Genuine Question About The Comments Box

1. 81

   Mark Ewbieposted 13 years ago

   It's nice to get comments on hubs, but I am less sure about their value on commercial hubs.  In fact I am tempted to leave them off.
   
   I think there are two games in town - the internal Hubber traffic - very nice no money - and the external traffic.
   
   But I wonder if anyone has experience of this or suggestions?
   
   Correction - I know you have experience AND suggestions.

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2. 60

   saleheensblogposted 13 years ago

   new comment refresh your content and make Google pleased.

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      paradigmsearchposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Exactly.
      
      Edit: Especially when those comments contain additional keywords.

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      1. 81

         Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Ah so sensible comment could add to the items searchability?
         
         Hmm. So much to think about.

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3. 81

   Mark Ewbieposted 13 years ago

   Thanks guys, but can you get the refresh just by using the News capsule or RSS feeds?
   
   My concern is whether comments can distract or muddle the sales pitch.

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4. 71

   Cagsilposted 13 years ago

   Comments on sales hubs are treated differently than comments on informative articles.
   
   Both add value, because as Saleheen said- it gives fresh content to your hub.
   
   However, some comments on sales hubs can be detrimental to the success and should be moderated at all times. You can do so, by editing the capsule itself and putting a check in the first two boxes. This way, the comment does not immediately show up on your hub, before you get a chance to review it.
   
   I hope that helped.

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   1. 61

      KristenGraceposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Very true.
      
      In my opinion, (although others here are certainly more experienced than me), I keep any comments that positively reflect my hub.  Sorry to say that if it makes me sound conceited (I'm not) but if I'm writing about the perfect gift and somebody comments on how awful it is, that's certainly not helping from my POV!

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   2. 81

      Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Yes that did help! Thanks a lot.

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      1. 71

         Cagsilposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         You're welcome.

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5. 76

   Sally's Troveposted 13 years ago

   The power of the HubPages comment feature regarding driving traffic to a Hub may be under-rated. I was amazed a while ago to discover that searches I made on key words in some of my Hubs yielded Google results pointing to HP comments. Since then, whenever I comment on someone's Hub, I include a key word or key word phrase related to their Hub in my comment.
   
   About comments on commercial Hubs, that's a decision you might want to make based on your goals. I've been wrestling with this while looking at Hubbers who remove the Comment capsule when they write a commercial Hub...they don't want a discussion, they want to make a sale. Then there are Hubbers who leave the Comment capsule in tact, but never reply to comments.
   
   It depends on what you want to do with your commercial Hubs. Do you want to drive sales directly to a product, or do you want to build a reputation using engagement? Or a combination of the two?
   
   Your "sales pitch" could stand alone (without inviting comments) or it could be a means of learning from your readers (by inviting comments) in order to build a more solid business.
   
   The choice is up to you, and HubPages makes it possible for you to go either way.

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   1. 81

      Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Interesting and informative asnwer.  Thanks.

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6. 40

   Spacey Graceyposted 13 years ago

   Hi Mark - I always leave comments on. They have been useful for a number of reasons. Sometime people suggest a better product to feature and I go back and add it to the hub and point out the recommendation made in the comments box. On some of the toy hubs I have had some lovely feedback from people who have found the hub really useful - this motivates me and helpd drive sales as I think it gives the hub credibility.
   
   But keep an eye on them. I had a comment left the other day that was just total filth and not something associated with my hubpages, esp as I sell so many toys.

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      Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Spacey.

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7. 91

   Pcunixposted 13 years ago

   Comments often create new long tail phrases that you never would have thought of in a zillion years.
   
   I have an article on my main website that never would have been anything without the numerous comments it attracted.  That one page usually earns more than $100 a month and often close t $200 and it is all because of the comments.

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   1. 81

      Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I have to say you leave excellent comments.  Often better than my page itself.

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8. 60

   Randy Godwinposted 13 years ago

   Comments are especially helpful on any How-to or do-it-yourself hub.  I often receive info which I incorporate in to the hub text.  These comments are often keyword rich which might help search engines find the article.  Just my opinion, however.

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   1. 81

      Mark Ewbieposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Randy.
      
      I am still learning here.  More daft questions to come.

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