Commenting on other blogs and websites can reap you great benefits, as claimed in this blog post where the author Neil Patel claims that he generated $ 25,000 with 249 comments. I can understand if you are a bit cynical about the tactic because most of us relate commenting to comment-spamming – people indiscriminately leave comments to generate traffic with the false understanding that it will increase their search engine rankings. Comment spamming is a legend in blogging circles and there are many plug-ins specifically to deal with the menace.
But Neil, quite understandably, doesn’t talk about THAT sort of commenting. Commenting is a very special feature and most publishers keep it switched on because it makes publishing more interactive. Whether it’s personal blogging, professional blogging or news websites, every publication these days has the facility to leave comments. So it isn’t that commenting is frowned upon. What’s frowned upon is commenting just for the sake of commenting. This is something you should avoid especially if you want to make commenting an integral part of your content marketing strategy.
How to make commenting an integral part of your content marketing strategy
You will need to be patient of course. Commenting is a bit different than blogging because you’re commenting on someone else’s blog or article and initially he or she may decide to not to approve your comments. So in that regard you will need to practice some patience before your comments begin to appear on the website that concerns you.
Be careful of what blogs and publications you choose. Remember that you’re commenting because you want to attract business. It’s no use commenting on a fashion website if you sell homoeopathic medicines unless there is a connection.
Being a professional content writer I have a wider choice because anybody can be my client (this also increases my effort manifold of course).
Once you start commenting, be careful that you add value to the ongoing conversation. Be sincere. In order to do that properly read the blog post or the article and take down the main notes. If you decide to disagree with some of the points, evaluate them carefully and crosscheck with the information you have with you. Even if you’re going to agree add your own take so that the people participating in the comment conversation know that you have actually grasped the thread.
What if you have no idea how to start? Doesn’t matter. It doesn’t mean you don’t start leaving comments. You can just leave a polite “well-written”. Being a new entrant, people won’t mind that.
With commenting you need to be persistent. As mentioned in Neil’s blog post, he left 249 comments on various websites. He is a known professional in the field of Internet marketing and blogging so it is quite understandable if his 249 comments were able to generate $ 25,000 for him. It might not happen to you. But even if a fraction of that success is generated by regular commenting, the effort is worth it.