When you set out to sell your stuff online, you never realized just how hard it would be to grasp the etiquette surrounding internet marketing.
You set up a shop, blast your news on Twitter and even start up a blog to get the word out about your amazing products. You try different strategies to drive traffic, including blog commenting, which is a very effective way of:
- building relationships with peers
- improving your communication skills
- spreading the word about your items (casually, of course)
- exposing new people to you and your work
But are you commenting the right way?
I've put together the following tips to help you avoid the common mistakes most newbies make when they comment on blogs:
1. Only comment if you have something interesting/helpful to say
If you go around and comment on 100 blogs a day with something short and slightly rushed, it serves no purpose. The blog owner will see right through it and really have no reason to hop over to your blog and see what you're saying.
Instead, only comment when you absolutely have something of value to add to the conversation. Your business time will be spent much more wisely.
2. Stop blatantly promoting your business
There's a reason they give you a spot to leave your website url and email address. It's not classy to add additional links or more about your business when commenting on blogs.
A truly insightful comment will make the blog publisher and their readers so intrigued by you that they don't need any bells and whistles to click on your name and head straight over to your own website. Trust me.
3. It's okay to disagree, but do it professionally
Not long ago, I had good friend Tara Gentile disagree with me on a post I did for Mogul Mom.
While I ended up "agreeing to disagree" with her comment, it opened up a lot of dialogue and gave us all additional insight into the topic. It's always OK to disagree or share a differing opinion on someone's post, just do it nicely to avoid seeming catty. You don't want to hurt others' feelings and tarnish the image of your business.
Properly commenting on blogs for genuine and professional reasons will not only benefit your business, but give you some other amazing benefits as well.
Here's a list of helpful links related to the power of blog commenting and tips for succeeding with your efforts:
- Lessons Learned from The Great Blogging Experiment
- 10 Reasons Commenting is Good for Bloggers
- Is Commenting on Blogs a Smart Traffic Strategy?
- 7 Things to Avoid While Leaving a Blog Comment
- How to Write a Great Blog Comment
- Why You Should Comment on Blogs
Justine Smith is an Etsy success story who used her experience selling online and turned it into a full-time wholesale business. Her real passion is helping handmade sellers find success marketing their craft products. She offers tips on advertising, branding, social media and growth via email through her blog Justine's Media.
Photo courtesy of funtik.cat
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4 Comments
You pointed out not to leave short and rushed comments. I tend to leave pretty elaborate comments. When I view the comments afterwards I always needed the most space. I'm always embarrassed. Can a comment be to long too?
Thanks for the article! I am seeing more and more people self-promote in a way that is not cool. It's obvious that they haven't even read the content. It's really annoying! I even had someone do this in an Etsy treasury last week-- "Your treasury is so great, I love the colors, please look at mine and give it some love!" Huh? Just not cool.
Eva, if you're adding something that is pertinent to the conversation, I don't think there is anything wrong with a long comment. Although I may say that because I do the same thing. :)
All the best, Jessica
Eva, I think you have a good question and yes, I think blog comments can be too long. Perhaps it's my teeny-weeny attention span from way too much web surfing, but I tend to read the short to medium-length comments only.
However, I think your comment length here was just perfect!
I am learning so much from your blogs lately. As a newbie blogger I was really confused about the protocol and fear I have made mistakes already! I am just embarking on the "social media" scene for my business and it is a little overwhelming. Keep the great tips coming!