Written on June 5th, 2008 at 04:06 am by Darren Rowse
The Power of Commenting On Other Blogs [VIDEO]
You’ve probably heard the age old ‘how to find readers for your blog’ advice that goes:
“Leave Comments on Other Blogs”
It was one of the first tips that I was given on how to find new readers for my blog five years ago and it’s one of the first pieces of advice that I hear most people giving still today. It’s so common in fact that I think that many of us gloss over it looking for a ’sexier’ way to drive readers to our blogs.
But today as I analyzed the post featured in this video I saw something that drummed home to me the power of leaving relevant comments on blogs as a way of driving traffic.
The tool I’m using in this screencast video is CrazyEgg - a click tracking tool that creates a heatmap of where readers click when on your blog.
I do want to emphasize again - that the strategy of building traffic to your blog by leaving comments on other blogs only works when your comments ad value and are relevant to the post. If you don’t adhere to this you’ll just end up hurting your reputation.
See the Full Sized Video at YouTube, MySpace, Blip.tv and Viddler.
236 Responses to “The Power of Commenting On Other Blogs [VIDEO]”
MrCooker
June 5th, 2008 4:48 am
Never thought it would make such a difference.
Also, it’s quite sad that the link in the commenters name gets barely clicked on.
My conclusion: Unless you can add value to the post/conversation by linking to either your blog or another blog, it’s almost not worth the time and effort, if it’s a part of your strategy to get traffic by leaving comments.
Lipton of Starfeeder
June 5th, 2008 4:51 am
I seriously need 3 of me
1 for blogging
1 for eMarketing (commenting, social-bookmarketing, adWords, etc…)
1 for research & learning (reading problogger, yaro’s blog, etc…)
GEMMERZZ
June 5th, 2008 4:52 am
I’ve actually noticed that leaving comments on other blogs have made a huge difference. High profile blogs have contributed a good amount of traffic to my blog just because of comments I would leave. Now, whether it’s because they found the information I left insightful or because they wanted to see who this crazy obnoxious snob is… that I don’t know. Just kidding… sort of!
Great post - thanks!
Thomas Clausen
June 5th, 2008 4:59 am
Great post, thanks a bunch.
If you want to save money (even though Crazy Egg is fairly cheap), you might want to check out: ClickHeat also: http://www.labsmedia.com/clickheat/index.html
Regards
Thomas Clausen
http://www.trendminers.dk
Crazykinux
June 5th, 2008 5:00 am
A simple “Great post mate.” adds nothing to the discussion and simple clutters the comments.
If allowed, I often try to link to my blog with some valuable information. This has worked wonders, especially when its a high traffic blog.
Words of wisdom again Darren!
CK
Edward Lomax
June 5th, 2008 5:01 am
First off, great tool for checking click through rates.
I’m new to blogging, after mainly doing websites in the past. I approach blogging as a community. So, posting on other people’s relevant blogs is part of my strategy (like I’m doing now).
I liked you take on “relevance”… which I believe to be key. So, if I had my blog up and running longer, I would link to a relevant post that continues or adds to the conversation instead of to the main page of the blog.
I also use a tool that notifies me when my favorite blogs make a post so I can be one of the first to post a comment on posts I find valuable. Obviously, I’ve put your blog in the tool! Keep up the good work.
Rob Brydon
June 5th, 2008 5:01 am
Excellent tutorial. I can really tell that you have been getting something out of your video classes.
Also, Google Analytics has a site overlay feature that that shows the amount of clicks on a link while displaying your website in the background.
Thanks again.
Crazykinux
June 5th, 2008 5:12 am
Thanks for the mention by the way Darren! That post still drives a lot of traffic to my EVE Online blog!
CK
Chris Marshall | Martial Development
June 5th, 2008 5:16 am
Darren, what percentage of your traffic comes from people clicking the link above your comment?
I write comments on this blog, and others, almost daily. Yet they drive less than 1% of my traffic. Looking strictly at the numbers, I have to conclude my commenting time would be better spent on other things (such as writing new blog posts).
Rajaie AlKorani
June 5th, 2008 5:27 am
I thought that the commenter’s name was the one clicked most. Either way, it’s still amazing to see how many people have clicked the links inside the comments, especially the first one.
Yax - Dungeon Mastering
June 5th, 2008 5:27 am
I agree with Chris. It’s good to comment on other blogs and link to relevant articles - I do it daily - but I’m not convinced that you can build significant traffic unless you get lucky.
It’s more helpful as a community presence / brand building technique, isn’t it?
dutch schultz
June 5th, 2008 5:49 am
This is probably the number one that I do in terms of SEO for my blog along with free directories. I won’t say I get a ton of traffic but I have increased page rank on my homepage which is a t shirt website. My blog is a new add on to the main e commerce part but I believe the links I picked up from do follow comments were the only reason that I am ranked at all right now.
Vered
June 5th, 2008 5:59 am
I once left a relevant link to my own blog here, and I also did it once over at Unclutterer. It does work, but I felt a little uncomfortable linking to myself, even though I KNEW it was relevant and added to the discussion.
Andrew Pryde
June 5th, 2008 5:59 am
Very interesting, I always link my name at the bottom of comments so as that people who are interested in what I say can find a bit more about me and what I do at my blog. I have never used heat maps to look at this but I can see this on my referral statistics very clearly.
Thanks Allot
Andrew (Now is no exception!)
David LaPlante
June 5th, 2008 6:07 am
Great post! I guess I’d be remiss to not comment that, eh? Well written and forever bookmarked.
Steve
June 5th, 2008 6:09 am
Great info, Darren. I’ve just recently gotten into blogging and have a lot to learn. This idea is the one you hear most people tell you to do, but I have often be suspicious of just how well it works and if it is worth the time. I understand that there is no sure-fire way to gain many visitors (especially quickly), but I do suspect there are certain ideas that those who have created very successful sites are not sharing with others. Completely understandable, but it doesn’t help those that might actually have a good site they are trying to get the word out about.
Anyway, great post. I really enjoy the valuable info you share here.
Thanks.
Steve
Sara
June 5th, 2008 6:34 am
Great post. I’m forwarding to a lot of the business book authors we work with who say to me - “I’ve posted a couple of things on my blog - now what???”
Ann
June 5th, 2008 6:35 am
Most of my traffic comes from links I’ve left in comments. I try never to be gratuitous about it, hoping that I’m adding value or interest to the conversation.
Conversely, I click on a lot of comment links; that’s how I’ve found most of the blogs I read regularly.
Rich
June 5th, 2008 6:43 am
I would say up to 3% comes from sites that I left a comment on, which in numbers terms is around 600 hits a day.
When someone adds value to the post, I usually check out their site to see what I can learn from them.
*resists the urge to add a link* ;)
The Tech Juice
June 5th, 2008 6:54 am
I never considered using crazyegg to check for how often people click through the comments on my blog. Right now I use google analytics, which also has a site overlay feature.
Fortunately I have realized the value of commenting on other people’s blogs, especially when I am able to link relevant content.
Thanks for the great video post.
By the way, I was just curious if you could link me to the blogging software that you use to create these on your Mac? I recently upgraded my Macbook and I was hoping to do some video editing on it. (It now has a 250 GB hard drive and 4 GB RAM)
Muscle Post
June 5th, 2008 7:33 am
Crazy Egg looks like a very useful tool for tracking where visitors are clicking on your blog. Looks like it can make a big difference and should really influence how and where we place our links. I’m going to test it out on my blog.
Terra Andersen
June 5th, 2008 7:44 am
Thanks for sharing! I still get people saying the only marketing they ever did for their blog was simply leaving comments on other blogs, and perhaps a little social networking.
In the end, looking at the heatmaps definitely does help! It always makes sense to see where your users are clicking to adjust the site likewise.
Strong One
June 5th, 2008 8:33 am
In the very short time I’ve had my blog, I have noticed that leaving comments on other blogs gets you some traffic. I agree the comments have to be meaningful or worthwhile for anyont to pick up on you comments.
Thanks again for all your great information.
Miguel Wickert (Pineiro)
June 5th, 2008 8:34 am
Thanks for the insight concerning Crazy Egg. I remember some time ago when you shared this tool but never signed up. I will not make the same mistake twice.
Does anyone know of other similar tools out there? I found a service called StatCounter but nothing that really catches the eye, especially like Crazy Egg.
Hey Thomas, Thanks for sharing about click heat, looks good.
Lewis Howes
June 5th, 2008 9:41 am
Hi Darren,
Great post. On a side note I just wanted to let you know I bought your book and I received it today so I am extremely excited to check it out! I will let you know what I think when I am done, but for all you Problogger fans out there, I briefly glanced through the pages and it is full of content! I am sure it will exceed my expectations and I hope everyone else is able to get a copy.
Best
Lewis
ravi karandeekar
June 5th, 2008 10:56 am
Thanks for the Crazy Egg. Traffic or not, add value or not, one should thank for the effort of providing info for free, particularly on a business blog like Pune real estate market news…kidding…no!
RealWebToday.com
June 5th, 2008 10:58 am
You are so right … I have noticed that leaving relevant comments on your blog along with some others have started driving traffic to my blog. The video is awsome too. Thanks, for sharing.
actrepreneur
June 5th, 2008 11:06 am
i completely agree. adding value with comments provides readers with even more wisdom!! that’s one of the main benefits of blogging in my opinion. thanks for all the wisdom….
The Masked Millionaire
June 5th, 2008 11:17 am
Problogger is by far the very best place to leave meaningful comments that will translate into people clicking through to your blog.
I have commented daily on lots of popular blogs. I mean everyday for months. I am able to track where my readers come from through Google and a few other programs.
High numbers of readers on a blog does not translate into clicks from the comment section that will bring people to your blog.
Problogger is one of the blogs that people do click back to your blog from. Why? I think it is because the people who tend to read Problogger tend also to be more inquisitive, mature, and intelligent.
I’m not saying that to kiss Darren’s A**. I’m saying it becasue I think it is true. Other blogs have a high amount of traffic, but that traffic is made up of people that really don’t bother reading the post. They at best skim and at worst pick out just one or two keywords that strike them.
There are some popular blogs that I don’t read because they are just too wordy. By the time you get to the comments you want to take a nap.
Darren is one of the few bloggers that has the ability to make his point with the right amount of words…not to many..not to few.
Live From Las Vegas
The Masked Millionaire
Bill
June 5th, 2008 11:33 am
The thing that surprised me most about the video was how certain comments further down the comment list received even more clicks than those at the top. I always thought that the number would diminish. Great comments=more clicks.
Billy
Keith Erwood
June 5th, 2008 11:54 am
I have heard of this tactic often, I have even suggested it myself but wondered of its effectiveness.
Thanks for sharing this little piece on the subject.
Everyday Finance
June 5th, 2008 12:20 pm
Great stuff; I too, have underestimated the power in leaving comments on other blogs. I’ve finally gotten around to setting up my newsreader for blogs I enjoy-the same reader I’ve been advocating that my readers subscribe to. It’s so efficient to pop over to some great posts and drop a comment and I’m going to make more of an effort to do so now.
Just this week, I finally got around to doing a weekly roundup of my favorite articles from around the blogosphere. I think I’ve now matured into diversifying efforts away from just posting, and I’m now sharing my favs with readers at the expense of exporting traffic. Building legitimacy and recipricol good will amongst peers and readers isn’t a bad thing. Darren’s blog has been instrumental; I’m reading the book tonight actually! Anyway; perhaps this will translate into some hits, perhaps not. But I have one extra tool in the arsenal now that continues to keep me interested and motivated in blogging, branding and generating content.
Thanks!
Dan at EverydayFinance.
Lyn Leckie-Matassa
June 5th, 2008 12:25 pm
A great video Darren, I believe that leaving comments on blogs is an absolute must. If you have an opportunity to provide extra value to a conversation then leave a comment.
On the other hand if you just say things like nice post. I agree etc then this type of comment ads absolutely no value and you wont get any traffic from the comment.
Comments are a great source of driving traffic to your website and should be used in conjunction with SEO techniques to drive traffic to your site. SEO techniques alone will work but if you want more diversity then you need to use other methods to drive traffic your way.
Ari Herzog
June 5th, 2008 2:16 pm
For years, I typically frequented blogs that were either bookmarked on my browser or linked on my blogroll. But I couldn’t keep track of new posts because I manually visited each site.
No longer. Last week, I looked around at news readers and installed the Windows desktop version of NewsGator FeedDemon.
I am still figuring out how the reader operates, but with about 20 subscriptions so far, including ProBlogger, I can see snippets of new posts and click into those that appeal to me… and comment appropriately.
PixlNinja
June 5th, 2008 4:03 pm
Commenting on popular blogs like ProBlogger can drive blogs like mine some traffic, A sort of Shame less Promotion !
Tom At The Home Business Archive
June 5th, 2008 5:28 pm
Commenting on blogs is something I do daily, and have done it for a longer time.There are free softwares developed to find relevant blogs in your niche.Have you heard of commentkahuna? (commentkahuna.com)
Aaron
June 5th, 2008 7:23 pm
I’ve always been lackluster about leaving comments. I believe that if you want to actually gain visitors from commentating, you have to get into some kind of routine, and post comments on a regular basis.
I have noticed that after posting a comment on certain sites, I can get an extra 5 to 10 visitors, and every so often, I’ll continue to keep receiving visitors from that comment for a while.
Michael
June 5th, 2008 9:46 pm
Great video! Whenever someone asks me what to do to get more reader I always tell them to comment on other blogs, that is what I do and I think everyone should do it. It’s amazing how much traffic you can get to your blog just by leaving good comments on others blogs.
Dave Adams | FlickerLister
June 5th, 2008 9:53 pm
While commenting on blogs is a great way to generate interest in your own blog, you do need to be selective on when and where you comment -
1) Comments must contain some ‘value’ for both the blog owner and the comment reader. In other words if the comment does not contribute to the discussion in some way, it will have a negative impact on your reputation.
2) Not all posts on a site should be commented on - pick and choose which posts you wish to spend time and effort writing a comment about - commenting on every single post can come across as being spam, rather than having something valuable to contribute - even when the comment may be on target and well written. If your name is the first or second commentor on every single post on a site, you start to come across as ‘the creepy guy’.
3) Not all blogs will result in well targeted visitors to your niche site, so be selective on the blogs you comment on, or if you want to participate on a blog that is off topic for your niche do so without linking to your blog.
4) Posting on a number of blogs can become a drain on resource - is an hour spent commenting on a couple of blogs worth the increase in visitors that could have been gained by using that hour to write an informative article, and which one will result in the best long term gain?
Like alot of people who read PB, I participate in a number of blogs and websites across a wide spectrum of topics. Those related to one of my sites will generally have a site linked via my name, any that have no relevance are done without a site link.
Judy
June 5th, 2008 10:54 pm
Thank you, so much, for helping newbies like me to better understand how to blog, when to blog and how to promote it. You’ve been a great help.
Matt Radel
June 5th, 2008 11:05 pm
Great illustration of the concept Darren - Crazy Egg rocks!!
I’ve looked at commenting on other blogs as kind of a grass roots style of marketing your blog or site for awhile now, but it’s nice to have the proof laid out for you. Very swell.
team ray
June 5th, 2008 11:09 pm
just go to technorati and be first to ccomment on big blogs drop link and you’ll get traffic regardless of scope
but it wont work on site that moderate comments such as huffington post or engadget
Save, You Fool!
June 5th, 2008 11:10 pm
I’m not convinced that posting comments has any real SEO benefits (at least not on the major blogs) as some have suggested. The reason is, most major blogs have the “no follow” attribute aytomatically included to every link in the comments section making Google at least, ignore it for ranking purposes.
Dad of Divas
June 5th, 2008 11:23 pm
Thanks for the information on this one. I have already checked out crazy egg and look forward to trying out the free version (for now). We’ll see how it works.
Internet Business Ideas
June 6th, 2008 12:38 am
Hi Darren,
This is amazing, I am using blog commenting as an extra tool, I know it works but never know how powerful it is.
Thanks for the video, you are doing a great job.
Tanny
Internet home business ideas
Jay Ramirez
June 6th, 2008 1:26 am
Perhaps commenting is not always top of mind because it’s slow growth. I’ve talked to new bloggers that want instant growth and try to find a tool to get them there. Building a community by commenting takes time to do it well.
Gizmo
June 6th, 2008 1:27 am
I’ve been using the site overlay from Google Analytics which works ok but is buggy sometimes. These site maps are very revealing and often surprising. Looking at the overlays made me change a few things around on my blogs. I will check Crazy Egg out. It sounds like it is much more in depth and flexible and I see there is a free version that will suit me fine.
Steve Scor
June 6th, 2008 1:42 am
This is amazing I am looking for any advantage to get my blog up and running. This will truly help the cause.
Thanks Steve Scor
Frank
June 6th, 2008 2:19 am
I totally agree with this article. The only issue is that it is very hard to follow and read other people’s blog on a daily base. I mean. I am pretty busy following my blog, plus i have to read other blogs related to my niche, i have to write posts for my blog and i have to write comments in other blogs? In my opinion this trick can work if you have a blog which gets around 100 visitors a day and you update it once in a while. For a blog like mine which is updated every week with two or more posts, this is pretty difficult. if i want to get more visitors i prefer paying $150 a month and have my blog advertised on yahoo…that’s a better strategy…if you have buck of course
Andre Kibbe
June 6th, 2008 3:06 am
In my niche (productivity, creativity, thinking operations, etc.), I think that commenting has more value for building authority and recognition than by click through traffic. Backlinks and clickthroughs aren’t a priority to me. I work from the premise that if I leave relevant, informative comments on the site that I read, I’ll eventually build mindshare in my niche. That said, I certainly can’t prove that it’s been the case to date.
amylaine
June 6th, 2008 5:25 am
I have noticed the same. However it has worked best for me when my comment was first. Also if you become a regular viewer and commenter for the blogs. This will help everyone.
Amylaine
http://www.ehow.com/how_2309804_work-home-paying-fees.html
Tarah
June 6th, 2008 6:54 am
When I first started blogging I had a very hard time finding user friendly and easy accessible statistics programs. Many I find out there are very misleading and do things such as count your own visits and page views thus over inflating the count.
I am for sure going to try Crazy Egg for myself! From watching the video I see that it is a very visual type of stat representation and for me will make organizing things much easier for me being a visual learner.
Thanks so much for the great suggestions!
Premium Names
June 6th, 2008 8:29 am
I have found that leaving meaningful comments on post is an AWESOME way to drive new FREE traffic to my sites, as well as remind people about your site.
The numbers are never huge, but if you post comments on a continual basis on multiple post, your traffic will grow, as long as your site doesn’t suck.
Posting comments is just one tool in many that you can use.
Thanks Darren for the usual great post!
raffimax
June 6th, 2008 12:47 pm
interesting, thanks a lot, I’m new to blogging, hopefully this will drive more traffic soon..
Gary Gregory
June 6th, 2008 1:31 pm
This software is a great idea. I am relatively new to the blogging world myself, so any new information is of value. Thanks for the post!
Jeffery
June 7th, 2008 4:37 am
Yes, I’m not trying to do that on purpose but sometimes, I just wanted to recommend my link. Just started a new project, not a blog though, a marketing website for my country. Do have some visit. http://www.mysuperbrand.com . Learning to provide better comments.
Reginald
June 7th, 2008 5:11 am
Exactly how user friendly is CrazyEgg?
Shelly
June 7th, 2008 6:46 am
I find that I get more traffic from leaving comments on problogger than leaving comments for blogs that are more focused on my niche. Just goes to show how much traffic problogger gets.
Ayan Deato
June 7th, 2008 4:44 pm
nice article. will definitely start doing that… well I guess I just did. Have a good day blogging!
hari
June 7th, 2008 6:37 pm
Thank you for your detailed explanation on how to leave the comment and why to do so? i am waiting for your next blog
Oli from the-iBlog
June 8th, 2008 7:35 am
How do people feel about others leaving links to their own sites in comments sections? I fear it will just come across as spam to most people.
Andy T
June 8th, 2008 2:29 pm
I believe that is the best way to do SEO for your blog, also organic [natural link]. But please do not leave spam commens.
shawal
June 8th, 2008 8:02 pm
Problogger!!!,
I totally agree with you and this video, many other old time blogger also told the same story….
Why i said so?
Because myself also have been in this experience, 1 day, i have left a comment on the blog that receive thousand of visitors a day - tomorrow comes and i check my visitor statistic and got shock - i receive almost 200 visitor from that blog alone..
Imagine the power of commenting on others blog…
And i remind myself that don’t only left comment on the huge traffic blog but also left comment on what you like to read and interested to….
It make me have some blogging boost when someone left a comment on my blog….
Scott
June 9th, 2008 12:42 am
I only comment when I have something relevant to say. Perhaps that hurts my immediate traffic, but I agree with your statement that commenting with no purpose will ultimately hurt your reputation.
Cheers!
Scott
Scott
June 9th, 2008 2:57 pm
Great Post,
Now I want to try out crazy egg, but I also have this urge to spam powerful blogs with comments. Since it works so well, I think I will.
Scott
June 9th, 2008 2:59 pm
Just realized that the above poster’s name is scott, and I put the wrong suffix on my domain. A double mistake.. ~_~
Lindsay
June 9th, 2008 5:09 pm
Heh, last month problogger was my biggest non-search-engine referrer for a comment on your post about people making a full time income from blogging. I fessed up to being in that category and got lots of peeps at my blog. Alas, your readers aren’t really my target audience, so I suppose it makes more sense to comment on blogs related to your own, but hey, I like to blather here, and I’m not going to send anyone who visits away. :)
Oh, and thanks for the video showing off the Crazy Egg features. I have heard of them before but never tried them or any other kind of stat tracking beyond awstats. I’m not what they call an early adopter. :P
~Kat~
June 9th, 2008 5:10 pm
I found out about commenting on blogs quite accidentally! I was new to blogging and just commented when I was interested in the post. I was surprised to find that it actually did bring traffic!
However, I think one of the reasons blog commenting works is that people see a sample of your writing, if they want more they will click through to your site. If you just leave a spammy comment I don’t think that would entice anyone to visit your blog!
Red|Red|Wine
June 9th, 2008 9:59 pm
Until I found this site, commenting on blogs is the only way I have generated traffic, that, and getting my site listed on 2 major newspapers. It did not get as much traffic as I had hoped though.
http://www.sweetredwines.info
Alex
June 10th, 2008 4:48 am
Yes, commenting does seem to come back to being one of the number one ways to increase readership. After all, blogging is a dialogue, and what better way to give back to the networking community than through commenting.
Doug Washington
June 10th, 2008 7:35 am
Well this tutorial helped me out alot. I’m trying to get my blog off and running and right now its kind of hard to get traffic. Hopefully thhs will help me get a little more coming through and some comments down. Thanks again.
Doug Washington
June 10th, 2008 7:35 am
Well this tutorial helped me out alot. I’m trying to get my blog off and running and right now its kind of hard to get traffic. Hopefully thhs will help me get a little more coming through and some comments down. Thanks again.
trackfielduniversal.blogspot.com
John Hoff - eVentureBiz
June 10th, 2008 7:54 am
Interesting program. I’ve been using Google Analytics, but it looks like compared to Crazy Egg, Google is in the dark ages LOL.
Sameer - Directory Maximizer
June 10th, 2008 3:50 pm
A great post. I’d like to add that people shouldn’t restrict themselves to just commenting on blogs that are hugely popular because I’ve seen that there are a lot of smaller blogs as well that can give out traffic over time if the comments posted are valuable enough.
NikSan
June 10th, 2008 6:00 pm
Another great tool to review the traffic on the blog / website. Thanks for sharing the detailed analysis!
Thanks,
niksan
http://investsound.blogspot.com/
Mandy
June 10th, 2008 8:15 pm
I’ve used crazy egg before and found that it brings back really interesting data for my blog (just like with this post), it’s also quite fun to use and funky!
Suresh Kumar
June 10th, 2008 10:20 pm
You are right, I am getting around 25% of Traffic by commets in other blogs. I haven’t tested out crazy egg yet. I will test it and see whether its looks interesting or not?.
ITrush
June 10th, 2008 11:51 pm
This is great, thanks for sharing the tool.
Bookmarked!
nhick
http://www.itrush.com
Scott
June 11th, 2008 9:47 am
I just turned on my little dofollow link checker, and realized that problogger didn’t have dofollow turned on. I feel somewhat deceived, although i wasn’t of course. Is it wise to turn off no follow, or should I leave it on like you guys? A friend of mine says that leaving nofollow on helps to boost your pr.
Mr. Javo
June 11th, 2008 10:49 am
That’s a great tool, I’m using it actually… Personally I think that leaving comments in other blogs are one of best strategies you can do to expand your network. Of course, only if your comment is useful, because there are many people who leave comments just to get a backlink, or just spamming a kind of promotion….
Thank you for demonstrate us again the importance of the comments in a blog.
Did You Know?
June 11th, 2008 10:26 pm
thanks so much for this very wonderful video. I will try this one to improve also my traffic!
United Voices
June 12th, 2008 1:25 am
Though it took a painstaking time to download the videos given the slower connectivity at our area, the fruits of viewing these videos is just great. This is a great tool to review the traffic on any particular website.
Ben Taylor
June 12th, 2008 8:00 am
CrazyEgg is a great tool, and I like Screencast too. Right now I’m using Camtasia studio to produce screenshot videos.
I would recommend Camtasia to anyone who wants to make educational or computer tutorial videos.
http://oscomputerworld.blogspot.com/
androo
June 13th, 2008 1:19 am
great post i always find useful tools.. i’ll have to check out the CrazyEgg tool… and thanks for the informative video!
PPC Fool
June 13th, 2008 2:17 am
A slightly cheaper option than crazyegg is http://www.clickdensity.com … their starter package is jsut $5/month. Ive used them for awhile and I LOVE the heat maps!
PPC Fool
http://www.ppcfool.com
Stef Levolger
June 13th, 2008 5:06 am
Commenting definitely is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your own blog when done responsibly, the rule is quite simple:
comment = good? traffic = good
comment = trash? traffic = trash
Readers of comments are readers of blogs after all, it might not be your blog they’re reading at the moment but you should still treat them as such. Succeed in that and they might be intrigued by your comment and see what else you have to say.
Wade
June 13th, 2008 10:11 am
I’ve watched that video a few times. I’ve only been blogging a month so I am for sure a newbie. Tons of articles talk about writing comments and linking back. My only concern is that everyone seems so much smarter on just about every subject.
I guess the point is to be real and authentic. So this is my first comment ever on any blog! I will test that theory here!
Thank you for the advice in the video and I will take it to heart.
God Bless
Wade
http://www.wadelowrey.com
Taimoor
June 14th, 2008 3:18 am
Well I am Trying What Darren Said :
“Leave Comments on Other Blogs”
Money Manatee
June 14th, 2008 5:39 pm
I love CrazyEgg but…. I often worry about how private your traffic data is. Same thing with services like SiteMeter. Somehow I can just picture people working there scouring over the top incoming searches. Am I too paranoid? :)
Barnabas Nagy
June 15th, 2008 7:34 am
Money Manatee, what can they do whit your private date? I’m quite sure they have an EULA where are these privacy issues you can check. But why would be your traffic sources a confidential data? Do you leave comments on adult sites??? :) - just a joke, but you can take it seriously.
Darren, a good and capturing post, really that makes me convinced you’re right. But am I right you mentioned 5000 visitors to that popular blogpost, or did I hear it wrong? Well, if 200, 300 people clicked on links provided by your commenters I wonder what can be the impact on a blog that receives 60-100 visitors per a day, and 5-6 comments…
I’m still wondering. Yes, you say first you have to build that traffic and convince people leave comments.
Just a conversation in myself…
Barnabas Nagy
http://furlongdesign.com
Barnabas Nagy
June 15th, 2008 7:40 am
Thomas Clausen, you mentioned http://www.labsmedia.com/clickheat/index.html and I checked what it is able to do for me. Well, I logged into the demo and saw the heatmap of clicks, but that’s all. Did not see any number of clicks, visit source etc. that CrazyEgg all does. Am I right?
Barnabas Nagy
http://furlongdesign.com
Ali A. Bashiti
June 16th, 2008 6:39 am
Actually, was about to post on the advantages of making commenting just as important as consistent blogging while building a successful blog. Although I’m relatively new to blogging compared to you, I’m seeing great benefits in one of my blogs by commenting on other related blogs and including the url…
I did a post earlier today on another blogging tip and mentioned you in it Darren… thanks for the great advice. :)
-Ali
Online Philippines
June 16th, 2008 11:34 am
I perfectly agree. On the other side of the world, we are fighting spam comments. We should keep our blogs strongly protected from spam bots.
Barnabas Nagy
June 16th, 2008 4:47 pm
It is not only on the other side of the world : ) Use akismet if having WP that helped me out of spam.
Mike
June 17th, 2008 2:10 am
That is some tip. I try commenting every day on blogs that I like reading. I had a blog I read about 80s music and left a link to my 80s music blog in the comments.
If you leave comments on a blogger blog without putting your link in the comments, if you use a picture for your profile, that picture shows up for all the comments you make. I think people are more drawn to comments when they have a picture on their profile. That is another small tip I read about long ago.
Dot Com Mogul
June 17th, 2008 4:36 am
Thanks for the tip on CrazyEgg. I’ll check it out. I also use a dofollow Wordpress plugin for comments to give people an incentive to comment. Have to delete a bit more spam because of it for the weenies that don’t know what relevant means, but it works for me.
V
June 17th, 2008 9:23 am
Good Video. Never knew the real power of commenting. It really works. Just will boost my commenting spree. Starting from here.:D
Dave Stevens
June 17th, 2008 3:23 pm
I thing that commenting on blogs may or may not give you traffic at all.
It’s very depend on the type of readers that come to the blog.
If you site give solution to a problem that many people will read also the comment to know what other people thing about your solution.
But many niche blog have readers that some come to grab information quickly and will not even read the post through the end.
aizal
June 17th, 2008 7:28 pm
When commenting to other people blogs esp the high traffic ones, don’t put the first intention to get traffic from it. It’ll just cost your good reason to share thoughts and tips with other people. Even though people might not click your name to visit your blog, still the networking you create will help in the long run. This is what I believe. Being patient and persistent is important :D.
Thanks Darren on the advice and about CrazyEgg. Will try it out soon.
lankapo
June 17th, 2008 7:39 pm
haha it looks like everybody want to comment when they realize the click that they might get from 12K visitor average per day. I would be lucky enough if I got ten (10) from here hhehe
Anyway, thanks darren for enlighten me aboutthe power of comment in other people’s blog.
thanks
lankapo
malaysia
Carsten Cumbrowski
June 18th, 2008 12:11 am
Interesting… It’s nice to see actual figures and data and not only “assumptions” and guesses.
I have a few links at popular blogs that are highly relevant to the post and add value. I receive continuously traffic from that link.
Now the key to all this is what you already said, RELEVANCE and GENUINE. I often drop links, because it makes sense. You often read posts that you are interested in. If you are a blogger or writer, chances are that you already wrote some stuff about the same topic. If what you wrote is more than just an echo of the post where you drop the link, then it adds value. If it extends on what was provided by the post, then it adds value.
The comment will be accepted, stay in the post and readers of the post will be likely to click on the link to find out more.
It sounds nice, but there is a catch to it. It requires work, a lot of it… The more popular the blog where you comment, the more work it is… most of the time.
Jenn Mattern
June 18th, 2008 2:18 am
Thanks for the reminder to keep on commenting Darren. Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in our own blogs, and we forget to be “good neighbors.”
In addition to posting comments on high traffic blogs like Problogger, I can say I’ve actually met some incredibly interesting folks from smaller blogs without the same traffic-sending ability just by leaving comments. I think that’s been especially true with finding new bloggers in a niche, and being one of the first to build a friendship with them. As their blogs grow, so does their influence, and we all like friends in high places, right? So I think it’s important to remember that comments are about more than just direct traffic, but about building relationships and networks, which can lead to further benefits down the road. :)
Barnabas Nagy
June 18th, 2008 6:13 am
I believe that it is not only about traffic but about relationships as well just as you say. Eg I had a Hungarian blog, and commented on problogger that was http://furlongdesign.com and my lijit search http://lijit.com showed that the only site links to me is problogger : ) what an astonishment it was for me even though the dissatisfactions knowing I had several other backlinks.
Dave Stevens is also right in that people start reading and finish not. I’m such a one as well. I read CNN news and I find interesting what I read eg. about US elections but at the half of the reading it makes me so bored the long way of explanation.
I think what you write, post or comment, should have appropriate length and rich information until the end of your last sentence so that people think: “he knows something, I’ll check him out”
Breki
June 18th, 2008 6:26 am
Ooh, very impressive tool! I could well imagine using something similar on my page.
I’m looking around for ways to improve my pagerank and to increase the popularity of my blog, and the old idea of “comment other people’s blogs” has always been my technique of choie. Interesting how I found a nifty tool like this while searching for something completely different.
Best regards,
Breki Tomasson,
http://breki.se
AhTim
June 18th, 2008 8:16 pm
Agreed. That’s why I should leave a comment here before go off. :)
–blog for dream–
Coupons Australia
June 18th, 2008 8:53 pm
I’ve launched quite a few successful sites by leaving relevant & helpful comments on other peoples sites.
Key is finding the right post & the right time to make an impression on the readers though :)
Barnabas Nagy
June 18th, 2008 9:30 pm
Is everyone around here just looking for answer from Darren or want to react on comments maybe. This is strange, you guys write here to get the attention of him, but no conversation among us. Great.
super blogger
June 19th, 2008 2:32 am
Hm.. Yes. Commenting can gain traffic to our site especially when our comments is relevant to the topic…
The tools you’re promoting is such a good tools for me to try and know more about comment statistics…
abdul
June 19th, 2008 2:41 am
This is amazing Darren…
Today i came to know what is power of commenting in other blogs….
bestpayingadsensekeywords
June 19th, 2008 3:34 am
Of course i do comment on other peoples blogs but hadnt yet discovered the power from doing so
Alex Griffin
June 19th, 2008 4:07 am
Good Video. Never knew the real power of commenting. It really works. Just will boost my commenting spree.
Denise Snakard
June 19th, 2008 9:05 am
I am only “one week old” with my blog, but I am “a year old” with my website. My, I wish I had known about you a year ago. My site has not been a disappointment, but, if I had known about your unique blog for advise to newbies, my blog would have been a lot older-!! Thanks for all of your advise and I will keep returning.
Denise
http://discountdesignerfabrics.blogspot.com/
Asuka Aki
June 19th, 2008 10:48 am
Commenting on other’s blog is what kept my blog alive during it’s first week of existance. When I stopped commenting I noticed differences in clicks, traffic, comments…I began commenting and everything is on the rise again.
Jeffrey Alexander Brathwaite
June 19th, 2008 3:35 pm
This tip was awesome Darren!
I am currently using the crazyegg.com site you recommended in the video with 2 of my websites
http://www.2thenextlevel.com/blog
and
http://www.broadcastemailexpert.com/blog
and have found out quite a bit with my first test. I am also commenting on some of my favorite blogs and getting some good traffic.
Thanks again for the tip
All the best
JB
PS I also bought your book and I am highly impressed with it.
Looking forward to finishing it and putting your tips to the test.
facebook
June 19th, 2008 8:47 pm
I thought that the commenter’s name was the one clicked most. Either way, it’s still amazing to see how many people have clicked the links inside the comments, especially the first one.
Jason Mosley
June 20th, 2008 12:35 am
I know this works. For about two months I stopped reading and commenting other blogs. My traffic dropped.
When I commented daily I would get two or three active readers (people that comment and email me) a week.
That being said I better get reading and commenting right now!
-MrBaconpants
Reginald
June 20th, 2008 3:03 am
I thought I would add that I agree with Mr. Cook’s comment in this thread.
Just replying to a post is not enough. A posted comment on any blog needs to have quality content, as well as relevance to the post.
Reginald
June 20th, 2008 3:46 am
Aizal is right.
Online surfers visiting a blog may not click on your linked name in your comment. However, if you frequently leave feedback and interact on blogs, it is still very possible for online surfers to note you site or link.
They may not all click your link, but the potential for some of them to eventual visit you site is still very likely.
Kimyi
June 20th, 2008 6:16 pm
Thanks for your sharing great idea. That is the first method that i always do when i create new blog. and it is the best way for all bloggers. Leaving comment is like introduction of your new blog to readers who do not know your blog before.
Stella
June 21st, 2008 5:36 am
Wow, it’s so true. thanks a lot Darren. I am always working on the way to grow the traffic on Fragrance Diva (FD).
For sure, if you leave comments on other blogs and you keep visiting them, the owner will appreciate and he/she will start giving interests about yours: “Importance of Interaction”.
Thanks, Darren.
Franz
June 21st, 2008 7:11 pm
Very good tutorial!!
i’ve noticed that commenting can gain traffic.
thank you for posting that useful video
revenue
June 21st, 2008 9:11 pm
Yes i agree by commenting it can bring you a nice and decend backlinks to our site Thanks for this video :)
kidkiller
June 21st, 2008 11:09 pm
I did try it leaving comments on other blogs, actually this method is working to drive traffic. But you may need to find some high traffic blog to leave your comments, so that you can drive more traffic to your blog.
Am i right ?
Free Traffic By Commenting In Blogs
June 22nd, 2008 2:40 am
There are some “schools” of thought that propose that leaving blog comments that disagree with the points posted in other peoples’ blogs are more effective in driving free website traffic to your own blog.
Of course, this might only applicable if the context and the content of the blog you are commenting on, works in synergy with the blog comments that you post, I guess.
Would you folks have any thoughts or experiences with regards to this?
Cheers
Sportstrader
June 22nd, 2008 3:05 am
Nice tutorial. Very interesting. I didn’t know it was possible to track clicks on your website like that. I will implement myself on my own website: http://tradingsports.blogspot.com/
Sportstrader
trollys
June 22nd, 2008 3:09 am
this is a good articels, i knew the power of commenting. this is just like submiting your url into search engines, specially if you write your comments with some site that i have a ton traffics or big popularity… huh?
wrench
June 22nd, 2008 5:44 am
I have noticed traffic when I leave comments. An excellent observation and well researched.
I use Google Analytics and have been happy with it. I will certainly look at crazyegg.
Thank you once again.
–
wrench
http://www.gopmom.com
CoffeeSage
June 22nd, 2008 7:03 am
Sound advice and after looking over Crazy Egg, I can see how it will most certainly help out.
I get traffic but I really make no money even with all the google ads. Sad, but true. Maybe this will help in some way and there are many instances that I could comment on a person’s blog but don’t have the time. I suppose I should make the time.
Thanks for the great advice (again)
Audrey
Wendy
June 22nd, 2008 11:16 am
I just started testing out the commenting thing and it is making a difference. Haven’t decided yet whether it’s been worth my time, but most bloggers will return to my blog and leave a comment of their own. We’ll see how many become readers.
I’m taking this route because I don’t have the funds to advertise and Google has stopped indexing my posts… for whatever reason. What a huge traffic killer that’s been.
Matthew
June 22nd, 2008 6:20 pm
I only leave comments when I have something to add. I try really hard to find something to add, because I enjoy leaving comments. My blog barely gets any - so I get excited when I do get one. I try my best to leave some on an interesting post because I like getting them so much I figure others do as well.
Also, it doesn’t hurt to become part of the conversation either.
Christian
June 23rd, 2008 5:00 am
Another good tool to use for finding relevant blogs to post relevant content (blog commenting) is Comment Kahuna. It is free and saves you quite a bit of time finding blogs that are worthwhile and relevant.
Jennifer Lynn
June 23rd, 2008 5:02 am
Commenting can produce a wee bit of traffic, I’d imagine. But consistently commenting on a certain site is a great way to build a community dialogue. I’m thrilled to visit sites where the readers engage each other through the comments section - which can result in some very interesting (and sometimes quite colorful) debates and discussions.
=^..^=
Barb | Simple Ways To Make Money
June 24th, 2008 12:33 am
I never really understood the effectiveness of commenting on blogs, but you have shown it can produce quite a lot of traffic.
The thing I find difficult is the time I spend reading the post and then all the comments - I get carried away, especially if the post is really interesting.
kermit johnson
June 24th, 2008 4:23 am
Aside from added traffic, is there any seo value to commenting on blogs? Aren’t most blog comment sections “nofollow?”
Also, I heard that Google is deprecating comment links. What do you think?
kermit johnson
June 24th, 2008 4:25 am
Also, is that “comment link-love” widget (I can’t think of the name) worthwhile?
Thanks
Peter
June 24th, 2008 4:47 am
this is one part of blog promotion that i am starting to do alot more of!
Elmo The Extra Income report guy
June 24th, 2008 7:54 am
Thanks to you nice folks I just remembered that I have a crazy egg account!! I have used it extensively in the past as well as statcounter and these are both excellent tools!!
thanks for the Video!
J.D.
June 24th, 2008 8:10 am
Darren, I know that you’re stressing the “add value” thing throughout your presentation, but ever since you posted this, I’ve been inundated by people just dropping their links into comments for no good reason. Sometimes they *try* to connect what I’ve written about to the link they’re pushing, but mostly those connections are tenuous.
Would you consider doing a follow-up post on what a relevant comment is? I’d hate to start having to add people to my spam blacklist, but if this trend doesn’t die out, I’m going to have to draw a line.
Louis
June 24th, 2008 8:47 am
I recently launched my site http://www.blog.tv a few weeks ago. This is the first comment I have posted on another blog since I started my site because no matter what comment I leave, if I include my site link, I feel like it is a blatant attempt to attract visitors. Much like I have done here. But, I have to try this approach to see if it is at all successful in letting people know that we exist and that we would love to have them visit us. (My apologies for the blatant plug. I know it’s obvious)
John Gillett
June 24th, 2008 9:31 am
With 136 comments and counting it appears as though you’ve posted on quite a few sites…I suspect it is the quality of the content that keeps readers loyal and active, more than the number of posts entered on other blogs.
Kudos to your success on both counts!
Louis
June 24th, 2008 9:55 am
Darren, I’d like to invite you to post your video “5 Emerging Trends in Blogging” on my site at http://www.blog.tv if you would.
Kermit Johnson
June 24th, 2008 2:10 pm
I don’t think that very many people read the comments. For one thing, no one comments or responds to any questions that I may pose to the audience. For example, I posted a comment in this column asking some relevant questions about the effects of comments on SEO. Not one response.
Also, there are times that I might throw out something controversial or slightly inflammatory just to see if anyone responds. Once in a while, the post author might respond, although rarely. This is especially true for more successful blogs.
Sometimes, if you make a very long comment, you might get noticed. I am wondering if this particular comment is long enough to be noticed.
Is anyone out there?
It seems like most people just say something like “great post” or “yeah, I’m going to do more of that, etc.”
Shiva
June 25th, 2008 12:55 am
Hi Darren…
its my first time that i had keenly visited the blog of yours…
and its great enough…
about the power of comments, what relevant articles you mean…
like if you have mentioned about themes, people should post links for other themes?
i would like to ask you how to make such videos by captuting whatever is happening on your desktop…
Plz reply
@
CrAzYbLoG
v.CoL
and no this aint spamming…
i fear my comment would be lost here :)
Brick Marketing
June 26th, 2008 11:38 am
This couldn’t be more true - -I think more bloggers/site owners would do it if they knew the importance of leaving comments. It’s just a shame when some of those who DO spend the time doing it, leave useless junk!
Ross
June 26th, 2008 8:18 pm
Great post Darren, I believe I will have to go pro on CrazyEgg now to get the full benefits of the service.
Adam
June 26th, 2008 8:48 pm
Definitely agree with that. I guess that’s what makes blogs so special and different from normal static sites - the ability to interact with the blogger and other visitors through comments.
Simon Stapleton
June 26th, 2008 11:47 pm
I can’t argue with the logic and evidence that commenting can bring traffic to your site. I wonder if this has long term sustainability? Could blogging become just an interest of bloggers themselves (relative to the number of visitors)? In other words, could blogging eat itself by bloggers only commenting to achieve traffic for their own site…
I guess being part of the blogging community myself, I will find out in time!
ferzam
June 27th, 2008 1:06 am
your tips are very encouarging especially to beginners like me. keep up the good work and continue encouraging other bloggers to make the best out of blogging…
Kermit Johnson
June 27th, 2008 1:46 am
Most comments are insipid drivel, and this comment only helps to prove this point. That is why no one reads them. It’s stuff like “Good work.. I really should start doing that.”
This is my third or fourth comment on this post looking for answers to questions or any kind of response from someone. So far, no one has answered my questions or responded in any way. This proves my point that no one reads comments. Occasionally, the administrator might read them if it is a less successful blog.
Prove me wrong by responding to this comment.
Fred Barns