5 reasons you should switch to Disqus. | THE KLACKNERS

5.15.2014

5 reasons you should switch to Disqus.



i've made a lot of changes to my blog over the past year, but one of the best changes i have made has been installing disqus. i love it so much that i wanted to share about it with you!  i've got five reasons  why you should switch over to disqus:

1. it is free.
you can install and use disqus at absolutely no charge!

2. no more spam.
before switching to disqus, i would get TONS of anonymous spammy comments. blogger was okay about catching them and putting them in my spam folder...only a few slipped through and actually made it onto my blog. still, it was obnoxious. disqus uses its own anti-spam software to fight comment spam. if a spammy comment slips through, disqus makes it incredibly easy to report. however, since installing disqus, i haven't had even one spammy comment. it's been so nice not to have to worry about it!

3. say goodbye to "no-reply" bloggers.
you will never have to worry about "no-reply" bloggers ever again. before switching over to disqus, i would get really sad when i got a comment from someone but could not email/comment back because they were "no-reply". the worst part is that most bloggers don't know that they are "no-reply" unless someone tells them! i would stalk people's blog's for their contact email and send my reply to them that way. plus, i'd nicely let them know about their current situation. ;) all of that to say,  i hated missing out on connecting with my readers via comments and knew i needed to find a way around that obstacle.

4. free advertising & paid promotions.
disqus will promote old posts of yours underneath the comments section in each post. there is no need to add additional widgets like linkwithin, etc. they also have a feature called "promoted discovery" which allows you to make money through content recommendations. simply put, you have the opportunity to be paid when readers click on content from other advertisers.

5. it's easy to use.
first of all, it is incredibly simple to install. it's available for blogger, wordpress, tumblr, squarespace, typepad, and other platforms. disqus makes commenting a complete breeze. you can sign in to comment via disqus, facebook, twitter, or google. there are no requirements for verification codes like on other comment platforms, which is great because i personally find those incredibly annoying and unnecessary. of course, you do have the option to verify and moderate comments with disqus but it's not a necessity. i have never found a reason to use that feature.

you may be wondering, "will i lose comments made on previous posts?" the people at disqus do a pretty great job of loading your previous comments back in once disqus is installed. i will tell you that i did lose some of my old comments, but it was on older posts that probably no one goes back to read these days anyway. :) the number of comments i lost was incredibly small. i wouldn't even be able to tell you exactly which ones or from which posts. all of that to say IF you lose a handful of comments, i doubt you will notice, and in the long run, i believe it is worth it.

if you ask me, those are some pretty good reasons to make the switch. i'm obviously a huge fan of disqus and a little biased, but if you decide to make the switch, i really don't think you'll regret it!

|| this post is in no way sponsored by disqus. i simply like their product a whole lot! ||

WHAT COMMENT PLATFORM DO YOU CURRENTLY USE?
HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT DISQUS? ASK AWAY!

meg pitts said...

I've been thinking about doing this. I attempted a while back but it messed something up. I might give it another try!

Linds said...

I had no idea I could use it for blogger. I will definitely be making the switch soon. Thanks for the info. Is it easy to get set up?

Robyn Black said...

i agree! disqus has been one of the best decisions i've made in this blogging journey! :)

Rachel Cox said...

Wow, I am switching over now I think! I have so many no reply bloggers which always makes me so sad!!

Megan McIlvaine said...

try again! also, don't worry if it doesn't show up right away. disqus lets you know it could take an hour or so for everything to reload. :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

yay! yes, for me it was! they give you the html code you need for whatever platform you use (so for you, blogger) and you enter that code into your layout. it can sometimes take an hour or so for everything to reload, so don't worry if you don't see it right away. :) and if you have any questions, disqus is willing to help! just should them an email or a tweet :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

right? i absolutely love it!!

Megan McIlvaine said...

oh yay! i really think you'll love it!
the worst thing about no-reply bloggers is that most of them don't know they are no-reply! this definitely solves that situation for you :)

hannahclair721 said...

Thank you so much for the recommendation! I am switching today :)
have a wonderful day :)
hannaH
grannysquareflair.blogspot.com

Madison said...

I agree 100%! I would have said the exact same things. I want to know more about the paid promotions though!

Christina Main said...

Oh man this is crazy, I was JUST talking to a friend about how frustrating blogger's comment platform was. She actually can't comment on my blog for some weird reason. Which makes me wonder- how many others can't comment on my blog?! I just may switch!

Christina Main said...

Question though. Will all my blogger comments that are already up on my blog disappear once I install Disqus? Or are they still there? Do they convert themselves into the Disqus platform?

Gina Alyse said...

Thanks for this post, Meg! I'm in the process of reevaluating my blog and seeing where I want to go as a blogger and what I want to do! I've been looking through a lot of blogging posts recently, and this one helped a lot! I feel like I've tried Disqus in the past, but I'm not sure why I deactivated it. Thanks for pointing out the good things about it!


xo, gina

Megan McIlvaine said...

that is super weird! i don't think i've ever had a problem commenting on your blog...

Megan McIlvaine said...

you should be able to import all previous comments. i know i lost a small handful of mine, but i think that is rare. check this out for more info on importing: http://help.disqus.com/customer/portal/articles/916069-how-do-i-import-my-old-comments

Megan McIlvaine said...

yeah i'm still figuring out how all of that works. i think it's equivalent to google adsense or something like that. so if someone clicks on those links to go read other's posts advertised through disqus, you can make money off of that. i think they have some other options are well, but i haven't explored all of that yet!

Megan McIlvaine said...

yay! i think you will love it!

Megan McIlvaine said...

i'm so glad it was helpful, gina! good luck with you blog!!

Amy Hodgdon said...

I have been WANTING to switch to disqus, cause I love commenting on other people's blogs who have disqus, it's so easy and hassle free.
One question, do you have to export your comments?

Megan McIlvaine said...

Disqus will actually import your comments for you! See here: http://help.disqus.com/customer/portal/articles/916069-how-do-i-import-my-old-comments

Ash - The Nashvillian said...

I made this switch last month, and I'm so happy I did! Before I switched, I had NO clue that Blogger does not send email notifications to my readers when I reply to their comments. That's just no bueno. Thankful for Disqus.


-Ash
www.thenashvillianblog.com

Caitlin | The Siren's Tale said...

This is one of the first switches I'm making when I take my blog self-hosted (hopefully by the end of May!) I use WP.com right now, and it's such a hassle for non-WP users to comment. I love the simplicity of Disqus, and it's great because it automatically emails responses to people.

Samantha@Elah Tree said...

I love that you shared about this! I've thought about switching over, but hadn't really decided yet. I'm so stubborn sometimes.

esther julee said...

:) i use disqus right now, but i didn't know about all these benefits to it! thanks!

Beka Johnson said...

I like Disqus! I feel that it allows for interaction with lots of other people and they get notifications when you message them.

liveyoungabroad said...

I like it too, but I dont know how to increase the number of comments on my blog? any tips? :) x

Beka Johnson said...

I think one of the biggest things is to include your reader. By that, I mean ask questions at the end of your posts. I always put my questions in bold at the very end. If you post a recipe - ask them what their favorite recipe is. If you write something heartfelt, ask for for their advice. I've learned that when I'm genuine, engage and show readers I care they respond well.

Jenna Guizar said...

I LOVE Disqus as well :) The ONLY gripe I've heard is about having to "login" to comment, but since I'm connected to my Twitter, it is super simple to login really quickly! I really love that it gives me a notification when someone comments back, because I NEVER subscribe to comments on people's blogs. My email gets too crazy :) Thanks for sharing this post! ~Jenna

Elizabeth Mayberry said...

Great advice!

Elizabeth Mayberry said...

MEEEE TOO!

Beka Johnson said...

Thanks =)

Betsy Gettis said...

I just made the switch a few weeks ago and I. Love. It. So glad I did it!

Megan McIlvaine said...

yes! you took the words right out of my mouth. be genuine and engage with readers and the rest of the blogging community! :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

oh yay! i know!...it took me a while to figure out that Blogger was not sending notifications. Disqus has changed my blogging life :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

yes! good luck with the switch!! :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

haha...i say it's worth it! :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

you're welcome! :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

yeah! i haven't really thought about that because i'm usually logged into some social platform that disqus uses, so i never actually have to login. :) but if you do, it's totally easy!

Megan McIlvaine said...

yay! you're the one that got me to use disqus in the first place! way to go, bestie.

Megan McIlvaine said...

oh good!! glad you love it :) i think it makes a huge difference!

Jenna Guizar said...

I couldn't agree more. Great post, and I hope more people move to it! (I haven't made the switch back yet, I'm still using WP's commenting form, but you may have sold me.)

Megan McIlvaine said...

yes!! and i thought i couldn't make it in sales... ;)

Lorraine Yeung said...

I LOVE Disqus too!!
(Can I confess that I find it way easier to leave a comment when bloggers have Disqus installed), I love that I can ask questions and get a notification when a blogger responds. Love that I can really dialogue with my readers.... and I've seen way more interaction on my site since. :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

yes, exactly!! the dialogue and interaction parts are what sold me on disqus. love it!

Amy said...

still haven't made the jump yet. maybe i will soon. hahaha.
random ? does it send an email to you with the comment and you reply to that email?

Megan McIlvaine said...

yes! so i get an email from disqus with the comment from you and then there's a box that says "reply to amy". i click on it and it brings me back to my post and right to my comments so i can reply! it's so convenient!

Amanda Nudelman said...

As a note, you can also reply directly to the email and your comment will post as if you did it from the page! That's my favorite "on-the-go" feature. :)

Megan McIlvaine said...

ahhhh! i did not know that! thank you so much for telling me! :)

Amanda Nudelman said...

Yay, happy to help! You can also moderate by replying to the email with "approve" "spam" or "delete" (without the quotes). :D

Megan McIlvaine said...

that is incredibly helpful! i had never noticed.

Gaius Baltar said...

Disqus is fine. But I don't understood: switch from? Does anybody know other free comment systems?

Jenna Griffin said...

I have used Disqus for a few months now and LOVE it. I really like how it makes for easy conversation between bloggers.

Megan McIlvaine said...

me too, jenna! i love that anyone can jump into the comment thread at any time to enter the conversation :)

Ember Grey. said...

Thank you SO much for sharing this info! I've been debating on whether or not to make the switch... after reading this post from you and others today on The Peony Project, I think I'll be making the switch this week. eeeeek! I'm nervous! ha! (Okay- one question.. so I already have the "Posts you may like" linkwithin at the bottom of each post. Can I keep those and not use the ones disqus promotes? Or does it automatically add that feature?)

Megan McIlvaine said...

Oh yay!! Another Disqus converter. ;) Girl, you can turn those promoted posts off in your Disqus settings. :) So yes, you can still use your linkwithin widget! Woohoo!

Ember Grey. said...

perfect!! Thank you!

Elizabeth Mayberry said...

DO IT!

rachel | walking in between said...

I've loved making the switch to Disqus! It's made conversations between bloggers so much more simple and less time consuming. Plus, I love that non-bloggers are able to communicate as well! :)

Victoria said...

Samantha mentioned switching to Disqus today and I asked her why. Then, you pinned this post. So I had to read it! :)

I do most of my reading/commenting on my iPad. Squarespace and Disqus make me take a deep breath...For whatever reason, commenting through these platforms is almost always a bit of a hassle in my iPad. Sometimes it never will load and sometimes my comment gets "eaten" and every now and then I comment without a problem.

Am I alone in an uneasiness here?

Also..You mentioned being able to reply to comments in email. Is there a way for me to do the same thing in response BACK to bloggers who reply to my comment on their post?

Did you notice a decrease in comments when you made the switch?

I will say that the "no more no-reply bloggers" thing sounds SO nice! Lately I've been getting quite a few comments from those which is sad!

Megan McIlvaine said...

Yes! I had several non-bloggers who read my blog and Disqus makes it so much easier for them to comment!

Megan McIlvaine said...

Hmmm that is strange. I know on my iPhone, it takes a little longer to load...I haven't tried on my iPad yet.


You can reply to comments from your email! Any comment, any place, any time. Just hit "reply" on your email and type your response!


If anything, I noticed an increase in comments. I honestly think, in my case, it made commenting so much easier for my readers!

Victoria said...

So, if I reply like this, you receive this email?

I haven't completely given up on Disqus yet! Thanks for being so patient with me and answering my questions!
:)

~ Victoria

www.myjourneyforhim.blogspot.com

Megan McIlvaine said...

Got it!! No worries! Ask away :)

Victoria said...

huh! Well, this IS pretty neat then! 👍

~ Victoria

www.myjourneyforhim.blogspot.com

Diva Lover!!! #SheLooksGood said...

I mean

meg - me with the three said...

It worked!! At least I think it did! Ha!