Blog commenting for SEO - STOP IT!

[trytolearnmore]

Originally Posted by matt5409

I see a lot of advice on this here forum about using blog commeting as part of an SEO strategy.

I don't believe it works - most blogs are nofollow - and unfortunately nearly every comment I receive on my blogs is spam because some idiot wants a quick backlink. Today, I got this ridiculous comment:

"Hey, I'm having bad luck attempting to rank high for the words "kokomo dentist"... Pls approve my comment!!"

At least the guy's honest right? It's such a shame that the communal aspect of the blog platform has been abused to such extents that I wake up every morning with comment spam.

I know people are going to jump and say "offer value in your comments" which is noble, but nobody ever does. Just stop doing it, and stop advising others do it - it's NOT an "SEO strategy" and you should feel dirty for doing it!

Well, it is a part of a SEO plan, according to many SEO experts. Oh, and blog commenting works (admittedly, it's not as effective as it was a while back).

[markw89]

I ranked my website and it's currently on Page 1, most of what I did was blog commenting. However, I do not put my keyword in the content of the comment because I know the webmaster won't like it, and I read the post carefully and make an honest and beneficial contribution.

[mrjosco]

Blog commenting is spam. It is disgusting and generally used by people whose idea of business ethics is "whatever I can do to get ahead".

I understand I insulted some people on this forum. 90% of those I insulted are spamming blog comments, cutting corners and not really contributing anything valuable to this forum anyways.

I just disable comments on my pages. I am tired of waking up to 100 "get rick quick" spammers sending garbage on the website I work hard on.

Adding 'value' is nearly never done. Even one of the posters here said "I hate to read the blogs, I just put ad value and hope to get it approved". How do you ad value to a post you haven't read?

But, it works. Just like lieing. And some people are all about what they can do for themselves. As long as it works people will do it. I can't wait till the google update that makes blog comments useless. In one sweep the most spammy, spun content garbage black hatters will have to learn legitimate ways to earn backlinks.

[JSProjects]

Originally Posted by matt5409

i'm sorry that you feel insulted. actually i'm not - because it wasn't a personal insult nor was it intend to those who comment properly, which is what you profess to do.

my methods are purely article marketing and i do my best to ensure that content is of a good standard. in short, if i wouldn't read it myself, i won't post it.

See, the same thing can be said for blog commenting. I bet plenty of the article directories are tired of getting submissions that are, at best, poorly spun pieces of garbage. Just as many blog owners are tired of comments that are clearly automated & spammy.

What makes submitting high quality articles any different than leaving high quality blog comments? Nothing. Most of my comments are done manually. On blogs that are heavily moderated. And I get great approval rates.

There is nothing wrong with blog commenting of it's done right. Just as there's nothing wrong with submitting articles if it's done right.

[Dmreed4311]

I have gotten pr6 and 5 blog comments approved that were do follow, it takes time and effort but it is worth it. I spend an hour a day blog and forum commenting and get many nice pr do follow backlinks. i have also been banned from many forums but there are thousands out there. Not gonna lie iam in it for the backlink but i do read the blogs and make real comments.

[pdrs]

Blog spammers suck - agreed.

But yeah - blog comments are an essential part of any balanced SEO strategy and when used properly don't effect anyone in a negative way.

[neeralt]

Matt,

It actually works. But there are of course spammers out there. And they spam like hell. I have a do follow blog which get around 1,200 spams a day! Can you imagine that? But the blog commenting thingy is working for me. Just have to do it right.

[JSProjects]

Originally Posted by neeralt

Matt,

It actually works. But there are of course spammers out there. And they spam like hell. I have a do follow blog which get around 1,200 spams a day! Can you imagine that? But the blog commenting thingy is working for me. Just have to do it right.

Dang. 1200. Are you using one of the popular dofollow plugins? The footprints for those are hit heavily each day.

[yukon]

Do the smart thing, delete comment code from your theme, then embed a Facebook comment Iframe code.

If they leave a comment it will be on FB not your site, which will do them no good for the PR they are after.

Fix the problem before it ever happens.

[ThunderC]

blog comments do work, i always use them on my buffer sites, and always managed to rank for my micro niche keywords and local searches

[dagaul101]

I can see why many web admins would come to that conclusion, and I know many just auto remove comments if there is a link regardless of how relevant the comment, that said, people do still get results with it

[jackwebson]

I understand your situation as you've been a victim of spam comments that's why you are against the blog commenting method now. But actually its a very helpful factor for every website since you will have new content on your page and some interactions too "IF" it is done in a sincere manner by posting relevant and honest post.

[KylieSweet]

Matt5409 and the other members in this thread has its own stand regarding blog commenting, and I don't think that there is a wrong analysis about the topic. We have different views on it, and I think that were just only trying to make it better as a reputable webmaster and for the foundation of the site. Google is wiser than you think. Therefore, we are trying our best in an ethical way not just for the search engine, but also for the people.

[Mike Anthony]

LOl You could tell this was going to be a hot topic.

Anyway as someone who is well known for not liking mass link spam I must be honest.

Blog comments still work and work well if done properly. Frankly blog commenting can even be done totally white hat. I have blogs that I TRULY participate at and the owners review and approve my links because I write quality stuff.

Plus looking at backlinks all the time I can tell you that they can and do increase PR and if you know how to use that then thats golden.

[JSProjects]

Agree. If you actively participate and leave good comments, I see no harm. My approval rates are great. But that's because I take the time to leave a REAL comment that is relevant to the post.

Most people instantly associate blog commenting with spam. (Scrapebox.) Does commenting using Scrapebox still have its place? Yeah, I think so. But most of the blogs that Scrapebox is able to comment to (and get that comment automatically approved) have been long abandoned by their owners. Or their owners just don't care. I just wouldn't use these comments for my main site. But they do help index and, in some cases, strengthen lower tier backlinks.

[FraserC]

As long as you provide more value for the website with your ideas, comments and support than you take away with having a link back to your website, it's all good. The problem is that spammers use other people's websites to link back to their own. They take without giving. As a webmaster who has to clean it up all day, it's a bummer. But also, it makes the people who make genuine contributions all the more valuable.

[Aussie_Al]

Originally Posted by thebarksmeow

Wait a minute. Not a long term strategy huh? Why do I have meaningful comments on blogs from 2009 that are still alive? They've benefited my site's position for almost 2 years now.

I agree - I have left useful constructive blog comments on many blogs not related to my niches but contributed to their blog - that have been approved and in fact I see regular traffic from these sites because of my blog commenting.

I also own and maintain 5-6 blogs (on different niches) and were once bombarded by annoying , generic "great blog - you write very well" comments on them daily until I added a captcha/anti spam wp blog plug ins - now I only get useful on topic comments.

I think the real issue is: Are you some one who makes the Interwebs a better place or are you just someone who litters the place with spam?

[retsek]

just wanted to point out that is completely untrue that "nofollow" links are useless ...as some of the posters here have said.

In fact, nofollows (whether they are a blog comment or from a Wikipedia article) are quite valuable for serps ranking. They may not pass PR though, but these are two different things.

OK carry on the ethics debate.

[bzvog]

I guess there is no WRIGHT or WRONG on this.. everything works if used properly.

[rkat55]

You've started a heck of a good debate here. I personally
think spammers have ruined everything on the Internet and
blog spammers included.

HOWEVER, the whole world if full of spam wherever you
go. Billboards, radio, tv, phones..you can't take a leak
in a restaurant bathroom without getting spammed.

So, what the hell.

[JSProjects]

Originally Posted by Aussie_Al

I agree - I have left useful constructive blog comments on many blogs not related to my niches but contributed to their blog - that have been approved and in fact I see regular traffic from these sites because of my blog commenting.

I also own and maintain 5-6 blogs (on different niches) and were once bombarded by annoying , generic "great blog - you write very well" comments on them daily until I added a captcha/anti spam wp blog plug ins - now I only get useful on topic comments.

I think the real issue is: Are you some one who makes the Interwebs a better place or are you just someone who litters the place with spam?

I actually like it when I come across a moderated dofollow blog that has a captcha. Usually ensures that I can leave a good comment on a post that (most of the time) won't get killed by automated tools.

Most people hate manually commenting on blogs and worry that their approval rates will be low. From my own experience, that is not the case.

Quick tip: Instead of going straight for the posts with PR, check the blog homepage first. Notice any posts from the last few weeks or so? Notice any other comments that have been recently approved? That's usually a good indication that YOUR comment(s) will be approved as long as you're actually contributing to the post.

When I go on a commenting run I'd say well over half of my comments are approved because I'm commenting on blogs that meet this criteria. (Recent posts or approved comments.) And I'm making sure that I'm leaving good, QUALITY comments.

Think to yourself before pressing that "submit" button: "Would I approve this comment on my own blog?"

[gavinC]

sorry matt, don't agree with you completely. Although it is true that commenting on blogs for backlinks is abused, it can still be both effective for SEO purposes and provide a positive contribution to the blogs discussion. After all, this is the purpose of a blog. Comments should definitely contribute to the discussion, but those that do are definitely not worthless.

Private blog networks can be very effective for SEO purposes. You can always use an antispam plugin for your blog or turn off comments all together.

[BezVrska]

Blog commenting works. Spamming doesn't work.

[RevSEO]

While I agree that generally blog comments aren't worth it, I can't stand the way that you created this thread and some of your responses.

"I don't believe it works"

Actually, nobody cares what you think. We care about results. We care about ranking on the search engines. Data and results are what speaks volumes in SEO. Not opinions.

why not spend that time adding some content to your site and then writing an article to promote it? oh yea - that's too much work. blog commenting is a scummy way of getting a backlink and it is a pain in the ass for anybody that runs a genuine blog.

LOL - Let's resort to name calling and finger pointing? Let's be serious here. That article you just wrote? Likely ended up on a PR0 internal page of some low quality article directory that NO humans ever read. Where is the value in that? In less time you can provide valuable feedback on an ACTIVE blog and potentially receive a high PageRank link. Who's actually providing more value?

I'm not in here to argue with you. But these type of illogical and factless posts have got to stop.

Don't throw out linkbuilding techniques because some scum spammers have spammed your blog. You likely won't make it far in SEO or ranking in the search engines with this mindset.

[awj888]

blog commenting can still be effective it used along side other types of links. blogs are a great source for link to your site, most effective being articles with intext anchor links. Also, if you can get on a blogroll from a highPR blog then this can be brilliant too!
heres an old tool, which finds dofollow blogs with open comments. most of them are old. but could still add some boot! htp thinkingcreativity. .com / scripts / find-blogs.php

[OmarNegron]

I agree but maybe some people take it a bit overboard. Try to comment on relevant blogs and don't take it overboard.

-Omar

[epathj]

I agree,at least you should post some useful information if you want to leave an anchor

[William Prawira]

I do backlinks from posting blog comment as well, But I always do it whitehat.

I don't just write comments like :
-That's a good article you have
-Please approve my comment, I need to build up my rank

I actually read the whole post, and comment on something that will bring value to the whole article post.

That way, The owner of the blog won't be bothered by my post, he gets a value added comment, I get my link, so it's a win-win situation.

I've never been bothered by spammy comments as most of them are being filtered by my wordpress plugins. 6000+ spam comments in a month? hell, no way I'd decline them manually.

[Guru SEO]

Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe

Matt, you're applying the same attitude to 'blog commenting' that many people apply to article marketing.

You're defining "blog commenting" as spamming blogs for backlinks, the same way people define "article marketing" as taking PLR or even stolen content, spinning it 1,000 times, and then blasting it out for backlinks.

Both groups are defining a legitimate tool by the worst abusers of that tool.

Personally, I don't use blog commenting as an SEO strategy. I use it as a targeted traffic strategy. I don't even bother checking PR or no-follow status.

If the blog is active with real users, and the comments make a relevant conversation, I'll contribute if I have something worthwhile to offer. Like another poster here, I'm still seeing benefits from comments made a couple of years ago.

Rail against the crap merchants all you want, but please don't paint legitimate users of legitimate tools with the same brush...

I agree, especially blogs related to your niche, giving good feedback will establish you as having some knowledge about the subject a maybe people will click on your link to see what you have to offer on your site.

If all this also gives me a backlink to my site it's just some extra gravy.


I personally keep comments ON with many of my sites and 95% of the spam is filtered and automatically deleted once a month.


You want to get rid of all your gras just because the weeds are growing!
Take care of the grass and the weeds are going to die out.

[MetroHome]

Quite simply blog commenting is gamming the system, if your intent is not to post a good informative blog or forum post, you are gamming, generally referred to as cheating.

This was not the intent of googles choice to account for blog commenting. What good is it to the consumer to find some information based on the best software spam comments.

How long and how much weight should be put on commenting really, it is self promotion. In the gamming world as a consumer, I do not see the best article. I see the best gammer.

[annarayan]

i still don't think the concept is wrong -just the people who don't understand how to do it properly.

[Talen]

Originally Posted by schttrj

SEO is a big term...

When you say SEO, it means link relevance.

If you are commenting on a irrelevant blog, it doesn't help. But if you are commmenting on a relevant blog, your comment does offer value to the readers. Think about it!

SEO means search engine optimization and even irrelevant links can help your site...

[tryinghard]

there are services here that provide dofollow high pr blog comments. its hard to find those blogs yourself though

[JSProjects]

Originally Posted by MetroHome

Quite simply blog commenting is gamming the system, if your intent is not to post a good informative blog or forum post, you are gamming, generally referred to as cheating.

This was not the intent of googles choice to account for blog commenting. What good is it to the consumer to find some information based on the best software spam comments.

How long and how much weight should be put on commenting really, it is self promotion. In the gamming world as a consumer, I do not see the best article. I see the best gammer.

The easiest solution is for the blog platforms to require all comments be manually approved, with no option to turn on automatic approval. Won't happen though.

I wouldn't necessarily be opposed to such a change, either.

[contentclub]

Originally Posted by matt5409

I see a lot of advice on this here forum about using blog commeting as part of an SEO strategy.

I don't believe it works - most blogs are nofollow - and unfortunately nearly every comment I receive on my blogs is spam because some idiot wants a quick backlink. Today, I got this ridiculous comment:

"Hey, I'm having bad luck attempting to rank high for the words "kokomo dentist"... Pls approve my comment!!"

At least the guy's honest right? It's such a shame that the communal aspect of the blog platform has been abused to such extents that I wake up every morning with comment spam.

I know people are going to jump and say "offer value in your comments" which is noble, but nobody ever does. Just stop doing it, and stop advising others do it - it's NOT an "SEO strategy" and you should feel dirty for doing it!

You are right with your opinion. I agree. But how many people think of that! Spammy comments never get approved by any administrator. Some times comments with little bit of content help to start a new discussion which also works and make new visitor interested to leave a comment that may be valuable. Not sure though!

[jroth728]

I honestly think that blog commenting can be very effective if done properly.

First things first, if you want to use blog commenting as a link building/seo strategy you should try to search for sites that are within your industry or niche. If you have a site about dog training don't try to gain backlinks via blog comments on a site that is about making money online.

To find sites that allow comments in your niche you can use the following when searching on Google:

site:.com inurl:blog "post a comment" -"comments closed" -"you must be logged in" "business"

This is telling Google that you are looking for sites with a .com domain extension in the "business" niche that allow comments.

This Next Part is IMPORTANT

When you are commenting on these blogs, write something that is related to the blog post of the site, actually give some value to the site owner and site visitors. This may actually require you to read the blogpost or at least skim through some of it so you know what the post is about.

If you are just leaving comments for the purpose of the backlink, your efforts won't take you very far. If you want to do this and have long term success from your efforts, at least act like you actually care about what the site owner or author has written.

Sometimes asking questions that are related to the blogpost can cause a lot of people to respond. Just don't think of it as "gaining a backlink" but rather "social networking" with other people.

[JSProjects]

When you are commenting on these blogs, write something that is related to the blog post of the site, actually give some value to the site owner and site visitors. This may actually require you to read the blogpost or at least skim through some of it so you know what the post is about.

But...but...that's too much work! (Kidding)

A lot of people avoid manual approval blogs like the plague, which I don't quite understand. If the blog is actively moderated (meaning it hasn't been abandoned) and you leave a good comment, there's a solid chance it will get approved. And your links will probably be stronger than if you were to blast away at a ton of blogs.

[LinkVariety]

Originally Posted by matt5409

I see a lot of advice on this here forum about using blog commeting as part of an SEO strategy.

I don't believe it works - most blogs are nofollow - and unfortunately nearly every comment I receive on my blogs is spam because some idiot wants a quick backlink. Today, I got this ridiculous comment:

1. Most blogs are nofollow but not all
2. Good comments will pass muster

So what I do is:

• I use scrapebox to find high PR do follow blogs that take comments.
• I look for moderated blogs that are not full of spam.

I outsource it to a native english speaking student with a good brain, who happens to like reading and discussing stuff, for real, and they go ahead and:

• Read the post, and leave a good quality comment.
• Anchor off a name like "James" as opposed to "Cheap Car Insurance".
• Link to decent sites, not squeeze pages.

That way you get links off good quality sites that genuinely help with your ranking, even if they do not anchor off "cheap car insurance".

If you are creative you can often work a keyword into a name somehow, depending on the site.

Anyway, the krux of what Im saying is that all comments are far from equally.

Pushing a few buttons in scrapebox may not be particularly effective (though it can be), but that is not to say that "commenting is innefective".

[pwtmike]

Originally Posted by cashcow

It does work, but you have to do it right. Need proof? Google the keywords "make money online" and checkout some of the top 5 sites. There is one in particular who has gotten there with mostly blog comments.

But, here's the thing... in order for them to work, they have to be on high PR pages (not the main page of the site, the page of the comment) they have to be mostly dofollow and they have to be intelligent comments so that they actually get approved.

Lee

I agree that you have to do it right.

I leverage blog backlinks as part of a diversified strategy and this is only a fraction of the SEO work I put into one domain name/keyword ranking pair.

There are certain ways to leave a comment in a manual way which can be of no benefit to you and it may not even get approved. And there are certain ways you can leave automated comments that are of benefit and will stick and/or get approved. With enough trial and error you will learn how to use blog commenting correctly. Blog commenting is just one of many easy ways to get a link to your site. You do need a back link campaign for your site, you don't have to use blog links but they do help when you are looking for a diversified link strategy.

[Enfusia]

Blog commenting on aged high pr blogs that are relevant to your niche does in fact work very well.

There are many sites I have ranked with little more than 50 pr 3-7 blog comments, 20 mixed anchor text links to make it natural, a premier social monkee drip, and one spun article to 3 blog link syndicates like article ranks ect...

For medium comp keywords this will usually get me to page 1 and then I will push it from there.

Patrick

[JeanneLynn]

Originally Posted by OpticalOut

There are mass automated commenting software out here such as Scrapbox, which accounts for a lot of it.

I personally hate seeing spam in my blogs, but I really don't care if someone is going to write an actual comment while using 2-3 words for anchor text as their name. Just as long as it isn't "male erection enhancer" or something inappropriate

That's how I feel too. If someone makes a good relevant comment, I'll approve it as long as the anchor text isn't something ridiculous. I had someone use "Buy Sperm Pills" as their anchor text. I deleted it!

I get tons of scrapebox spam comments. It's a real pain to deal with them. I had 330 comments this week and I only approved 2 of them. And I have dofollow backlinks enabled on my blog. I used a plugin to remove the nofollow attribute.

It just seems that no one wants to take the time to put out a legitimate comment.

[jaredrasc]

Yes It works but if you do it in right way. dont beg for approve comments.

[JSProjects]

Originally Posted by jaredrasc

Yes It works but if you do it in right way. dont beg for approve comments.

If you follow the rule of only leaving quality comments on actively moderated (not abandoned) blogs you won't need to beg.