The Value of a Good Comment

I have said more than once that I love feedback on what I do, and the same goes for everyone who runs a blog.

You write what you do, because you feel passionately about it and you want your voice to be heard.

So, when someone takes the time to post a comment, you know you’re being listened to. As long as it’s a constructive comment then it has a positive effect on your work.

It motivates you and lets you know that people out there are listening.

Constructive doesn’t have to mean positive

A constructive comment is one that helps you develop your ideas, without being bad mannered or offensive.

A good constructive comment can help you improve your site or blog posts in ways that you may not have thought of. That’s why I always ask for feedback on most of my posts, so that I can find out the value of what I’ve written.

We can all help each other in anything if we put our mind to it.

You are all helping me by responding to my posts, and in turn I can help you with the things you feel are important for your blogging, and know which direction to take for my next blog article.

Is the feedback function positive or negative?

There are some that argue that commenting has given us back ‘freedom of speech’ and a chance to question our opinions of things, and no doubt a blog can generate a lively discussion on an emotive subject.

It’s also easy to find blogs that think differently to you, that comments obstruct what the author is trying to say.

By commenting on what has been said, perhaps you are intruding on the writer’s freedom of speech and not exercising your own. By writing your comment you are imposing your own view, rather than paying attention to the view set down by the blog owner.

There is also an argument that by not accepting comments, you will speed up the time it takes to load a page on your blog, and you have less text for your readers to wade through when they visit your site.

But, surely we are providing a service, and in providing a service we should pay attention to that much-used phrase ‘the customer is always right?’

If I go to a restaurant and don’t get the food I ordered I am going to say something. I am going to expect the staff to sort the problem out for me the best way they can, with courtesy on both sides. That’s what gives me a good experience in a restaurant, and makes me go back again (that, and the quality of the food, of course!)

The point is, by writing blog articles, and providing people with information to help them in whatever way they need, we are putting ourselves in a position where people have the right to comment.

That’s the whole point of ‘freedom of speech’, isn’t it?

We all have that right.

Comments help you build a community on your blog.

Many people will comment on more than just one of your posts, and you get to know them as time goes on. They become part of your online community. They pass the word around to other communities and your reputation grows. They are there for you when you post questions to help your site progress.

So, I’d like to thank all those who respond to my request for feedback on my blog. Long may constructive comments continue!

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