Comments, who needs them?
Ever heard the saying, “If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all!”? If you have, you are part of the minority when it comes to web users and blog readers. It is funny how many of my clients, friends or like mined individuals will dive into the world of online publishing only to find out that people are quite or plain mean!
The online world of content delivery is hands down the best invention since the light bulb, but it is still very misunderstood. One of the big mysteries is commenting. Each time I have a client post a blog or a social media status I field the phone calls and questions about the comments. The phone call either goes one of two ways. It is either, “I have posted 3 articles and NO ONE is commenting on my posts, why and what am I doing wrong?” “Lets take a step back,” is my reply. I continue by stating that facts are facts. Your blog is new, people are still getting to know you. They are learning to trust you and learning your style of opinions or information.
Blogging and social media connections are much like starting a new friendship in the physical world. You aren’t going to jump into a room full of people you don’t know and have everyone tell you how amazing your shirt looks or how smart you look. It takes time, it takes getting to know people and yes some people have an easier time with this and some bloggers do as well.
Just because people are not commenting or replying doesn’t mean they are not reading. I have been to many functions where someone will comment to me directly how they enjoyed a post I wrote or saw a status update on my FaceBook wall. Some people just feel more comfortable telling you to your face, rather then to a comment box on a website.
I also remind my clients that if they or their company have different portals of online communication, say a twitter account, a FaceBook account and a blog, their customers may find it easier to tweet them a comment about their latest blog rather then comment directly to the blog. The number of comments on your blog is in no way a direct reflection on the blog’s or article’s impact.
Continuing to post is the key and then when you do get that comment reaching out to your opinion or information it is critical that you reply. Develop an open line of communication with your readers and show them that yes you do care about what they have to say.
Next the client will tell me about some hateful and spamming comments their blog is getting. In some cases the comments can be hurtful and damaging to a blogger’s morale. I can’t tell you how many comments and painful statements I have gotten in my blogging and social media endeavors and that is exactly what I tell my clients. Everyone will get the negative comments and hate mail. Every blog will be spammed by Viagra ads, you simply have to ignore them. People will hide behind their computers and there is just nothing you can do about it.
Now in some cases the comments need to be addressed. They may be negative, but true. It could be about your companies poor service or a bad experience a client has had with your firm. You need to address them in an open and professional way and good things can happen. Here is a live example of this from a project I am running:
The customer was upset and was quite open in his statements. We worked with him, not against him and in the end we have a fan of not just our one app, but our company as a whole.
Comments are a tricky thing in the online world of blogging and social media. Not everything you write or ‘status update’ will get replies, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t reading. Give it time, let it mature and ignore the online garbage.
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Great points Wes. I think that social media comments are quickly becoming an important and ignored part of any company’s customer support. They make a huge difference for companies’ reputations.