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5 Powerful Tactics To Get More Comments!

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Kimberly is 30 year old female from Southern Illinois. Backgrounds in IT, small business & social media, she is passionate about helping small businesses succeed in social media. She primarily blogs at http://just-ask-kim.com. If you're looking for advice on social media... Just Ask Kim!

Kimberly has written 1 article for ComLuv.com
I normally write at http://just-ask-kim.com

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July 10, 2010 By 242 Comments

commenting plan

Sometimes, a blog can feel a bit like a creepy old ghost town. No action happening except the occasional tumbleweed blowing through town. Cue up the spine tingling music and the sense of dread and suddenly you’re reminded of what it’s like when you’re blog isn’t generating any action.

There are a ton of posts about the necessity of creating interactions – with other bloggers on their blogs – and then also with your commenters on your own blog. There are equally as many talking about how to get visitors from social media.

But how can you encourage those visitors to stop and leave a comment??

Below are 5 simple solutions to encourage your visitors to leave comments and tell the tumbleweeds adiós!

1. Use Post Excerpts On Your Homepage

Whether your theme already includes this or you grab the handy Homepage Excerpts plugin for WordPress to easily add the functionality, excerpts prevent visitors from doing the old cut and run! Now they will open the full post to read more and then find less hassle involved in leaving a comment. No more asking them to kick a tumbleweed (click a link) just to do you a favor (leave a comment)!

2. Enable Comment Threading

Comments are considered “threaded” when replies “nest” under the comment they belong to. It improves readability, flow and makes the comment system more inviting. WordPress used to require clunky full comment system replacements to add this but now premium themes can either enable the built in feature under Settings -> Discussion or older themes can grab the WP Comment Thread plugin. This allows you and your readers to easily dialog and get to know each other.

3. Enable Subscribe To Comments

If you can keep a reader coming back, you increase their time on site and odds of leaving a comment. Make it super simple for your visitors to subscribe to all the replies of a particular post with the simple to use Subscribe To Comment plugin for WordPress.

4. Thank First Time Commentators

If you’ve ever been a new commenter on a blog you know how unnerving it can be to leave a comment and see it go to moderation – or worst – say submitted but appear to vanish. Now there is a plugin called Comment Redirect that can easily identify a person that has not commented before and redirect them to a page of your choice. Set this page up to welcome them, thank them, encourage them to opt in and suggest other things they might enjoy. A win/win for you both!

5. Share the Link Juice

This “dream stack” will prove to visitors that you truly DO care about them and want to thank them for participating and commenting. Commentluv, Keywordluv, DoFollow & Top Commentators Widget all fit together to remove the no follow attribute, improve the back link quality and give more and better backlinks. There is no better way to say “thanks for helping me grow my blog” than saying “here’s something to help you grow yours”. These four greatly benefit the SEO work your visitors are likely doing and can help build a lot of traffic. The community surrounding Commentluv is a open but tight-knit family that actively supports each other and can be a great source of free traffic and relationships.

Ghost Town or Thriving Metropolis?

This powerful combination of tactics and plugins will help you increase the number of your visitors that not only stop by but settle in and help you turn your ghost town into a home town!

Combining off and on-site relationship building with these tactics help us keep the “social” in social media and prove ourselves worthy of being the major of a thriving metropolis.

Now it’s your turn! What is you’re favorite tactics to increase comment rates? Which plugins do you love to love – or love to hate? What has worked successfully for you on your blog? Are there certain plugins that you find reduce your likelihood to comment?

If you found this post interesting or useful I hope you’ll syndicate it, bookmark it and share it with all your friends and fans! Share your thoughts below in the comment field, I cant wait to compare notes!

This post is part of our amazing Blogging Contest, plz add a comment and tweet it to support the author.
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Comments

  1. Val Wilcox says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:07 am

    Kimberly,
    Thanks to following your expertise in your posts, I utilize all of these plugins you mentioned except Comment Redirect. I don’t moderate my comments so they see them there as soon as they submit.

    Thanks for always sharing the best tools to build return visits from readers.
    Val :)
    Val Wilcox recently posted..Renew Your Mindset With FaithMy Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 1:01 pm

      Hey Val, thanks for the comment! How does that work for you not moderating even for someone’s first comment? Do you see quite a bit of spam making it to your comment thread that you have to delete later or are you using some sort of captcha/etc? You’re got a really active blog so I’m curious how that’s working.

      One thing I like about the comment redirect is that its yet another spot we can use to encourage an opt-in/subscriber. That can potentially help improve retention. The page can also be used to point them to some of our “best of the best” posts that may help keep them on our site longer.

      Thanks for stopping in and cant wait to hear back from you!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Twitter – How To Get Off Inappropriate Twitter Lists of OthersMy Profile

      Reply
      • Val Wilcox says:
        July 12, 2010 at 12:49 am

        I got your message. :) As I explained below, I’m not sure why aksmet seems to be doing such a bang up job! All I know is I’m happy with the results.

        Sorry, no big secret formula to share. You know I would if I knew the why.

        I do have a question for you about auto reply. My site is sending emails to commenters, which I didn’t think I had set up. I have one commenter who is not happy, yet I cannot figure out what’s doing it! Very frustrating to say the least.

        Val :)
        Val Wilcox recently posted..Go With the FlowMy Profile

        Reply
        • kimjcastleberry
          Twitter:
          says:
          July 12, 2010 at 4:35 am

          Off the top of my head, the usual plugins that would do that include:

          Wp Thread Comment
          Comment Reply Notification
          Comment Email Notification
          Comment Relish
          Thank You Later

          There’s more than that of course but that’s the most common ones. If you make a list of your active plugins and drop me a message I’ll look through them for you :)
          Kimberly
          kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

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    • Kristi
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 6:12 pm

      I’d be curious how you can get away with not moderating as well. I have mine set to auto approve after a comment has been previously approved by the same person, and people even take advantage of that option by making one great comment then following it up by shorter, less valuable ones all over the site. You’re a lucky duck if you can get away with no moderation now a days.
      Kristi recently posted..Article Marketing Promotion with Blog CommentingMy Profile

      Reply
  2. oriridraco
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:15 am

    Excellent suggestions! I’m doing all but the first currently because initially I got feedback that many (some?) readers -don’t- like excerpts, or having to click through to read the full post. They’d actually just leave instead of click! What are your thoughts on that? What is your experience with it? I’m curious!

    Also, I LOVE threaded comments and agree 100% it’s needed on a good blog. However, my favorite plugin for that is Spectacu.la Threaded Comments
    (http://spectacu.la/spectacula-threaded-comments/).-It has a clean out of the box look and actually collapses the threads automatically so you only see the original Comments. It then has a prompt underneath asking if you’d like to see the replies. (And then shows them to you, without a page refresh.) It’s a bit easier to skim comments that way, instead of having to scroll through pages (if you are that lucky) of comments! (Something I hate doing, especially if I want to find discussions and skip the “awesome post!” comments.)

    I have a fun time using that one with Comment Rating, DoFollow, CommentLuv, etc.
    oriridraco recently posted..Salad For BreakfastMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 3:13 pm

      Oooh that’s a neat looking plugin. Jquery is really nice dynamic stuff. I wonder if it plays with with the Ajax Edit Comments I also like to run. At the moment though I’ve had that plugin disabled (and lots of others) for the same reason I’m wondering whether this one is high system resources. I wonder what it does to page speed and resources. It sounds really neat though! The only downside I can see to that is that by default its hiding the replies and that is hiding proof that I reply to my comments. I want someone to see that before they comment so they think to come back and get the reply. What are you thoughts on that?
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

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  3. Kaye Flack says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:25 am

    Thanks Kim this is a great post its was so helpful to understanding of what was happening on my blog
    You ROCK !!
    Kaye Flack recently posted..ToolsMy Profile

    Reply
  4. Mary K Weinhagen
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:32 am

    Kim… What an extremely HELPFUL post!!! I so appreciate you conveniently providing links to all these ‘comment encouraging’ plugins. THANK YOU! :-)

    ~Mary K
    Mary K Weinhagen recently posted..8 Skills Every Teen NeedsMy Profile

    Reply
  5. Darlene Davis says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:35 am

    Kimberly,
    Comment Redirect is a plugin I need to get, along with Top Commentators widget. I really enjoy CommentLuv. It is such an easy way to connect with others with just one click of the mouse.

    Thanks for another lesson on increasing our blog traffic:)
    Darlene Davis recently posted..Shall We DanceMy Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 3:28 pm

      Top Commentator is another great one but has to be used right so I left it out in favor of some stronger ones. There’s a lot of older blogs that their top commentators have 20+ posts, and new visitors will not even bother to play the Top Commentator game since they know its nearly impossible to get on the list. Much better to make the post count refresh every couple months and give everyone a chance to play :) If you have any trouble with either of those give me a shout girl!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..WordPress Plugin Review – TwitterLink CommentsMy Profile

      Reply
  6. Linda G. Cox
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:37 am

    Kimberly,
    I’ve never writen a post of you where I haven’t learned something! I love it when people read my posts and comment on them! My favorite plugin is commentluv, I love to see what everyone else is writing about and I can click on it to go right to the post!
    ~Linda
    Linda G. Cox recently posted..New Compound for Multiple Sclerosis – ProkarinMy Profile

    Reply
  7. Jackie Lee
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:39 am

    My favorite way is to ask a question at the end of my post. Ask people to respond, act, leave a comment. I notice a huge difference in the number of comments on posts where I don’t ask them to take action.
    Jackie Lee recently posted..Who Are You Talking To Do You KnowMy Profile

    Reply
  8. Nichole Darden says:
    July 10, 2010 at 3:42 am

    Great tips, Kim! I still feel like I’m reading a foreign language when it comes to blogging. But, I’m getting quite an education thanks to folks like you! I love your straight-forward, helpful approach!
    Nichole Darden recently posted..Nichole…the Next OprahMy Profile

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  9. Toni King
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 3:46 am

    Hi Kimberly,
    This is great having each plugin required for for a specific purpose that compliment each other, to achieve a similar desired outcome, all listed together.
    From this list I currently only have ‘commentluv, dofollow and top commentators widget’ running on my site, so I’m about to get busy and install the rest.
    Thanks for sharing.
    In Health & Harmony
    Toni
    Toni King recently posted..Winter WarmthMy Profile

    Reply
  10. Nile
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 9:26 am

    Just put together a home.php and instead of the_content function, put the_excerpt. No need for a plugin. I know I sound like a broken record Kim, but this is a database usage type plugin… code it in instead of injecting more diskspace taking code.
    Nile recently posted..With Popular Blogging Comes Spamming-My Profile

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  11. stephaniesuesansmith
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 1:45 pm

    Kim,

    This was a well written, informative post. I have all of the plugins you mentioned but comment redirect. I will have to look in to that and see if it will work on my blog. Good luck in the contest.
    stephaniesuesansmith recently posted..Free Tuition to ComLuv-Famous Blogger Contest CollegeMy Profile

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  12. Krista Abbott
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:04 pm

    Kimberly,
    Great tips you share here on how to make a blog a thriving community rather than a creepy ghost town. I appreciate all the value and insight you continually provide to the blogging community. Thanks!
    Krista
    Krista Abbott recently posted..How To Eliminate Negative Thought PatternsMy Profile

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  13. Virginia Sproul
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 2:45 pm

    Hi Kim,
    The only plugin I have from your list is commentluv and I intend to add the rest.
    I have spent so much time getting my blog set up that I’m just now starting to add content. Information like you have provided here is so helpful and I’m looking forward to seeing the results.
    Thank you,
    Virginia
    Virginia Sproul recently posted..Gulf Oil Spill – My Fourth of July ObservationsMy Profile

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  14. Kylie Doak
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 3:23 pm

    Hi Kimberly

    I expect nothing less than an educational and helpful post from you … and of course you didn’t disappoint! ;)

    The only plugin that I’m not currently using from your list above is Comment Redirect, although I have it installed but not activated.

    Okay, first and foremost … well written, interesting, educational, inspirational, entertaining, helpful – ie: value packed – content that benefits your readers in some way is a great place to start.

    It doesn’t matter how many plugins you have or questions you ask of your readers, if your content is difficult to understand, either because it’s poorly written (full of spelling, grammatical or typographical errors) or it just plain doesn’t make sense, then people aren’t going to want to leave comments (other than perhaps some not very nice ones, and nobody wants those!).

    You don’t have to be a great writer, however, if you can clearly convey what you’re saying through speech, then you can easily translate that to paper. Reading over what you’ve written/typed to ensure it makes sense and flows correctly, is a great way to proofread your work.

    Assuming that you DO provide great content, one of my favourite ways of encouraging comments is the same as Jackie Lee mentioned … inviting a response from the reader by asking questions, eg: inviting them to share their experiences (related to the post), or asking their opinion, feedback etc.

    I have no doubt that having CommentLuv installed on my blog helps too!

    Although I haven’t done this before, another idea would be to have a competition for the most helpful answer, or the funniest true story or something along those lines. Other readers could vote on the entries and you could offer a free consultation or whatever you deem applicable for the winner (anyone with a bit of imagination could think of something worthwhile).

    I would also make sure that the comment area is set up so that person commenting does not need to log in – those ones just annoy me.

    I do agree with you that having post excerpts on the page is a great idea, although if a blog site only has one post so far, I think that showing the full post looks better (that’s just my opinion though).

    I noticed that oriridraco (above) has received feedback that some of her readers don’t like having to click through to read the full post. I can’t see why this would bother anyone (but each to their own!).

    I much prefer to be able to glance through a few posts to see whether I’m likely to be interested in reading further, rather than having to scroll for what often seems like forever to get down to the next post. Again, this is simply my opinion.

    I ALWAYS reply to comments. I know how much I enjoy reading the replies that I receive for my comments, so I gather that others do too. :)

    The other side of that is that I feel that if the person has taken the time to leave me a comment, then the least I can do is reply to them. Not leaving a comment is like walking away from someone without answering them.

    In saying that though, I do realise that there are only so many hours in the day and that the more comments someone gets, the longer it takes to reply and it’s impossible to do everything.

    Even a simple “Thank you, such and such. Your comment is appreciated” is better than not leaving a reply at all (and if you’re that pressed for time, a few “generic” responses that you can simply copy and paste would save you some time too).

    Again, just my opinion, but I feel that it would make people feel that their comments (and time) are more appreciated.

    If you show people that you are willing to engage in conversation with them and that you value their input, they are more likely to come back, ultimately to developing better relationships with each other. After all, isn’t that what having an interactive blog is all about (in a nutshell)?

    Just supposing that someone reads a post but they don’t want to leave a comment, or they’re not sure what to write so therefore don’t leave a comment, if you have a Related Posts plugin/widget or Link Within plugin (I’m not using this yet because I’m shopping around for images!), they may just find another post that looks interesting enough for them to read that they might leave a comment on. No doubt there are other plugins etc of this nature, but these are the two that came to mind without me having to look anything up.

    The longer people are on your site, one would hope the more likely they are to find something that interests them enough to read and comment on.

    Here’s another idea: invite questions on what their biggest challenge is with a particular area in your niche.

    Okay, I’ll stop now! :)

    BEST OF LUCK with the competition, Kimberly!

    ~ Kylie ~
    Kylie Doak recently posted..A Blast From The PastMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 1:28 pm

      Kylie have I mentioned I love your replies?! Seriously girl its a great thing to meet someone as verbose as I am! I love it!

      Do you really feel a generic reply is better than no reply? I always feel torn over that. Generic can almost be an insult where as no reply can at least potentially be taken as “much too busy”. I’ve been working harder to get all of my blog’s posts replied to but am still failing at it!

      I also try to get back to my commenters blogs but again, I’ve bitten off more than I can chew time wise. I need a cloning service for a body double, know any good ones??
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Is Your Blog On The Slow Road To SuicideMy Profile

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      • Kylie Doak
        Twitter:
        says:
        July 11, 2010 at 1:56 pm

        lol – thanks, Kim … I think!

        “Generic” sounds terrible, but I couldn’t think of anything else at the time (it was well and truly past my bedtime last night when I left that comment and I’d had a very tiring day!).

        I’m not a major fan of “generic” replies, however, there are some occasions when I find it difficult to know what to reply with (even for someone as verbose as me – hehe).

        I’m also torn over using them, however, I still feel that acknowledging the person for taking the time to comment is better than not saying anything at all.

        I understand what you mean though about “insult” compared to “much too busy” and it obviously comes down to each of us doing what we feel is right for us.

        We are definitely alike in many ways, including the fact that I regularly say, “I wish cloning was legal – it would be very handy!”

        Thanks for the reply, Kim … I appreciate it! :)

        ~ Kylie ~
        Kylie Doak recently posted..A Blast From The PastMy Profile

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      • Jacqueline Gates says:
        July 11, 2010 at 8:36 pm

        Nobody could clone you, Kim. You’re unique!
        And that’s the whole problem with outsourcing things like blog comments etc ~ and I know some VAs do that ~ if you’re unique, people will know when it’s not you doing the replies.
        We’ll just have to resort to adding more hours to the day … or never sleeping, whichever is easier.

        Reply
        • kimjcastleberry
          Twitter:
          says:
          July 12, 2010 at 4:53 am

          There’s a lot of outsourceable things that are far less likely to be identifiable as such than blog comments. Anything that is personally identifiable needs to remain high touch from the expected person. Things that are easier to outsource include thank you DMs, basic reply DMs, FB/Twitter re-shares of other people’s content, website back-end work, formatting/editing of posts and videos, etc. I don’t really have a problem with VAs doing comments as long as its in either the business name or the VAs name “dash” business name. However when its in a personal name that isn’t the VAs thats when I think ethics start to bug most of us!
          Kimberly
          kimjcastleberry recently posted..Twitter – How To Get Off Inappropriate Twitter Lists of OthersMy Profile

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  15. steveshoemaker
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 4:55 pm

    Kim great advice once again I see a couple of plug ins I need to get. I can never match the 5000 you currently use but you have given me enough sound tips to get by. I really like the fact I have such a smart and generous person as a friend. Will chat with you soon.

    Steve Shoemaker
    steveshoemaker recently posted..Socially Optimize Your Internet MLM BusinessMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 12:44 pm

      Hey now, dont you go picking on my plugin addiction mister! lmao!!! Don’t make me get out the nerf bat! Seriously though no one should ever have the addiction I have – its terribly bad on the database and why I’ve had so much trouble this last 2 weeks. My blog has been proof of why thats a BAD idea. These are a nice foundation set though and on the list of ones I recommend to my students. Thanks for all your support, friendship and even the ribbing! LOL
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..How NOT To Lose Control Of Your Facebook Fan Page-My Profile

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  16. Dr. Joe
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 4:56 pm

    Helpful post Kim. I’m going to add that Top Commentators Widget.

    Point number 4 on thanking people – there’s a plugin called Comment Relish that sends an email to any first-time commentators. I forgot I had it and went to back to reactivate it.

    Thanks Kim!
    Dr. Joe recently posted..Personal Drama – Drama Queen Part IMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 6:56 pm

      Dr. Joe, thanks for the comment and feedback.

      Comment Relish is one I didn’t manage to get working but I have a similar one. The problem with that whole class of plugins is you have to explain integrating a “comment policy” where the commenter can see it and acknowledge it – or you violate the CAN SPAM laws with those plugins.

      I’ve got a rather long post on the one I use (Comment Reply Notification) with a big section on that. I probably should move that section into a post by itself for easier reference. As much as I like that type of plugin – because of the work that has to go into making them compliant – they don’t make my “recommended for everyone list”.

      I just didn’t feel that the contest community would be in the mood for a diatribe on spam law compliance LOL! I’m glad to hear the comment relish plugin is working for you though. I wish I could get it working on my main blog to test it. I don’t think it likes one of my other plugins.

      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Facebook – How To Post More Than 420 Characters On Wall PostsMy Profile

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      • Dr. Joe
        Twitter:
        says:
        July 10, 2010 at 7:02 pm

        You’re right. I never thought of that. I better go deactivate that now. Some people are understandably very touchy about their email.
        Dr. Joe recently posted..Dentists are Tooth Carpenters- Dental Hygienists are Gum GardenersMy Profile

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        • kimjcastleberry
          Twitter:
          says:
          July 10, 2010 at 7:10 pm

          There is a plugin called something like “comment policy” or such that adds a “must be checked” check box before a commenter can use the submit button. This would be one way of creating compliance.

          Since I use the Keywordluv plugin, which lets me create some custom text under the comment box, I include a statement that if you reply you will likely receive an email from me. Yeah, I’m sure that deters a few, but my comment numbers really did not hiccup too badly when I put it in place. Since “Comment Reply Notification” lets me (chose too) only send an email when an admin (me) replies – many have thanked me that they do not have to subscribe to my busy threads just to hear if I reply to them. There are always tradeoffs, we just have to watch the law and at least try to understand it in spirit.

          Have a wonderful day,
          Kimberly
          kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

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  17. Holly
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 5:26 pm

    Hey Kim Thanks for the info. I too find some jargon for the blogging like a foreign language! I have a couple that you have mentioned here and I will go thru the list and see which I can add to make the connection with my readers more meaningful I like the Comment luv one best cause then i can check out other blog posts quickly and easily. Thanks so much.

    Holly
    Holly recently posted..It’s not the Fat in Your Diet Part 7My Profile

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  18. Teresa Ivory says:
    July 10, 2010 at 5:27 pm

    Top notch as usual, Kim!

    I’ve been redirected when commenting on someone’s blog before but didn’t know how to make it happen on mine – so a huge thanks to you for providing the info! And I need to check out Keywordluv – I’m not familiar with that one.

    I noticed that the posts I receive the most comments on are what people call “transparent.” It seems to strike a chord with readers when I reveal a part of myself that is not expected (and not perfect!) It brings out what I would call a nurturing wisdom in commentators that all of my readers can benefit from.
    Teresa Ivory recently posted..Success Stories- Danielle ZackMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 12:51 pm

      Oooh I love that and you are so spot on! Commenting definitely thrives when we are being our real, genuine authentic selves! This is why Jodie and I’s WordPress/Social Media class is called (How To) Profit Being You – because its when we leave the facade behind and show ourselves that the connections deepen! That’s such powerful advice, thank you for the reminder.

      The comment redirect is a nice simple little plugin, it just requires you to make a hidden page to point them to. You can do all sorts of things on that page including a thank you video, suggestions of other top posts (links), a encouragement to opt in, and even a very low dollar product further down on the page. Lots of flexibility and its one more great way to connect!

      Love ya girl!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

      Reply
  19. Chris Kilber says:
    July 10, 2010 at 5:58 pm

    очень фантастический!

    Translation – Very Fantastic! These are the basic building blocks of sharing the juice. As Kylie also pointed out there is also the aspect of interaction and solicitation of feedback that generates a following.

    I have also seen people who abuse the comment luv with senseless or useless comments just to provide a link back to them. I wish that the setting in the discussion section of the dashboard would let you set the number of previously approved comments to more than just one.

    I’ve also seen plugins, the name(s) escape me right now, that will put a checkbox next to the comment form that will also automatically put that individual in your auto-responder. If they are already there, have supplied the information on their own volition, took the time to comment, don’t you think they would also check that box?

    Now if we could only combine comment luv with dofollow built in? Hey, I’ll look into that!

    очень фантастический Ким
    Chris Kilber recently posted..Don’t Let the Procrastination Theif Rob YouMy Profile

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    • Andrea Goodsaid
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 9:54 pm

      Nice article Kim!

      Chris – anything you could point us to in the direction of adding commenters to an email list would be super cool …

      I recently signed up on an IM blog in what I thought was a feedburner field, but then I got added to a regular email list at the same time … pretty slick.

      Andrea
      Andrea Goodsaid recently posted..I Have a New Baby – It’s Not HumanMy Profile

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      • kimjcastleberry
        Twitter:
        says:
        July 10, 2010 at 11:03 pm

        I think there’s a chance that Chris is referencing the plugin I run on my blog which does that and ten times more. I’ve been beta testing it a few weeks and its really really sexy. I’m an affiliate for it but I wont leave my link here since that’s probably against the rules. The plugin is Subscriber Magnet and it’s due to launch in just a week or two officially. There are other similar things but nothing as comprehensive as this plugin. I’m definitely in love (it doubled my opt in numbers with all of its tricks combined).

        Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 12:34 pm

      Hey Chris thanks for the awesome comment, love the ummm… Russian? I’m working on my hustle so I guess you could say I’m ‘rushin! LOL!!

      I replied under this reply to Andrea with more about the Subscription Magnet plugin I use and love. It launches soon and I’ve been beta testing.

      Regarding DoFollow integration, there is some work being done on that with “Commentluv Gold” Its looking really sexy! http://comluv.com/news/comluv-gold-comment-plugin/ I hope to know more on it soon as well, waiting to hear back from Andy.

      Thank you kindly sir!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

      Reply
  20. Kristi
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 6:15 pm

    Excellent tips on getting more comments! One thing I will add about the first one – if you’re someone that doesn’t like having a lot of plugins, you can also modify your theme’s template (depending on which one you use) to use the excerpt instead of the full post on the homepage. (See the WordPress Codex for more). Great plugin for those who are not comfortable with PHP though!
    Kristi recently posted..Strengthen Your Article Marketing With CommentLuv LinksMy Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 10, 2010 at 7:05 pm

      Hey Kristi!

      I connected with you not too very long ago on twitter courtesy of a recommendation from @gupshupblog and @sonlinebiz but hadn’t had a chance to truly connect. Since it’s much easier to chat here, I just want to say welcome and thank you :)

      Thanks for the link to the Codex. Nile was also explaining that using the theme modification would substantially reduce the server load that this (and other) plugins can cause. I’m trying to talk her into writing a blog post on the topic! I do a little coding but not much, the under-pinning of WordPress are still not my strong suite just yet. Thanks for the suggestion that I look into this!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

      Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 12, 2010 at 6:44 pm

      Kristi, I hope you don’t mind the second reply but I just noticed that you managed to get your entry article link into commentluv. I haven’t been able to figure out how to do that. Are you using a fully seperate comluv account or some other magic?
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

      Reply
  21. Bree Anderson
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 7:04 pm

    Thank you for the informative information. I came in from twitter (@MacKidNWClumbus) & am leaving with making a few changes to my blog. (The only think I’d recommend in your post is to have your links open in a new window.) Thank you for the write up!

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 12:55 pm

      Bree, thanks for your support and comment, I really appreciate it! I tried my best to make them open in a new link, but it was the first time I’d used the contest’s post submitter which was kinda different than our usual dashboard. Some days thing’s just dont work as planned! You ever had one of those days? LOL If you have any questions or get stumped on those plugins give me a shoutout and I’m glad to help!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Twitter – How To Get Off Inappropriate Twitter Lists of OthersMy Profile

      Reply
  22. Nelson
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 7:29 pm

    Information overload. Bookmarking so I can come back and reread some really cool stuff. I did pick up on one point about a tutorial on improving a free themes. I love my “Desk Mess” free theme, but it has its’ limitations. Many things discussed here won’t work. But I’m not changing. So I’ll stay tuned for those gems Kim you also come up with.

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 12:58 pm

      Nelson I agree that you’re theme is a lot of fun. Working around it isn’t such a bad idea for now, and as you’re traffic increases you can look at getting someone like Nile to correct the theme itself for you and make it more full-featured. That way you can keep the “look” and get the bells and whistles! Let me know if you heed a hand with any of those plugins or have questions, I know plugins can make for headaches!
      Thank you for your support!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Is Your Blog On The Slow Road To SuicideMy Profile

      Reply
  23. Jacqueline Gates says:
    July 10, 2010 at 8:50 pm

    For me, the greatest benefit of this post is not only knowing which plugins are best, but the fact that you also take the time to mention when they are Included in your WP theme and therefore don’t need to be installed.

    All too often I’ve read about a new fancy-schmancy plug-in and had something crash because it clashes with something already within my theme.

    My favorite thing about CommentLuv (and it’s thanks to you that I even have it!) is the ability to click on the commenter’s last post and go straight there.

    And I have to agree with Chris that a check box that adds a commenter to your autoresponder would be really cool!

    Thanks for the ongoing education, Kim, and especially for not making us feel like morons for not being able to ‘speak the language’!

    Bliss and blessings,
    the goddess known as Jacqui
    Jacqueline Gates recently posted..Raccoon eyes- Gratitude and goddess-ness RevisitedMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 1:37 pm

      I totally hear you about the plugin meets built in feature conflict issue! I guess as a WordPress support person, I probably see more of those causes/solutions than most and so I try to mention them.

      Of course that’s minor compared the the blog I worked on a few days ago that had 3 facebook share plugins, two twitter share plugins AND digg digg, and wondered why thing’s were not loading! Whoops!

      It would be real silly of me to give anyone a hard time for feeling confuse when I spent time wanting to pull my OWN hair out due to some of this! There is some commenters in this thread that can run circles around me! I just take what I figure out and try to explain it and pass it along!

      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Wait A Week Before Installing WordPress Core and Plugin UpdatesMy Profile

      Reply
  24. Val Haderlie says:
    July 10, 2010 at 8:56 pm

    Kim, I love the analogy of the ghost town blog! Thanks for this valuable post reminding us that it is OUR responsibility to make it easy for readers to leave their comments. I appreciate the instantly useable information and I am adding a couple plug-ins as soon as I finish making this comment! This post is a real call to action for us as bloggers to sweep out the ghost town cobwebs and light the lanterns of our websites so guests can see clearly the value of our posts.

    Val Haderlie

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 1:48 pm

      I love the way you built on my analogy! Yes yes yes! The cobwebs have GOT to go! (well unless its Halloween LOL!) The only spiders I want on my blog belong to the search engines!

      Bloggers seem to get confused and adopt the “Build it and they will come” mentality, then wonder why it doesn’t work! Not only do we have to create traffic – but we have to make it easy for that traffic to leave some evidence they were ever there. Social proof is a powerful powerful thing!

      I’m blessed to have friends like you to help me keep the bats out of the belfry!
      Kimberly

      PS: Give me a shout if you get stuck with any of those plugins!
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

      Reply
  25. Jodie
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 9:32 pm

    You definitely have a thriving metropolis because you share so much valuable information!

    Quick question – did you do that diagram at the top?
    Jodie recently posted..Guaranteed Direct Marketing Response Used In Jonathan Budd’s MLM Launch FormulaMy Profile

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  26. Veggie Val
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 10:49 pm

    Kim! Great comments on commenting. I will be using them all and, I must say, I know you do more than “talk the talk” about blogging. You “walk the walk” and make use of all the wonderful (and sometimes not so wonderful) new things the WordPress community throws out to us. Grateful are the members of your tribe!
    Best,
    Val
    Veggie Val recently posted..A Veggie Pâté- A Loaf of Bread – and ThouMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 2:01 pm

      Hey Val! Thanks so much for your support its certainly my pleasure to get to hang out with great friends like you!

      I have to say when it comes to testing out all the half-working beta stuff its you guys and gals as my blog community that I kinda feel sorry for! I giggle because everyone that crosses my blog becomes my personal guinea pig! Most people though are happy to let me break my own blog before I recommend something that might break theirs! It’s not a bad tradeoff really ;)

      Thanks for your support!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

      Reply
  27. Justin Glover
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 10, 2010 at 11:10 pm

    Hey Kim!

    This is a great post, and due to all the comments, you OBVIOUSLY know what the heck you are talking about here.

    I always enjoy reading your stuff!

    Take care,
    Justin
    Justin Glover recently posted..Article The Importance Of Driving TrafficMy Profile

    Reply
  28. Donna Merrill says:
    July 10, 2010 at 11:45 pm

    Kim, I really don’t know how you do it all. This is so Fabulous. I took your advice on comment luv and there are more and more people streaming in. That was 2 days ago.

    Now this….Girl you have me rock’n. Thank you so much, I know you will be blessed for all that you do Kimberly. You are a true mentor and have a heart of gold. Always digging information and making it simple for us.
    How many times must I say I am so greatfull to you? A million. I love you girl
    Donna

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 12, 2010 at 6:30 am

      Woot! Yay! Glad to hear one of my favorite ninja traffic tricks is working out for you! There are some really fantastic people just waiting to be met out here! It’s hard to fathom blogging as “door to door sales” but in some ways it is – we have to get out and meet other people at their door! Thank you so much for all your love and support girlfriend!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Is Your Blog On The Slow Road To SuicideMy Profile

      Reply
  29. Cherie Bombell says:
    July 10, 2010 at 11:47 pm

    As always, Kim, I learn so much from you. Thanks for the great suggestions – I don’t yet use most of these plugins. I love the way you explain things simply so even the unsophisticated bloggers, like me, can understand. Keep up the great work educating the uninformed, Kim.

    Reply
  30. Nicole Rushin says:
    July 11, 2010 at 1:05 am

    This is really great information. I am glad I stopped by. I need to add a few of these to my blog. Just added commentluv the other day. I was wondering what the best way to reply to someone is. When you reply directly under the comment it does not go to their e-mail. I don’t think people see my responses when I reply to their comments. Can’t be sure of that though. How do I get my responses to go to someone’s e-mail address? I see some people have automatic responders set up somehow, but to me that is impersonal.

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 11, 2010 at 9:34 am

      Nicole, I have a reply above to Dr. Joe about this issue. I have a plugin review on my blog about Comment Reply Notification and he’s using Comment Relish which is sorta different. I need to finish up moving the part of the post about legalities into a seperate post so its easier to share. I’ll get that up on my blog shortly or you can check out my comment reply notification review post which currently has it in the second half. Thank you for your comments and support!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

      Reply
  31. ChrisMcCargar
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 2:54 am

    Hey Kimberly,

    You’ve always got such good tips and usually full of valuable information that improves the presentation, appearance, functionality or content.

    These 5 tips are sure to get more comments for anyone that follows your outline.

    Another great post! Very helpful… thanks Kimberly.

    Reply
  32. Sue Price
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 3:01 am

    Hi Kimberly
    I have learned so much from reading your posts over the last months. I have followed your previous advice but realize I still need a couple of plug ins.

    I am very grateful to have found you and to learn from you.

    Thanks again

    Sue
    Sue Price recently posted..Business MindsetMy Profile

    Reply
  33. Kathy Jodrey says:
    July 11, 2010 at 4:31 am

    Hey Kimberly,

    This is an awesome summary…thanks so much for the info! I’ve often wondered about the comment thread feature but haven’t taken the time to learn how to add it to my blog. So this is a great help. I have added it and plan to do a much better job of keeping a dialog going with my commentators.

    I’m wondering about the no follow attribute. Do you have to have all 4 of the plugins you listed activated to turn on the no follow feature, or is it automatically turned on if you just have Comment Luv installed and activated?

    Appreciate your dedication to helping us be the best bloggers we can be :-)

    ~ Kathy J
    Kathy Jodrey recently posted..Your 90 Day Plan to Freedom – Summer Scenery Series Video 2My Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 13, 2010 at 11:30 am

      Hey Kathy!

      The Commentluv is by default going to get the nofollow tag that WordPress adds to all WordPress comment links. By itself commentluv (or keywordluv) is no follow. Top Commentator defaults to nofollow but it at least has a setting box built-in that you can make it do-follow.

      In order to get this entire collection to dofollow (and that would include the name/url link of the commenter) you need a DoFollow plugin of some sort.

      I had Lucy’s Linky Luv (which goes Dofollow after 3 comments, but I found that it wasnt affecting the commentluv link AND it wasnt protecting me from the increase spam volume that comes with being dofollow.) I got rid of it, replaced it with DoFollow and added SI Captcha (to go with Akismet, which has its own problem currently), and have had a beautiful reduction in spam.

      This whole confusion is one of the reasons I’m excited about the work being done on the upcoming (premium) commentluv gold plugin. Cant wait to get a chance to beta test that baby!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

      Reply
  34. Kellie Hosaka
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 7:28 am

    Aloha Kimberly,

    Awesome tips as usual! Thank you for always giving us your best! You are so great in everything you do. I will take a look at all of your tips and implement the ones I don’t currently have.

    Much love & gratitude,
    Kellie :)
    Kellie Hosaka recently posted..If You Could Rewind or Fast Forward Your Life- Would YouMy Profile

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  35. Maureen
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 7:40 am

    Kim, this is really helpful! I have most of the plugins you mentioned above except for the Comment Redirect. Will give that one a try today :D Thanks for sharing!
    Maureen recently posted..Friday Flip-off -8211 2nd Week of JulyMy Profile

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  36. lousesteiner says:
    July 11, 2010 at 9:34 am

    Great information as always Kimberly. I realise I still need a couple of plugins on my site so will get to work and I’ve put a call to action into my Comment Redirect, something I hadn’t thought of before.

    I have learned so much from you….thank you for continuing to share such valuable information.

    Reply
  37. Kara Grabenhorst says:
    July 11, 2010 at 9:41 am

    Hey Kim,

    This is great information and I’ve already gone and added a few of these plugins from what I’ve read here.

    What you’ve shared is certain to help many enhance their blogs in order to get more comments. Thanks for sharing!

    ~Kara
    Kara Grabenhorst recently posted..Three Tips to Help You Do Anything With A Great AttitudeMy Profile

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  38. Michaelé Harrington
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 10:28 am

    Hey Kim,

    This is an absolutely awesome summary of ‘must have’ plugins for building community.
    I was just reading another one of your posts on making your blog ‘do follow’. Now that I’ve read this post, I definitely need to check out the do follow plugin you recommended!

    It’s not much fun putting all that effort into starting a blog only to have it appear like a ghost town as you say. So many people would find things turning around quickly if they followed even half of your advice above.

    Thanks for the endless incredible value you give to the blogging community :)
    Michaelé Harrington recently posted..How To Brand Your Blog With A FaviconMy Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 13, 2010 at 3:42 pm

      Hey Michaele!

      I need to do some work on my DoFollow posts, they’re kinda jumbly and I don’t think they’re getting the “why its important” point across. Maybe I can do something about that.

      Sadly a lot of people are still intimidated by my advice. They think that because they’re not techy they cant use it and so they don’t even bother to try. It’s really sad to watch.

      Thanks for the comment and love girlfriend!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Why Commentluv’s Circle of Luv Is One Of My Ninja Traffic Secrets-My Profile

      Reply
  39. YamunaKeller says:
    July 11, 2010 at 12:32 pm

    That’s great tips Kimberly. I am currently only using the Commentluv technique so all the others will help me greatly. I found on my other blog I had a ton of spam coming through although i did have it moderated, BUT if I hadn’t I would have had a messy blog that is for sure. I guess the best advice I could give on commenting is to spend a few hours per week on other peoples blogs reading and commenting on posts. You will learn a lot and at the same time mutually benefit from the commenting. I have just got started with my new blog and have had hurdles with time available but I’ll get there! Great post and good luck with everything!

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 15, 2010 at 4:31 pm

      Yamuna you mentioned having a ton of spam comming through even though you have it moderated. By coming through do you mean going to the spam folder or ending up actively posted on the blog? You should have an anti-spam plugin running, such as Akismet, and it functions to send the possibly spammy posts to the spam folder. Some people think if they see lots of things in the spam folder that akismet isn’t working and that’s actually the opposite. What is a problem is when spam ends up making it around a spam-blocker and posted as an approved comment. If you’re dealing with that and have akismet running please give me a shout and I’ll help you sort that out!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Rapportive – The World’s Gone Social- Isn’t It Time Your Email DidMy Profile

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  40. Danielle Zack
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 12:39 pm

    Awesome straight forward stuff Kimberly!
    If we want to build a community and a relationship with our readers, it’s very important to encourage them to comment. These are all great plugins! I use all of them except for the last three you mentioned. I need to get those up and running.

    Thanks Kimberly!

    Danielle
    Danielle Zack recently posted..Do You Want to Win the RaceMy Profile

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    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 10:06 am

      Definitely get the last three up and running they’re important! The dream stack is a great way to give back to our community that really helps everyone out! Once you get your site set up for them, let me know and I’ll get you listed on my page that lists who has set them up (meaning whos giving the best link love!) Cant wait to add you there!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..WordPress Plugin Review- Digg DiggMy Profile

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  41. Bill Hartman says:
    July 11, 2010 at 12:40 pm

    Kim,

    Great stuff here, of course I would expect nothing less from you. You ALWAYS deliver top quality tips to your readers. I really appreciatebthe hard work you do for all of us out here.

    Thank you and keep up the good work.

    Sincerely,
    Bill

    Reply
  42. Jason Armbruster
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 1:09 pm

    Tip, tricks, hints … more tips. Kimberly… you always take your posts to new heights. Thanx for these tidbits. Ill see if I can work some of them into my blog.
    Jason Armbruster recently posted..Staying Sticky with your Blog FollowersMy Profile

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  43. Robin Lynn Brooks
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 3:13 pm

    What you share here in your summary Kim encourage a hub of activity in that your blog is an important spot to encourage community building relationships and in engaging readers. The proof is in the comments above :)

    And share the link juice! I love it!

    I am sure it is a good thing, as we enter your blog and become your personal guinea pigs… You take serious action working out the kinks and then you share a ton of advice we all might benefit from. Well worth it.

    Much appreciated time and time again,
    Robin
    Robin Lynn Brooks recently posted..Listen for that Real Connection in Relationship BuildingMy Profile

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  44. Jennifer Hart says:
    July 11, 2010 at 3:53 pm

    Hi Kim,
    You really know your stuff and give valuable info to the blog community! Thanks for all the great tips on making sure there is lots of great interaction and a thriving metropolis on our sites!

    Reply
  45. Faith Barnard
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 4:46 pm

    Kim,
    I can see why you are such a successful blogger. This post was powerful for me. I am using some of these plugins however the series of plugins under the category of “Link Juice” was my favorite.

    Outside of posting excellent and helpful content consistently within your niche working with your suggested plugin stack for creating more back links is brilliant.

    Thank you for offering such valuable content that we can all take home to the bank.

    I am a fairly new blogger however tapping into the community of bloggers has accelerated my growth as a blogger and you can’t beat the networking.

    I look forward to following your posts and applying the wisdom to my own blogging journey.

    Faith
    Faith Barnard recently posted..Mike Klingler’s Marketing Funnel Mastery Course- the Missing Link in Your Online MarketingMy Profile

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  46. Wes Wyatt says:
    July 11, 2010 at 5:02 pm

    Kim –

    Your posts are ALWAYS informative my friend!

    Thank you for sharing not only this contest – but everything you find that makes the process of Blogging and Social Media better!

    Have a DYNAMITE day!

    Wes
    Wes Wyatt recently posted..Word of Mouth SupergeniusMy Profile

    Reply
  47. Pat & Lorna Shanks says:
    July 11, 2010 at 6:26 pm

    Hi Kim,

    Good overview of some great WordPress plugins. We have used all of these plugins at some point in blogs and still use some today, others we have found replacements that do a better job for us.

    One way we found to get an increased comment rate for us, was being featured on a Jimmy Kimmel episode and this was completely by accident. Check it out for yourself => http://TheCoolestCouple.com/92i

    Good luck in your ComLuv contest our COOL friend Kim Castleberry.

    Thanks,
    ~ Pat & Lorna
    http://TheCoolestCouple.com
    Pat & Lorna Shanks recently posted..Are They Looking at Me Its All About What Your Prospects WantMy Profile

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  48. clinical10
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 6:35 pm

    Kimberly, can you comment further on your 1st tip? I like that idea. I am new to blogging and just need to better understand the tip. Thanks

    Reply
  49. keepupweb
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 11, 2010 at 8:33 pm

    I have been blogging for 4-months now and still have not utilized excerpts on my blog. Now that I see you have it listed as #1 on your list of powerful tactics, I regret not having prioritized it. I will definitely do that asap. Your #5 tip, sharing the link juice prompted me to install the Top-Commentators-Widget. Other than that, I guess I’m in pretty good shape. Thanks for the excellent post!
    keepupweb recently posted..Afraid to Move Your Website but Know You ShouldMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 12, 2010 at 6:57 am

      Sounds like you’re definitely in good shape! Glad to hear you installed the Top Commentator widget! Playing the top commentator game on other people’se blogs is something I like to do. It gets a quality backlink for me, and comments for them. Win/win is pure gold!

      When/If you switch to using excerpts, you may see a minor hiccup in click through rates. This will be because you have some readers visitin who are already not coming into the article to comment and they will be forced to chose whether they want to click to read it. However, once they’ve read it they no longer have to make the same decision about whether they will click to comment. Now, with a solid call to action, your comment numbers can more easily go up.

      Once you’re readers get used to the new layout, its all skyward bound!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Thesis 18 Coming Soon To A Blog Near You-My Profile

      Reply
  50. Jan Hill
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 12, 2010 at 3:20 am

    Hey Kim – great post as usual! I always learn great tips to tweak my blog through your informative posts. This one is great -I actually added the comment thread at your suggestion and love it. I am going to have to add the enable subscribe to comments-great way to keep the conversation going! I don’t like to have to log in when leaving a comment – I think you have to do that with Discus? Thanks Kim – you are awesome!

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 12, 2010 at 10:09 am

      Exactly – stay away from Discus and that forced login nonsense is my advice. I’m definitely not the only person that boycott’s blogs I have to log into. Sire’s poll shows almost 44% have skipped commenting when they have to log in. Fortunately you dont need those things anymore with all the stuff built into wordpress and able to be hand picked from plugins. It’s good stuff! Thanks for the comment hun!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..WordPress Plugin Review – TwitterLink CommentsMy Profile

      Reply
  51. Young And Fabulous
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 12, 2010 at 4:23 am

    I have Commentluv, Lucia’s Linky Love & Top Commentators Widget in my blog and love them! Time to get the Subscribe To Comment plugin and what plugin would you recommend to notify the comment author thru email when you reply?

    Excellent tips, as usual, Kim. Thanks for sharing!
    Young And Fabulous recently posted..My Hot Mom Of The Week- Tyesha BrownMy Profile

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    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 12, 2010 at 10:11 am

      I have a review on my blog of Comment Reply Notification which I adore – however bunch of us are going to need to chip in and get that one fixed its got a minor bug. The reason I’m sending you to the review though is I wrote up my thoughts on that type of plugin and the CAN SPAM law which by themselves all those plugins violate. I think you probably know where to find my blog by now ;)
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Is Your Blog On The Slow Road To SuicideMy Profile

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  52. Beth Hewitt says:
    July 12, 2010 at 9:56 am

    Kimberly,

    You have a value packed post here, you never seize to amaze me with your generosity in the knowledge and information you continue to share.

    There’s a few tops tips here that I didn’t know about, or I just totally forgot lol.

    Good Luck with the Competition Honey, if anyone deserves to win its you.

    Beth :)
    Beth Hewitt recently posted..Thank you- but NO thank youMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 14, 2010 at 9:47 pm

      Beth, thanks so much for your love, support and comments! You’re the best!

      I’m not sure if you’d have heard that list before or not. I never know for sure what you’ve picked up where since I alwalys forget you didnt arent one of my students ;) hehe. It’s okay you’d make me look too darn good!

      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Understanding the Types of Syndication TribesMy Profile

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  53. Peter Fuller
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 12, 2010 at 12:34 pm

    Hey Kim

    Great advice, especially the part about sharing link juice. I have noticed a few blogs out there wanting commentators but they have “nofollow” setup. I assume that they do not know any better. Hopefully they do now.

    I think WordPress with no special plugins now defaults to “nofollow”?????
    Peter Fuller recently posted..Brand yourself online with your own “Nerve” CenterMy Profile

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    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 14, 2010 at 9:50 pm

      By default, all wordpress comment links are nofollow. This is from the “protect your seo juice” days. Infact many seo vets still preach that. I know quite a few PR4+ blogs that can easily disprove that myth though or at least prove that its more than made up for in traffic.

      A plugin must be used – and people hear about the seo “issue” and the increase in spam and dont want to install yet another thing. For the most part, most just don’t know better. It’s why I’ve wrote so much about DoFollow on my own blog (although I need to make some of those posts easier to digest). Cant really hold it against the new guys that don’t know.

      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Understanding the Types of Syndication TribesMy Profile

      Reply
  54. Jean at The Delightful Repast
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 12, 2010 at 3:50 pm

    Kim, this post is full of great ideas for me. However, I use Blogger rather than WordPress. Is there a “subscribe to comment” plugin for Blogger? (I’m a low-tech type; can you tell by my question?!)

    Reply
  55. Beth Allen
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 12, 2010 at 8:08 pm

    Turning your ghost town into a home town ~ love it! Great post here, Kim. You always deliver such valuable insights and strategies to streamline our social media strategy.

    I’m not yet using Keywordluv or DoFollow, so will have to go add those. I definitely want to be sharing the love, and always appreciate you helping me figure out ways to do that! :)
    Beth Allen recently posted..Moments that Matter…Living Your Fullest Life-My Profile

    Reply
  56. Khaleef
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2010 at 1:07 am

    Kim, once again you have given me a lot of great information for my website!

    I think your articles are must-reads for new (and seasoned) writers!
    Khaleef recently posted..How We Saved Over 125 in 20 Minutes at CVSMy Profile

    Reply
  57. Steve Hachey says:
    July 13, 2010 at 2:39 am

    Hey Kim,

    You hit a homerun with this one!
    Excellent blog post full of some great tips.
    Comment Luv is a no brainer and the redirect is
    something that I may consider using in the future.

    Thanks again Kim.

    Cheers – Steve
    Steve Hachey recently posted..Culture… And We Are Not Talking About Yogurt Here-My Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 13, 2010 at 4:00 pm

      Hey Steve!

      If you have any trouble with the redirect, give me a shout! It’s pretty straight forward but a little unusual in that you’ll want to hide a page. That said though, its a great way to further “time on site” and to further relationship building. Most use it as another place to make a call to action for opting in and some even sell a low cost product on it. Lots of flexibility depending on your goals.

      Thanks for your support and help! Appreciate it!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Is Your Blog On The Slow Road To SuicideMy Profile

      Reply
  58. Grace White
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2010 at 3:22 am

    Kim, I often enjoy your blog. I need to start commenting more as I always appreciate your knowledge and humor.

    Thanks so much.
    Grace White recently posted..Comfort when traveling- it’s a mustMy Profile

    Reply
  59. tonyknuckles
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2010 at 6:01 am

    Kim, you knocked it out of the park on all accounts with this post. RT’d and blasted you across the web. Good luck in the contest.
    tonyknuckles recently posted..Failing To Draw A CrowdMy Profile

    Reply
  60. Cheryl James says:
    July 13, 2010 at 3:02 pm

    Great advice. Interacting with other people’s blogs seems to be very worthwhile endeavor. Now if I only had more time….
    Cheryl James recently posted..What are you readingMy Profile

    Reply
    • kimjcastleberry
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 13, 2010 at 9:27 pm

      I totally hear you about the time factor Cheryl! I’m still looking for that cloning device! Time is the premium I tell ya. So many people talk about free this and free that but often its better to invest some money just to free up some time! I’ll keep you posted if I figure out cloning!
      Kimberly
      kimjcastleberry recently posted..Understanding the Types of Syndication TribesMy Profile

      Reply
      • Nancy Burke Barr, JD
        Twitter:
        says:
        August 5, 2010 at 5:58 pm

        Hi Ladies!

        The time dilemma seems to be universal. The old expression is, “I have more time than money.” Hmmmmm…….I don’t know about that one, because I am pretty short on time.

        I hear that outsourcing is the key. In fact I am going to contact my friend, Garrett Miller , the “Outsourcer” and find out what he’s got up his sleeve. If I could unload some of the really time consuming work, it would help to get me blogging more!
        Lookie there! You always get me thinking!

        Mentor Mama

        Reply
        • Kimberly
          Twitter:
          says:
          August 6, 2010 at 8:19 am

          Yay! Thinking is good thing and so is outsourcing when its done by dependable people. If its technical stuff send it my way and if its general stuff thats not necessary to be personallized definitely find a VA to outsource to! I’d take a bow at getting you thinking, but I’d probably trip over my feet! LOL
          Kimberly
          Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

          Reply
  61. Udegbunam Chukwudi
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2010 at 4:42 pm

    A teeny weeny problem with the Comment Redirect plug-in is that the thanks for your comments page doesn’t open in a new tab or window. For some reason I just dislike using the back button when surfing the web.

    Commentluv, Keywordluv, DoFollow & Top Commentators Widget. Nice. I’ve got them all ;-)
    Udegbunam Chukwudi recently posted..Top 16 Essential Plug-ins For Every WordPress BlogMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      July 14, 2010 at 10:00 pm

      I’m not sure that I view that as a problem *IF* the thank you page is fully developed. Now mind you, I’m a bad example, not having spent the time I should on mine. However, logically someone should have finished reading the post and sharing before commenting. Redirecting them shouldnt be too big of a deal if you make a strong call to action and point them to more of your best stuff. The problem becomes when the Redirect is basically a dead-end and yeah… back buttons are kinda #fail! Maybe a check box for open in new tab would be a good suggestion to that plugins developer, what do you think?
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Understanding the Types of Syndication TribesMy Profile

      Reply
  62. Jakes
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 13, 2010 at 5:46 pm

    Hi Kim,
    Every blogger loves link luv and that’s why comLuv turned out to be a great plugin.
    Apart from the points you told, I would also recommend the feature email notification when a commentator gets a reply. Some themes lack this feature. Now, you may wonder why am stressing on this point. Because my blog don’t have that feature and am trying to figure out a way to resolve it
    Jakes recently posted..Are you in Terminal LoveMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 3:45 am

      If your talking about how my site sends you an email when I reply to your comments, search my site for “Comment Reply Notification”. Read the comments though as it has a minor bug I work around. I’m taking donations to get it fixed. Love that plugin. Read the post though because plugins like that can be a violation of the law. That’s why they’re not built into most themes, people would not allow it. Hope that helps!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..WordPress Plugin Review- CommentLuvMy Profile

      Reply
  63. Nancy Burke Barr, JD
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 14, 2010 at 2:54 am

    Hi Kimberly!

    What a fabulous post! These are the kinds of posts that make you the blogging Queen! I love to write articles, but definitely need help in this arena!

    Thank you!

    Mentor Mama

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 3:46 am

      Hey hun! You know what the nice thing about plugins like these are? They’re – for the most part – “set it and forget it”. You spend a little time getting them in place and then they require very little babysitting. They let us get back to talking about the fun stuff!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Top 10 Must Have WordPress PluginsMy Profile

      Reply
      • Nancy Burke Barr, JD
        Twitter:
        says:
        August 3, 2010 at 3:34 am

        That is great to know Kim! One of my next projects is to go through your site, post by post and implement your info! I need to get on this one sooner rather than later!

        Mentor Mama

        Reply
        • Jacqueline Gates says:
          August 6, 2010 at 2:42 am

          Mentor Mama Nancy, you can’t go wrong with Kim’s posts. She only shows you the good stuff AND somehow gets total technophobes (like me) to be able to actually feel like you know what you’re doing!

          My best tip – open her blog in one window and your dashboard in another. Play the video, pause, go to your site and do as you’re told, back to the video, repeat.

          Works like a charm!
          Jacqueline Gates recently posted..My 7 “I’d Really Rather you Didn’ts” – Facebook editionMy Profile

          Reply
          • Kimberly
            Twitter:
            says:
            August 6, 2010 at 8:22 am

            Thats a great tip, especially use of that pause button! Without that sucker how-to videos just fly right by too fast! I know I get great mileage out of training videos and hope mine are helplful!
            Kimberly
            Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

          • Nancy Burke Barr, JD
            Twitter:
            says:
            August 12, 2010 at 5:31 pm

            Hello Goddess Jacqueline,

            You are so right! I never realized how mant things must be done to a blog and I do think that it is important for me to understand them. I think that I need to go to Kim’s blog everyday, carve out 30 minutes and implement one strategy per day!

            I’ll def use the 2 window suggestion.

            Mentor Mama

        • Kimberly
          Twitter:
          says:
          August 6, 2010 at 8:21 am

          The one nice thing about this stack is that they are mostly “set it and forget it”. Done once and other than updates tend to just keep on chuggin! The only thing you might change from time to time is your Thanks for Commenting page but that’s not often. I’m a big fan of stuff I only have to do once! I hate monotonous repetition stuff!
          Kimberly
          Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

          Reply
  64. stephaniesuesansmith
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 14, 2010 at 2:29 pm

    I love the ghost town analogy. Very creative. I have all the things you mentioned except the top commentor plugin. I worry that posting that will turn the comments into a contest, not something to build community. Have you had problems with that?
    stephaniesuesansmith recently posted..Free Tuition to ComLuv-Famous Blogger Contest CollegeMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 3:53 am

      Stephanie, I think that’s a really powerful question.

      What I’ve found is that it really triggers little more abuse than being dofollow does. You will occasionally find me having “friendly rivalries” with fellow bloggers on Top Commentator, but its in the name of “good sport”. Sport and interaction among your readers DOES actually build community. There’s no harm with a little fun and games.

      What is a problem though is when someone comes in and leaves a quick comment on every single post on your blog – that’s not a “good comment” – just for the link backs. That happens regardless though.

      People just getting started with Top Commentator tend to let it run and not make it reset. However then you get someone who has, say, 40 comments and no one else can easily make it on the list. This bums out new visitors. I found that happened at about the 3 month mark for me.

      Now, I set my TC widget to refresh (start counting again) every 3 months. 90 days. That gives regulars a fair chance to play, and new guys a fair chance to get the link. A dofollow TC link can mean a lot to a little blog, if it’s from a ranking blog, even if its only for 3 months. That can be enough to help google start to see the little blog. I have given some thought to finding a way to run TWO copies of TC, one that refreshes and one that doesnt, to reward established commenters, but also to reward the newer commenters. I will probably do that once commentluv gold goes live with its own copy of TC.
      Kimberly recently posted..Top 10 Must Have WordPress PluginsMy Profile

      Reply
      • Stephanie Suesan Smith
        Twitter:
        says:
        August 1, 2010 at 12:36 pm

        I suppose that makes sense. What made you set it for 90 days instead of 30 or 60? Did you go through some process of testing which worked best or did you make an educated guess? I would probably start with 30 days, but wondered it you tried that and it wasn’t long enough?
        Stephanie Suesan Smith recently posted..ComLuv/FamousBloggers Contest Benefits Garden BloggersMy Profile

        Reply
        • Kimberly
          Twitter:
          says:
          August 1, 2010 at 10:39 pm

          I spent some time discussing it with some friends who happend to also be regulars on my blog.

          Top Commentator isn’t fun so much for the name recognition as it is the SEO back link that generates traffic. If you put a couple hours in doing comments on my blog, and got this link, and it went away 30 days later, you’d probably feel frustrated at the lost effort.

          That’s definitely what I heard from the community. Its also the reason I think I will run 2 copies of the widget in the future.

          If you’re going to do a couple hours of work for this link, and then lose it, then suddenly its clear that those couple hours would be better spent getting a high quality forum backlink or doing some link building on various sites than continuing to spend time on the same site. This is about seo and link building.

          90 days was pretty much the minimum we agreed worked. I tried 60 for a while and I saw some annoyance at that. I’d personally rather use 60 but I’m not greedy, I wont snub the nose of my loyal readers if that link is really what they want for me, ya know? It’s so hard to have rewards for our regulars that keep them feeling appreciated, that the risk of snubbing them is just too high for me to go below 90.

          This is one of those plugins where at the end of the day it doesnt come down to “what do I want”, it comes down to “what do they want”.
          Kimberly

          PS: I should note that I know some VERY high traffic blogs that have theirs refreshing at 30 days, but even though I break the 100k alexa mark, my traffic is pidly numbers compared to theirs. In 30 days they have so many comments its difficult for the new guy to get a foothold – AND – their PR on their blog is 4+ and thus worth a lot more than mine is to the visitor.
          Kimberly recently posted..Top 10 Must Have WordPress PluginsMy Profile

          Reply
  65. GrowMap
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 16, 2010 at 8:57 am

    Congratulations on the number of comments this entry already has. I wanted to offer some great information on the benefits and how to use KeywordLuv and point out my post about CommentLuv (appropriately featured in CommentLuv in this comment).

    Both provide comprehensive explanations of the enormous benefits of being part of our DoFollow CommentLuv KeywordLuv community.

    Do drop by and add your information in the comments of those posts and I will add you to the lists I maintain of friendly blogs to frequent.
    GrowMap recently posted..How CommentLuv Grows Businesses and BlogsMy Profile

    Reply
  66. Theameriskeptic says:
    July 16, 2010 at 4:15 pm

    Thanks for the tips Kim. I love how you always provide such useful and practical information in your posts. Do you know if any of these options are available for wordpress.com blogs?

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 4:08 am

      I had to do a little digging. I believe that the subscribe to comments feature is already included in wordpress.com (it really should be part of wordpress core, in my oppinion).

      Commentluv should be available to you if not directly then through the use of Intense Debate. Usually I dont recommend ID due to the annoyance of logins but if its what it takes to get access to commentluv then I’d say do it.

      Homepage Excerpts isnt available but there should be themes available to you that take advantage of this as a standard homepage display. Just look at the themes and pick one that doesnt display the whole post by default.

      Comment threading should be availble as its part of the core now, although it is possible that a few of the themes don’t support it. Usuallly Automattic filters out non compliant themes though so that one should be easy. Even if its not, if you have to use intense debate, then that will get you comment threading.

      Comment Redirect, Keywordluv, Top Commentator are probably not available to you. There should be a manual way to edit the theme to make the site DoFollow but I can not for the life of me find a link to confirm that. It’s really all these additional tools and flexibility and owning our property that is why so many of us use wordpress.org and self-host.

      Hope that helps!
      Kimberly recently posted..Top 10 Must Have WordPress PluginsMy Profile

      Reply
  67. Linda Secretan
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 18, 2010 at 11:03 pm

    Kim, you are so-o knowledgeable and gracious. I’m going crazy bookmarking all your great ideas for when I’ll need them (blog? what blog?) lol.
    I aspire to just a smidgin of your guru-ness.

    Reply
  68. Rosina Wilson
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 19, 2010 at 10:38 pm

    Wow, Kim ~ These are really fantastic suggestions. As always, your ideas are fresh, original and “outside the box” enough to provide amazing content for us all, regardless of experience level. Thanks so much!

    Cheers,
    Rosina
    Rosina Wilson recently posted..The 2010 San Francisco International Wine Competition 30th Anniversary!My Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 9:04 am

      Hey Hun, thanks for stopping in and commenting! You rock!

      I’ve been trying to catch you on skype the last few days but it seems your porch light may be on even though you’re not around. I don’t know whether you’ve gotten my message or not! Skypes a little wierd like that!

      Hope things are going great!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Top 10 Must Have WordPress PluginsMy Profile

      Reply
  69. Jose H. Caraballo
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 20, 2010 at 10:25 pm

    I have actually neglected to add many of these features to my blog. Thank you for the great reminder and for including the plugins inside this post. I am going to work on these tonight!

    As always Kim, great content, great info and great help.

    Thanks for continuing to give back (or pay it forward) whichever fits best.
    Jose H. Caraballo recently posted..Do You Have Too Much on Your Plate Or Your MindMy Profile

    Reply
  70. Joanne G. Apat
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 29, 2010 at 12:51 am

    Great post Kim! Powerful tips and suggestions to keep in mind and apply.
    Joanne G. Apat recently posted..How To Hollywood Video Men- What’s Keeping Them BusyMy Profile

    Reply
  71. Edward
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 29, 2010 at 4:04 am

    Hey Kim,

    Great post. Packed with amazing content to get the luv flowing over at your blog. Thanks for your leadership in this area. I really appreciate it as I know many others do to.

    Make it a great day!
    God Bless,
    -ed
    Edward recently posted..Share Your DREAM Friday – with Special Guest Dreamer Nicole Rushin!My Profile

    Reply
  72. Whiztechy says:
    July 29, 2010 at 6:08 am

    Hey Kim, you gave really useful and working tips here. We can increase comment interaction by asking readers to participate in discussion or asking about their views at the end of post, just like you did. Nice post :)
    Whiztechy recently posted..FontFonter- Check How Websites Look in Web Safe FontsMy Profile

    Reply
  73. Emily
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 29, 2010 at 10:06 am

    Hi Kim I’m learning lots from you and will apply this when I’m blogging in future. Thanks for sharing! Good luck with the writing contest. Emily x

    Reply
  74. Nat
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 29, 2010 at 10:50 am

    Hey Kim

    Great value packed post, thanks so much for all the info you share, It is truly appreciated!
    There were a couple of plugins in your list that I don’t have so i’ll be sure to check them out.
    luv your work!
    cheers :-)

    Reply
  75. Gavin Mountford says:
    July 29, 2010 at 12:41 pm

    Hey Kim, sorry I haven’t dropped by until now. I think it’s great what you are doing! You’ve definitely EXPLODED onto the blogging scene over the last 6 months. I know all the hard work and time you’ve put into this and it’s really paying off for you.

    I remember when I started blogging 3-4 years ago, there were no other network marketing bloggers out there to exchange comments with and help.

    I’m so glad all that has changed and you are leading the way.

    Keep up the great work,
    Gavin Mountford
    Gavin Mountford recently posted..The 3 Step Process Of Attraction MarketingMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 10:31 pm

      Gavin you have certainly earned your stripes the hard way out here! The industry has come a long ways in a short time but when youre waiting on it to catch up it can seem like a L-O-N-G time!

      No need to apologize at all, I should do the same for being so caught up in everything at the moment that I haven’t had a chance to get back to your blog and check out some of the things you’ve linked me!

      Thanks for all your support and hope things are going well for you!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..31DBBB – Day 4 – Analyze a Top Blog In Your NicheMy Profile

      Reply
  76. Kellie Frazier says:
    July 29, 2010 at 2:08 pm

    WOW Kim! I’m not amazed that you are kicking it, but I am amazed by how much time and energy you continue to put in. I love your persistence and dedication in creating content.

    I so appreciate you my friend. Will do what I can to spread the word.
    Kellie Frazier recently posted..What’s Your VPA 3 Key Components to Turn Dreams Into RealityMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 9:19 am

      Kellie, Thanks so much for all your ongoing support girlfriend. I know we havent connected heart to heart in forever, but I really appreciate you. I hope you’re hanging in there and the family stuff is settling down. We’ve both been going through some craziness thats for sure. Look forward to getting to chat with you again soon!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..WordPress Plugin Review- Akismet Anti-SpamMy Profile

      Reply
  77. Beverly Monical says:
    July 29, 2010 at 7:38 pm

    If I ever need help I know to come to your site for the answers.You help me every time.Your free tips are great!Thanks for another great post.
    Beverly Monical recently posted..Four Powerful Strategies for Becoming The “Go To” Person In Your BusinessMy Profile

    Reply
  78. knsfinancial
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 29, 2010 at 10:32 pm

    Hey Kim,

    I’m already doing 1, 2, and 3, plus Commentluv. I think you have convinced me to use #4 and the “link juice dream stack” as well.

    Thanks for consistently giving us information to improve our websites!
    knsfinancial recently posted..In the Military Here are Some Things You Should KnowMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 9:12 am

      Oh yeah, bring on #4 and be sure to let me know as soon as you have all the pieces set up and I’ll add you to the list of sites I have on my blog (a free link) that are set up. That page gets a lot of SEO traffic and click throughs so should be a little free traffic for you that way to boot!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..31DBBB – Day 4 – Analyze a Top Blog In Your NicheMy Profile

      Reply
      • Khaleef
        Twitter:
        says:
        August 2, 2010 at 7:07 pm

        Ok, that sounds great! I will have the rest of the “dream stack” installed in the next 10 minutes.

        Do you have an example of how I can take advantage of the comment redirect plugin? For instance, do I just send them to the home page, or should I create a landing page? What should I include on the landing page? Do you use this on http://just-ask-kim.com? I have left many comments on your site, and I don’t remember if you used this on my first comment or not.

        Thanks!
        Khaleef recently posted..Man Finds Contentment in 89 SqFt HouseMy Profile

        Reply
        • Kimberly
          Twitter:
          says:
          August 6, 2010 at 9:34 am

          Sad to say but I don’t currently have my “Thank You For Commenting” page set up well again after I lost it previously. You an find it at: http://just-ask-kim.com/thanks-for-commenting/ You want to create it as a “page” on your blog and then hide it from view. If your on thesis this means you don’t include it in your navigation, if you’re not then this means you need the “Exclude pages” plugin. (Or if your theme is new enough to use the new wordpress 3.0 menus you could just not include it there) . Now truth be told that page needs some SERIOUS work. It should not only thank them, but also link to some p opular posts they’re likely to enjoy (my best stuff) and also encourage them to opt into my mailing list. Be sure to include some suggested reading though, so they dont leave!
          Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

          Reply
  79. Donna Merrill says:
    July 30, 2010 at 12:17 am

    You are so awesome Kim. I can never keep up with the information you give us all. After reading your comment luv explanations, I am not taking mine for granted anymore. Thanks Kim!

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 1, 2010 at 9:11 am

      Was that the how-to set up or the traffic video? Yeah its a real force to be reconed with that sits right under our noses and is terribly easy to ignore when it could be a working for us!

      I cant wait till commentluv gold gets here, going to be a premium plugin that combines all four of the dream team stack into a single plugin and takes a lot of the confusion of that stack out! Anything that makes life simpler (and will also reduce spammers) is a friend of mine!

      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..31DBBB – Day 1 – Write An Elevator Pitch For Your BlogMy Profile

      Reply
  80. Sandy & Al Abrams says:
    August 3, 2010 at 6:00 am

    Kim, this has so much meat that I will be chewing for days!

    Beth, my ghost town is going to be a home town with all this great stuff.

    Thank you so much Kim

    Sandy
    Sandy & Al Abrams recently posted..Can The Porta-Potty Cleaner Read The Label On The Vitamins You Took This Morning Part 2My Profile

    Reply
  81. JohnRobbins says:
    August 3, 2010 at 7:00 pm

    Hi miss Kimberly
    I’m not a writer but I do spin some words of “come on in” once and a while. My job as the sales manager of an SEO company is to find any reasonable way I can to invite interest in our service. I create ways for others to make extra money from our service from off of their website. I tweet. I search the net and physically e-mail our partnering offers and our service fees to those that fit the bill. And I comment from time – to – time on blogs. I’m not technical for I don’t know where that would fit in to blogging or selling. I will say it’s clear that you know your stuff. Thanks for your sharing and helping spirit.
    Success to you and thanks for following on twitter.
    JohnRobbins

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 9:19 am

      Hey John, thanks for for stopping in and commenting! I really appreciate your support! Spinning the “come on in” can be just the invite someone needs to drop in and grab a cuppa and make themselves at home! It sounds like your doing an awesome job getting out here, getting to know people and helping others make the most of your services!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

      Reply
  82. emmie olivas says:
    August 3, 2010 at 10:11 pm

    Kim-

    Keep up all the great work with providing so much information!
    Emmie

    Reply
  83. Don Enck says:
    August 5, 2010 at 1:48 am

    Kimberly,

    As always your post are filled with incredible value. I just did a post on the power of good comments in building your online relationships. I’m gonna have to go back and rework it now.
    Don Enck recently posted..Are You Building Relationships With Effective CommentsMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 9:12 am

      I saw your post and really thought about all the comments I’ve seen in this contest on comments… you should have participated! The traffic boost has been nice and its been a wild ride of a learning experience. Fun (sometimes in a masochistic sorta way), wildly educational, and valuable all about sum this up. Loved your post!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

      Reply
  84. Nancy Burke Barr, JD
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 5, 2010 at 5:47 pm

    Hi Kimberly,

    I have to tell you that I have been coming back to this article to absorb all of the great info. Each time I read it, it is like peeling an onion: There is a new layer to discover. . . A new insight.

    My favorite idea here is “the dream stack”. it is such a stellar example of getting by giving. You are a true giver, so I’m not surprised that this would be one of your tips!

    Thanks for a super and succinct post!

    Mentor Mama

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 9:28 am

      I really need to spend some additional time blogging about the dream stack because its one of those things that have been instrumental from a decision making standpoint to my success gaining traffic. People just happen to like knowing that a comment on your blog is worth 10x SEO value to them compared to a non equipt blog!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

      Reply
  85. Mani Viswanathan
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 5, 2010 at 9:08 pm

    I would try to implement the Top Commentators Widget soon enough!
    Mani Viswanathan recently posted..SEO – Avoid Tag clouds to prevent Keyword Stuffing says Matt CuttsMy Profile

    Reply
  86. Linda Secretan
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 6, 2010 at 1:53 am

    Hey Kimberly,

    You are so generous, not only with your thoughtful post which will yield so much for so many, but also with your comments back. Especially over the past week or so, your presence as a role model for bloggers has loomed beneficently!

    So have you enjoyed your competition? Are you glad that you did it?

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 9:10 am

      Hey Linda!

      Careful girl or you’re going to make me blush! If I’m a role model for anything I hope its for the constant need to keep learning, implimenting, applying and staying in when the going gets crazy!

      Hesham recently asked me to write up a synopsis of my thoughts on the contest and here’s what I sent him!

      Participating in the ComLuv & FamousBlogger blogging challenge has been an absolute riot! It’s had this whole roller coaster of emotions… from wondering if I would do okay participating… to fear of getting my butt kicked… to excitement at the idea of leveraging my community to action… puzzlement at what to write about… anticipation after submitting it and waiting “forever” for it to be posted… overwhelm, exhaustion and amazement at the community support the two days after it launched… fatigue at keeping up with hundreds of comments… gratitude for everyone that went above and beyond to help me out… concern over how to keep up with it amid personal challenges… and now rekindled excitement as we come down to the wire and I gear up for one final push to make it into the spotlight! It’s been a journey that I’m so incredibly glad I didn’t let pass by! Its been a lot of work but balanced out by gratitude, new friendships, renewed sense of community and new readers on my own blog. I’ve made some awesome friends and readers and can’t wait to see if we do this again next year! Bring it on!

      Thanks sweetie!
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

      Reply
  87. Robin Lynn Brooks
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 6, 2010 at 5:30 am

    I am always coming across and learning about so many of these various plugins to optimize your blog and it can be downright confusing. There are millions to choose from. It helps to know there are those who seriously test the various combinations and have a real desire to provide sound advise when they do.

    Always learning,
    ~Robin
    Robin Lynn Brooks recently posted..Listen for that Real Connection in Relationship BuildingMy Profile

    Reply
    • Kimberly
      Twitter:
      says:
      August 6, 2010 at 9:05 am

      Hey Robin! Thanks for stopping in and for your comment! Really appreciate it!

      You’re right there are millions! It’s rather nuts how much flexibility and choices we have. Sometimes “a lot” may be equal to “way too bloody much!” hehe Hopefully between this and my Top 10 list its a little less overwhelming to get the basics covered.
      Kimberly
      Kimberly recently posted..Digg v4 Alpha Brings Two Cool New FeaturesMy Profile

      Reply
  88. mike michelini
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 6, 2010 at 6:04 am

    wow, this is GREAT Kim,
    my personal blog (linked here) is getting more commenting finally, after years, and i need to upgrade the blog to accomdate this.

    i’ll try these wordpress plugins…but always paranoid they’ll mess up my blog!
    mike michelini recently posted..Everyone “fails”- Even Google- Stay Motivated!My Profile

    Reply
  89. William
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 6, 2010 at 11:16 am

    Kim being more of a Jock by nature than a Geek I appreciate this blog, all other blogs and tweets. Massive value! thank you thank you discovering you is very helpful in my learning curve yeehaaa

    Reply
  90. CJ Spurr
    Twitter:
    says:
    August 12, 2010 at 4:45 am

    Kim — awesome post. I use a most of the plugins you mentioned, but one I don’t is the nested one. I have been debating about that for a while. I’ve seen site that do this well and others that don’t (mostly those that don’t do it well). Will definitely check it out. Who knows maybe this weekend there will be a change :-)
    CJ Spurr recently posted..Online Help Subject – Part 2My Profile

    Reply
  91. Lorelie says:
    August 19, 2010 at 10:45 pm

    Thank you so much Kim you came up a fruitful tips. This is so useful to encourage readers to speak up what’s on their minds.

    Reply
  92. Felicia Gopaul
    Twitter:
    says:
    October 25, 2010 at 2:22 am

    I just started to comment on other people’s blogs. Thanks for your article. I found it helpful and introduced me to some new widgets that I had never been exposed to and could use on my site. I especially liked your idea of thanking first time guests. I know I’ve been thanked when I post to a site and it always surprises me and encourages me to come back again to the site.
    Felicia Gopaul recently posted..001 CFR – Interview with Jacqueline Wisner – Alumni Recruiter for Brown UniversityMy Profile

    Reply
  93. Ryan says:
    December 23, 2010 at 8:49 pm

    On a lot of my blogs I always make it a habit to end with a question so that my readers have at least a vague idea of what to talk about in the comments besides simply saying “nice post.” It sparks discussion a bit and seems to work well for me. Would recommend it to other bloggers as well.
    Ryan recently posted..How Much Media Can I Fit in a 1 Terabyte External Hard DriveMy Profile

    Reply
  94. Ross says:
    January 11, 2011 at 8:56 pm

    I only found comment luv after my blog was marked as a spam site after I engaged in a few over enthusiastic commenting sessions.

    Comment luv made my life much easier as it lets me comment on peoples blogs whilst gaining a small token of appreciation for the comment.

    Thanks
    Ross recently posted..Asics Gel Kayano 17 ReviewMy Profile

    Reply
  95. mushroompalace says:
    February 2, 2011 at 12:42 pm

    Commentlov is one of the best plugins I have ever seen. Thanks a lot for the great article!
    mushroompalace recently posted..Can I come out to play yet nope nearly!My Profile

    Reply
  96. Ankit Saini
    Twitter:
    says:
    February 6, 2011 at 12:40 pm

    Nice Guide..
    I definitely Follow your guide..
    Thanks
    Ankit Saini recently posted..How To Edit Limit Reservable BandwidthMy Profile

    Reply
  97. LaTisha
    Twitter:
    says:
    February 9, 2011 at 7:34 pm

    These are some really great ideas to get more comments. I also read an article about not completing the post and allowing commenters to add suggestions. Which I see you’ve done. Now to see if I get a comment redirect… lol
    LaTisha recently posted..How to Do Your Taxes on the CheapMy Profile

    Reply
  98. Andy says:
    May 10, 2011 at 3:32 am

    Fantastic post, i really need help more on this tactics. These are the kinds of posts that make you the blogging Queen!
    Andy recently posted..Hong Kong Mercantile Exchange’s 1 Kilo Gold Contract To End Comex Gold Futures Trading MonopolyMy Profile

    Reply
  99. Damon
    Twitter:
    says:
    May 10, 2011 at 4:40 am

    Kimberly,

    I appreciate the post. I have been trying to figure out the best way to feature some of my top posts on my home page for a few weeks. So far I haven’t been able to get things to look nice. My latest attempt is a title list in a footer widget, but I don’t like that either. I am going to try the post excerpt plugin and see how that looks.

    Also do you know what the plugin you use for putting your little bio at the top of the article? What a great way to welcome new readers, so they know who they are listening to.

    I am going to try that comment redirect plugin as well, I always try to comment in response to commenters, but my commenting system doesn’t auto subscribe readers when they comment I I know most don’t check the box.
    Damon recently posted..Legal Helpers Debt Resolution Sued in 30 Page Complaint Filed by Illinois AGMy Profile

    Reply
  100. Edward Culligan
    Twitter:
    says:
    May 10, 2011 at 5:00 am

    Some really great tips for getting comments. I am new to comment luv and I already notice a huge improvement in my websites performance.
    Edward Culligan recently posted..National Debt ClockMy Profile

    Reply
  101. Pat says:
    June 1, 2011 at 9:21 am

    Hi there Kim! Thanks for always trying to help fellow bloggers to make their site more competitive and to assist us in making our site more comment friendly so to increase more traffic. I appreciate your suggestion to thank first time commenters on our sites. I will try to do it as often as I can. Thank you for being a blessing to others.
    Pat recently posted..Free Address LabelsMy Profile

    Reply
  102. Ivan Bayross
    Twitter:
    says:
    January 4, 2012 at 1:34 pm

    Hi Kimberly,

    I often wondered what to do when someone posted a comment on my Blog for the first time. The comment always went into moderation. So while the commenter saw their comment go up on my Blog they also saw a message saying that the comment was in a moderation queue.

    On reading your post, I learned about the – 4. Thank First Time Commentators.

    Amazing now I have the ability to engage the commenter and perhaps enter in to a dialog with them, which is so much nicer for them than just reading a message that their comment is in a moderation queue.

    I’ve downloaded the Plugin and I shall set it up on my Blog.

    Thanks so much for sharing. I’ve definitely benefited by reading your Blog post.

    Reply
  103. Kimberly
    Twitter:
    says:
    July 14, 2010 at 9:57 pm

    Hey Walter, thanks so much for the reply. Glad you learned something! Keywordluv is fun and lets the name/url field accept some anchor text so that people can still enter their real name AND anchor text rather than telling me that their name is “best washing machines” LOL!
    Kimberly
    Kimberly recently posted..Understanding the Types of Syndication TribesMy Profile

    Reply

Trackbacks

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    July 18, 2010 at 7:19 pm

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