Blogs and Forums: Only Comment if You Have Something Meaningful to Say!

August 11, 2009

When working with any level of online business, commenting on popular blogs and high traffic forums should be a fundamental part of your Internet Marketing strategy. Once again we see the power of networking at work here, and the same basic rules apply – be relevant, be interesting and don’t “hard sell”.

Whatever niche you’re in, there are forums galore out there. In these places you can get to know people who are actively interested in your particular subject, and have invested the time necessary to become members of these forums because they really value the information which is available. Where could you find an audience with better potential? While there are a wide variety of forums for every niche imaginable, there are still a large number of independent blogs, written and created by individuals who are also very interested in your subject. You may consider these people to be competitors in many cases, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t interact with them for overall marketing purposes.

One thing to always remember when commenting on blogs or forums is that you should consider the power of the content that you post as opposed to any potential benefit that you could receive from links. This is absolutely crucial. Some people undertake a commenting strategy with the sole purpose of getting back links. In some instances this may also be technically flawed, but you need to be confident that the content posted next to your individual or corporate name is to the very best standard!

Blog and forum commenting is highly recommended as part of an overall website development strategy. As is the case with blog production in general, or with social media network interaction, the material that you publish will be read and its composition judged. You don’t want to be posting irrelevant comments, or comments that are designed just to get your name out there. There seems to be no point at all in typing “great post”!

Blog owners will usually look at comments with great interest, and forums are almost always moderated by motivated individuals. In every case, whatever you write will have an impact. If you have something contrary to say, make sure that it’s constructive. There’s nothing wrong with being negative as such, so long as it can be viewed as a positive contribution to the conversation in view. Being negative just for the sake of it, or to create some kind of viral controversy isn’t really a good overall marketing technique for you.

You should note that some blogs have installed a “no follow” link policy, which means that if you have a link associated to your post, either in the signature or otherwise, the search engines are being told not to score the link. Most experts in this area recommend that you give more attention to the content of your posts and make sure that they are informative and contributory, rather than worrying about a potential back link to your site.

Initiate a policy of commenting on active blogs and popular forums associated with your niche. Use your competitor’s sites in a creative way to build your credibility as well. Remember, as is the case with many Internet marketing strategies, a subtle yet consistent approach is key.

Michelle Dale is The Managing Director of Virtual Miss Friday, a cutting edge Executive Virtual Assistant Service which assists organisations and enterprising individuals with every detail of their entrepreneurial aspirations. Do you want to peruse some further information on these incredible online business building success strategies? Contact VMF Now!

Are You Looking To Change Your Life & Experience Financial Freedom?
At Virtual Assistant Live We Show You How...

Posted by Virtual Miss Friday | Filed Under **Blogs**, **Business**, **Internet**, **Marketing**, **Media**, **eBusiness**, Advertising, Development, Promotion