Make your Comments Count!
I am guilty. Guilty as charged!
Hence this EXTRA post: Here is how to make the best out of comments.
A lot of of times, our comments go unanswered. 😢 Sometimes it seems, entirely unnoticed. Forgotten. Some are upvoted. ✔
Most are not.
Let me ask you:
Do you read other Steemian's comments?
Secret Ingredients
I happen to think that the comment section is the vehicle for engagement. It's usually where we gain value followers. It's here, where we engage with others, add value to a post, agree, disagree, encourage - whatever the case may be - but hopefully enrich that post.
It is from comments that I often gain ideas for posts such as the one you're just reading.
Now, when I said I was guilty earlier, I really meant I was guilty of sometimes writing leeengthy comments. Yep. Very lengthy.
I start writing, add formatting to go easy on the eyes and, for my comment to stand out. And I add another paragraph, and sometimes another, even a photo I am taking just for that comment... and not to forget, sometimes, at the bottom:
My logo...
Nothing wrong with advertising, though I was, just today, rather harshly 'reprimanded' for doing so, being accused of spamming... @globocop a spammer? Ok. Interesting people... I unfollowed that fine Steemian, given that I added value to his post, and upvoted it. No thanks. But that's ok. 😎 C'est la vie. There are more appreciative Steemians out there.
...which brings me to my main point.
Keeping our comments short... No one reads looong comments. Perhaps the author does. But rarely readers who have just finished devouring your entire article. If the comments in a post I didn't submit are short, I skim through them until something catches my eye. But I am not the type that reads through leeengthy comments, especially not after just putting my 5 cents in...
Does this make sense?
Plusses for Everyone
So, why not making your next comment an article submission?
If the comment you're jotting down inspires more ideas as you write, it's probably worth a separate submission. This has definite benefits:
- Sharing your 'Comment' with many more people, especially if linked1 back,
- Gain recognition by
2.1 more followers,
2.2 more upvotes,
2.3 increased reputation and thus: - Multiply financial reward - for them - and for yourself.
1 Explanation Oh yes. Linking back. Important. Here it goes...
After publishing your submission, we want to go back to that original comment that inspired the article we just wrote...
and now reply to the original post.
Short, of course, adding the main points of our article and the link to our comment.
It's a branching opportunity we just created. The comment has become a subtle ad for our post - without begging - just commenting and referencing your detailed thoughts in our new article.
Sometimes I do this when I read a post about an article I had written before I read that post. Here is an example.
This concept is of course not applicable to one-liner comments. Self explanatory. Right? 🤔
What do you think? Should we pay more attention to comments and let comments:
Branch out to Grow New Fruitful Steemian Trees?
ch @globocop
The comment upvote thing is troubling... There are people that will keep responding with inane babble hoping for a plethora of upvotes. To me comments are no different than posts- good content gets rewarded.
Amen! Problem is - when you get 100 good comments.. What do we do? Lower vote percentage... But boy I wish I had more to dish out.
In good time.
Thanks Rich! As always! 😎
I have disregarded voting power, if you think about it in real terms the difference in money is negligible anyway, so your vote is worth 2 cents instead of 10 cents! Big Deal! The feedback is more useful I think so I upvote good commenters so they rise to the top in the post comments.
Yes - I am coming to that same conclusion lately... Though I wish I could reward top notch quality appropriately. In time.... orca-trail is coming...
-ch @globocop
Yeah, I've noticed that too. Some people's profiles are just filled with the same comment over and over on many blog posts. "Nice post, upvoted and followed please follow me back".
I saw one or two of those posts get flagged pretty hard today, which I think is a good sign. We don't need bland copy-paste comments, we need actual social interaction. If I see a comment I appreciate I upvote it, and I hope others keep doing the same.
I'm flagging them... they need to be back on Fakebook not here!
The moment one asks me to upvote and follow back begging style, I ignore that Steemian. It's up to us to clean house.
Thanks for chiming in @pilcrow.
-ch @globocop
Exactly. This is an attention economy. Show that you paid attention by responding with spontaneous output, not a canned response. This is why I don't ask for upvotes, nor do I ask for follows. I let them stand on their own. If people want to follow, they will. My request for attention is implied in my effort, not my words.
I have found comments are the best way to engage and gain a following as well. I too struggle with long comments. However, I've never thought about using what I'm passionate about in a comment to turn into a post. Thanks for the advice!
I love this community - and the thoughtful comments that most Steemians contribute!
Thanks @gniksivart
Yippie! Cheers @tastetwist. 😎 . Happy Saturday!
-ch @globocop
thanks again, 😎 you helped me on my one my post, get control of my % power..
your the best, thanks..
I remember - @tastetwist. Hope all is leveled out and managed?
Darn - I keep missing my best Steemian's posts!!!
(Note to self: Get your stuff together!)
yes, much better...
They KNOW what they're 'talking' 'bout...
ehmmm...
hehhhh...
I may be guilty....
;-)
I read a lot of the comments,usually before I post,no sense in repeating same thing 5-50 people already said...But sometimes I want to engage the author. share point of view or ?
then read comments..
It can be hard knowing how some people will respond. meme the wrong person, ect.
sometimes I write long replies and end up erasing them and only upvote ,maybe resteem.
Try not to just leave a simple good post or nice job, what I consider a smile or courteous wave any more seams that's not nice.
:-0
ohhh the limits of it all!
lol
namaste!
;-)
That's is a good suggestion - skimming the existing comments before writing out own. Feasible if there aren't many yet... Not so if there are 20+, coz my thought may be burning into the keyboard so hot that I must type it into this thirsty comment field... quickly!
Thanks for your thoughts. 😎
-ch @globocop
You Received an UpVote from @worldclassplayer. To Learn More, See DetailsHere
This is exactly what I have been discovering. Comments that are too long are probably best to be written as a separate post altogether. Sometimes, I find commenting to inspire ideas in what I could write about. I haven't posted anything yet, but I have started to write down a list of topics I want to write about.
Great @anavictoriakong. I think it is wise to 'stake out' the platform, learn from others, before diving into posts. Looking forward to yours whenever you're ready!
Have a super weekend!.
-ch @globocop
I am a new Steemian, this post has opened my eyes on how to use comments on Steemit. I think this post should be required reading for new members. Since i learned a lot about how to structure comments from it.
Thanks @kcchampion. There are other useful posts on my channel, such as how to build a value-followship and others, if you're interested.
No need to upvote posts that are older than seven days, as the payout has closed for these articles. However, they are here to stay for reference.
Thanks for your thoughts!
-ch @globocop
This post received a 3.2% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @globocop! For more information, click here!
nice, thanks!
Thanks @criptoworld.
Very good .... I love reading good comments .... upvoted
Appreciate, @offgridlife Have a good weekend! -ch @globocop
Thanks for the information, I do try and make my comments as pertinent as possible.
Cheers @petruska13 : Sooo important to engage... Have a great Saturday! -ch @globocop
This post got a
13.33% upvote thanks to @globocop - Hail Eris !I post this month many more comments than previous months but I don't see any comments impact....
It's persistence that will eventually pay off @seckorama. Check out steem.supply which gives a good overview of the percentage of earnings. I do see about 1-3 new followers per my better comments.
Nice idea but my comments are to short to apply it =)
Inspiration will come when the right post is in front of us... 😎
This post has received a 1.85 % upvote from @booster thanks to: @globocop.
Yes, started to figure out that my comments were getting too long in some cases and turn them into posts with a link, telling the author they inspired me. They seem to like that. Still I think the comment process itself is very useful for yourself as a writer as it is a laboratory to develop ideas before you put them in a post. By experimenting with it as a comment and the feedback (or lack thereof) you can refine your ideas that would go into your post!
Hello @the-traveller !
Indeed, a laboratory for new ideas - I like your analogy. It's useful to keep a list of potential ideas, which is easily accessible... Do *you have a marketing background? Your idea of sharing rewards with your followers is brilliant!
The linking the post to the comment which inspired is is a good add-on in addition to linking the comment in the new post!
Thanks for your upvote and insight!
Happy Sunday
-ch @globocop
No, no marketing experience, but I do like to read about persuasive writing, psychology etc. I think it helps to clarify your own thinking if you can convince others of your ideas.
The reward sharing is an experiment, which was born form another post I made about the "new rules for the new economy" by Kevin Kelly
As it tends to happen, writing the post got me thinking. Basically if you take a philosophy like an affiliate marketer, i.e. give up a percentage of the pie in return for growing the pie exponentially, it might work well for Steemit.
It seems counterintuitive to grow by giving your money away, but you have to realize the rules are different.
I sincerely hope to be able to give a way a few hunderd SBD prizes, my philosophy is that people who comment and resteem my ideas, make my ideas more valuable so they definitely deserve a piece of the pie for that alone.
And obviously there is a PR angle too which wouldn't hurt, once people see there is decent return on investment, the motivation to share and spread the content is of course much higher.
Now it might not be the best way to motivate actually, that's why it is an experiment. Dan Pink explains that straight incentives might backfire too. But I figure I should give it a go and see what happens... It give me the satisfaction to give people who give it an honest effort a leg up with their profile!
What an interesting talk... and thinking about it, in my own experience it's rare that I join any type of competition for a one-off reward. Is it worth my effort? However - in your experiment - it grows the pie over time, so the reward is multifold and a return given over a longer period of time. Most people like to be creative. In order then to creative incentives and attract quality followers as it is in your case, one would have to find a way to push the creative button.
Good stuff on your part - intriguing experiment - as long as it doesn't break the bank!
-ch @globocop
Thanks the fun part of Steemit, I CAN'T break the bank. What I am splitting with the commenters is the SBD part of my earnings. Before I was giving 5 SBD no matter what the post earned. That wasn't sustainable... thats why I switched to sharing ALL. No downside for me, much bigger upside for commenters! (was able to give 2x10 SBD prizes already!)
Thank you I enjoyed reading this - o goodness I want to flip on those follow4 follow remarks , but I must say mostly the majority of steemians are really nice with some uplifting inputs - I will always reply if somebody has put a comment on my post but I do not read all the comments on somebodies post - I like making up my own mind about something
Thanks @anneke - yeah - those vote/follow beggars - even if I am aksed nicely - are ignored. I often get pinged in chat rooms/vote for vote etc. I delete immediately.
Thanks for commenting.
-ch @globocop