One of the inevitabilities of blogging is that more people read than leave comments to the things you blog about. It goes without saying I'm totally cool with that - there is by no means any expectation that reading this blog is synonymous with participation. But it doesn't assuage my curiosity as to what you all are thinking =)
So over the coming weeks I'll likely be testing out a few variations on ways to solicit non-intrusive feedback, from people who might be interesting in sharing their opinions, but may not want to leave their names or write up full blown comments. Today's test, the Sodahead poll! ZOMG. And what better way to test something than to dive right in. Just as an FYI, this is an embedded third party polling system, not something home grown in case you are curious.
Edit: A few immediate observations:
- As expected the poll doesnt seem to transmit through google reader
- The little tabs that do translate through RSS take you to sodahead, and not to the blog post (way lame)
- The interface is slick and easy to get setup
- The comments field post poll sort of defeats the purpose
Double Edit:
- Little tabs that once translated through RSS have since been removed
"At the end of the day I like to think I am writing for me, but the occasional comment does make me feel validated on some level."
That's the main reason I got into, and continue, to do this stuff. It's good practice writing at the low end, and at the high end it might actually spawn some good discussion and open up new ideas. It's a nice continuum, which I certainly don't mind hanging out at the 'low end' just to keep my own thoughts straight and using my blog as a quasi-CMS.
It is hard to get people to participate -- it is why blogging is so wonderfully frustrating. I find that the posts I think people will comment on get nothing, while the stuff I think doesn't deserve a response gets 5-10 ... I don't know why. At the end of the day I like to think I am writing for me, but the occasional comment does make me feel validated on some level. Honestly it is the reason I try to comment at other people's blogs ... not that I am trying to pump you up (that is for other people!).
Not sure about the poll stuff, but it is interesting that 100% of 4 people have answered the same way. If you were a political candidate you'd have consensus!