Thanks to Readers
August 28, 2012 by Lillie
Each month I thank all my commenters for the previous month. On my latest thank-you post, I had a comment from a regular saying the list was a nice tribute to readers, but he wasn’t listed.
This is part of my reply:
Actually this is a tribute to commenters. I would like to recognize all readers, but I don’t know who they are. I only know you’ve been here is if you leave a comment. … If you come and read posts and don’t comment, I appreciate it very much. But I have way of knowing that, so I can’t thank you.
I started thinking about this, though, and realized I need to let readers who don’t comment that I appreciate them also. I have a lot more readers than commenters, usually 12,000 to 15,000 visitors but only 100 to 200 comments each month. I want the thousands of readers who don’t comment to know that I am glad they take the time to visit and read my blog.
I certainly understand why people don’t comment. I subscribe to a couple hundred blogs and review them in my feed reader. Sometimes I read the headline and first couple of sentences and mark the post as read because the topic doesn’t interest. Usually I read the entire post in the reader and never go to the blog site. Rarely a post is so compelling that I click over to the blog and leave a comment.
If the feed is only a partial post, it’s very unlikely that I will bother to click over to the blog to read the entire post. There are about three blogs I like so much, I will read them in spite of having only partial feeds. But those are special blogs, indeed. I suspect a large percentage of blog readers have similar reading habits.
If you read but don’t comment, thank you. I appreciate your taking the time to visit and read my words. I know how much competition there is for your reading time, and I’m delighted that you spend some of that time here. I hope one day you’ll find a post so compelling that you feel that you have to comment. But even if that never happens, I appreciate you!
Hi Lillie! This is a wonderful post. Sometimes people (like me) slow down on commenting for a while but nonetheless really appreciate the amazing work you do. Again, such a nice post!
Matt,
I fully understand not commenting frequently–as I said, I don’t comment a lot, either, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the blogs I read. And I appreciate people who read my blog even if they don’t comment. At first, I said I had no way to thank them. Then I realized that, even though I can’t thank individual readers by name, I can certainly express my thanks in general.
Your all posts are full of knowledge and very interesting. I love to read and comment on each of them.
Azam,
I’m glad to have you as a reader and commenter.
Hi Lillie,
I have been a regular visitor to your lovely blog for quite a while now and it is really nice that you take the time out to thank all of your visitors whether we comment or now. Thank you in return for keeping an interesting well written blog.
Mark,
I know how often I read and don’t comment, and sometimes I think that the blogger never knows I read and enjoy their work.
All of your post are packed with information, understanding and it’s very interesting. Even though I’m not a regular visitor to your beautiful blog.
Thank you, Marygold.
I am a fan of your blog. Always reading your posts as they are informative and heartwarming too.
I appreciate your kind words, Jane, as well as your loyal readership.
What a lovely gesture, Lillie.
I usually don’t comment on some posts I read because I don’t have anything to say, don’t agree with the writer or just don’t have the time to read AND comment. Or sometimes, comments are turned off and I can’t comment. It is what it is.
Dawn,
Sheer lack of time has really reduced the amount of commenting I do, so I understand how it is.