When I first started writing my blog, everyone told me that leaving comments on other sites was a great step to building traffic. It’s true, commenting on blogs helps you become connected to the community, makes you stand out, and can drive traffic to your own blog.
For me, though, convincing myself to write a comment was difficult. I was considered a lurker – I’d read the article, have an idea, but never share it with the writer.
I worked hard to train myself out of that mentality. I now share my thoughts whenever possible. It not only helps build myself as a leader in the industry, but it also lets me help other bloggers explore new ideas.
So how did I do it? Here are some of the steps that I went through:
1. Stop Being Afraid of Being Wrong
Seriously, the first step is to stop being afraid of being wrong. I used to be afraid of making a mistake, afraid that someone would jump on me for saying something wrong.
Whenever I felt like I could be wrong, I reminded myself that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. The worst that happens is that I’m corrected and I’d be better for it.
Share what you’re thinking. Someone might say that you’re wrong, but who cares? Learn from your mistakes and make yourself better.
Bloggers want to know what you think about their article. Don’t be afraid to share your ideas.
2. Start Small and Be Comfortable
I started small, by leaving short comments on my friends blogs. I knew that if it came to a point where I needed to change my comment, they would help me. This made me feel comfortable because I couldn’t make an egregious error.
The comments didn’t always add value, I just wanted to get into a routine of leaving comments. Sometimes it was simply “good post” or “I really agree with…*part of article*”.
It just takes this small step to get into a rhythm. Over time I noticed that instead of writing these short comments, I was writing in-depth analysis. I began treating my comments as mini blog posts. I realized, I just needed to start somewhere.
3. Facebook and Twitter are your Friends
We’ve become used to leaving shorter comments. Look at your Facebook feed or Twitter replies. Most of these comments are no longer than 140 characters, it’s something we’ve gotten used to and it’s ok.
Translate what you do on Facebook and Twitter to blog comments. Publish what you feel, what you think, and don’t worry about length.
4. Keep a First Impressions Journal
When I read blogs, I tend to open up different tabs and read through the articles quickly. That’s great for getting through tons of content fast, but it’s not useful if you’re trying to leave useful comments.
Instead of jumping from one article to another, leave a comment right after you finish your article. You probably won’t come back to the post if you switch tabs. Be focused and don’t put it off.
I like to write notes in the comments field as I read the article. I keep notes on questions that arise as I read the post or how it made me feel. These notes turn into my comment once I’m done reading.
5. Use an RSS Reader
The best tool to make your content consumption more effective is a feed reader. I identified about 50 blogs that I like to read and setup a Google Reader account. In the reader, I can track when each of these sites published a new article.
I then setup a goal – before I can share or “star” an article, I have to leave a comment on it. I don’t always keep up with my goal, but it has definitely made me more efficient and more cognizant of leaving comments. (Oh, you can follow my shared items here.)
I think comments are an important part of the online community. It allows me to share my thoughts and grow as a person. It helps the writer explore his article from different angles and potentially make the publication more in-depth.
Get over your fear and take your first step – leave a comment here and tell me why you comment on other blogs. What drives you to share your thoughts? Do you set a routine for yourself? Has it been useful for you?
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