa |