Should you enable comments on blog posts? (10 Pros & Cons)

Allowing comments on your blog can be a fantastic way to interact and connect with your readers. And while these require some level of maintenance, managing blog comments is generally an easy task.

If you have been targeted by spammers, though, and you’re considering turning comments off for that reason alone, you may want to read my article on how to prevent spam on WordPress. In that post, I have offered a few suggestions to help you tackle this particular issue. 

While turning comments off is definitely the most effective and permanent solution to combat spam, that shouldn’t be the only reason why you remove the commenting features altogether.

Deciding whether to enable comments on blog posts, or deactivate them completely, is a very personal choice. There are benefits and pitfalls either way!

To help you make up your mind about it, today we are going to discuss the pros and cons of WordPress comments.

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The Pros of WordPress Comments: How accepting comments on blog posts can benefit your site

1. SEO Juice

When engaged readers leave insightful comments that directly relate to your post’s content, those can show Google that your article is valuable and people are interacting with it.

They may even include some important keyword variations that can lead to your post ranking for more related terms.

Although the impact is minimal, it can’t hurt (especially if you’re moderating comments and choosing the ones that go live)!

2. Encourage reader’s engagement

This is an obvious one, and we’ve already touched on it. But it’s worth making it a pro on its own.

Adding a comment box on your WordPress website will encourage engagement and interaction, giving your site more room to shine and stand out!

Also, when a conversation starts in the comments section, readers will want to come back and read any answers they get… what does that mean for you? More page views, of course!

3. Social Proof

I always recommend having social share buttons on every blog post and adding at least a couple of vertical images optimized for Pinterest. That’s because Pinterest is an invaluable source of traffic for most blogging niches.

Plus, pins get indexed and can rank in search results, too! The more your readers share your content, the more chances it has to be found.

When it comes to blog comments, we face a similar scenario!

High-quality blog comments can serve as social proof, too. Website visitors will be more likely to trust your content when they see others do as well. 

Besides, this also shows Google that your posts are enticing conversation and circulating the web, which will give a boost to your website’s credibility over time.

4. Connection

As a consequence of frequent interactions, comments help you establish deeper connections with your blog’s readers. 

If the same person comes back again and again, and you respond to their comments every time, you’ll start to build a relationship with them. They may become your #1 fan!

I assume that you actually answer all the comments you get, of course. If you don’t, you should!

And if you’re not willing to add that to your to-do’s, then I’d advise against enabling comments altogether.

5. Idea generation

Do not think for a second that comments will only benefit your readers! 

Yes, they’ll ask you questions and, if you’re managing comments correctly, they’ll get even more free content from you.

That’s how blogging works, and helping your audience is the whole purpose of blogging, after all.

But you will see this major benefit too: you’ll start to understand what your readers are looking to get from you.

Comments can be an invaluable source of inspiration for new blog posts or even for any paid products that you create in the future.

The Cons of WordPress Comments: Why allowing comments can have a negative impact on your website

1. Spam

Spam is a huge issue on the internet. The number of spammers is only rising, and, unfortunately, by allowing comments to be added to your blog, you’ll inevitably become a target. 

Read this blog post next, where I have shared some tips for avoiding spam comments on WordPress specifically.

2. Negativity

Let’s face it! Some people seem to make a living from pushing others down. That’s true in any business, industry, and blogging niche. 

Whether it’s on social media, forums, or websites, getting a negative or even disrespectful comment is bound to happen at some point.

It’s sad, and I honestly don’t understand why these people bother spending their precious time. But it happens… And it can be disheartening!

Don’t sweat on those. Don’t let them get to you. If there’s anything of value to take away, that’s great – make it a lesson. 

But if it’s plain cruel, delete it and move on with your day! Just know that everyone has gone through the same (or will, eventually). You’re not alone, and one negative comment alone cannot define all the great work you’re doing. 

If a comment makes you feel down, take a moment to check out the positive ones. I’m sure those will be a good reminder of why you started the blog in the first place.

And remember, you can blacklist users, IP addresses and even certain words if you wish!

3. Site Speed

Anything you add to your pages will inevitably slightly impact its loading speed. Comments are no different! The more comments a blog post has, the slower it’s likely to load.

Consider restricting the timeframe for comments to be made on each post. For example, you may want to accept comments for 30 days after the publishing date. 

Of course, the impact would be more significant if you do, in fact, get hundreds of comments on every post regularly.

Besides closing the comments’ section after a certain period of time, you may also consider deleting (or not approving) low-quality contributions. Or, in other words, comments that won’t add any extra value to the post.

An example of this type of comment would be “Nice article!” or “Good work”.

These don’t really bring any value nor require an answer, so I’d consider deleting them if you’re trying to improve your site’s performance.

And finally, disabling users’ Gravatar and keeping the comments section as plain text will be helpful too when it comes to page loading speed.

4. Time

If you get many comments regularly, managing them and responding to your audience can become a time-consuming task. This is especially true when you’re just starting out and doing it all by yourself.

Make sure you organize your time wisely and prioritize your most important tasks, or simply set a timer to moderate comments for a pre-determined amount of time.

5. Privacy Matters

Just like your regular contact form, a blog commenting system is likely to require users to provide their personal details and may connect to their Gravatar service.

I’m no lawyer, and this isn’t legal advice. But opting to enable comments on your blog may have some legal implications, too. Ensure that your policies address the topic of user-generated content, or consult your needs with a legal advisor before enabling comments.

I have personally purchased a bundle of legal templates that are specifically made by a blogger, for bloggers. Thankfully, these include everything bloggers need, are easy to understand, and relatively affordable!

Conclusion 

Ultimately, deciding to enable comments on your blog or not allow them at all, requires your thoughtful consideration.

There are plenty of successful bloggers who have opted for different approaches to the matter. So rest assured that this won’t determine the longevity of your blogging business.

After reading through the pros and cons of WordPress comments, base your decision on your own preference and not on external factors alone.

Related posts:
• How to Avoid Spam Comments on WordPress
• How to Create a Gravatar