The Benefits of Blog Commenting

We all read blogs. Business blogs. Political blogs. Entertainment blogs. Sports blogs.  But how many of us leave comments for the author? And if we do, how often? If you’re like me, not nearly often enough. And yet, there are a lot of tangible benefits to blog commenting, and not just for the author.  In fact, most of the benefits are for you.  Here are just five of the many reasons you should make a habit of blog commenting.

Social Media Means Being Social

Would you walk into a store and ask the manager for his advice on a product or service and then leave without saying so much as a “Thank you?” Unless you’re a rude SOB, of course you wouldn’t. And yet we do it to bloggers every day. News flash: social media requires all of us to actually be social.  Even if you don’t have a lot to say about the blog post, a simple, “Thanks for the advice — good stuff!” or a quick follow-up question let’s the writer know someone out there is listening.  It also gives them some feedback on which of their topics are more popular and how they might improve their efforts in the future.

Building Your Personal Brand

If you have an opinion about the topic, share it.  Not only will this further the dialogue, it will give other readers a more rounded outlook from which to learn.  Selfishly, doing so will also allow you to promote yourself as an expert in your particular field – building your own personal brand identity.

Increasing Your Site Traffic

Of course an obvious benefit to blog commenting is building keyword-rich backlinks to relevant content on your own site. Even if you don’t embed links to your site, other readers that find value in your comments will begin to seek you out.

Getting More Comments on Your Blog

If you link to a related post on your blog, ask folks for their opinion on what you have to say.  Again, social media is supposed to be about creating a deeper, more engaging dialogue.

Generating New Blog Ideas

What’s the result of all this dialogue?  New ideas. New ideas for your business.  Or maybe a new idea for a client.  Heck, it might just spark a new idea for your next blog post. This happened for me recently after reading a few blog posts and participating in a couple of LinkedIn discussions on creating greater alignment between sales and marketing.

So, the next time you read a blog post that triggers a thought or teaches you something new, take two minutes to leave a comment.  Not only will it encourage the writer to keep writing, it will also pay personal dividends down the road.