How many times have you thought about giving up blogging because it seems like nobody is listening? You can see all this traffic going to other websites, but never yours. This can make people feel insignificant and alone. I always reassure my clients that blogs still help keep your website relevant, even if people don’t seem to read it. But I know that’s not a very satisfying answer, so today’s post is all about how to get more reader traffic and maybe even comments to your blog by reading and commenting on other blogs.

How does commenting on other blogs increase your traffic?

Every comment form has a field for your URL.

Fill that field in with your website url (not a specific post, just your main url). You aren’t just creating a link back here, you are creating a link back in an area where the people who see it are the kind of people who like to read and comment on blogs. It’s just that simple.

Quality over Quantity

Most people, when they want to increase reader traffic, are thinking in terms of numbers, they want their post to go viral. There are ways of getting giant traffic volume, some more legitimate than others–most either take a skill set the average blogger doesn’t have, or cold hard cash. And in the end you get the quantity, but is the quality really there? Are these visitors the kind who will actually read your posts and comment on your blogs?

Commenting on other people’s blogs may seem like a time consuming endeavor, and it is not for everyone, but these days the trend in marketing is toward “personalization” and commenting on blogs is an example of just that.

Personalization is not just making sure your mail merge on Mailchimp inserts the right info in Dear <recipient>. Personalization is about getting back to basics. It’s about giving a person your actual attention, and making efforts to show it.

Personalizing blog comments involves:

  • Showing that you have read the blog post by:
    • repeating back some of what you read in a way that demonstrates understanding
    • responding to a specific point in the post
  • Engaging with other commenters by replying to their comments (keeping it respectful and friendly!)

The ripples of capturing people’s attention with your personalized and engaging comments on an other author’s blog post:

  • People click your url to learn more about you
  • The blog author reciprocates by commenting on your blog
  • You become better known, and recognized, in the community you are engaging with
  • People discover that really awesome content on your blog, that you just know would go viral if only someone would read it!

Consider who will see your comments on other blogs

The kind of person who will see your comments are highly skewed in your favor. Who scrolls all the way down to the comments? People who read and comment, of course. These are people who have demonstrated the behavior you desire. They are people who read blogs, and they are people who comment on blogs.

These are the quality visitors you want to attract to your blog. These are people who are many times more likely to actually read and comment on your blog, otherwise they wouldn’t be clicking through to your website.

How to increase your odds even more

  • Choose popular blogs to comment on
  • Choose blogs relevant to your blog

You want to grow your readership by leveraging the readership of someone else–so make sure they have a readership. If they don’t have any readers or commenters, nobody will see your comments except the grateful author.

If your website is centered around apples, you won’t get much benefit from commenting on a site about orangutans. Comment on other blogs about apples and you will attract people who like to read about apples.

It’s really that simple. It takes a level of commitment, but then all marketing and promotion strategies take some kind of commitment–either your time or your money. There really isn’t a magic button. This is as magic as it gets.