After reading the many articles on correct blog commenting techniques, two drew my attention. The first, how hard is it to leave a comment? I know that I often don't leave a comment if it is too difficult to get that comment up on the blog. I prefer the ones that use other sites log in information, or OpenID, over having to create a profile in order to comment. There is one on SBISD that allows anyone to comment by typing in the name they want to appear as and their email address. I specifically chose to go with the one through the school district because is so easy to comment.
The second thing I found important was the discussion of keeping up with your comments section. If readers feel that you never look at their comments, then why would they continue commenting, they might even stop reading your blog all-together.
I hadn't really thought about how to encourage comments on my blog however the article "10 techniques to get more comments on your blog" has some great suggestions including asking questions, asking for comments and responding to comments when someone writes one.
When commenting on someone's post it is important to say something of value. The cool cat teacher reminding those who are afraid to post because they are new just how important it is to get feedback from everybody. It is important to comment because it furthers discussion and is a main source of gaining information from a multitude of sources.
Giving and receiving comments on blogs is a lot like being an active participant in class. Teaching a class during which no one asks questions, no one adds to the discussion and no one disagrees is a lonely business.
I think the sharing of information and ideas thru comments is one of the most important values of the 2.0 world. when we only had our campuses to learn and share...and maybe an occasional district affair that allowed for learning and , good things happened but sometimes new ideas didn't come fast enough!
ReplyDeleteNow that we can build a circle of influence and a personal learning network with folks having similar learning things in common...wow the possibilities! Yes, we have be careful with whom we share, but that is true face-2-face, don't you agree?