So you’re have a blog, building an online presence for your law firm. You’re trying to attract a following and stand out from the swarming sea of other “me too” attorneys with stagnant websites. But in setting up the blog you come across a major decision.
Do you turn your blog comments on, or off?
Most marketing folks will tell you that a blog needs to have comments turned on. If they’re off then it’s not a blog – it’s a broadcast mechanism.
There are some high-profile people who have their comments turned off. Seth Godin, for example. He gets tens of thousands of readers each day. If even a small percent of those people commented then he’d be bogged down in administering and responding. He’d never have time to write anything.
You, however, are not Seth Godin. You’re a lawyer who set up a blog as a way of sharing information, entertaining your prospective clients and building your authority in the marketplace. I think it’s fair to say that Seth Godin has already accomplished that.
And in case you waver, here are my top 6 reasons why you must keep them on.
- Because you look like an elitist snob if you don’t. It’s like going to a cocktail party and standing in front of some blowhard who doesn’t let you get a word in edgewise because they’re oh-so-brilliant and have thought of absolutely every salient point in the conversation. Hey, I’ve got some advice for that jerk – go talk to a wall and stop wasting my time.
- Because other readers may have some value to add. Maybe I’m writing about a bankruptcy discharge violation and one of my visitors has an angle that involves the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I probably want to hear about that because it may help my case, my level of understanding, and my other readers.
- Because it isn’t legal advice if someone asks a question. It just isn’t. And if you think it is, add a disclaimer onto your sidebar.
- Because if someone can’t add their two cents on your blog, they probably won’t think they can speak freely at all. And when people feel muzzled they don’t feel like they can trust you very much.
- Because more comments on your blog are better for your search engine optimization. There’s the elephant in the room – SEO. You blog to get to the top of the search engines for multiple long-tail keywords, right? Right. So when someone adds a comment they invariably are going to talk about the same stuff you’re talking about … including the same keywords. So if there’s more keyword-rich content on the blog, that’s better for your SEO. Your blog commenters help you in your quest for search engine domination.
- Because if you’re talking to yourself, you’re pontificating. And that’s cool for static websites, but not blogs. It’s the nature of the beast, friends. Blogging is social media – that means you gotta be social. Conversations and all that. Back and forth. Build relationships.
Oh, and if you’re worried about spam comments – don’t. There are a bunch of terrific ones out there to cut down your spam volume so it doesn’t bug you.
So what’s keeping you from flipping the switch on your comments area?
Image courtesy of Search Engine People.
