Here comes one of those vanity posts that bloggers do so well; a post about the notorious topic of “how do I respond to comments.”
I used to never respond to comments because, well, I had like 3-5 readers and I talked to them on an almost daily basis, so responding to their comments wasn’t really neccessary. Over the past year or so though, my readership has grown a bit and now I find myself regularly getting 10 or more comments a day. I realize on the food chain of blog commenting that puts me somewhere in the vicinity of krill but hey, you take what you can get, right?
So I’ve been getting more comments, which range from sage advise to supportive WOOHOO’s and I’ve been answering them via e-mail, if I feel the need to answer, thank or inform the commentor. Does that mean that I don’t read or care about your comments if I don’t respond? No, not at all. I have a queue of comments sitting in Outlook so that I don’t forget to respond to the commentors. I’ve even been approached for advice on immigrating to Belgium by a couple people through this blog and I’ve done my corresponding with these people via e-mail. I don’t typically answer comments in my own comment section and this is for several reasons:
- I personally don’t check a person’s comment section after I make a comment so I don’t assume others do either. What’s the point of me answering in a place the commenters might not even check?
- I like to personalize my responses and sometimes it can get a bit lengthy or personal, so that is done better in an e-mail, in my opinion.
- Sometimes comments come late. I can have comments show up three days after I post and if I’ve already answered other commentors, I dont want that last person to feel neglected or ignored (Holly is notorious for cluster comments every few days and I can’t stand the thought of the BESTEST person feeling left out of my comment/answer loop).
- This one might sound harsh, but if I answer other comments in the commonly accepted list of answers in the comment section, that means I have to think of some sort of answer to the WOOHOO brand of comment. Don’t get me wrong, I’m just as appreciative of a woohoo as I am of any other comment, but those ones are sort of hard to answer…nor is it really neccessary in my opinion, to respond to woohoo. If I leave a woohoo somewhere I don’t expect it to be answered.
- In my humble opinion, the best way to repay a comment is to visit that person’s blog and comment back on their thoughts and posts. I always visit my commenters blogs and do my best to comment back if they took the trouble to stop by and leave their words for me. I think that is the most equal and pleasing exchange of all; the exchange of words as opposed to thanks.
That being said, I will continue to answer comments through e-mail (but I promise to be more diligent about it) and I will also continue exchanging comments by visting your blog if you stop by (except Carrie and Judie cause they don’t have blogs, but I’ll definitely start e-mailing you guys some responses, sorry if I’ve been a turdburger for not doing so).
I am also going to ask for the answering of my comments by other readers please stop. I’ve been noticing a trend wherein certain readers go so far as to address and answer comments or questions posed by my other readers. In my opinion, if you want to answer the comments you can do so on your own blog and not in my comment section. If you think that certain comments require an answer, chances are that I’ve already done so via e-mail.
Thank you for reading. You may now return to your regularly scheduled programming.
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11:38 am
first, woohoo. i almost *had* to start with woohoo, didn’t i?
secondly, oh my BOB i love that you used the word TURDBURGER. my husband sometimes uses TURDBURGLAR, which is also amusing.
thirdly, cluster comments, eh? hmm…i think i may just copyright that. “holly’s new-fangled cluster comments! get ‘em while they’re hot! it will cure what ails you!” except sometimes they’re cold…and don’t actually cure you.
i DO that because i’m an equal combination of LAZY, SLEEP-DEPRIVED, and TIME-CHALLENGED. but mostly lazy. no, mostly sleep-deprived.
*the serious bit*
lilacs, i promise never to comment on another of your commenter’s comments.
*end of serious bit*
…except if it’s jo.
for now, i’ll end with : woo hoo!
(i so better get an email response to this. i’m going to hold my breath until i do.)
12:15 pm
You have to comment or not comment your comments in the way that suits you best. hey this is your blog, so no need to justify. At least, that’s what I think about my blog. I have no comment rule really.
About point 1: I do come back to posts often to read the comments a day later. When I post has inspired me, then I do like to see what others think about it. I love to read answers to my comments (on blogs that do so or in an e-mail or in a chat session or … ) or to read the other comments and their replies. Other people can be so encouraging, cheerful, witty, …. and it’s a good way to discover other bloggers as well through their comments. And I actually love it when reader comment on other comments as well. It makes a blog rather than a one to one collection of relationships into an interactive community all triggered by a post. I think that’s neat. I also reply to the replies on my comment. I guess I like to see/start little conversations.
but I understand the difficulty of responding to “woohoo” comments. Such comments are great but do not require a reply.
3:23 pm
I agree that you just need to do what works for you. I think this is an issue that many of us struggle with!
3:48 pm
Just to clarify, I support dialogues here, of course. I just mean, if someone comments with a specific question to me, could other bloggers refrain from answering. If y’all wanna have a spirited debate with each other and something I write sparks that, please, please feel free!
4:02 pm
hahaha I read your reply…see..I do come back sometimes ;).
3:33 am
you don’t have to respond to me, as long as you know I am here and reading, that is good enough! we will miss you at the shower, but know you are being thought of. keep up the good writing, I love it
2:18 pm
Hello Lilac Specs,
I saw your comment on Jenn in Holland. I wear rose-colored glasses so your name intrigued me. Happy Fourth of July to you. I hope that your day and weekend are wonderful.
I rarely comment back to my commenters. Sometimes, I comment back and forth to their blog, but I do love the communication with others around the world.
7:24 pm
Dealing with comments is a really confusing subject for me. I agree wholeheartedly about replying to comments in commenting. I rarely if ever go back and see if the person replied to me at their blog - no time.
I used to follow the rule, you comment, I follow, but even that is really hard to keep up with. My thinking is the same as yours though - going to that person’s blog and reading and sharing a comment is the best thing.
No matter what, I always feel guilty when it comes to commenting etiquette. I don’t want my readers to think they are commenting into a black void. People have gone so far as to ask if I even READ my comments, which is a total insult. It’s something I always struggle with.
3:40 am
I use mainly return visits as my means of recognition for comments on my blog - I’m with you there. I also prefer to email back, although I really really really suck at emailing. I have like 50 unread messages. I only get to my comments ones because they are filtered to show up with a gold star.
Some posts, I respond on the blog, like the dancing ones because I don’t really want to start a correspondence about them, which sometimes happens when you respond via email.
Ok enough about me. I just basically agree with you is all. LOL
11:47 pm
Our thought processes are pretty similar. I always respond by email.
12:45 pm
I am totally on board and am like you when it comes to comments.. but you respond WAY more then I do… I’m lame that way.