Welcome to Session #2 in my series on
Blog Commenting! Did you miss Session #1? You'll find it
right here.
Today's special guest is Heather Mann, who blogs daily at
Dollar Store Crafts and is one of the expert craft bloggers in residence at Crafterminds.com, where I find all sorts of helpful advice on blogging and crafting!
Please help me welcome Heather!
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I'm not fishing for comments, I promise. But there are some great reasons why you should comment on my (or other bloggers') blogs. It doesn't just make ME feel good, it allows me to help you out. How?
1. If you comment on my blog, I am likely to remember your name after two or three comments.
If you care about other bloggers knowing who you are, then commenting on their blogs more than once will start to get their attention.
One comment is a one-hit wonder. I won't remember Siouxsie Craftr's name if she says "Cool!" on one of my blog posts once and never peeps again. If Siouxsie gives me a sentence or two (and
best practice is to tell me something only she can tell me, with a personal detail if possible), I'm more likely to take notice. If she comments with a meaningful comment a time or three, I will probably click through to her blog or twitter account and check it out.
2. If you comment on my blog to tell me you made one of my projects, I will click over and look at your site.
While I'm at your site, I will take note of the following things: can you take a decent picture? Do you have several tutorials? If the answer to both of these things is yes, and one of your tutorials fits my niche (dollar store crafts), I am fairly likely to link to you. And that link to you means good traffic to your site. Which means:
3. If you comment on my blog, you might get featured on my blog.
If I see something I like on your site, I will link to it. If you didn't comment, I am less likely to find your project. If I link to you, you might reap a windfall of traffic:
4. If you comment on my blog, you might reap a windfall of traffic.
You comment on my blog. I click on your name and check out your site. I see something I love. I share it on my site. You get traffic from my site, and then:
5. If you comment on my blog and I link to you, others might link to you too.
You got the initial bump in traffic from my site, but the new people who visited you might also link to your project (especially if it's a really good one). Also, I like to share links with my friends (many of whom also have highly-trafficked blogs). So,
6. If you comment on my blog, I visit you, I like your tutorials but they don't work for my site, I will likely pass a link along to my friends who might feature you.
The number one thing that thrills me most about craft blogging is the sheer act of creativity. If you did a good project that deserves recognition, I will try to get it for you. I am 40% more likely to try to get recognition for you if you are nice to me (commenting is a visible way of being nice!) Why? Because you'll be one of "my people" and I like to do things for my people.
I know people with even bigger blogs than mine, and I have, on MANY occasions, passed along good links to them. Those links have then been featured. Sometimes those links lead to linkage on even bigger sites. Multiple sites.
7. If you like a project of mine more than others, and you take time to comment, I will know I'm on the right track. I will give you more posts like the one you enjoyed.
If I don't hear anything, then I know that a craft wasn't the right fit for my site, and I won't pursue that line of crafting.
8. If you comment on my blog, I might give you a job.
Yes. It happens. You write a good comment, I check out your site and find out you are a freelance writer, or you have some skill with crafting, photography, and writing tutorials. Because you commented, you're now on my radar. I might ask you to guest post, freelance for me, or maybe even more than that. Once you start writing for me, you have opportunities to write for others (plus, you're adding to your portfolio!)
Now that you've taken a peek behind the curtain and seen the kind of glamorous life your comments could live, you should be inspired to take thirty seconds to write a good sentence or two next time you see a great project.
So, can I get a comment?
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Thank you, Heather, for allowing me to share your words with my readers!
We all have different reasons why we comment on other blogs, and if your desire is to grow your blog--I can't reiterate Heather's words enough. I have personally experienced many of her points in my time blogging! Taking the time to sincerely let a blogger know what you think about a post can bring benefits for you
both.
We'll be covering
How to Leave a Good Comment next time.
{What do you think? Any questions?}
