The good and bad of blog comments

Many new bloggers are not entirely new to blogging – they’ve read a lot of blogs, and maybe noticed that sometimes, commenters get nasty, negative, or disagreeable. It’s important to remember: being able to become part of the conversation is what sets blogs apart from, among other things, printed newspapers and static websites.

While I make an exception here for journal blogs (where the author is blogging for their own personal satisfaction and not for the purpose of audience-building), I find that a niche blog is almost useless unless it offers readers the ability to comment, even negatively, on what the author’s presenting.

Why? Your goal with a niche blog should not just be to become the recognized expert on a given topic. It should also be to become a true resource to your readers – and that means offering them opinions other than your own.

Indeed, readers expect the opportunity to leave comments and be part of the conversation when they visit a blog (even, to a degree, journal blogs). Make it as easy as possible for people to comment, and you will help create a thriving community around your blog with high return readership.

You can always set up your blog to moderate comments if you are afraid of unchecked negativity. (Here’s one example of someone who attempted to deal with an overwhelming number of negative comments. And, here’s  another example of a blog that I know personally was inundated from day one with negative comments, yet the blogger perseveres with a helpful, professional attitude to this day.) You can also look for plug-ins to fight “comment spam” on your blog.