Your audience is your bread and butter, it is who you publish for. The comments are a place for your users to express their opinions amongst themselves—with you leading the discussion. With so much content out there it can be difficult bringing fresh yet relevant content to your audience, how do you keep the ideas coming to match this fast-paced day and age. Have you considered leveraging that same engagement for new content?
Your audience is insightful
I know, I know, but hear me out. Readers are full of surprises; when commenting, they give you a glimpse into their minds and how they perceive the world. That perception is a new angle for you to look at how you create your content and better cater to your readers. Look at the comment sections on any website and you will find readers making connections to a whole different topic that you would never consider. Your comment section is full of new content coming directly from your readers and their engagement. Let's not forget about our silent readers who prefer interacting through reactions rather than commenting. Through their likes and upvotes, they are telling you what tone and perceptions better resonate with them. Your comments are a hidden gem in plain sight, it is up to you to use them!
Be innovative when asking for engagement
Are you asking your audience for engagement? I know, the answer is “duh, obviously,” but are you? Do you make your readers want to engage by urging them on with an intriguing close? Inviting your audience directly to join you in these discussions allows them to feel welcome. Intriguing endings aside, starting the conversation with your blog post is not enough... are you a part of the conversation? Interacting with your audience and building relationships always has them coming back in anticipation for more. To save yourself time, zoom in where engagement is needed and center your focus there. In a previous blog post, we explored how publishers are effectively using our content data analytics to help them narrow down which types of content produced engagement and which did not. That same tool can point publishers toward comment sections that need a little love and help them spur the conversation.
It all comes full circle
By creating content that reflects the commenters' take on a subject with your creative twist you show readers that their opinions and involvement matter. Once a reader feels seen and your engagement begins nurturing a relationship that will always keep them coming back, you have successfully fostered loyalty to your content. Loyal readers are the goal, and with loyalty comes more engagement that increases your SEO, bringing you new readers to keep the cycle going.