To reciprocate or not?
The page on the Wealthy Affiliate website I visit the most is the give and take comment thread. I presume this is the case for more people here, isn’t it? :)
There was a time I was disappointed with both the amount of comments I got in return and the quality of them. But I grew over it! Thanks to an article I read about commenting by Christine Duts and a tip Taetske Guillaume gave me.
Start by giving quality comments
When you are the one starting a comment, do you pick the ones with a title that appeals to you, or do you just pick the first three in the thread?
Christine’s article made me aware that not just the comments we get on our page are important, but your own comments on somebody else's page contribute to your online credibility. That’s why I look for the titles that are appealing, as it is easier to comment in a sensible way.
I put in an effort to give quality comments. And I’ll start by admitting it’s sometimes hard, if the subject doesn’t appeal to me at all. I don’t mind adding a critical remark, but I don’t want to be straight out negative. That, and the fact that the Dutch seem to be blunt (I am not aware of it, but I get that as a remark sometimes) mean that it takes me ages sometimes to formulate a good comment.
Do you read the whole article?
A two-sentence comment in which the title of the article is repeated and one of the subheadings or list items makes me wonder if that person has read the article at all?
That’s the second thing I learned from Christine’s article: I don’t have to approve every comment.
Phew.
And that brings me to Taetske’s tip: if a comment doesn’t invite a proper answer, approve it, but don’t reply. Just replying “Thank you so much”, doesn’t add value.
Does everyone reply?
Still I wanted to know whether my initial feeling was right. So I tallied a couple of weeks. A third doesn’t bother to comment back.
This can have several reasons. Someone can forget to do it. Or the website didn’t function at the moment the comment was sent (wouldn’t be an exception, because it happens a lot in my experience). Or someone does not realize that you have posted a comment. Maybe there are other reasons as well.
Anyway, if someone comments on my articles I reciprocate. But who knows, maybe my comment didn’t come through or I forgot it. In that case I am really sorry and I do hope that you tell me. And if you think I should improve my comment, tell me as well. The Dutch may be blunt, but they can also endure a lot. :-D
Recent Comments
22
First of all, you do comment a lot on my articles and every single one of them is in a way an added value. I appreciate it.
It was Christine's article also for me that made me realise I am not "obliged" to approve and answer all the comments I get, religiously, spending nearly the same amount of time as if commenting on someone else's article.
I'm still in the process of changing my attitude in that matter. Even with those of two lines, which consist of the title mostly...
I do go back sometimes to find the answer to my comment, especially if I asked a question. Even then, sometimes there's no reply.
A comment with a question may be inconvenient for the author, as I experienced already. Or it really did not go through multiple times, I'm not sure. Anyway, I became very careful with questions since then.
I've already had my comment not edited, but completely replaced, so it looked I stated something ridiculous. I reached out to the author, who after a while said it was a mistake in the system, but never joined me to find out what exactly happened and never answered to that message after that, but, be it.
So, we are all sorts of.
I know I do try to do my best and I don't mind the extra mile in order to give a relevant, quality comment. I honestly hope I succeed in that.
And, to answer your question: Yes, exactly for that reason, I try to pick titles that I think I can resonate with. Also, when someone else picks my article, there's no question, I need to do it as honestly as I can, no matter how hard it is.
Someone may not feel it that important. I still think if someone took the time to comment, I'll take the time to answer.
Although, Taetske’s tip is a very good one and I'll implement it when appropriate.
Thanks Hermina!! Indeed I hope my comments are valuable, but it's better to hear from the receiving side if that's actually true.
You give a lot of valuable comments on my websites as well, so it works in two directions. :)
Hmm, replacing a comment. That's not very decent. I have never checked if that happened to me as well. I do correct typos and language errors, but that's it.
Questions are great, Hermina! If they are serious, it tells you what that person but also others are interested in and can give you new ideas for future articles. I would welcome them :)
Thanks Hannie, it is good to hear it from the source, indeed.
The replaced comment-this one I ran into accidentally after some time and the author also left it out for some time after I asked her to either put back the original or delete it. Now it's deleted.
And the questions: you know, a burnt child dreads the fire...
But, those benefits were on my mind when I asked them. At least now I know you wouldn't mind a few, lol.
Hi Hermina
Sorry if this is rupturing protocol jumping in here. But I am very grateful when someone asks a question in a comment. I always take the time to answer and often I do some research to be sure I give a thorough and meaningful answer. I have also written other new posts because of some questions I received. Like so many of us I have received so many of those useless comments. I have also extensively edited comments when the English and spelling was so poor the meaning was buried somewhere. Best regards and apologies again for butting in, Andy
Oh, no, you are absolutely not butting in ;) First, this is an open conversation, Hannie asked a question and we are all invited to discuss it. Second, as she says, we all appreciate thoughts that can take us forward!
As I see, many of us do take commenting and answering comments seriously. I share your opinion on questions, as they are always a new opportunity, either to get an idea, or to place a link to your previous post in your answer, or a link to your review, or...oh, endlessly, I think. So, they should be welcome, but, sadly, they are not everywhere.
Thanks Hannie. I like your thoughts. I have thought some of the same things. I now do comments on sites that interest me, and also ones that the owner may also be interested in mine. I also wonder if I should just post asking for comments and then reciprocate if I get a comment. It seems that when I take the lead by commenting first, sometimes the reciprocation does not follow. I do both BTW.
One last thought is that if someone comments, help me out with finding your site. Give me a link! One time I was not given a link AND the person did not list their site in their profile so I could not leave a comment for them.
Best,
Denise
You're right, Denise, sometimes you can't reply because you don't have a link. Probably this person is not on WA? When I couldn't reciprocate, that was the case. And then it just adds to the commenter's Karma points, doesn't it? :-D
See more comments
Hi Hannie,
I sometimes thank the commenter for their comment, but Taetske's advice makes sense. "Thank you for your comment" does not add much value, so maybe next time - if there is nothing valuable to add, like replying to questions or adding more info - I will just approve the comment without adding a thanks :-)
That's why I love this community so much: we all learn from each other. Magnificent, isn't it :)
It is! We learn something new here every day :-)