Archive for » November, 2009 «

Nov

blogging time graph In the comment section of “The Battle Over Comments – Part 1″, many of you mentioned 50 + comments would be a dream come true; a time for celebration.

However, once the celebration is over, how to deal with dozens of comments raises an important issue.

That’s the issue of TIME.

Today’s Lesson

For some this lesson may seem premature, but I see it happening.

If all of you continue on your blogging journey, you will experience fifty or more comments on a regular basis.

However, as your comments increase, the time required to deal with them will increase, too.

Lance, of Jungle of Life, experiences this each time he publishes. What he said, in part, is,

What I do find is that it [answering comments] means I write fewer posts. I’m okay with that, though. It’s come down to what really matters to me – and that is the feeling and sense of community.

Vered, who is a veteran blogger, knows all about receiving dozens of comments, as well. What she did was look at the priorities in her life and now does what works for her. In her comment she stated,

I stopped answering [comments] individually. I used to feel it would be rude, but when you get to a point where it’s either reading to your kids before bed or answering comments, you read to your kids and hope your readers will understand.

Knowing it’s possible to receive dozens of comments, being prepared is half the battle.

To prepare, we need to ask ourselves one important question.

“When we begin to receive 30, 40, or 50+ comments, where do we find the time to deal with them?”

Do we publish less often?
Do we spend less time visiting and commenting on other blogs?
Do we postpone performing maintenance on our blog?
Do we fore go spending time on social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook and/or StumbleUpon?
Do we delay proceeding on other projects we have in the works?
Do we steal more time from real life?
Do we rethink how we answer comments?
Do we consider outsourcing part of our blogging activities?
Or, do we ___[fill in the blank]___?

With only 24 hours in each day, priorities will come into play.

What would yours be?

Today’s Assignment

Knowing the day will come when you will get dozens of comments each time you publish, where would you steal the time from to deal with this added responsibility?

If you’re currently dealing with this issue, what part of blogging or real life suffers?

Or, will you just cross that bridge when you get to it?

Category: Archives, Blogging, Blogging Lessons, Comments 62 Comments

Nov

The Battle Over Comments – Part 1

Barbara Swafford

comments 2

I don’t know of a blogger who doesn’t love getting comments.

Comments can give us validation, be the start of a cyber friendship, make us laugh, make us cry, build up our ego and/or give us warm fuzzies.

One comment can be the reason a blogger keeps going when they thought all was for naught,

It’s through comments we build community on our blog and by meeting others, help them to build community on their blog, as well.

When Chase March of Silent Cacophony commented on the I Don’t Get It post, his words echo those of many. In part, he said:

…They might not even realize that comments are something that bloggers actually live for.

So that’s my biggest challenge – getting comments.

Today’s Lesson

Unfortunately, there can also be a downside to comments.

In a reply to the Blog Yourself To A Smaller World post, Kathy of Junk Drawer wrote (in part):

…now I have over 40 comments. Do I reply to them all? It’ll take me an hour! I wish I knew how other people got away with not replying to any of their commenters. It seems rude to me not to….

Many of you may be saying, “I wish I had her problem.”

But with receiving comments comes responsibility, and as Kathy implied, questions.

Do we answer each comment individually?
Or would a reply to the group be sufficient?
Do we only answer a comment if they’ve asked a question?
And if we do that, will some of those who commented feel slighted if their specific comment isn’t addressed?
Would it be best not to answer any and not show favoritism?
At what point do we stop answering all comments? 50? 100? 200?
And lastly, might it be best to close comments?

The question of how to deal with dozens of comments is a concern for some, but a dream for others.

On that note, let’s play a game of “What If”.

Today’s Assignment

What if you began receiving 50 or more well thought out comments on each post you wrote?

What would you do?

Or, if 50+ comments is commonplace on your blog, how to you handle them?

Category: Archives, Blogging Lessons, Comments 92 Comments

Nov

I Don’t Get It

Barbara Swafford

image of frustrated person One thing I notice about people, whether in the real world or online, is each one of us has our own unique talents.

You know how it goes.

Some are very artistic and can make a stick figure look like a work of art. Others can take words and spin them into a captivating tale. Some have perfect hand eye coordination and yet others can look at a room and envision a beautiful transformation.

I feel everyone is gifted in at least one area, but I’ve yet to find anyone who can do it all.

Today’s Lesson

Blogging is one of those activities that incorporates many talents.

We not only need to know how to write, but also need knowledge of coding, links, blog security, statistics, SEO (search engine optimization), inserting images, ads, widgets and/or embedding videos into our posts, plus much more.

When I started blogging, I didn’t understand the language of blogging, nor did I understand coding. There was so much I wanted to do with my blog, but for the life of me, I felt I was continually hitting a brick wall.

In some ways I knew just enough to get me in trouble, and when I crashed my blogs, that became even more evident.

With time on my side and with the help of others, I feel I’ve conquered many of my struggles but also realize with the rapid changes in technology, the learning process never ends.

Knowing I’m not alone, I’m sharing one of my early blogging challenges.

It was how to insert an image into a post. For the life of me, I just couldn’t grasp it.

After weeks of trying to wrap my brain around the concept, the light bulb finally went off.

What about you?

Today’s Assignment

Reflecting on your blogging experience, what has been the most difficult part of blogging for you to grasp?

Do you still struggle with it, or is that challenge behind you?

Photo Credit: moonstarsilverwolf

Category: Archives, Blogging, Blogging Lessons 90 Comments

Nov

What Does Your Blog Say About You

Barbara Swafford

bwab screeshot Dot over at Deeper Issues and I must be blogging sisters as we both enjoy looking at, experimenting with and/or changing our themes.

In the beginning days of blogging, I changed the theme to this blog quite regularly, but now use my test site to play with new themes so I don’t confuse all of you by making too many changes here.

On my next project, which is STILL under construction, I’m not only getting posts written for the unveiling, but am redesigning the theme. I’ve changed colors, added widgets, created and recreated the header a half dozen times, and played with so many fonts I’ve lost count all in an attempt to get it “just right”.

Today’s Lesson

Just as they say the first impression is a lasting one, the theme we use can say a lot about us and our blog.

Some choose colorful ones with photos, whereas other bloggers are sporting lots of white space.

Some have sidebars filled with ads, photos, badges and widgets. Others prefer things much more simple.

With so many blog themes to choose from, the possibilities are endless. Add to that the fact changing the code can result in an original creation, bloggers can customize their sites and make their theme a representation of who they are.

When I land on blogs, I wonder why the author chose the theme they did. Was it the color that attracted them, or the layout? Did they customize the header or did they choose to only display the name of the blog and its tag line? Does the theme represent what I’ll find in the articles? And is it a true representation of the author?

For me, I chose this theme because I can change the header image with just a few clicks. It has a “custom header” feature which allows me to download a different photo if I so desire.

Because I wanted this blog to showcase those who comment, older posts and interviews, advertisements took a back seat. (I have some in the footer).

What I’ve done may not work for others, but for this blog I feel it fits.

What about you?

Today’s Assignment

Why did you choose the theme you use?

Does it fit your personality or is it time for a change?

Raise you hand and share how your blog theme was born.

P.S. The photo at the top of the post is a screenshot of this blog prior to April 2009

Category: Archives, Blogging, Blogging Lessons, Themes 94 Comments

Nov

Blog Yourself To A Smaller World

Barbara Swafford

small world image Anyone who has been blogging for any length of time soon finds out blogging can become addictive.

So addictive, it can begin to rule our life.

Some bloggers stop socializing with their real life friends. Others spend so much time in front of their computer, their health begins to suffer.

Weight gain can result, as well as other unhealthy habits.

With all of the benefits blogging has, it’s sad to think the down side can be so huge.

Today’s Lesson

Blogging has a way of slowly drawing us in.

In the beginning it’s very subtle. We may find we’re spending more time on our blogs and stealing minutes from our sleep time to blog and/or communicate with our online acquaintances. Soon, those minutes can turn into hours.

If left unchecked, we can find ourselves sucked in to blogosphere and feeling quite overwhelmed.

In Davina’s situation, she realized she was blogging so much, her real life was slipping away. She so eloquently put it when she said,

My circle grew in the sense that I had more connections, but yet my life grew smaller. The blogging cycle became a merry go round that was spinning at a dizzying speed.

In my personal experience, it became harder to be creative and come up with new ideas to write about — because I didn’t have a life outside of blogging.

I think that’s why so many bloggers find other bloggers are writing about the same things. The fun and creativity is lost or smothered by self-imposed pressures of obligation. The inner critic has a wonderful time with this, distracting you, knocking around your ASSteroid Belt.

Blogging shouldn’t be that way. Blogging should be fun and not feel like an obligation.

Even though a blog can provide personal and financial gain, it’s meant to help us grow as a person; not to take over our life.

Today’s Assignment

Has blogging affected your life in a negative way?

If so, how are you handling it?

If you’ve found balance, what advice would you give to a blogger who is struggling with juggling their real life and blogging?

Raise your hand, share your thoughts and together we can help each other.