What I've Learned Re: Comments

Okay, so last week I asked you what prompted you to leave a comment. The results were so so interesting to me. I'm going to list the top three that came up and my response to them. And I may be revealing more about myself here than I intend, but I only expected one of these to be an issue.

So here we go.

1. Time

Dudes, I so feel this. Many many of you said you might not leave a comment if you don't have time. I get this. I was expecting it. Here's a tip for those of you who want your blog to be easy to comment on. Go to SETTINGS, and COMMENTS. And make your comments a pop-up window. That way your word verification doesn't have to load AFTER I've made my comment and want to post it. That's what I find the most annoying about leaving comments. Just when I think I'm done -- bam! I'm not. And it just takes so. much. more time the other way.

2. Google Reader

I have Google reader, but I don't use it to read blogs. I got several comments from people saying they read the blogs in the reader, and to actually leave a comment is several more clicks.

Guys! I had no idea.

But I get it. It's faster, which relates to time. It's also sometimes the only way to view the blogs if you're say, reading at work or something. I just wasn't expecting it. I didn't know Google reader can actually affect commenting. But it can.

I feel ya. No problemo.

3. Large Numbers of Comments

This one shocked me the most. There were a kazillion of you who said you actually wouldn't comment if a post already had a large number of comments. There were a couple of reasons for this:

A) You figured someone had already said what you would've said.
B) There's no way the blog author can get to every comment if there are a lot.

Dude, you guys. I don't get this. And here's why: FOR ME, the reason I leave a comment is to make a personal connection with the blog author. I don't care if 5 or 50 or 500 other people have said the same thing. If I don't say it, the blog author won't know how I feel, and we won't have that connection. We won't have that starting point to get to know one another.

So FOR ME, I leave a comment on every blog I read. For a few reasons, but the biggest by far is the fact that I want to build a relationship with that blog author. And if I don't comment, that will never happen.

So maybe I just have a big head and expect people to want to read what I have to say? I don't know. But I do know that the number of comments has never deterred me from leaving my words behind.

Secondly, I respond to every single comment because I want that personal connection. I want you to know that I've read your comment and hey, maybe we have something in common. I've started using my email to do this, because it's much faster and I think, more personal. I mean, how many of you come back and read through my comments AGAIN to see if I've talked to you? Yeah, I don't do that on other blogs. Takes too much time.

But here's the thing: You have to set your blogger profile to show your email, or I can't respond to you. So go to EDIT PROFILE and click the box next to SHOW MY EMAIL ADDRESS. That way, when you comment, you'll get a reply from me in your inbox. I'm still trying to get to the blogs of every person who comments on my blog, but let's face it. Sometimes that doesn't happen.

And there you have it. My thoughts on some of the reasons people don't leave comments. I hope you read something eye-opening. Your comments from last week were awesomesauce, and I wouldn't expect anything less of you guys! You rawk!

I guess it comes down to one thing: What are you trying to accomplish when you leave a comment? For me, I want the blog author to know I was there, and open a door for a relationship to grow. If I don't comment, that will never happen.

So...what are you trying to accomplish when you leave a comment? Are you like me, trying to get to know other bloggers? Or...what? I hope I learn a plethora of new things today too!