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Monday, May 7, 2012

Book Blogger Confessions # 4


Book Blogger Confessions is a new blog meme hosted by Tiger of All Consuming Books and Karen of For What It's Worth. It is a weekly meme in which bloggers can vent share about their blogging "problems" and experiences.

Question of the week: 
Comments. The holy grail of blogging success!
What type of posts do you leave comments on?
How do you try to encourage more comments on your blog?
Do you respond to people who leave comments on your posts?
How do you handle negative/spam comments?
Do you use captcha?

I think I am speaking for all bloggers when I say that comments are like being given a Wonka golden ticket in our own versions of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It always makes our day because it means that not only someone bothered reading our painstakingly thought-out and edited blog posts but we also managed to get you to think and comment.


There are blogs that I regularly read and comment on. One of their styles was at the end of the post, they always leave questions for thought. I think that really works in getting people to think and share their minds. I especially love commenting on TBR piles and WoW's posts.

I also have favorite blogs I always visit. Have you been to Cuddlebuggery? Because if you haven't then you're missing some of the funniest, wackiest, bluntest, snarkiest, most brilliant posts I've ever read. I bow to these 2 genius ladies. Their author interviews are so original and to die for.  They can be brutal but when they give the heads-up in a review, you just gotta take their word for it and go wild with anticipation.

How about The Midnight Garden? i swim for oceansThe Nocturnal Library? These guys are amazing reviewers. I always read their opinions on books because their reviews just blew me away.


I hope you do get to visit those blogs, because if not, you're missing out big time. Now back to the topic. I always respond to comments when I can. That's why I really wish Blogger has the same comment features that Wordpress has so that when I respond, the commenter can get a notification about it.

How to encourage comments? Reach out first. You can't just expect people to flock into your blog without even trying to exist somewhere. For instance, I always visit the blogs those who comment and visit my blog. I think it's just common etiquette. Also, try to be more interactive. Involve your readers, talk to them, ask questions and their opinions, and I think it really helps if you sound sincere and/or really excited in your blog posts.


Quick fact: I never received a spam nor a negative comment in life. Or at least ever since I started blogging. It could be because no one really cares about my opinion or they are scared away by my intensity or my honesty. Honestly, I do think it's the former. Even the most-loved reviewer gets them. I actually want a troll experience just for kicks.

Kidding aside, one way to turn off commenters is having your Captcha on.  I really like to teach you how to turn it off, but as of now I still couldn't get the hang of this new Blogger interface, so I might just make it worst.


Anyway, for bloggers, please turn off your Captcha. It's really a pain. When I started blogging, my Captcha was on, and that's when they're so much easier to read and I never received a spam. But when they changed it to the "new" infuriating two-non meaningful codes, it raised a lot of eyebrows so I turned it off. Up till now, no spam incident. Nada. Nil. Zil. Trust me. If you want comments, let the commenting experience be stress-free. I, for one, will still comment even if it's on but I cannot speak for the others.


How about you? 
Do you have favorite bloggers you always comment on?
Do you have Captcha nightmares as well?
Comment down below and tell me what you think. 

Happy Monday!
Don't forget to check out my Comeback Giveaway! :)

5 comments:

  1. Comments are like golden tickets to me, too. I get super excited every time I see a new comment notification.

    I like leaving questions at the end of my posts, because like you said, it's a lot of fun.

    I've had spammers and trolls. Neither are fun, but I like to say that you know you made it when you've got trolls.

    http://elizabethbarone.net

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, I really want the trolls now! Just kidding! :D

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  2. I see a lot bloggers upset that they don't get comments but then mention they don't have time to leave any either.
    We're all busy but I try to return every comment left on my blog and visit a few new bloggers every week. I don't always get to everyone because I run out of time.
    I enjoy the Midnight Garden and I'll check out the other blogs you've mentioned.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I recently started ending my reviews with a question or two and have started to see an increase in the amount of comments I get. I also love that blogger now has threaded comments so I can respond directly to all comments left.

    I try to visit at least 5 different blogs each day and leave a meaningful comment. I'm hoping eventually this will lead those bloggers to visit my blog.

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  4. Cuddlebuggery is one of my favorites too :)

    Added the rest to my reading list, thanks for the tips.

    Just started blogging and I can't wait to receive my first comment!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for the comments. I really appreciate and lovelovelove them and will try to reply as fast as I can. Have a blog? Post your blog URL along with your comments below. I would love to visit.

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