How to Demolish Engagement Blockages in Your Blogging Business

How to Demolish Engagement Blockages in Your Blogging Business

How to Demolish Engagement Blockages in Your Blogging Business

(This is a follow on article from last week’s post: What My Friends Taught Me About Blog Commenting)

Just as a blocked blood vessel can cause sudden death, bloggers can experience the sudden death of their blogging business.

Why?

No traffic, no leads, no sales – yes.

But there’s another factor

No engagement

Apart from the obvious benefits of engagement – social proof, traffic and contacts – you need engagement for the psychic benefit too.

Regular engagement on your blog will give you the emotional nourishment you need to hang in there and play the long game.

Why?

Engagement will give you an instant audience.  Small in the early stages for sure but even an audience of one is better than none.  Your audience will appreciate and value what you’re doing.  Like that idea?  Say YES – I know you love it.

So on this post, I want to go deeper because the reality is that if you’re struggling to get engagement, even if you read last week’s post many times, you may still find it hard to get things happening because of various blockages.

So let’s come up with some solutions that are palatable and workable for you.

I also want to point out that although I included the keywords ‘blogging business’ in the title, this post is not strictly for bloggers.

If you’re an internet marketer who uses email marketing, you should also get a benefit from at least some of the points in this post, even if you don’t own a blog.

Read on.

Engagement Defined

It’s pretty simple.  You take an action, someone responds, and you reciprocate.  On it goes, say no more.

Forms of Engagement

Chances are you have a blog.  If so, the obvious form of engagement is when someone leaves a comment.  Even if they don’t leave a comment but share your content on their favorite social media platforms, I regard that as a form of engagement.  You’ve given them some useful content, and they have taken an action.  Your response?  To keep the ball rolling, you must thank them, and maybe even ask them an engagement-fostering question.

But, the primary form of engagement is when someone leaves a meaningful comment, giving you a golden opportunity to respond.

If you’re building an email subscriber list, engagement happens when the subscriber takes an action such as sending you a personal email in response to one of your autoresponder messages.  Always reply and ask questions to keep the conversation going.

If you’re active on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, engagement happens when someone makes a comment, talks to you directly (e.g., FB chat facility), or even gives you a ‘like’.   Make sure you respond to these goodwill gestures.

If you’re calling leads, engagement happens when someone talks to you.  Pretty simple.

Why Engagement Is Vital

If you have a blog, an email subscriber list, and are active on social media sites, engagement is the juice that keeps your little business moving forward.

Without engagement, you will find it harder to get hot leads and customers.  But more than this, you will be denied the social proof that is so vital in convincing a skeptical audience that you are the real deal.

As I said at the outset a regular flow of people commenting on your blog posts will also help to keep your spirits up and your motivation high.  Don’t underestimate how important it is to nourish yourself. Self-nourishment acts as a bulwark against the negative chatter that goes on in our heads.  You need to protect yourself from this negative chatter; if you don’t, soon you may be entertaining thoughts of quitting.  Beware!

To be clear – plenty of engagement will give you the ‘soul food’ you need.

Reasons Why You’re Not Getting Engagement

1. You Simply Didn’t Know

Maybe you haven’t thought much about it till now.  After all, most of the sites you visit aren’t getting any engagement either, so you figured that’s just the way it is.

Well, now you know – use this post as your pathway to enlightenment!

2. Your Content Is Not Good Enough

As I indicated in one of my earlier posts, The Awesome Content Myth, your content doesn’t need to be awesome.  But it does need to be very relevant for your audience (focusing on one problem or one issue at a time).

It also needs to be well written.

Please avoid gimmicks such as excessive use of capitals, colored highlighting, exclamation marks, and too much bolded text.  Keep the sentences on the short side, and break up blocky text into smaller paragraphs.  Add visual appeal with pics, bullet points and tantalising sub-headings.  Be ruthless –  remove hyperbole, flowery words and non-essential words (that is, words that are extraneous and don’t add anything to the point you’re making)

Check for typos and messy grammar (Grammarly can help with this), and proofread the draft several times.  Ideally, you will let your draft ‘sit’ for a couple of days – when you read it again, you’ll likely discover more ways to improve it.

3. You’re Not Commenting On Other Niche Specific Blogs

You’re either in the game, or you’re not.  So if you want engagement to happen fast, the best way to do it is through blog commenting. Comment on other people’s blog, and soon enough some of them will return the favor.  Already commenting, but still no reciprocal comments?  Read the rest of the tips on this post and see if you can pinpoint the problem. Alternatively, book yourself in for one of my famous free So Help Consultations.

4. Your Comments Are Lame

You’ve probably seen useless comments before such as ‘nice post’ or ‘good points.’  Short generalised, non-specific comments are unnecessary.  You’ll never attract anyone to your blog with comments like that. Look at this as an opportunity to strut your stuff.  The blog owner allocates part of his trafficked site for people like you and me to vent.  Priceless.  So don’t see blog commenting as a chore, see it as an opportunity instead.

The point is that you will not get any reciprocal comments on your blog if the comments you’re leaving aren’t valuable.

Virtually every day I get people leaving comments on this blog, which is great.  But to me, the most impressive thing is not the volume, but the quality of the comments.  Take a look for yourself and then play follow the leader.  Or to put it another way. let those who have travelled before you lead the way.

Here is a recent comment that fits the bill from Enstine Muki:

blog comment - enstine muki

Enstine’s full comment was much longer than this, but it gives you an idea of how to do it.

5. You’re Not Expecting It

A pre-requisite for success in any endeavour, be it business or otherwise, is to have positive expectations.  Something magical happens when we expect a result rather than simply hoping or wishing it will happen.

Do you expect success?  Is it something you think you deserve?  Good, press on – you’re on the right pathway now.

5. You Don’t Think You’re Good Enough

Many in the blogging and home business space share feelings of unworthiness.  Some feel they have nothing to contribute and always seem to be comparing themselves to others, who are more successful than them.

But the reality may be somewhat different.  The reality is that you probably DO have something to contribute.  You are ARE good enough, so tell yourself every day.

Perhaps all you need are some small wins or breakthroughs.  So create some minor milestones, such as when you receive the first comment on your blog.  What a red letter day that will be, so celebrate it and give yourself a big pat on the back, and a high five!

The Wrap Up

So there you have it.  A few ideas from me.  Ideas based on my experiences over the last six months as an active blog engagement guy.  It starts with blog commenting, done the right way.  Give it a serious try for six months.  You’ll be amazed at your results.

And yeah, in the early stages I had plenty of self-doubts and plenty of negative self-talk emanating from my monkey-like brain.  But I forced myself to hold the line, have patience, have faith.  A few weeks later I got my first comments, and I’ve been getting them ever since.

In a way, it was easier for me.  I’m a natural engager.  When I talk to people on the phone, I’m good at it.  I also respond to every personal email sent to me by my email subscribers, Same comments apply to people on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

But getting engagement happening on my blog was a challenge just the same.  But I hung in there long enough until the results started to flow (in truth it only took a few weeks).

What I learned was that if you have the right strategy, executed well, and combined with persistence and determination to make it work, by golly, you WILL succeed.

It’s a law of the universe.

Your Turn – Time to Comment!

What was your biggest takeout from this post?

Are you happy with the levels of engagement in your business, especially with your blog?

After reading this post are there any ideas that you will now embrace?

Make a comment below!

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All at no cost to you.  All I ask for in return is a testimonial and the opportunity to build a valuable relationship.

Results matter, so that will be my focus for you – to give you useful ideas you can use straight away.

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29 thoughts on “How to Demolish Engagement Blockages in Your Blogging Business”

  1. Hey Kim,

    Most of the people that I run across who aren’t engaging with their audience either didn’t know, didn’t understand why it is important or claimed it’s too time consuming.

    I was interviewed last week by someone I’ve been connected with online for a number of years now. She chose me for her new series because of the impression I’ve made on her throughout the years. Not many people care about their audience like I do. After all this time they still aren’t willing to be helpful or lend a hand. They’re complaining that their engagement is slacking off where mind is still going strong.

    Most are saying that blogging and commenting are dead and my response to that is maybe for those who aren’t doing this correctly. Or maybe they don’t believe this is as important to their overall goals, who knows! We both know those are just lies people are telling to grab your attention.

    The fact of the matter is that people are your lifeline so if you ignore them then you can pretty much bet that your business will soon follow. Sure, you can probably make some sales and do pretty good but without those connections who is going to be your cheering section, who is going to tell their friends about you, who is going to mention you to a great group of people who could learn from you?

    As far as what you shared here, I don’t have anything else to add really. You’ve pretty much said it all so that’s just my two cents for those who still need that help as to WHY engaging with others is SO important.

    Thanks for following up and continuing this topic Kim, you know it’s one of my favorites.

    Hope you’re having a great day and thanks again.

    ~Adrienne

    1. Hi Adrienne,

      It’s interesting you make mention of the interview you did the other day. In particular, the comment that most people think blog commenting is dead. You and I know that is total bunkum and all because they don’t understand the right way to do it. It’s funny how a false idea can take on a life of its own for the simple reason that the premise the idea was built on, is false.

      Thanks to people like you – one of the pioneers for sure – I am now finally on the right pathway. It’s become a cause for me now, Adrienne. With each passing week, I’m becoming quite the evangelist.
      When I see blog commenting being done wrong – or not being done at all – I feel it’s now my duty to at least try and nudge the person in the right direction.

      Thanks for your valuable comment, and thanks again for everything you do

      Kim

    2. Hi Adrienne,

      Just had to respond quickly to what it probably the best quote I’ve heard forc a long time.

      “People are your lifeline”

      If only those bloggers who fail to respond to the comments they get on their blog, could realize the huge potential they are missing – even if they are already “established”

      Awesome comment

      Peter

      1. Yes you’re right, Peter. People are indeed our lifeline – not technology, not killer apps, not awesome content. It always comes back to the people and we react to them

        Kim

  2. So very well said as usual Kim!

    I definitely love all five of your points!
    Especially #’s 2 & 5.

    If consistently writing, (so called) epic content was the litmus test,
    I definitely could not pass it!LOL!

    Because while my content may be many things, like
    helpful to my specific target audience, it will never be epic!

    And since I’m not aiming for that particular goal, things definitely
    work out!LOL!

    And you mentioned, we’ve got to constantly remind ourselves,
    as long as we’re striving to provide value to our specific target audience, then we are
    most certainly good enough!

    All five points are excellent! Thanks for sharing some more incredibly
    helpful & extremely practical content!

    1. You nailed it Mark,

      As long as we’re providing value for our specific target audience we ARE good enough

      Epic content? Some bloggers specialise in it. But I’d rather write shorter posts and invest the time saved into networking and other marketing activities. Spending 40 hours to create a single blog post is not the blog strategy I like!

      Thanks again, Mark

      Kim

  3. Hey Kim,

    As an introverted I hated the idea of engagement at first. For one I thought it was a waste of time and 2 I wasn’t a natural engager.

    But as time went on I kept improving my engagement and along with that my content.

    It’s a great feeling when people actually come to your blog to comment. On top of that I like the fact that they point out the improvements I’ve made.

    Law of reciprocity is also key. You want to give great content that your audience can use and they’ll reciprocate it through subscribing, purchasing, commenting or all the above. The key is knowing your audience and if your content and your personal brand resonates well with them then you’re on your way!

    But engagement on your blog posts is key and I’d have to say all of your points here are valid ones. I had to chuckle to myself on #1 though because I was that naive blogger lol

    Thanks for sharing Kim! Have a great weekend!

    1. Hi Sherman

      I’m hearing ya!

      I too hated the idea, but the more I thought about it, the more compelling the idea became. Now I find it’s easy, just like you.

      I think the Law of Reciprocity permeates everything we do as pro-active bloggers. It sure works well – if people knew how well it works they wouldn’t hesitate for a second to embrace the blog commenting and networking way of doing things.

      Thanks Sherman

      Kim
      P.S. I’ve added you as a friend on Facebook

  4. Hi Kim,

    We always want to make sure we’re keeping those engagement channels open, right?

    You give us some excellent ways to do that and number one on my list is to “Expect Success”. That’s such an important thing to do and it’s so often overlooked.

    Yea, we want success, we hope for it, even do affirmations for it… but do we really expect it?

    When we do, then not surprisingly at all… we start getting the results we want.

    The problem with doubt is that it tends to cripple our efforts to move forward, even though we keep going through the motions.

    But, of course, taking action is critical, but when you expect success, the action taking is so much more forceful and purposeful. You’ve given great actionable things we can do, and if we stick to your guidelines, then we certainly stand a great chance of demolishing those engagement blockages.

    Time for a breathrough 🙂

    -Donna

    1. Hi Donna

      Yes, you hit the nail on the head. Expecting success is a pre-requisite for success – wishin’ and hopin’ is not enough.

      Doubt is a wealth killer for sure. It often fosters a chain reaction of negative actions which all serve to undermine us. Before long our business unravels and unless something is done about it, we may quit.

      Thanks for your kind words of encouragement, Donna

      Kim

  5. Hi Kim,
    I read your post about 5 hours ago but quickly had to step out to get a few offline stuffs handled. I’m back so definitely, I must be hear to share my thoughts.

    First, thanks for the link back and for using my comment as a sample. I really wasn’t like this but learning has added value to my blogging 😉

    I remember back when I just created EnstineMuki.com, I was contacted by a Clickbank Vendor who proposed to me a quite interesting deal. He didn’t care about my traffic. What attracted him was the comments on my blog.

    He concluded that my community, based on their engagement on my blog would be a perfect audience for his product.

    Adding to this, I have had quite many clients who have commended my audience based still on engagement on my blog.

    If anyone cares about advertising on his blog, engagement is a strong factor to boost his business. The more you get engagement especially on the comment section of your blog, the more your Average Time on Site, which of course is a strong business factor. As readers spend more time to drop a comment, it directly affects your Average Time on site.

    Many people are getting to the understanding that engagement is a key factor to succeed as a blogger. But one real problem has always been to go about it.

    Some people have had the WRONG lessons to drop tens of comments on different blogs per days. Wrong!

    It’s not about quantity. It’s about quality. I prefer 5 solid comments on 5 solid blogs to 10 quick comments on 10 blogs.

    One of the ways to remove these blockages is to go gradually. The reason is that you’ll see results that will boost your excitement.

    If you rush, you won’t see encouraging results and the effect is a huge dose of discouragement and lack of motivation.

    Keep coming up with these content buddy. We are happy to be around to learn from your growing experience.

    Do have a wonderful week

    1. Hi Enstine,

      Thanks for sharing the stories – I know it will give heart to those who doubt the value of blog engagement

      As you say, the value comes from the quality of the blog comments, not the quantity. Quality comments indicate a degree of commitment on the part of the commenter, which is something that cannot be said for the hit and run commenters who pervade the internet.

      Another great point you make is about timing. People need to slow down, be patient, and play the long game. Then the results will flow. I think it’s the addiction to instant gratification that is the root cause of a lot of the problems that marketers have.

      Enstine, you have wisdom beyond your years

      Thanks again for your valuable contribution

      Kim

  6. Hi Kim,

    LOVE #5!

    Because this block killed me for much of my early blogging career. I figured I had nothing to share in the comments section. Nobody cared. Why would they? I had no experience, no story. Or so I thought.

    Then I figured if folks like Adrienne could share so freely, I could do the same. It’s like she’s recording how she speaks in comment form. Or, chatting, then writing. Anybody can do that. I figured, why not share what I have to say, and make friends?

    Worthiness issues kill most bloggers. Gotta dissolve that block by following your fun, trusting, and making buddies with folks who dig what you have to say. SO happy I got through this block….otherwise, I’d not have met colorful characters like….you 😉

    Thanks for the keen share Kim!

    Ryan

    1. This says it all, Ryan:

      ‘why not share what I have to say, and make friends’

      Right on brother!

      Why not indeed

      Why the heck not? No reason except for some kind of self-sabotaging destructive belief system. Banish that sucker!

      We have to be open. Always open to the universe of ideas and possibilities. Crikey I’m starting to sound like you now. he he

      Re: the story. Even a quiet little government worker, leading a sheltered life, probably has a story worth sharing. As a mentor said to me once: ‘you can create fabulous stories from small ideas’

      Thanks for your valuable comment, Ryan

      Kim

  7. Hi Kim,

    I think I’ve been through all those stages – and hopefully – come out the other end and survived.

    I completely agree about engagement, but I’m getting much more brutal with other people’s comments on my blog these days and deleting them more readily if they don’t have anything useful to say.

    Politeness has always made me feel I should approve and even reply, but it’s just got silly lately with some people.

    Example this morning…… In response to my (quite long) post about – let’s say “keyword1 and keyword2 – someone replied to the effect that: “Your post about keyword1 was very interesting and I learned a lot about keyword2. Yours is a helpful blog that I will bookmark so that I can return later. What do you think about keyword3 (which happens to be what MY blog is about)?”

    Well – I had a few options… (1). Approve but ignore it (which leaves me looking as if I don’t engage) (2) reply that “I am glad he learned about keyword1 from my post because keywords 1 and 2 are really important for bloggers” OR… (3) bin it (4) spam it (5) some sarcastic comment like “When you have something relevant to add to my post about keywords 1 and 2, you will be welcome back. Until then, please go waste someone else’s time.” – which, let’s be honest, isn’t very friendly, although I suspect some other bloggers may understand my feelings LOL

    I was feeling a bit grumpy at the time and chose option 4 and have been feeling a bit guilty every since LOL

    Sorry for bringing my little rant onto your article – I’d be interested to know which option you and your other readers would have taken.

    Joy – Blogging After Dark

    1. Hi Joy,

      I’m inclined to agree with your stance. Nonsense comments add nothing to the discussion on your blog. In fact, a case could be mounted to demonstrate that comments like that subtract value, not enhance it.

      They diminish your brand which is the last thing you want. (Ultimately blog commenting is about building long-term brand value.)

      Hope this helps

      Kim

      As Enstine said here, it is better to have fewer high-quality comments than a bunch of junk comments that will turn off discerning people

  8. Hi Kim!

    You make a good point with engagement being emotionally nourishing as well. I have to be honest – last year I started an eCommerce business and it looks like it’s on track to surpass my internet marketing income in less than 3 months from now. It’s also scaling a lot quicker and looks like by the end of this year it could be netting 3x as much as Help Start My Site.

    If I were rational I’d be focusing more on that side of things along with my real estate investing but honestly Kim this work is just so much more fulfilling to me and that’s why I know I could never stop doing it. I enjoy it. I feel like I’m making an impact and it makes me happy. It’s a different kind of challenge and the benefits aren’t always tangible.

    Engagement is the same way. People see others engaged with you, they are more likely to trust you as an authority figure. Not to mention, opportunities arise out of engagements. I try to structure my emails in a way to get as many responses as possible, because from there it’s easy to figure out what problems people are having, what they care about, and then how you can help them. I know most come from the system but it’s so easy to make quick product sales here and there just by sending out little one-on-one emails.

    The engagement just makes this line of work so fulfilling. I’m far more excited when I sell a course than when I sell products through the eCommerce business, because it feels like I’m actually connecting and helping someone on a meaningful level.

    1. That’s great James,

      It’s always nice to get a new venture up and running quickly.

      But as you say you get more psychic satisfaction from the work you do with your Help Start My Site biz.

      Of course, there’s no reason why you can’t do both. Perhaps the new venture will become your ‘cash cow’ whilst the existing business is retained as your first love. ha ha. But seriously I know exactly what you’re saying about this kind of work. Sometimes I think the main thing we do is satisfy our creative urges by creating content (which we like to do anyway), and then hang out with our blogging and student/client friends. Hi Rajib,

      I have reviewed your cover letter.

      Do you any ability to obtain the business owner’s personal email address or direct business email address? I really would prefer to get email addresses of the business owner, to avoid the gatekeeper from intercepting and discarding it.

      Cheers,

      Kim Willis Very satisfying (most of the time!)

      Thanks for sharing James

      Kim

  9. Totally agree. I think most of the comments on my website come from two things: leaving comments on other people’s websites and comment exchange groups. There’s a group on Facebook called The Ultimate Blog Challenge and a lot of people are in there sharing their blog links and exchanging comments.

    Then again, most of the comments from those groups are only a couple of sentences long and don’t really contribute much to the discussion. So, I think the best thing that you can do is comment on other people’s websites.

    I have been a little distracted and haven’t been working on my website as much as I should, the traffic is starting to drop, but I’ll get back into it soon. Thanks for the article!

    P.S. I shared it on Twitter

    1. Hi Timothy

      Interesting comment you made about comment exchange groups versus us pro-actively commenting on other people’s websites. I’ve tried comment exchange groups and have had the same results. Short scrappy comments that mean nothing, in the main. I guess they’re doing it for backlinks, but by taking such a lazy approach they miss out on all the extra benefits that flow from quality blog commenting.

      Thanks for sharing my post

      Kim

  10. Hi Kim,

    Wonderful post indeed 🙂

    You’re absolutely right, engagement is the heart of blogging, as comments are the lifeline of blogs. I realized this fact from the beginning, and it was engagement – not traffic that helped my blog rise. I want to say that even if you have less traffic but high engagement, it works for you.

    The content matters, but not as much as your intention – you need to reciprocate and develop relationships by helping people and being good. This facilitates engagement.

    Blog commenting is valuable and brings results. It may take some time but you need to have patience.

    Thanks for sharing. Have a wonderful Easter Weekend as well 🙂

    1. Hi Harleena

      Lot of wisdom with your comment.

      I particularly like this statement:

      “The content matters, but not as much as your intention – you need to reciprocate and develop relationships by helping people and being good. This facilitates engagement.”

      The intention is key to this process. If our intention is to get a backlink that’s what we’ll focus on. We’ll make a quick comment and leave – a hit and run approach. On the other hand, if we have a higher purpose such as building relationships, we’ll tend to linger longer on each blog post, and spend some quality time formulating a valuable response. Relationships flow from there.

      Thanks again Harleena!

      Kim

  11. Hi Kim

    It almost seems like you’ve been looking at my private ‘ideas for posts’ folder on my computer. I guess the truth is that we are drawn towards to posts which are most relevant to the thing we most need to learn right now. Like the old adage that when you buy a Citroen you suddenly see Citroens everywhere.

    For example. I am right at the point now where I am getting some traffic and comments, and finding them just the ‘psychic nourishment’ I need to keep me going. As I read this excellent post and the attached comments, another thought just occurred to me. All you blogging experts will know this, but for me it’s a realisation, so bear with me. That is – hold your comments back in the ‘pending publication’ tray until you have posted something new, otherwise all your traffic will see the same stuff they saw before, and you will lose the engagement. I see engagement like a train that must keep up momentum. Hope that makes sense? thanks again Richard

  12. Hi Kim,
    What can I say – simply awesome mate.

    You have truly captured not just the realities of potential blockages to engagement but also the spirit behind successful engagement.

    Love that line of yours that says “engagement is the juice that keeps your little business moving” – ain’t that the truth!

    Actually I still wonder why some “established” bloggers either fail to respond to any engagment or even worse prevent any comments from being left. Why do they do this? Is it simlply because they feel they are successful enough and do not need to engage any further? Surely even the most successful bloggers could still benefit from even a modicum of engagement.

    Just for your interest, as a relativelty new blogger I am still having to work hard to grow the traffic and engagement on my blog, irrespective of how relevant my post content is. Sure the traffic that is coming to my site is growing each month and according to Mr. G’s analytics stats the time of my site indicates continued improvement re engagement.

    But, I tested something this week and waited 3 days before I did the thing I love most – visiting the blogs in myniche like yours and leaving the best comments I could. During that 3 days I got nearly 400 visits to my latest post but no one left a comment.

    The amazing thing was I got 3 emails from those new visitors re some parts of the content I had created and 2 of the 3 indicated that they preferred to connect with me this way rather than leave a comment. I found this very interesting and wondered if I should encourage more of my visitors to engage with me like this rather than leave a comment they some ae not comfortable to do.

    One other thing I’d like to share that is working really well for his new (but ancient) blogger.

    When someone new visits and leaves me a valuable comment for the first time I quickly make a 20 to 30 second selfie video right after I respond to their comment. I upload this quick “thanks for your visit” video to YouTube as an “unlisted video” and the simply send an email to the new commentator with a link to the video. This is very simple to do and the reactions so far have been awesome.

    Thanks as alwys for your valuable post Kim – you always provide something to learn and implement .

    Best wishes from the remote Thai village blogger

    Peter

    1. Hi Peter,

      Another awesome comment from you.

      (Sorry for delay, but I have been away.)

      It’s funny how some people feel uncomfortable with the idea of leaving a comment. But your story suggests that different people have different ways of reaching out. I’ve even had people find my blog and become customers without ever leaving a comment.

      I really like your new strategy of recording a quick video and sending it to commenters. More work for you, but if it gets a positive reaction – fantastic (especially if they become a client)

      I’ve also noticed that the quality of your comments has improved. This is a smart move – more people will notice it and seek you out. Hence, the increase n traffic you’ve been experiencing.

      Final point: Failure to engage commenters is a blogging sin in my book. It’s a big ‘no no’ and will ultimately alienate people. In fact, I’ve been watching a few of these blogs that don’t display any engagement from the owner. The number of comments has dropped dramatically over the last few months. You and I know why.

      Thanks again, Peter

      Kim

  13. Hello Kim Willis,

    I love all your 5 points, that you discussed about demolishing the blockages from the blogging
    business.
    Specially the point number #2 and #4, they are the main reason why the bloggers are, running
    short in the number of audiences.

    All we want is to keep sure that the engagement channel is on a run, these are being discussed
    extremely well by your post above.

    We all want success, just like a dinner, which is being served out hotly and tasty in front of us.
    But in order to achieve that, we are just doing nothing, do we really mean it, if we do
    then hard work is needed for being get blocked out by our audiences.
    The main motive is to be get stuck with our guidelines and what we want for our audiences.
    How could we, get them stick out on our sites.

    Yeah getting comments upon your website, is something delightful to watch, but yeah that’s
    too become a headache, when the comments we receive has no meaning at all.
    Indeed the content is worth being of great value, but the intention should be carved out clearly,
    so that your site could engage with more audiences and comments.

    Thanks for the share. Have a great year ahead.
    Shantanu sinha

    1. Hi Shantanu

      Thanks for dropping by. I’m also happy you got value from my post on the topic of engagement

      Kim

  14. Hi Kim. The way I see it, if you don’t engage with other people, maybe on social media but definitely on other blogs, then nobody is going to know that your blog exists. SEO is great but that is likely going to take longer to work. Read other blogs, engage with the author by leaving meaningful comments, and stick with it like you said for 6 months, and you will get comments on your blog. It has started working for me too. It isn’t always the author of the blog you commented on. You should see that you start getting visits from other people who visited the blog you commented on. That’s how I started visiting this blog (probably through your comments on Adrienne Smith’s blog).

    I also appreciate that you mentioned mindset as a key point in both expectation and thoughts of being good enough. That is so important yet so many people leave it out.

    1. Hi Ben

      Thanks for dropping by. Thanks also for your valuable comments

      It’s good to see you’re getting some engagement happening on your blog too, just like me. I only started doing blog commenting in August last year and within the first month, I had a flow of comments, which was very gratifying.

      Yes you’re right – lots of opportunities to get comments from other bloggers who see your comments, even if the actual blog owner never makes a comment

      Keep up the good work!

      Kim

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