About a week ago I noticed Nomadic Matt Tweeting about a drop in comments on for posts he had written while travelling that were about specific destinations. Articles about things like the Paris sewers or cities were getting fewer comments than the posts about more general travel topics and issues.
This is something I’ve noticed on this blog a bit too… the more specific the place I’m writing about, the fewer comments those posts seemed to get. This seemed a little odd to me at first because I would have thought that on-location first-hand ‘reporting’ and photos would have been something that to set my blog apart. It would be more personal than the usual online guides that are out there for each place, and it would seem logical that people who like to comment about your proposed travels would like to comment even more once you actually start.
But after thinking about it a bit more it sort of makes sense to have fewer commenters for destination type blog posts.I think people comment on blogs posts they can either relate to or have an opinion about. When you start posting about specific places and writing about what you did there, there’s not a lot to be opinionated about and the only people who can relate are the people who have been there too.
On the other hand, posts about general travel related topics or things like preparing for a trip are things that a lot of people can relate to. I would guess that most people who are into reading travel blogs are people who have travelled or who want to travel and are preparing and general travel topics are something people who have been can relate to and people who are going can offer up an opinion about, at least.
When I read a post about ‘this is where I am and this is what I’m doing’, unless the person is doing something truly amazing in that place, it doesn’t grab my imagination in quite the same way as a post about general travel topics like The Downside of Long Term Travel or 24 Travellers to Inspire You and I’m not as likely to leave a comment.
What do you think? I comment on posts I can either offer up advice for or have an opinion on or sometimes even if I just want to tell the person that I liked their posts and what they’re doing. What makes you comment on a person’s blog? Are destination guide type posts usually something you will offer up a comment about if you haven’t been there?
I’ve always been curious about what compels people to leave comments so… er, leave a comment? 
“I think people comment on blogs posts they can either relate to or have an opinion about”
You hit the nail on the head. With regard to my own commenting behavior, I am much more likely to leave a comment on someone who posts about a location I’ve visited. The more passionate I am about the spot, the more excited I am to leave the comment as well. Just try me on anything Nepal or Colombia-related!
And I noticed the same thing when I was traveling. People would leave comments about specific places they had either visited or wanted to visit.
But as the traveler, exploring the world, that leaves a lot of places people haven’t been or aren’t passionate about.
People tend to comment if they’ve been there or plan on going there. I had guys who commented all the time when I was in the Pacific because they had been there and stopped once I left that region.
That being said, destination posts probably do the best with Google because those are the subjects that people search on.
It’s a nice and neat explanation, but I think mistaken. The focus of your blog is monetising websites, SEO and the lifestyle you enjoy on it. I would imagine much of your audience doesn’t come here for the travel stories – so travel stories get fewer comments.
In spite of the small twinge of guilt it’ll bring me to admit it, I tend to ignore your travel stories in favour of the meat. I’m sure this is the case with much of this community. The few people who can and are, are propped up by the many who would, but either won’t or can’t. Chris Guillebeau for example doesn’t and wouldn’t ever make money by writing travel stories. In this industry, the gold is in the guidance.
Makes sense what you said, I will rarely comment unless I have an opinion or simply commend the person on their post or the Info provided. I think those type of niche posts are important though posts if that type will get you ranked on the first page of google wher ranking for more general stuff is hard the niche stuff should bolster your authority on the more general stuff.
I think I might be in agreement with everyone on the comments. Although I would like to point out that just because people comment less on these posts doesn’t mean they are any less interesting to reader. I think some of the very specific location posts are some of my favorites. They’re the ones where the little ‘note to self’ voice goes off in your head.
I think certain posts are comment bait in the same that some are link bait. I wouldn’t judge the value of a post by the number of comments though. Just like I wouldn’t judge a blog by the feedburner count.
I think people are only likely to comment on destination posts if they’ve been to those places and have something else to share. I love the mix of posts on your blog though – I am now really excited about Nicaragua- so thanks!
Like you, we notice that the articles with the most comments are general travel or “tips” articles. But, we still do articles related to destinations because we want to share from wherever we’ve just been.
In terms of my own behavior, I tend to comment on destination posts from where I’ve already been or places where I want to go. If it’s a place I have no connection to, then I usually pass.
I get a lot more search engine hits on destination posts, but rarely any comments. Sometimes the destination stuff will keep on getting traffic long after it’s online, and after a while it builds up a few responses–but it doesn’t have the instant draw that travel tips do.
I had thoughts on this earlier today, it’s a big thing which is actually changing travel blogs as more and more people expect blogs to earn money (nomadicmatts e-book added fuel to this fire), and the destinations arn’t bringing the money in.
It dilutes good travel writing too, but the blog author won’t know if they are good or not as all the comments are on top 10 lists, what to bring with you on your travels, why you should travel, do you comment on destination blog posts, etc
Nigel don’t worry, I can relate! Whenever I used to visit http://www.workingnomad.com I wouldn’t really be too interested in the destination/travel posts… I wanted advice on how to make some money online. That’s what I went there for and those were the posts I would read and comment on.
I had debated having travel posts on this blog at all but I like sticking the odd one in there, although I usually try to give it a working on the road spin. It is as much for me as for other people since this is the only personal blog I have and I want to keep track of my travels somewhere. I tried having a separate travel blog and failed miserably.
AdventureRob it’s interesting you brought that up because I was thinking the exact same thing. I read an interview yesterday – http://www.madnessandbeauty.com/2009/10/inspiring-travels-interview-with.html – with Stuart from Travelfish.org and he mentioned the same thing. People might be writing less for the love of it and more with a specific target or audience in mind in order to make a bit of money for their efforts. There’s nothing wrong with this of course but I agree with you that it dilutes good travel writing. There are only so many top 10 lists one person can take!