{"id":596,"date":"2022-02-21T13:40:54","date_gmt":"2022-02-21T13:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/okonet.kinsta.cloud\/?p=596"},"modified":"2022-02-21T13:40:54","modified_gmt":"2022-02-21T13:40:54","slug":"comments-community-engagement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cool.co\/publisher-experiences-home\/2022\/02\/21\/comments-community-engagement\/","title":{"rendered":"Comments & Discussions: Turn Up User Engagement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Did you know:\u00a0seventy-seven million<\/a>\u00a0new blog and online comments are generated each month. Shocked? Surprised?<\/p>\n

Although all of those comments will not be high quality, this shows that there are active readers out there who want their voices to be heard. Enabling commenting and discussion is a simple way to increase user engagement, time on site, and overall brand awareness. As an added bonus, comments on your content can\u00a0boost your SEO rankings<\/a>\u00a0to help you get more leads.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s dive in to see how you can improve your website engagement by building a community through commenting and discussion.<\/p>\n

How Commenting & Discussion Increases User Engagement<\/h2>\n

Commenting is one of the easiest ways to give your audience a voice and make them feel closer to your brand.\u00a0Pat Flynn<\/a>, a blogger at\u00a0Smart Passive Income<\/a>, states that \u201cwithout comments, a blog isn\u2019t really a blog\u2026 it\u2019s not just about publishing content, but also the two-way communication and community building aspects behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n

We couldn\u2019t agree more.<\/p>\n

Yes, there will always be some nasty comments that you\u2019ll have to delete. But for the rest of your audience, commenting allows you to transform customers into a community. By letting your readers share their thoughts and ideas, they get to interact with your brand on a more personal level. The more connected they feel to your brand, the more time they\u2019ll want to spend on your website. The more time they spend on-site, the more likely it is that they\u2019ll convert.<\/p>\n

7 Ways to Boost Website Engagement with Commenting & Discussion<\/h2>\n

Commenting and discussion ups the ante and gets your readers more involved with the topics you\u2019re discussing and your brand as a whole. Here are seven ways to boost engagement by allowing comments:<\/p>\n

Talking About Important Issues<\/h3>\n

We\u2019re not saying that you have to dive into heavy topics. But engaging your readers with relevant on-brand issues will make them want to read more. People won\u2019t comment unless they\u2019re moved or inspired by what you said in the first place, so you have to knock it out of the park with your content.<\/p>\n

Sharing Opinions & Thoughts About a Topic<\/h3>\n

Your blog posts should ALWAYS end with a call to action (CTA) to help your readers spend more\u00a0time on your site<\/a>. An easy CTA for a blog post is \u201clet me know your thoughts in the comments below\u201d or asking \u201cwhat do you think?\u201d This way, you\u2019re inviting your readers to share their reactions to your content and can gauge interest for future posts.<\/p>\n

Inviting Friends on Social Media to Participate<\/h3>\n

In addition to asking your readers to share their thoughts, you can provide direct links for users to share your content on their social media profiles. If they click on the icon, a post will be automatically generated so they can tag their friends and share it with their followers. Ideally, the people who see the shared post will click through the link to engage with your content as well. As more people promote your content on other channels, you\u2019ll get more brand exposure and open the door for more audience members.<\/p>\n

Returning to Reply to Comments Left on the Platform<\/h3>\n

The more of a discussion your commenters generate, the more likely they\u2019ll be to return to your site to see if someone responded to their comments. If someone has responded to them directly, they\u2019ll likely publish another comment. If they haven\u2019t gotten a direct reply, they might stay on your site to read other comments and possibly reply to those.<\/p>\n

Sharing Emails for Updates and Benefits<\/h3>\n

As you build your community, you can start calling on people to share their email with you so you can send them updates on specific posts or early access to new posts. This will make your users feel like they\u2019re a part of an exclusive club and gently nudges them to continue spending time on your website.<\/p>\n

Earning Badges & Points for Ongoing Participation<\/h3>\n

People love earning rewards, and you can turn your commenting platform into a reward system. You can encourage your readers to share their (positive) thoughts more often by enabling them to create an account and gain points for active participation. Users can exchange these points for some kind of reward that moves them farther down your sales funnel \u2013 like 10% off their next purchase or a free item with purchase.<\/p>\n

Coming Back to Find New Content & Discussion Topics<\/h3>\n

The more people engage with your content, the more they\u2019ll want to keep visiting your site to stay on top of your latest insights. They\u2019ll begin to feel like they\u2019re a part of your community and will increase the frequency of their visits and ultimately their time on site. As long as you keep the topics relevant and encourage participation, you\u2019ll keep your readers coming back for more.<\/p>\n

Insticator Commenting<\/h2>\n

Turning on commenting is one thing, but keeping track of your commenting platform is another beast altogether. While we can hope that the only people who comment on our posts are satisfied readers,\u00a0trolls may find their way to your blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Comment moderation can be difficult and time-consuming. You have other aspects of your business to focus on. That\u2019s where we come in.<\/p>\n

Insticator<\/a>\u00a0revolutionizes the idea of a commenting platform. Our elite solution comes with:<\/p>\n