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Sep 5 • General discussion
📝The Art Of Commenting
There is a lot of advice about becoming more visible in online communities. Post consistently. Share useful information. Ask questions. Participate every day. Get involved in conversations. All good advice.
But there is one remarkably powerful visibility tool sitting underneath almost every post in the community, and we often give surprisingly little thought to using it well. The comment box.
A good comment can introduce you to people who have never seen one of your posts. It can demonstrate knowledge without requiring you to announce your expertise. It can begin a relationship, deepen a discussion, help another member, and make the original post more valuable.
And sometimes the best way to be seen is to stop trying to be the person everyone is looking at.
You Do Not Always Need Another Post
When people want greater visibility in a community, the natural response is often: "I need to post more." Maybe. But every new post asks the community to stop what it is doing and pay attention to you.
A comment does something different. It meets people where they already are. Someone has started a conversation. Other people have gathered around it. Instead of opening another room and hoping people come inside, you join the conversation already taking place.
That can be extraordinarily effective. More importantly, you are not competing with the original poster for attention. Done properly, your contribution helps make their post better. That is a very different kind of visibility.
A Reply Is Not Necessarily A Contribution
We have all seen them. "Great post!" "Love this!" "So true!" "Absolutely!" There is nothing inherently wrong with any of those responses. Sometimes a little encouragement is exactly what you want to give someone. But let us not confuse acknowledgement with contribution.
A useful comment gives the reader something that was not there before. Perhaps you add an example from your own experience. Perhaps you connect the author's idea to something related. Perhaps you expand upon one particular point. Perhaps you offer another perspective. Perhaps you respectfully disagree. Perhaps you ask a question because something the writer said has made you genuinely curious.
The question to ask yourself before pressing the button is simple: Am I adding something to this conversation? Not every comment needs to contain a revelation worthy of Aristotle. It simply needs a reason to exist.
Do Not Steal The Stage
There is another extreme. Someone writes a thoughtful post, and you respond with an 800-word comment explaining your philosophy, your business, your methodology, your latest program, and possibly your childhood.
Congratulations. You have just turned somebody else's living room into your seminar. There is nothing wrong with writing a substantial comment when the conversation warrants one. Some of the best discussions happen that way. But remember whose conversation you entered.
A good comment complements the original contribution rather than competing with it. If what you have to say has become an entirely different subject, perhaps you have discovered the topic for your next post. Give the original writer their stage.
Disagreement Is Not Disrespect
One of the least interesting communities imaginable would be one in which everyone agreed with everything. Yet people are often reluctant to disagree publicly because they do not want to appear negative, argumentative, or unsupportive. So we get: "Exactly!" "100%!" "This!" Again and again.
Thoughtful disagreement can be one of the most valuable contributions you make. "I see this a little differently..." "My experience has been almost the opposite..." "I agree with the principle, although I wonder whether..." Those responses create room for examination.
The objective is not to prove the other person wrong. It is to put another idea on the table. You can disagree with someone's conclusion while respecting the person who reached it. In a healthy community, we should be able to explore the difference.
Do Not Hold The Conversation Hostage
This one deserves particular attention. Somewhere along the way, people learned that a good engagement strategy is to end comments with questions.
gurus taught it. Coaches picked it up and contiued teaching it without really understanding.
Questions can certainly move conversations forward. But not every comment needs one. There is a noticeable difference between asking a question because you are genuinely curious and asking one because somebody taught you that questions increase engagement.
"I agree with your point, Steve. What is one thing you will do differently today because of it?" At some point my answer may be: "I just spent 600 words telling you what I think. Why are you assigning me homework?"
A question should arise naturally from the conversation. Here is my rule: If you do not genuinely care about the answer, do not ask the question. Sometimes the most appropriate response is an observation. Sometimes it is an experience. Sometimes it is encouragement. Sometimes it is disagreement. And sometimes the conversation has simply reached its natural conclusion.
Let it. Conversations are allowed to end. The objective is not to keep another human being replying indefinitely so that an engagement counter continues ticking upward. That is not conversation. That is engagement theatre.
Remember The Invisible Audience
When you comment on someone's post, you are having a conversation with that person. But they may not be the only person listening. Perhaps twelve people comment on a post. Perhaps another hundred read the conversation without saying anything. They see your contribution too.
This is one of the reasons thoughtful commenting can be such an effective form of visibility. You do not need to say: "I am an expert in this." Demonstrate that you understand the subject. You do not need to say: "I care about people." Respond like someone who does. You do not need to announce: "I have thirty years of experience." Share an observation that could only have come from experience.
People notice. Over time, they begin recognizing your name. Then they begin associating your name with certain kinds of contributions. That is considerably more powerful than repeatedly telling them what you want to be known for.
Comment For The Conversation, Not The Points
In The Art Of Leaderboarding, I talked about using consistent, worthwhile participation to become more visible within a community. Comments can certainly contribute to that activity.
That does not mean you should start scattering comments everywhere simply because the leaderboard rewards activity. Ten meaningless comments may move a number. One thoughtful comment may move a person. Which one do you think has greater long-term value?
Ironically, when you stop chasing the points and begin contributing meaningfully, the numbers most often take care of themselves. People respond. They like what you said. They continue the discussion. They recognize you elsewhere.
The metric becomes a consequence of participation rather than the purpose of it. That is exactly where it belongs.
Become Recognizable Without Becoming Predictable
There is another advantage to commenting consistently. People gradually discover how you think. They learn what subjects interest you. They see how you treat people. They notice whether you encourage, challenge, teach, question, joke, listen, or simply wait for your turn to speak.
In other words, they get to know you. Not your profile. Not your sales page. Not your carefully constructed positioning statement. You. That is one of the great opportunities communities provide. But it happens through accumulation.
One thoughtful interaction probably will not establish your reputation. Fifty of them might. Not because you engineered fifty opportunities to demonstrate your expertise, but because fifty small encounters gradually created a picture of who you are.
The Art Is In Not Trying Too Hard
There is strategy involved in commenting well. Know where conversations are happening. Participate consistently. Add something worthwhile. Be aware that other people are reading. Understand that your contributions affect how people perceive you.
But then forget the strategy long enough to have an actual conversation. Read what the other person wrote. Think about it. If you have something worthwhile to contribute, contribute it. If you are curious, ask. If you disagree, say why. If encouragement is appropriate, give it. And if you have nothing meaningful to add, there is nothing wrong with simply leaving a like and moving along.
You do not have to manufacture a contribution simply because there is an empty comment box waiting for you. Because the real art of commenting is not generating engagement. It is making engagement worth having. Do not comment because you want people to notice you. Comment because you noticed something worth contributing. Being noticed is the consequence.
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📝The Art Of Commenting
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