Do You Reply to Comments?
August 17, 2009 by Allison Boyer
Filed under Jobs
This weekend, I talked a little about how some bloggers think they are too cool for school. One of the worst things about these bloggers, in my opinion, is that they don’t reply to their emails unless they perceive the sender to be just as cool. I mean, I’m not saying that I never miss an email or that I reply to people who obviously are spamming tons of sites…but in general, it is just polite to get back to someone, even if it takes you a few days to do so.
Image: sxc.hu
I have multiple reactions to this question myself. On one hand, I like to let people talk without dominating the conversation. I think it is good for the community for commenters to respond to one another and help one another. However, I also like to show commenters that I really do read every comment and care about what they are saying. Even if they don’t directly ask a question, I think it is good to leave comments in reply sometimes.
Do I respond to every single comment? No. And I don’t necessarily think that bloggers should. I think that you should consider on your own blog the same thing you’d consider when leaving a comment on another blog: Is your comment adding value to the blog. Just like saying “nice post” or “first” isn’t a good idea on others’ posts, saying “thanks for the comment” isn’t really a good idea on your own blog.
In my opinion at least. I know bloggers out there who strongly disagree with me. I just think that you should have something of value to say in reply to the other person.
I also know bloggers who reply to all of their comments with personal emails. That’s a bit much, if you ask me…and also a bit annoying. It depends on the circumstances. If I’m a commenter and ask the blogger a question in the comment, it is nice when he or she cares enough to email me, not just reply with a comment, since it is easy to forget that you’ve commented in some cases. But if I just chimed in with my two cents…I think it is a bit spammy when the blogger emails me back with “thanks for stopping by, please visit again.” Maybe I’m a jerk…but I get enough emails every day so as it is!
I want your opinions…do you reply to comments?
This is one of those topics I always find interesting. My first blog was (is) a knitting blog, and in the knitting-blog world, almost every response you get to a comment is going to be via email, so I got in the habit of hitting reply to my comment notification emails and responding that way. The only time I responded in my own comments section was when somebody asked a question that immediately affected the jist of the post. (”What kind of yarn did you use?” “What pattern is that?”) You know, something someone else might want to know the answer to also.
Then, I started my writing blogs and … whoa, different! Responses are usually in the comments for everyone to see. I admit I like the idea of that when the comments can add up to a discussion, but it still throws me, when I have to remember NOT to reply via email. Which, I confess, I often do anyway (grin)
At this point I definitely respond to every comment. My blog is on film music, so it’s a relatively small niche to respond to. Plus, my blog is still in the early months and doesn’t have hordes of traffic. The reasons why I comment (at least at the moment) is A) I want to build a community, B) I want to show my appreciation for my readers taking the time to respond, C) I have something to add in response to their comment (not always), D) I hope it will generate a real conversation. D hasn’t happened quite yet, but hopefully soon. On a couple of occasions I missed a comment on the blog. When I found it a couple of weeks later, I went ahead and responded. I have also gotten my share of emails through my Contact Page. I respond to each and every one of those, even if I can’t help them. If the traffic gets extensive (knock on wood), then I may have rethink that strategy. But it works for now.
I don’t. I get between 15-30 comments on each post and it would be crazy to post responses to everyone. Plus I’ve found that while it’s helpful in the beginning to build community, it actually detracts from the conversation as you get bigger. If the author is always jumping in, other people will defer to your judgment and you’ll stifle the discussion.
And what’s up with the anti-blogger theme this week? You wrote, “in my opinion, is that they don’t reply to their emails unless they perceive the sender to be just as cool”
You have no way of knowing this! How do you know the secret thoughts of other bloggers. You’re just projecting. They like you, I swear! It’s not personal. If they don’t respond, it’s OKAY to send a follow up, and say, “hey I know you’re really busy, and you likely get a ton of these, but I’d really appreciate 2 minutes of your time. Thank you!!!”
Be nice. Be persistent. Do you comment on their blog a lot? Are you part of the community? This may be another factor. Usually I respond first to people I know, especially those loyal readers who add to my community. Everyone else gets put on the “to do later list” which occasionally turns into the “I know it’s bad, but I just don’t have time” list.
Christine,
I’m not sure I disagree with you on all points, but I definitely think that if blogging is your job, answering emails is part of it. It isn’t about responding quickly or with a huge email. I work under a pen name for a VERY popular site in another niche, and it really isn’t that hard to answer emails. At one point, I was answering dozens every day, and not getting paid for it, since it was a personal hobby site. If you’re making money…yeah, you should be able to answer your emails. That’s your job. If you’re so popular that you can’t possibly answer them all, you’re making enough money that you should hire someone to help you.
I mean, ones that are like “check out my site” and “cool site” without any other real substance…I understand why they get put on the back burner and sometimes not answered at all. But when someone emails you a question or proposition or other type of email that needs a reply, it is just bad form not to get around to it.
There’s one blogger in particular that really makes me angry when it comes to replying to emails. This blogger ignored multiple emails from me in the past. They were short emails with to-the-point questions that would have taken maybe 30 seconds to answer, but months and no reply. When I started working here, I was suddenly “cool enough” and got a response to an email I sent this blogger in less than a week. Why did my other emails not matter, though?
I don’t always respond to comments. I feel like there are pros and cons to doing so. But emails? Yes. I reply, even though it sometimes may take a few days or even a week. And I feel like bloggers who don’t aren’t doing their jobs.
Very interesting posts and comments. I respond to every email and/or comment left on my blog. My blog is focused on assisting job seekers. So when someone leaves a question or a comment, my objective is to connect with them, whether anyone else chimes in or not. I have one blog post I wrote 3 years ago when I first started blogging that has almost 200 comments between the questions, my responses and the other readers responses. I still get questions on that particular blog post 3 years later. Amazing in my opinion. But the reason it is so popular is because there are real issues that job seekers face and I give real solutions they can use that will help them move forward in their job search.
My point, I do respond to every comment and I believe that you can build community by being responsive to your readers. I didn’t know anything about blogging 3 years ago. I just did what comes natural to me, respond.
For other bloggers, depending on your topic, it may not be appropriate to respond to all comments on every blog, however I believe that responding is most appropriate if someone, a reader takes the time to write a comment, the least we can do as a writer is respond, even if it is to thank them for stopping by.
Alison,
You wrote, “I want your opinions…do you reply to comments?” But actually you don’t want people’s opinions you want people to agree with you.
This is exactly the time when responding is a bad idea. When you are too close to it to be neutral and not jump on readers for disagreeing with you. (Did you respond the same way to those who agreed with you? Nope!)
This “it’s their job” thing is just silly. It’s not their job. Do you hold every public personality to that level of service? It’s nice when the do it. It’s above and beyond. But no one in this world owes Allison Boyer an email. Or me. Or anyone. And when someone doesn’t write me back? I get over it and don’t jump to conclusions that they think “they are cool and I am not”.
But that’s just my opinion. Not that you asked (oh wait).
Christine,
I’m not sure why you think I’m attacking you or your opinion. I enjoy a good debate. Just because two people don’t agree doesn’t mean that both of their opinions aren’t justified. Like I said in my post, I respond via comments when I have something to say that I believe adds value. That’s why I haven’t replied to those who have agreed with me – I don’t know what more I could say. I do reply to people who agree with my opinions at times, depending on the comments, and I also sometimes do not respond with comments to people who disagree. You’ve raised some interesting points. I’ve responded. It isn’t about not wanting your opinion or only responding to people who disagree with me.
For the record, I still disagree. I believe that answering emails is part of a blogger’s job. I do not agree that it is “above and beyond.” And just because I believe that doesn’t mean that I don’t value your opinion here too. That’s what respectful debate is about.
Darlene,
I definitely think you’re right when you say that the topic dictates the amount of responding (or type of responding) you do. Personally, though, I hate it when half the comments on a post are the writer not actually saying anything other then “thanks.” I don’t mind when they respond and add value to the post or debate, but I don’t like to wade through non-valuable comments when I’m trying to read a discussion.
But I also see your point about thanking the reader for the comment. It is a great way to get people to come back, creating a community. I think it is about finding what works for your blog and for you as a blogger. I’d def err on the side of too much responding than not enough!
This topic always fascinates me. I respond to 99.9% of comments on my blog and I respond to about the same percentage of emails. It’s basically spam that I don’t respond to. Some people may not be aware that they are actually spam.
When I visit someone’s blog and they only respond to comments of people that they know or are friends with, that seems really unwelcoming to me. I tend to not visit them much again.
And one big pet peeve of mine is when a blogger has many comments and the ones that they choose to respond to are the negative ones. Why? That is reinforcing bad behavior. Why not reinforce the good behavior and ignore or delete the others? Just my two cents.
I’m of the opposite view, Allison, when it comes to “thanks” comments from the author. I think it acknowledges the comment, even if the writer doesn’t have an in depth comment back to the person. I think it’s nice and shows that the writer is happy the person stopped by.
I try to respond to all of my comments, usually on the site rather than via email. If I have a lot to say, however, I’ll respond via email. But mostly on the site so others can see it as well.
I can really see that side of it too, Becky. I like to know that I’m appreciated. I guess, I just don’t want to clog up the conversation too much with “thanks.”
Anil – that brings up another good debate…should bloggers delete comments?
None of this discussion is meant to impugn the general practice of credit, which has an important and vital function on the free market. ,