On my freelance design blog, I average around 20 comments per post.

I think that’s pretty great considering my first year of posts or so I got almost no comments.

And on some of our more popular posts, we get closer to 50 comments on average. We cap at close to 300 comments on our most popular post.

So I think it’s safe to say our readers are moderate to heavy commenters.

Breaking out of their shell

But getting your readers to break out of their shell and leave a comment isn’t always easy.

Today, I want to share 10 ways you can guarantee to get more comments on your blog. These are all methods I’ve tried and found success in.

If you want to boost engagement and interactivity on your blog, keep reading. You’re gonna love what you see.

10 ways to turn readers into guaranteed commenters

1. Write fabulous content
The first secret is no secret at all. If you want more comments, you have to write content that is worthy of discussion. (tweet that)

If your content falls flat, is a rehash of other flat content, or simply has no passion behind it, people aren’t likely to want to engage.

2. Actually ask them to comment
You’ll notice that at the end of (almost) every single post at my freelance design blog I literally place an invitation link encouraging readers to comment.

Most times this goes at the end of a post, but sometimes it can go right in the intro.

I then link to the comment section of my blog. (if you’re using wordpress, many themes use the id “respond” for the comment form <div>. So if you link to the post itself and add #respond, it will take readers right where they need to go.)

3. More about linking
There’s also a TON of extra value in linking to your comment section. What if your content (heaven forbid) gets scraped by another site? If they copy the link over, anyone who reads the content will be pushed back to your comment section.

Additionally, if you have an email newsletter, don’t bank on readers clicking through on their own, tracking down the comment form, and leaving a comment. Make it easy on them. If they’re reading it in an RSS reader or email client, the link sends them right to the comment form.

4. Ask a question
In addition to just asking them to comment, ask specific questions. A few I’ve used include:

“Did I get it right? Leave a comment on this post and tell me what I left out.”

“Have you experienced [problem at hand]? Leave a comment on this post and tell us all how you resolved it.”

5. Don’t be “all-knowing”
See how in the examples above I didn’t seem all condescending and presumptuous? I assumed that there were people reading my content who know more than I do about the topic at hand.

And usually there are people smarter than me reading my content.

They always always always appreciate the opportunity to chime in and add their expert opinion to the discussion.

6. Respond to people when the do comment
Another way to get more comments is to respond to anyone who leaves a comment on your posts. If readers can see that their comment is actually going to be read and valued, they are much more likely to comment.

7. Notify commenters of responses
Since you’re responding to comments anyway, make sure to notify your readers of follow up comments they get. For example, on GraphicDesignBlender.com, I have a check box under the comment form that says: “Notify me if someone responds to my comment.”

This encourages intense discussion and boosts comment count incredibly.

A couple caviats

I’m sure there are many more ways to get comments on blogs. In fact, if you have a proven method you’d like to share with me, please leave a comment on this post! (see what I did there?)

But, beware when using this advice:

First, this is all assuming you are driving traffic to your site. If that’s still a problem, subscribe to this blog, because I’m going to be sharing some great traffic-building advice in the future.

Second, be sure to want comments for the right reasons. If you only want comments for the sake of counting comments, just fabricate them yourself. If you want comments so you can interact and further help your readers, you’re spot on.

So remember, keep cranking out quality content, encourage others to comment, and interact with your readers and you’ll be just fine! Best of luck!