Book: Blog Commenting - Part 3

Continuing from last week's book posting about Blog commenting...

Standards and Practices
The rules of engagement within social media platforms remain consistent.  What was mentioned in the Message Boards and Forums section and will be expected in all future sections are that a digital marketer's Standard of Ethics must embody:

• Honesty of Identity & Opinion
• Respect the Rules of the Venue

As well as maintaining the same Best Practices:

• Research
• Join for the Long Haul
• Join for the Bigger Discussion
• Be Transparent with Identity

I won't be repeating them in every section, just always refer to them when pursuing an engagement within the social media platforms that I describe, inclusive of commenting within blogs.

Example
Look at an active blog like Chris Brogan's and you will see that each post results in multiple responses.  A recent post on Chris's blog entitled The Multi-Branded Human had over 50 responses.  Each respondent had an opinion on Chris's post and Chris himself jumped in and conversed with his readers within the commentary section.

In this particular post, Chris discussed numerous name brands and the possible conflict that arises when working with competing companies.  He ended his post with a discussion-inducing jumping off point by asking, "What do you think?"

Chris asked for opinions.  He was seeking insight from his readers.  Conversations ensued and you can see the lively interaction between members of this sub-community.  If you wanted to promote your brand here, the opportunity exists, but you and your product would need to be relevant to the conversation.  If, for example, you were promoting your marketing agency you would need to cite specific examples that would correspond to Chris's article and be respectful of what others are saying.  To maximize your effectiveness, you would also need to show knowledge and authority.  In other words, you need to bring something to the conversation.  You can't just shill for yourself and your product.  You will see that the people who make compelling points engage others which results in conversations within the conversations. 

Summary
As you continue down the path of conversational marketing, you'll uncover many intricate tactics, such as commenting within blogs.  The rules remain consistent; respect and understand the community in which you attempt to converse.  Just remember that when you are commenting on a blog, you are visiting someone's virtual property.  Respect them and the others that congregate around them.  Integrate yourself into the community and bring knowledge and expertise.  Do that and you will have created a new area to expose your product.