Get More Comments on Your Blogger Blog

By: ADMIN on 06:25:00

Do you want to get more comments on your Blogger Blogspot blog? Maybe you are wondering why you are not getting the level of comments on your blog that you had hoped for? Well don't panic. Traffic takes time to build and commenting on new blogs is always slow at first. You could resort to creating your own comments but I strongly advise against it. Apart from being unethical I find you can often spot ingenuine comments a mile away and its a major turn off. Instead take heart. In this article I will be focusing on 7 strategies you can employ to encourage your readers to comment and to build a great community around you in the process.

Reasons Why a Visitor Might Post a Comment
To start with let's look at some of the reasons people comment in the first place. I find readers tend to comment on my blog when they have found a solution to a problem or understood something that they haven't known about before. Another reason to comment is that they may ask how to questions especially about technical problems or ask for advice. If I write something contentious readers may post to let me know they don't agree or conversely they whole-heartedly agree. Visitors post comments when they have been moved in someway.

Blog Visitor Behaviour
Visitors arrive at your site with an agenda. They are usually looking:

for answers to help them solve a problem

to be entertained, uplifted or informed

to connect with other like-minded people

Visitors get an impression of your blog the moment they arrive at the landing page. They make up their minds in seconds about the value of your blog. If their attention is grabbed right away by the look and feel of your blog they might hang around and read an article or two. Mostly people are looking for fairly instant gratification so make sure you give it to them by making your blog worthy of visits.

It is well documented by other bloggers that readers are more likely to comment if they see that your blog is well patronized and already has some action going on. If it's dead most will leave straight away. Most visitors will not get beyond the first page they arrived at. That's the reality of blogging. However, if your articles are unique and cutting edge in some way then you will capture some of the other 20% who will take more than a passing look. Humans being humans people are more likely to post a comment when they are not the first. Most of us don't want to be first to arrive at a party right and this applies to blogging as well.

7 Strategies to Encourage Visitors to Comment

Strategy #1 - Don't Panic - Be Patient - Build Traffic
If your blog is not getting much traffic commenting will be slow too. If your blog is new, say less than a year old, give it time. Once someone comments often this leads to further comments. Make sure you have attended to SEO and created sufficient backlinks to generate site traffic.

Strategy #2 - Always Post Quality Content 
For visitors to post comments on your blog they have to have some kind of warm up to the content. It's that simple. Make sure you post frequent articles of a high quality.

Strategy #3 - Always Respond to New Comments
I make it a rule on my blog that I post a response to every comment made. I want people to come back and to know that there is someone there at the other end. A leading 6 figure blogger, Yaro Starak, made the comment recently that he noticed a sharp decline in comment posting when he stopped responding to each individual comment. Respond to comments and your readers are more likely to return and to even comment again.

Strategy #4 - Ask Questions of Your Readers 
Some readers like to engage and you are more likely to capture these visitors by posting a question on your blog like What's the most annoying thing about Blogger? Tell us about your experince for example. 

Strategy #5 - Write articles that reference or focus on other Bloggers 
Yaro Starak who makes about $40,000 per month from blogging suggested in a recent newsletter that you not just mention other bloggers in your articles but write an article around them as a way to encourage the other blogger to comment on your blog. Haven't tried this one yet but it is on my list so I will let you know how I get on. If you have tried it already what happened?

Strategy #6 - Make it Easy For Visitors to Comment
For visitors to leave comments the commenting process has to be easy. Make sure the following are correctly set on your blog by navigating to Settings > Comments:

Set Show Comments to Yes

Set Allow Anyone to Comment

Set Embed Comment Below Post

Set Moderation to Always (more work but prevents spam)

If you are using a custom template you may have trouble with the embed comment feature. Please refer to my article about how to update your template to incorporate the embed comments below posts feature.


Strategy #7 - Comment on Other Blogs 
It is a good rule of thumb to comment on a visitors blog if they take the time to comment on yours. I'm not talking about spamming someone else's blog just writing a comment about some aspect of their blog that you appreciated, admired or interested you. And of course you can get a link back to your blog in the process.


This article focused on some of the reasons why visitors leave comments on a blog and discussed some basic blog visitor behaviour. I discussed 7 strategies that will help you encourage visitors to comment more. If you have any other ideas about encouraging comments I'd love to hear them. How about posting a comment to let me know how you encourage your readers to comment.

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Add Missing Embedded Comments Form to Blogger

By: ADMIN on 06:24:00

Today I will show you how to fix your Blogger template if the embedded comments feature is missing or not working. I decided to write this article because I have noticed that the embed a comment below the post feature is often not working in many Blogger custom templates available for download. This is usually because many of these templates were released prior to Blogger enabling embedded comments.

If you have downloaded a custom template that has embed a comment missing then read on as I will show you how to insert the code for embed a comment form into your template. Inserting code into a blog template can be challenging for some but if you follow these instructions it is not beyond even virtual beginners.

1. Login to Blogger if you are not already logged in

2. Navigate to Settings > Comments. Under Comment Form Placementmake sure the Embedded below Post radio button is set. Save any changes you make.



3. Navigate to Layout > Edit HTML

4. I strongly recommend you back up your template by downloading it to your computer before proceeding

4. Check Expand Widget Templates

5. Use CTRL + F to bring up the Blogger Toolbar

6. Look for the following code block by entering <span class='paging-control-container'> into the find box on the toolbar. Note if you don't have this code look at the alternative option below #7 in this post

<b:if cond='data:post.commentPagingRequired'>
<span class='paging-control-container'>
<a expr:class='data:post.oldLinkClass' expr:href='data:post.oldestLinkUrl'>
<data:post.oldestLinkText/>
</a>
<a expr:class='data:post.oldLinkClass' expr:href='data:post.olderLinkUrl'>
<data:post.olderLinkText/>
</a>

<data:post.commentRangeText/>

<a expr:class='data:post.newLinkClass' expr:href='data:post.newerLinkUrl'>
<data:post.newerLinkText/>
</a>
<a expr:class='data:post.newLinkClass' expr:href='data:post.newestLinkUrl'>
<data:post.newestLinkText/>
</a>
</span>
</b:if>

7. Paste the following code into your template immediately after the code block above and before this line of code <div id='backlinks-container'>

<p class='comment-footer'>
<b:if cond='data:post.embedCommentForm'>
<b:if cond='data:post.allowNewComments'>
<b:include data='post' name='comment-form'/>
<b:else/>
<data:post.noNewCommentsText/>
</b:if>
<b:else/>
<b:if cond='data:post.allowComments'>
<a expr:href='data:post.addCommentUrl' expr:onclick='data:post.addCommentOnclick'><data:postCommentMsg/></a>
</b:if>
</b:if>
</p>
</b:if>

Alternative Option
If you don't have the code as mentioned in #6 you will likely have the following:

<p class='comment-footer'>
<b:if cond='data:post.allowComments'>
<a expr:href='data:post.addCommentUrl' expr:onclick='data:post.addCommentOnclick'><data:postCommentMsg/></a> </p>
</b:if>

In which case replace with this code:


<p class='comment-footer'>
<b:if cond='data:post.embedCommentForm'>
<b:if cond='data:post.allowNewComments'>
<b:include data='post' name='comment-form'/>
<b:else/>
<data:post.noNewCommentsText/>
</b:if>
<b:else/>
<b:if cond='data:post.allowComments'>
<a expr:href='data:post.addCommentUrl' expr:onclick='data:post.addCommentOnclick'><data:postCommentMsg/></a>
</b:if>
</b:if>
</p>
</b:if>

8. Click on the Save Template button to save your template changes

9. Click on the View Blog link and test your embed comment feature by clicking on the number of comments link found at the bottom of each post. Notice that the post will now be displayed along with the embed a comment form below the post



Troubleshooting
As there are many variations amongst templates neither of these options may work in which case try this solution from Blogger Buster:

Find: <b:include data='post' name='comments' />

Immediately below this line add the following line:
<b:include data='post' name='comment-form'/>

In this tutorial I have shown you how to add the embed comments form into your custom Blogger template if it is missing so that visitors can comment easily.

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Add Outbrain Ratings Widget to Blogger

By: ADMIN on 06:23:00

Outbrain provides a free and very stylish content recommendations and ratings widget which can be easily added to your Blogger Blogspot blog. In this tutorial I will discuss the benefits of Outbrain and also provide a step by step walkthrough of the process of adding an Outbrain widget to your Blogger blog and your Feedburner FeedFlare if you have burned your blog feed at Feedburner.

Benefits of Adding Outbrain to Your Blogger Blog
By adding an Outbrain content and ratings widget to your Blogger blog you will encourage visitors to record their reactions to a post they have just read. Along with features likes polls this is another good method of encouraging visitors to interact with your blog. Outbrain also makes it possible to display your most popular posts within the widget. In addition the Outbrain ratings widget may help drive more traffic to your blog when your visitors use the Recommended Posts feature which is embedded in the widget. By the same token it may also mean that the traffic doesn't stay long as visitors will be wooed away by recommended links so you will have to weigh up the benefits versus the costs for yourself. Outbrain also provides reports on widget activity

How to Add an Outbrain Ratings Widget to Blogger
1. Register at Outbrain. This is a simple sign up process that requires you to click on a confirmation email once you have requested sign up and filled out a simple form.

2. Once registered click on Get the Widget from the footer menu

3. Choose Blogger as your Blogging platform

4. Select the language of your widget if other than English which is the default

5. Click on Get the Widget button and Outbrain will automatically refer you to Blogger in a new window. Sign in to Blogger in the new browser window. Don't close the Outbrain window as we will be returning here. 


6. Choose your blog from the drop down menu and click on the Add Widget button.


7. Navigate to Layout > Page Elements and reposition if necessary your new widget which will now be appearing in the sidebar of your blog. Save any changes you make.

8. Return to Outbrain in your open browser window and click on the click here link to verify your blog. You will receive a message verifying that you have claimed your blog

9. Click on the View Blog link in the menu tab section and view your new Outbrain widget in action.

Note that once your readers start to rate your posts by clicking on them the stars will become yellow. 5 yellow stars is an excellent rating


Customizing Your Outbrain Ratings Widget
1. Return to the Outbrain window in your browser

2. Navigate to Manage Posts using the Sidebar Menu on the lefthand side

3. In the list of blogs you will see your blog listed. Click on the settings link

4. If you leave the default setting you will see recommended links appearing as pictured above in #9. If you don't want any recommendations you can set this to no.

5. If you have set up your blog with the idea of earning a little extra money you may choose to turn off sponsored recommendations. If you leave the radio button set to yes any proceeds from the sponsored links clicked on will go to charity. The charity sponsored can be selected via the drop down menu

6. Outbrain will show the most popular posts in the sidebar of your blog if this feature is enabled. To enable popular posts select the enable radio button.

7. Click on the Submit button


Adding Outbrain to Your Feedburner FeedFlare
If you already have a FeedFlare appearing at the footer of your burned Feedburner feed of your blog you can easily add Outbrain too. Check out my article on adding a Feedburner FeedFlare to Blogger if you are not sure what a FeedFlare is or how to add one to Blogger.

Go to Feedburner and choose your blog from the list of My Feeds. Select the Optimize tab and then FeedFlare from the lefthand sidebar menu. In the Personal FeedFlare section paste the following code (URL) into the text box:

http://widgets.outbrain.com/FeedFlareUnit.xml

and click on the Add New Flare button. Click on Save. Your readers will now be able to rate your blog straight from your Blogger feed.

Outbrain Troubleshooting Tips for Blogger Installation

• When you install Outbrain on your blog resist the temptation to rate one of your posts as this vote can't be deleted once it is cast. Even when I tried uninstalling and reinstalling the widget the vote did not clear.
• The Popular Posts feature takes a while to show any posts as it needs at least 2 visits before it will start rating the post
• If you have other problems with Outbrain try this active Outbrain support forum for answers

In this tutorial you have learned how to install the Outbrain Ratings widget on your Blogger Blogspot blog and customize it. Also some of the benefits of the Outbrain widget were discussed along with a couple of Outbrain installation troubleshooting tips. If you have a moment let me know how you get on installing this widget. Don't forget to bookmark this post for easy reference.

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Add Profile Images to Blogger Comments

By: ADMIN on 06:12:00

Today I will show you how easy it is to have Blogger (Blogspot) display profile images in the embedded comments section of your blog even if you are using a custom template.

About a month ago Blogger announced that it was enabling profile images (profile avatars) in the embedded comments section on Blogger (Blogspot) as part of its 10th birthday feature series. The new profile image feature which has been available on other commenting options has now been extended to the embedded comments option. This is good news if you are using a default template as you will now see a small avatar next to your visitors comments and your own avatar if you have uploaded a profile image.



Default Blogger Templates - Enabling Profile Images 
Profile images work on default Blogger templates and have been automatically enabled by Blogger. If you are using a default Blogger template with embedded comments enabled and have recent comments on a post you will see a profile image to the left of visitor comments (provided they have uploaded one that is). Your profile avatar will also display when you respond to visitor comments again provided you have uploaded one. (To upload your profile photo click on Add Photo at the Dashboard). If profile images are not displayed enable them by going to Settings > Comments and checking the Yesradio button at the bottom of the page which says Profile Images Enabled.

Custom Blogger Templates - Enabling Profile Images 
If you are using a custom template you may still be able to see profile images in your embedded comments section. Check out Settings > Comments to make sure Profile Images are enabled. If you can't see profile images you can still add this feature by tweaking your Blogger template. Follow the instructions below to have Blogger display profile images in the embedded comments section of your custom Blogger template.

Add Profile Images to Comments Section of a Custom Blogger Template
If you are using a custom Blogger template you can use the following method to add profile images to the embedded comments section of your Blogger template.

1. Login to Blogger if not already logged in
   
2. Go to Design > Edit HTML
   
3. Back up your Blogger template as a precaution by downloading the full template to your computer
   
4. Expand Widget Templates by checking the box on the right hand side
   
5. Find the following line in your Blogger template by using CTRL + F:
   

   <dl id='comments-block'>

   
   
6. Change the above line to the following:
   

   <dl expr:class='data:post.avatarIndentClass' id='comments-block'>

   
   
7. Scroll down a few lines and find the following line in your Blogger template:
   

   <a expr:name='data:comment.anchorName'/>

   
   
8. Directly before the above line paste the following code block:
   

   <b:if cond='data:comment.favicon'>
   <img expr:src='data:comment.favicon' height='35px' style='margin-bottom:-2px;' width='35px'/>
   </b:if>
   <a expr:name='data:comment.anchorName'/>
   <b:if cond='data:blog.enabledCommentProfileImages'>
   <data:comment.authorAvatarImage/>
   </b:if>

   
   
9. Click Save Template
   
10. Click View Blog and navigate to a page with commenting to see avatars next to comments in the embedded comments area

Tips and Troubleshooting

• If you have added the author commenting highlight hack to your Blogger template there will be 2 instances of the code at Step 7 to change
  
• If your template does not have the code mentioned in Step 5 and Step 6 check that dl has not be replaced by div. In this case leave the div as is and replace the rest of the code in the line.
  
• Blogger has only enabled profile images for Blogger and Google profiles so if your visitors comment using identities such as "Anonymous" or "Name/URL" their image profile will not be displayed. If OpenID, AIM or other identities are used these favicons will be displayed instead.
  
• Profile avatars load last so they will not prevent visitors viewing your content if you have a lot of comments on some pages

In today's Blogger tutorial (Blogspot tutorial) you have learned how to enable profile images in the embedded comments section in Blogger. If you are using a default Blogger template this can be achieved by enabling profile avatars in your Blogger template. If you are using a third party custom template I have shown you a Blogger hack that will display profile images next to comments on your blog. As always I am interested in how you get on with this tweak. Good luck!

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Add Paypal Donate Button to Blogger

By: ADMIN on 06:10:00

If you want to make a few bucks from all the hard work you are putting into your Blogger blog then consider adding a Paypal donate button to your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog).

Adding a donation button will encourage all those happy readers to say a big thank you for helping them out. Not everyone will donate but you will get the odd generous soul who will willingly donate some chump change to shout you a coffee.

In this Blogger tutorial we will be adding a gadget to the Blogger sidebar or alternatively you could place it in the foooter of your Blogger template. We will be using a widget to contain our Paypal Donate Button and will not be changing your Blogger template. If you wish to place the donate button into your Blogger posts see the end of this Blogger tutorial for details.

Skill level is rated easy.

How to Add a Paypal Donate Button to Blogger (Sidebar or Footer Gadget)
Note: Updated on January 20 2012 to take account of new Paypal interface

1. Get yourself a Paypal account if you don't already have one

2. Login to your Paypal account

3. Click on the Merchant Services tab


4. Choose Donations from the list of key features displayed in the right sidebar of the PayPal Website Payments Standard Option (first of 3 payment solutions)
Note Paypal have changed its interface. You now need to select PayPal Website Payments Standard from Merchant Services drop down and then under the buttons in option 1 you will see in pretty tiny writing I must say "There are also buttons for donations and gift certificates." Click on donations.



5. From the Paypal Create a Donation Button screen choose Create Your Button Now link (one of two).



6. Stick with the default button unless you wish to customize it

7. Choose your currency depending on your needs and location

8. Choose Donors enter their own contribution amount radio button unless you want to have a set amount


9. Ensure the Secure Merchant ID radio button is selected. This will prevent spammers getting hold of your email address

10. At Step 2 it is worth saving your button

11. At Step 3 Customize your checkout page by allowing donors to write a short comment by selecting the Yes radio button to special instructions to seller

12. Select the No radio button for Customer's Shipping Address

13. Select the Create Button button

14. Once Paypal creates the donate button code copy it by right clicking your mouse and choosing copy

15. Logout of Paypal

16. Login to Blogger if you are not already logged in

17. Go to Design > Page Elements

18. Click on the Add a Gadget link in the sidebar

19. Choose HTML/Javascript widget from the list provided

20. Paste the button code into the Content box of the dialog box that appears by placing the mouse inside the box and right clicking the mouse and then paste

21. Select a title like "Shout Me a Coffee Today!" or whatever you would like

22. Click on the Save button

23. Drag and drop your new donation gadget into the spot you want it to appear in

24. Click the Save button to ensure your changes are saved

25. Click View Blog to see your new donate button in the sidebar of your Blogger blog

26. Click on your new donate button and you will be taken to the Paypal Checkout screen



Tips and Troubleshooting

1. To Add a Paypal Donate Button to Blogger Posts
   The following instructions will add a Paypal Donate button to all new Blogger posts. Note previous posts will not be changed. You will need to hard code the button into your Blogger template to have the Paypal Donate button added to every Blogger post. (Please ask if you need help with this)
   
   1. Follow the directions (steps 1-16) as above to get your Paypal button code
   2. In Blogger go to Settings > Formatting
   3. Paste the Paypal Donate Button code into the Post Template box
   4. Save changes 
   5. Click on New Post to see that the code will be automatically inserted at the foot of each new post. (you will need to be in Edit Html mode to see the code)
   
   
2. To Add a Paypal Donate Button to Individual Blogger Posts
   1. Follow the directions (steps 1-16) as above to get your Paypal button code
   2. In Blogger go to the post you wish to insert the button code into
   3. Insert the button code taking care to change all instances of double quotes to single quotes
   4. Save post and publish as normal. (If you have trouble with the preview post button in the old editor in Blogger click on compose and then edit html)

This Blogger tutorial has walked you through the steps needed to add a Paypal donate button to your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog) including how to configure your Paypal button at Paypal. I have covered adding the button as a sidebar gadget or footer gadget or alternatively added to Blogger posts. Have fun!

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Tips to Add a Digg Button to Blogger Blogspot

By: ADMIN on 06:09:00

Today's article discusses where to place a digg.com button on your Blogspot Blogger blog and shows you how to add an integrated digg button to your blog. The button allows your blog's visitors to digg posts from your blog and submit those articles to Digg.

What is Digg.com?
Digg is a social content site where readers submit stories, videos and images. Depending on interest and popularity articles are commented on by members. You can encourage your readers to digg your stories by adding a Digg button to your Blogger blog. The button will display a real time count of the number of times your post has been dugg.

Why Add a Digg Button to My Blogger Blogspot Blog?
Why would I want to add more buttons to my blog you may be wondering. Well there are a number of reasons why getting on board with Digg will be helpful to you in growing your blog.

• Digg is a ready source of traffic that can drive visitors to your blog and it is too important to overlook. When visitors digg your stories it will encourage new readers to visit your blog.
  
• Posts that have been submitted to Digg appear in search engine results so your blog will receive exposure.
  
• A digg button will encourage visitors to submit your blog's content including images and video to Digg. This will encourage others to comment and write about your post and possibly link to it. 

What to Consider When Choosing to Add Digg to Your Blog
When adding a Digg button to your Blogger Blogspot blog there are some important considerations to think of before you get started. You will need to decide about:

• The look of the button to place on your blog as Digg gives you the option of several sizes to choose from. The look and feel of your blog will dictate what button you decide on.
  
• What pages your Digg button will display on. Do you want it on the home page as well as the post pages for instance? I strongly advise that you place any integrated button only on post pages otherwise you will find the loading time of your homepage will be noticeably reduced.
  
• What position to place the button in on your blog. Under the post title, beside the first paragraph, below the post are all common locations for a Digg button. Placing a button near the top of your posts can be a good ideas as visitors will see it as the page loads because the button will be above the fold ie the area that visitors see without having to scroll down. If you have a bunch of social media buttons at the bottom of your posts already you might want to include your Digg button in this sequence.

Can I Digg My Own Blog Content?
Yes. You most certainly can digg your own Blogger posts as this will get you a listing in Digg.


How to Add a Digg Button to Blogger Blogspot Blog
I am going to show you how to manually change your Blogger Blogspot template to include your Digg button. While this is not a difficult tweak you will be changing your template. Make sure you take care not to overwrite any code. My suggestion as always is back up first by downloading your template before beginning the addition of this code.

To add a large Digg button to appear next to the first paragraph in your Blogger Blogspot posts:


1. Login to your Blogger blog if not already logged in

2. Navigate to Layout > Edit HTML

3. Back up your template by downloading full template as a precaution

4. Check the Expand Widgets Template box

5. Find this line of code using CTRL + F

<p><data:post.body/></p>

6. Paste the Following code above <p><data:post.body/></p>

<!--Digg.com Button-->
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>
<script type='text/javascript'>
digg_url=&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;;
</script>
<script src='http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js' type='text/javascript'/>
</div></b:if>
<!--end Digg.com Button-->

7. Click on the Save Template button

8. Click on View Blog link and navigate to an individual post page. You will see your new digg button is only visible on the post page.


Customizing Your Digg Button Tips and Troubleshooting

To have the Digg button display on all pages not just the individual post pages remove this line:

<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>

To have the Digg button aligned to the left instead of the right change this line from:

<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>

to:

<div style='float:left; margin-left:10px;'>

To replace the large button with the compact button replace the code in Step 6 with:

<!--Digg.com Button-->
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>
<script type='text/javascript'>
digg_url=&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;;
digg_skin=&quot;compact&quot;;
</script>
<script src='http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js' type='text/javascript'/>
</div></b:if>
<!--end Digg.com Button-->

To change the background color of the button from white to your own desired color add this line:

digg_bgcolor=&quot;#ff9900amp;quot;;

below this line:

digg_url=&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;;

Note: Change the value #ff9900 to whatever hex color you would like.

To move the Digg button to below the post content instead of at the top paste the following code:

<!--Digg.com Button-->
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>
<script type='text/javascript'>
digg_url=&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;;
digg_skin=&quot;compact&quot;;
</script>
<script src='http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js' type='text/javascript'/>
</div></b:if>
<!--end Digg.com Button-->

to the end of the section of code beginning with this line

<div class='post-footer-line post-footer-line-2'>

If you have a third post footer line then place this code after that block of code.






In this tutorial you have learned about what Digg is and the benefits of adding an integrated Digg button to your Blogger Blogspot Blog. You have also learned about different placement options for your Digg button and been given step by step instructions on how to customize the Digg button to suit the needs of your blog.

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