Online publications and comments

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Richard Michem on November 26, 2008 at 10:10am

I don't believe that most people still consider, online magazines, to be real magazines. Thats maybe, why most online mags are not taken seriously, yet. Maybe, you should have some kind of print version.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Cynthia Cheng on November 26, 2008 at 10:18am

The funny thing is that I've had more positive reaction from OLDER PEOPLE than from some younger people. A 20 year old once asked me why I didn't bother going print. TWENTY!!! This is a girl who has had exposure to computers from the day she started pre-school (or earlier!). On the other hand, people 45+ have been either neutral or positive. Yes, people old enough to be that girl's parents.

A print magazine will cost me a great deal of money, and honestly, I'm not willing to invest in something that is dying out. Do you know how many magazines have ceased publishing in the past few months (especially those for a younger market? Many people I know feel that the only teen magazine left standing in about 2 years is Seventeen)

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Joshua Thomas on November 26, 2008 at 4:49pm

Online magazines are very much magazines ... sorry Richard, back to that discussion =) ! But that debate doesn't need to be picked back up on your post! Regardless of whether you label your brand as an online magazine, content portal, industry news site or whatever, you:

-a- Have a substantial amount of content on your website
-b- Are driving traffic to it (albeit slowly)
-c- Are having a difficult time getting readers to comment

The problem to C lies in B (and maybe A ... but I haven't really explored your content to have an opinion on that)

User engagement on a site requires critical mass before any interaction will ever occur. Imagine walking into a brand new nightclub, fabulous decor, great flyers and PR presence but once you get there ... you're the only in the room. That's what it's like visiting a site with no interaction. Especially if article commenting is the only form of interaction. No one ever wants to be the first to comment on an article, let alone the first on a site. Only a small percentage of readers will ever comment and unless others comment and engage them in (rewarding) discussions, they most likely won't comment again.

A quick trick/option is to have a module placed on the homepage and/or in particular sections which lists articles ranked by "most comments". Seeing what other articles users are interacting upon can be an enticement to the those who are on the fence. It's like realizing "hey, there are people in this club ... off in the corner, but they are here."

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Marcus on December 1, 2008 at 5:05pm

Joshua's point is well-taken. Online, approximately 1% of people participate in social media -- meaning post comments and such. If your audience is currently small, your social media participation will be 1% of small.

In that case, I'd actually be inclined to minimize areas where people can see the comments, as it show you don't have as much activity as you'd like. Keep working on the core content and when you have critical mass, take advantage of the 1%.

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jennifer Golden on March 12, 2009 at 5:31pm

Sometimes you have to lead people to participate. Try a question at the end of each feature that anchors down to the comments section. You can also feature a user comment in your weekly newsletter (with permission) to show readers that you're including them in the conversation.

Jenny

▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Robin McCabe on August 10, 2009 at 4:11pm

Back in the last century we used to salt our forum's to give them a kick-start. Not phony comments, but we placed questions and statements we heard on the phone, or at trade shows that were relevant to the subject, into the forum. Especially relevant were arguments heard or taken part in, if they arouse passion they will generate comments.

▶ Reply to This