It’s been quite a great week of comments here at JMMO. It started off with last Monday’s Open Mic topic on Paid Comments. Some highlights include:
From Mitch:
“It may be someone trying to build backlinks in a related topic. Usually I leave them if the comment is valid, and provides useful information. If it is just an I agree with your opinion post then, I usually delete them.
If the url is a referral link, I’ll usually delete them regardless of the comment. Mainly because I don’t want referral links in comments period .
I don’t have that much of a problem about spam comments yet, but then again my site is relatively new. So I guess it is a good sign that you’re getting a lot of visitors or becoming an authority on the subject. I would say if it is really iffy leave the comment, but remove the url from the name so it doesn’t link back.”
Sean said that he has heard of a paid comments service somewhere, but haven’t used the service.
Jonk, a long-time RSS subscriber/reader, left his first comment with his two cents on the subject:
“My opinion is that if the person has taken the time to leave a comment and add to your community, it isn’t asking much to let them have their anchor text. You scratch my back, I scratch yours….. etc. I agree with Mitch on referral links though, I don’t accept them on my (personal) blog either.”
Shane brought up a good point about coming up with a comment policy. And, he also said: “I always delete the URL if the “name†they leave is an obvious attempt to rank for a certain keyword. I don’t delete the comment, simply because they are indeed usually worthwhile, but comments are supposed to be a free conversation between people, not forced conversation purely for the sake of improving someone’s reputation.”
And, Frank responded with: “I’ve ran into a few obvious paid comments recently, particularly on my software development blog. If the comment is good, I leave it but clear the URL, otherwise I’ll mark it as spam.”
My post on How and What to Sell Online also brought up some interesting discussions - and even new ideas from readers. Shannon Cherry gave a really important tip about maximising your existing online inventory when it comes to making money online:
“One of the things I like to encourage people is think about what they are already doing with their online business and how can reuse it to make even more money.
For example, if you are using articles to market your business, then take a bunch of related articles, add a bit more content and sell it as an ebook.
The key is to think beyond the original use.”
Absolutely agree!
Thomas Sinfield further encouraged the importance of caring about what you’re selling online: “I am surprised how many people start things with just the motivation to make money. They have no interest in the product or service. I honestly don’t understand how you could survive doing this.”
And Jonathan Frye gave a very good additional tip to the list:
“Great suggestions for the online entrepreneur! As the Internet continues to be more and more central to our lives, there are a lot more items for sale online – you can buy movies, books, antiques, cars, and, even, houses. One more suggestion to add to your list:
6) Look for a void.
Search for items that are not available online or are not readily available online. The scarcity of the item can work toward your competitive advantage and you can make a successful business. Just make certain to do your homework – what is the market for your product, who are you going to sell it to, how are you going to reach them, and why will they buy from you.”
And yes, even old blog posts like the one I wrote about Helium as a way to make money online received some interesting feedback from readers of JMMO. In fact, the comments are enough to merit a follow-up write up on the subject.
Anyway, I just want to say thanks to everyone who leave comments here at JMMO. I really appreciate hearing your side of the story about making money online. We may all want the same thing, but we all have different stories to tell. And, that’s part of the aim of this blog - to share everyone’s online money making stories. So again, THANK YOU for making that possible.Â
Technorati Tags: comments, community, online money, open mic mondays, paid comments, stories, readers, selling online
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I am enjoying getting to know you work better. It’s great to be a sister blog with you.
One more thing to add to the linking issue. If you have nofollow turned off (as more and more do now), you better be really sure that you vouch for the link if you decide to leave it because Google looks closely at who you’re linking out to.
Thanks for the link
and that’s a good point from Shane
Yes, linking or leaving links to ‘bad neighborhoods’ will get you penalized in Big G’s eyes.
Thanks for the link!