Apr 3, 2013 / Beginner

Quick Tip: Five a Day

Most of us start blogs both because we want to write and we want to connect to others — if you weren’t interested in the connection piece, you’d just keep a private diary. But unlike other online communities like Facebook, where we go to connect to friends and family, most of us hope our blogs will reach beyond those immediate circles to the wider world.

While I like to cultivate the secret fantasy that the sheer force of my genius will propel my blog to viral fame, a three-book deal, and a recurring correspondent role on The Daily Show, my realistic blogger self knows that it takes time and effort to build an engaged readership. (Some genius doesn’t hurt.) (Also: Jon Stewart, call me. I’m totally available.)

lego village

Your community probably won’t look so medieval, nor will it be made of Lego. (Photo by Derringdos)

The most effective way is to engage with others; being part of the blogosphere is being part of a community, which means you need to do more than just publish in your little blogular corner. If the scope of the blogosphere is a little overwhelming, break it down into manageable chunks: Five a Day.

Five whats a day? Five comments. Whenever you sit down at the computer to bang out a post or spend 15 minutes futzing on Twitter, commit to leaving five substantive comments on five different blogs. You can find them in a number of ways:

  • Spend a few minutes serendipitously surfing the Reader, clicking on whatever looks interesting, or take a look at some offbeat topics.
  • Click through the blogrolls or visit the commenters of bloggers you already enjoy, or of bloggers who’ve been featured on Discover.
  • Encourage your readers to leave links to their favorites in your comments, so you can broaden your horizons.

Once you find a post that sucks you in from beginning to end, leave the blogger a real comment. Toss out a “Thanks!” or “Great post!” if you’d like, but be sure to take it further. Be specific about what you enjoyed, ask a question, offer a counterpoint, or share a related experience — anything that moves the conversation along.

The beauty of the blogosphere is that others are doing the same thing, and they’ll see and click on your interesting/witty/erudite comment, ultimately bringing you more traffic and more readers. If five a day feels like too much, then try four a day, or two a day. Heck, even one a day spreads your searing insights across seven new blogs a week.

The Five a Day method is not a path to overnight success; only an Oprah endorsement can do that. But it is the best way to build a community of engaged and loyal readers, commenters, and ultimately, friends.

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  1. Thank you for such awesome information! I am new to blogosphere and in the beginning of my journey with blogs — I was commenting in so many of them that I became very overwhelmed with it! You thought of 5 a day is absolutely marvelous. This is what I am going to implement into my day! I may not do 5 a day but I will do at least 2 and work myself up to 5! There are days that I don’t even touch my puter — sick of it! Thanks

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  4. This is really a great idea/ approach my blog is all over the place but somehow I think taking some time out and following the 5 ideas it much get some structure 🙂 Cheers, great article.

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  6. I can manage five a day! I’ve been focusing all of my “market” building on social networks…and have just been using Word Press reading as READING. Duh! I’ve even sat at my desk and thought, “Let’s see…where can I find some blogs to read….”

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  8. A great read!

    Here’s a question I’ll throw out into the blogosphere: what is your take on posting comments that criticize (be it constructive or deconstructive) and critique or challenge a post?

    In other words: how honest are your comments? It’s to be expected you won’t like or agree with everything you read.

    Thoughts?

    /jr

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    1. I don’t see anything wrong with posting critical comments, as long as they’re civil — disagree with ideas all you want, but don’t insult the person.

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  10. Good tips. I am convinced that the interaction between users is the key to getting highly qualified traffic to his blog. Communities participate in and comment on blogs is critical. But as in real life, we must learn to show relevant attention.

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  11. Thanks a ton this was incredibly helpful as I am also new to the whole blogging thing–I was totally not sure of where to start and now I do although I’m not too sure about ~five~.

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  12. Great ideas, I have always tried to go through my blog list over the course of 10 days or so, I also use freshly pressed and the reader page to comment.
    Someone commented on my blog yesterday that they were amazed that this month I am involved in two writing projects, still posting on my blog AND finding time to comment on other blogs! (Hides her Superwoman Costume!) It was a nice recognition post and made me feel proud that I was able to try and balance it all.

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  14. I follow some blogs and comment. But unstructured wandering and commenting are journeys to learn a bit more. Commenting on new blogs requires effort and instinctive reach.

    I can’t say it’s that often per day since life happens along the way that needs my attention. But at times, reading good blog posts is some times better than reading some news articles.

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  15. Terrific idea – I am working on scheduling my writing time along with my reading time – both are an important to blogging for sure. I learn from the comments other people write as well. This should work good with my my scheduled time Thanks!

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  16. Thanks for this post. I have been “intending” to do something like this but have been erratic at best. I think this post will help me be more intentional with my intentions.

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  17. Love this idea! I’m new to wordpress, and have been following and posting. This is my first comment on wordpress! 😉 i will try this 5 a day concept as much as possible.
    Thanks for sharing! It’s very helpful!:))

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  19. Great advice and great understanding of the nature of bloggers and blogging. 🙂
    And I agree…it can be a GREAT community if you allow it to be.

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  21. That’s true. To be a good writer one has to be a good reader, and the same applies to blogging. I have more followers since I started to comment in other blogs. (And i also hope secretely for the 3 books deal ha ha)

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  22. Yes, very true. It’s so important to comment on other blogs. I lalso like the Lego pic. My kids rooms are filled with legos….they would love to build something like that!

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  24. This is a great idea, now to squeeze time for this in between sleeping an unreal amount of hours each day and work. Oh Wesley.

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  26. Great tip! And YES to the idea that the comments should have some substance to them. A “great post” comment is nice, but I don’t feel like it is a strong foundation on which to build a network of blog friends. I’m new to blogging and I have a handful of “regulars” that I check in on and love to follow. I need to remember to find new people too and not get stuck in my rut. 🙂 Thanks for the reminder.

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  27. I totally agree with your suggestion, which I think I’ll follow.
    Already try to leave comments ,every time I find something meaningful , be it a picture , a whole post or just a thought , and it happens very often!
    Thank you for your constant help !

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  28. I agree, though I never really thought about the five a day suggestion, it is something I have been practicing without knowing it. I have found many great blogs this way AND I feel I have established real connection with several fellow bloggers. It has been nice to see my blog grow, but it has taken time to cultivate. But it has been totally worth it. There are so many great blogs out there, it’s easy to find five a day that offer some nice bit of information.
    Thanks for the post.

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  29. I’m really glad that I stumbled on this post because it’s really great advice. I’ve been struggling to get my blog out to more people than just my friends and family and the Five A Day advice is definitely something I’m going to start doing.

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