10 mistakes to avoid when posting a comment
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Image by earnest70six.
I decided not to continue with the three-part series on resolutions as it was wearing a bit thin - so here's a "normal" post for today. Happy New Year!
1. Including a URL in the body of the comment.
Most sites provide boxes for you to type your name, email address, and URL. See that last one - the URL? That's where you put a link to your blog. This is a nice way to tell people "hey I have a blog too" without looking all spammy.
But when you include a URL in the body of your comment and you fill out the URL field too - or even if you leave the URL field blank - it looks spammy. Just in case you were in any doubt, doing this often results in anti-spam software flagging your comment as spam.
Best if you don't do this one!
2. Ignoring what the author wrote.
I'm lucky in that I get some really good comments. People like to take the points I raised in the post and elaborate on them. Some people add an extra point or two to the list. Others disagree. All of these are fine.
What's not fine is posting a comment that suggests you didn't read the post at all. That's like me saying "Web 2.0 is just marketing jargon" and someone replying with "How do you feel about Web 2.0?"
3. Thanking the blog owner for a "great post" when it was a guest post.
This comes up a lot at ProBlogger. Someone writes a guest post, and a bunch of people reply: "Great post Darren". OK, so the post itself usually says it's by Darren Rowse, but the first paragraph of every guest post makes it clear that someone else wrote the post.
4. Asking the blogger to link to you.
Asking for links is a bad idea - it looks desperate. Honestly, it does. Just link to the people you want to link to, and maybe some of them will link back. Or maybe some different people will link to you. Not everything has to be reciprocal.
5. Commenting on the wrong post.
If you're reading a few posts in one go, make sure you post the right comments on the right posts! Also, if you have a comment on an earlier post but you can't find it, don't try and post your comments on the latest post. Either search for the older post, or contact the blogger to ask if they can link you to the post you want to comment on. It makes it so much easier to follow the discussion if the comments stay fairly on-topic.
6. Trying to be the first person to comment.
This is common on some of the biggest blogs. Try spending a little more time working on what you want to write, and worry less about being first. As with some of the previous mistakes - it looks desperate.
7. Not proof-reading your comment.
If you're trying to make a point, I think it's harder to do so if your comment is full of mistakes. Especially if you're commenting on someone's spelling, punctuation and/or grammar and you make mistakes in your comment. e.g. "it helps to know your grammer".
8. Agreeing or disagreeing when you don't actually feel that way.
Chiming in to say "Yeah, I agree, great post!" when you actually feel the opposite is pointless. Why bother commenting at all? You don't have to agree, just be honest!
9. Double-posting.
If your comment didn't go through the first time, what makes you think it will go through the second time? Either you'll have a series of failed attempts, or you'll post loads of duplicate comments. Be patient, don't click submit twice, and remember that a lot of blogs moderate their comments - they won't show up immediately.
If your comment doesn't show up and you didn't make any of the mistakes listed here, try contacting the owner of the blog - if their comments are broken, they will appreciate the note!
10. Posing as somebody else.
This is just foolish. IP addresses might not be a guaranteed way of tracking people, because they can change, and several people can share the same IP. But if you try to get away with posting a rude comment under someone else's name, don't be surprised if the owner of the blog asks around to see if they can find out who you really are.
Have you made any of these mistakes when commenting? Have you seen other people making them? Can you think of any more?
Comments on 10 mistakes to avoid when posting a comment
2
I'm amazed at how many of these things are so obvious, but so often overlooked.
About commenting on the wrong post - I'm guilty of having read two posts and leaving one comment on the latter that refers to both. Especially if the two posts are part of a series or otherwise related. My bad. I repent.
Am I the first to comment. Definitely desperate. ;-)
3
[...] Widget ready and CSS Validated. Demo Download License: Free to use must keep footer intact AS IS 10 mistakes to avoid when posting a comment - toptenblogtips.com 01/02/2009 [ Commenting Mistakes - No Comment!]Image by earnest70six … s [...]
4
great post on the benefits of proper linking,but cna you link me so that i can get mnay more reeders??? but i'd like to talk about the value of directories first....
(edited)
happy new year, thanks :)
5
While I agree with all of your points, I would add a caveat to #1. That being, don't link back to your main blog page in the text of the comment. However, if you are posting a link to something that is in reference to the post, then I would think that would be okay. For instance, I've posted links to one of my posts in answer to questions asked in the comments, and I've linked to other people's posts when it had something to do with the post I was commenting on. I'm pretty sure you didn't mean to imply not to ever post links in comments, but rather self-promotional links in the comment.
6
Excellent reminders!
7
Thanks for the comments guys. :)
JD - some Blogger blogs allow you to enter your name and URL. You can also update your Blogger profile to include your URL and bio, I've done that in case anyone clicks onto it. Best to cover all the options.
Rob, you made mistakes 1, 2 and 4. I removed your link.
Jodith - I don't agree with the caveat. It's OK to link to a blog post in the URL field, you don't have to link to the home page if you don't want to. It might be OK to link to someone else's blog within the body of the comment, but even if it's on-topic, linking to your own posts just comes off as spammy. Even if the blog owner allows it, you may find your comments go into spam anyway, which can also lead to your other comments going into spam on other blogs (think of Akismet).
8
Haha. Great. Yes, these are great tips.
Another mistake is to use a 'keyword rich' tag name. Sure, it probably gets more clicks, but its more likely that the comment moderator might just delete the comment.
For example, I've gotten something like: "Great points!", by "Get Rich Quick Guide: Why You Should Quit Your Day Job". lol.
When the tagname is longer than the comment, you know that you have a problem. haha.
9
Hey Shirley - thanks for commenting. :) That's a good point, but did you ever consider that might be their real name? ;)
By the way, I have subscribed to your blog. :D
10
Darren, how do you feel about Web 2.0?
;)
Great article, as always. :)
11
I agree with Carol, they are all obvious things to avoid and yet I never actually think of avoiding them. I hope that by accident I haven't tripped up somewhere, but I probably have.
As with a lot of tips I read here, I'll be keeping it in mind.
12
My worst commenting mistake: mistyping my URL!!! I was commenting regularly on a popular blog and the first time I left a comment, I made a typo entering my url. It was about my 10th comment when I realized my mistake. ACK!!!
At that time, I quit trying to comment BEFORE my first cup of coffee!!!
13
[...] 10 Mistakes to Avoid when Posting a Comment [...]
14
Haha. Thanks for subscribing Ben. :-)
15
Nice post.
I agree with this post. I have seen lot of readers on my blog. They just comment without reading the blog. sometimes the comments are irrelevant of the post content.
16
Yeah I am surprised when I do a regular guest post on a blog that people seem to thank not me but the blogs owner. Can sometimes get annoying.
17
Kathy - mis-typing your URL is definitely something to watch out for, I hadn't thought of that. :)
18
What do you think about leaving comments..? J/K!
Great post with very valid points. I have only occationally left a URL in a comment if it related to the article but otherwise, never do so.
Thanks for sharing & I'm clicking the subscribe button next!
Alex | Zen Elements
19
Comments...
Comments are welcome on this blog. I would really like to see this become a forum for home based business people. As long as your comment is not out of decorum it will be approved. Be constructive and be polite please.
Speaking of comments, Ben Barden...
20
Each time I read your list, I'm asking myself: Did I ever do that? When did I last do that? Here's a quick comment on those of interest:
1. Can't say I've ever asked someone to link to me ... that's just darn pretentious!
2. Grammar and spellchecker go hand-in-hand, though are separate demons!
3. Putting URL's within comments is definitely a no-no, thanks to the spammers. It's easier to put in a URL to a particular article on your own journal, as long as it relates.
4. I don't understand the reasoning of people to be the first-commenter, it serves no purpose.
Another interesting article Ben, certainly a good reminder to all of us.
21
Alex, thanks for subcribing! :)
Stephen, being the first commenter is all about exposure - if people go to a big blog and read the post, they might not read 100 comments, but they might read the first comment. Unfortunately the people who go out of their way to write the first comment may not actually write anything worth reading, so doing so could have the opposite effect - making people avoid you and your site as you clearly don't have anything useful to say. Hence why it's a no-no. ;)
22
I agree with most but I think linking to a reference in the comment body is ok, but not to you own url or non related page.
23
I hate when people use my comments to ask an off topic question; even if they apologize for it. I have an "about" section and belong to 12 social networks, all of which forward messages.
24
Wardell, that might be OK, but will probably hit the spam filters either way. On a busy blog, your comment might not show up.
Turnip, I too like to keep comments in the correct place, but it doesn't always happen.
25
I would say that a reader must use his common sense when he comments. Respect of what is written should also be there. If a reader does not agree , then he should state this tactly - as you mentioned.
And I've noticed that there are some who would be very frank with their corrections. This is okay if you really know the person and how he would take it but, I would say that since these are blogs and we are not in critiquing forums, corrections should be done in private ( or not at all). An email or PM would surely be appreciated by the author, but not a public castigation.
In the end, we have to accord respect as we want it given to us. The question, "If he does that to me, will I like it?" can be a guide to our actions.
An informative post.
26
Good points there Jena. Thanks for your comment. :)
27
I've made some of these mistakes in the past. Hopefully now that I've read your advice, I won't make them again in the future!
28
I've posted on the wrong post when the blog layout/ set up makes it unclear which post the comment link goes with. I've learned to do a mouseover on the link to the comment, sometimes that works. But, I really think I should not have to puzzle this out. It should be really clear which comment link goes with each post. If not, that's not my problem. I do my best until I run out of patience.
29
Laura, I've never seen that before... weird. Where did you see it? Do you have a link?
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I have to confess: I do include my URL on Blogger or Blogspot blogs because the link created by just my name goes nowhere. I don't want to seem obnoxious, tho.