My Results For The 100 Blog Comment Challenge
I should have written this post some time ago but as my regular readers know I’ve been otherwise engaged.
For those that haven’t heard of the challenge please visit My Contributors Page
The idea was to get 101 bloggers to take part by writing a post, submitting the post URL and then visit, read, comment and bookmark every blog post that was taking part. Thus creating 100 comments on everyone’s blog, improving our blogs ranking, creating backlinks, increasing our traffic and building relationships with other bloggers.
Jacinta Dean and Steve King set about finding another 99 bloggers to take part, which in itself was quite a challenge, so much so that Mandy Allen and I offered to help. We set up dedicated blog pages to list the contributors blog posts, giving everyone easy access to the challenge participants.
Having got our pages in place we went blog hopping, forum posting and tweeting to tell everyone about the challenge and invite them to join in.
With some help from John Thornhill and Sally Neill we reached our quoter and had the 101 blogs needed, in fact we had 102 but Craig Breeze had a few problems with his blog and unfortunately had to pull out.
Phase One was now complete 
Onto Phase Two: We had to visit everyone’s blog, read their post, leave a comment and bookmark the page. This was very time consuming but as I was adding people to the contributors page I was visiting their blogs straight afterwards.
We had a wide variety of bloggers on board, with various levels of experience. From the Brand Newbie to 1st, 2nd and 3rd year Newbies all the way up to full time bloggers that make their living online.
The vast majority of posts were of great value, giving tips and views on a variety of subjects that most people would find extremely helpful. I know that many of the posts I read have helped me improve my blog, my business and my way of thinking in some aspects of Internet Marketing. Not only that but I’ve made some excellent contacts and have started to build online relationships that I hope will be long lasting.
As I said at the start the idea was to get 100 comments for our posts. In total I had 239 comments for my post, but for every comment received I made a reply, so that number can be halved and then some people replied to my reply , so that number would come down a little more. I think you’ll agree that I had a fantastic result.
I also signed up to Google Analytics to monitor the traffic flow and having checked back to see where the traffic came from I’m pleased to announce the Top Ten Referral sites:
1st, www.mike-j-shepherd.com
2nd, www.creatingmybusinessonline.com
3rd, www.johnthornhillmasterclass.com
5th, www.twitter.com
6th, www.nine95.com
7th, www.terryconti.com
8th, www.jessilicious.com
9th, www.brian-ripley.com
10th, www.jasonser.com
The 3rd, from John Thornhill’s Masterclass would be from the MC forum, where we were posting details of all participants.
The 5th, from Twitter would be as a result of my tweeting everyone’s posts and the fact that I created a twitter list of challenge participants.
Side Note: Can you see the power of Twitter?
The other 8 people listed above were all taking part in the challenge and have really useful information on their blogs, pop over and see for yourself, you won’t regret it.
I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the challenge and would do it again without hesitation. It was a great way of getting to know people and start building those all important relationships.
I would like to congratulate every one of the Newbies for taking part. Bearing in mind that most of them have work and family commitments, as well as their course work to complete, I thought their input was fantastic and I hope that they all enjoyed the challenge as much as I did.
I would also like to thank all of the participants and wish them every success in everything they do.
If you took part in the challenge please share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
Until next time, take care…
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Hi Barry
Jacinta, Mandy, Steve and yourself did a brilliant job setting up the 100 comment challenge and I appreciate that it wasn’t an easy task.
All in all, I think it was a great success, despite a lot of negative comments from people who did not get what it was all about.
As a result of the challenge I set myself a goal of visiting at least one blog per day and leaving a meaningful comment. In fact I am actually visiting 4 or 5 per day, so the challenge has got me into a very good habit.
The only negatives to come out of it were the fact that some didn’t honour their commitment and others never bothered replying to comments.
Regards
Bill
Hi Bill,
Yes there were some negative comments about the challenge, but like you said they were from people that didn’t honour their commitment. I saw a comment from Vance Sova that summed it up beautifully: it was basically saying that someone had given it a bad write up as they hadn’t played their part in the challenge and their write up was an excuse for not doing so.
I did notice that some didn’t reply to comments, and even noticed that some were select in who they would reply to. These were experienced bloggers as well Bill. It is a shame that a few of the experienced bloggers were so slack, but hats off to the newbies for shining brightly.
It’s great to see that you took something from it and are increasing your blog hopping, it will pay off Bill. You’ll soon see an increase in your traffic and the results that come with it.
Catch up soon Bill, have a great week my friend.
R&R Barry
Hey Barry, Thanks for the mention. The 100 blogs challenge demonstrated to me just how important it is to keep blogging and replying to other people’s comments. I was told about it of course, but the practical experience of just how effective it can be was eye opening.
My traffic shot up and I see what needs to be done to keep it going. Constant and steady effort works, it really does.
Best wishes, mate. You are a credit to us all.
Brian.
Brian Ripley recently posted..Persistence and Perseverance
Hi Brian, no need to thank me my friend, I should be thanking you for referring the traffic. “Thanks”.
It’s good to see that the challenge has enabled you to see the results of blogging. Replying to comments is very important, both for the relationship with your commentator and the search engines. You see the search engines see your replies as fresh content which will help your rankings.
Keep up the good work Brian,
Catch up soon, Barry
Hi Barry,
Just been reading about your 100 Blog Comment challenge. It reads like a good idea to me. Can’t think why anyone would come up with negative comments about it. After all, any idea that generates traffic has to be good, doesn’t it? I have to admit I missed it myself. But as you know I am pretty new to all this Inet marketing stuff. And I’m certainly new to blogging. I still find the idea of deliberately getting people to read stuff I have written kinda scary. But I guess if you want to sell something, you have to get people to see it and that means getting them to see what you have to say too.
That idea that “Bill Murney” mentioned, about visiting 4 or 5 Blogs a day, sounds like a winner.
Of course people keep going on about info overload. Its just not possible to read and absorb everything. I try to speed read or skim everything I look at on the web. Including your site. That’s not the perfect solution, but I hope I catch some of what’s going on
Just been watching a mind numbingly long promo video from some American chap. Boy, you thought my test video was too long. How do these folks ever sell anything with these killer long videos ?? I clicked away after 30 minutes and unsubscribed from the offenders list. Or perhaps it was the $197 price tag that killed it for
Glad your stuff is better priced and better quality.
me
Keep up the good work.
Gary (UbuyUK.com)
Hi Gary, It’s good to see you again.
Yes mate the challenge was great and lots of people got loads from it. There was a blog post giving negative comments about it, but that was one person that didn’t fulfil their commitment, and a few people that had not taken part jumped on the band wagon to put it down in their comments. One of which signed up for the challenge and to my knowledge only left 2 comments on one blog and he is a so called “Pro Blogger”. Their loss, let them get on with it.
Gary you really don’t have anything to worry about mate, i’ve been keeping an eye on your blog and your writing is good. Just look at the quality of your comment as a perfect example of your writing skills. If you visit other blogs and leave comments like that you’ll soon have visitors to your blog: Tip at bottom of reply!!
I know what you mean about speed reading, but would advise against it Gary. It is hard to take it all in but if you have a notepad make notes of the info you wish to use and focus on one task at a time.
Bill’s idea of visiting 4 or 5 blogs a day is absolutely spot on and will help you build upon the relationships that you form with the other bloggers.
With regard to your video, I didn’t mean the video was to long Gary, just the loading time. Which was due to the screen capture being full screen, if you reduce the size of the capture area to about half of what it was then it will load much quicker. The quality of your recording is very good and to be honest with you, for a first atempt is was fantastic. You’re confident, clear and easy to follow. Please keep making them as you’ve got what it takes. I use a logitech USB headset for mine, eBay £30.
I totally agree that a 30 minute video is to long and i would have done exactly the same as you, switch it off.
Quick Tip you have your blog permalinks set to the default which shows a number. Go into your wordpress admin panel and down the left look for settings just below that is a link for permalinks click that and change the settings from default to custom and enter /%postname%/ (copy and paste that straight into the box) and save. Your link will then show the title of your post.
Then look over on the right of my blog for CommentLuv and go to their site and get the plugin installed on your blog. That way when you leave a comment on other blogs your last post title will show beneath the comment. Trust me Gary with the quality of your comments people will click your link and come and see what else you have to say.
I’m here if you need any help my friend.
As always Gary, Respect and Regards, Barry
I’m sorry Gary, I made a mistake in my reply: Installing CommentLuv on your blog will allow your commentators to leave a link to their last blog post when commenting on your blog.
To display your last post beneath your comments on other blogs you need to enter your blog URL instead of your eBook Website URL.
The fact that you have now installed CommentLuv will encourage people to leave a comment as they know they’ll be getting some link love and people will click their links.
Catch up again very soon Gary.
R&R Barry
Twitter: mikshep
Hi Barry
I hope you are well after your spell in hospital…
Many thanks for the mention but I am extremely surprised by the traffic results as I considered myself to be one of the lacking contributors…what with one thing and another influencing daily life…
Having said that..the whole experience was fantastic!!..and a completely new voyage of discovery. If I was to be honest, I totally lost track of it all…
I applaud your`s and the many other contributors success and would certainly do it again!!..And Maybe Complete The Commitment..If there is another challenge???
All the best….MIKE
Hi Mike, good to see you again.
I must admitt that i was a little suprised by the traffic counter as well Mike, but hey the facts are that you sent me the most traffic during the challenge, thank you.
Mike you say that you were one of the lacking contributors, having just read one of your posts where you say about your back trouble it’s totally understandable why you couldn’t be sat at your PC. I’m a T9 comp paraplegic so i know about damaged spinal cords. Believe me my friend That is your priority there is no cure for a damaged spinal cord as yet. So please, please look after yours Mike.
I have left you a comment on your blog in the hope of offering some advice and a contact that will offer more help and advice for your spinal problem.
I’m glad that you found the challenge fantastic, hopefully the next one will be better still.
Take good care Mike,
Barry
Twitter: bryanmch
Hi Barry,
Yah! it was an excellent idea…the 100 post challenge…
Jacinta & you did a great job to keeping it going…
and getting me involved.
It would not have been an easy task so I take my hat off to you guys.
When you get a diverse group as was involved with this challenge you will unfortunatly get some negative feedback…but heck you only get out of anything what you are willing to give back…
So I say to people who thought it was a waste of time….no I’d better not say it:-)
This was the first time I even heard of the term “Blog Hopping’ and now I do it as part of my daily activities….well maybe not daily but often.
Great post Barry.
Cheers
Bryan
Hi Bryan,
It’s great that you enjoyed the challenge. Yes it was very hard to keep it going but i couldn’t let Jacinta face all of that alone. It was Jacinta’s idea and Mandy Allen and i helped her carry it out.
You know Bryan, i have a saying “you can only take out what you put in” and it’s great that you said similar in your comment. Don’t worry about the negative we can’t change that, let’s just focus on the positive…..
…..and there was plenty of positive things to come from it, as you said, you hadn’t heard of blog hopping and now it’s part of your (nearly) daily routine.
Best of luck to you my friend,
R&R Barry
Twitter: stanmyoung
Hi Barry
I agree with your comments about the challenge it was a rewarding experience. I found people very friendly even though I wasn’t part of the masterclass. It was also quite a bit of hard work keeping up with all the comments and responses.
Things that could be improved would be trying to curtail blatent selling of products versus trying to get to know people and provide value where possible. Most people were pretty good however some bloggers lacked any content and this made it difficult to comment.
I agree with your comments on Twitter it is very powerful and I am still struggling to get my head around how to use it effectively.
Hi Stan, good to see you again.
I’m glad that you enjoyed the challenge Stan, it was a great way of getting to know people. It was hard keeping up with the comments and replies, but you know what Stan, I think it helped with my writing skills.
I also noticed a couple of people trying to sell in their so called posts and if the challenge happens again (which i’m sure it will) I will do my very best to make sure that there are no sales offered or squeeze pages of one sort or another.
Yes there were also some blogs that lacked content Stan, but bearing in mind that this was the first challenge and we didn’t have any build up to it so people were pushed for time. Am i making excuses for them? I don’t mean to, i’m just trying to give them some understanding. Next time I’ll suggest that we give people 2 weeks notice prior to starting it.
With Twitter Stan, i’d just start ReTweeting intersting tweets as that will start to get you interacting with other users and start building upon that.
Best of luck my friend,
R&R Barry
Twitter: johnmcnally54
Congratulations Barry on a job well done.
Jacinta’s blog hopping challenge has really boosted my traffic.
During the challenge my traffic doubled, and what’s more surprising is that it has continued to rise. 
I think Jacinta has created a real community spirit amongst us bloggers, and long may it continue.
I was pleased to see I had reached number 4 on your traffic list. And with number 5 being Twitter, I now realise how important this can be. Thanks for commenting on Bill Murney’s blog,
your explanation about Twitter has converted both Bill and me.
I’ve always been a bit of a Twit so this suits me fine.
John
Hi John, Many thanks for the compliments.
I think that the four of us had a little bit of a burn out after the challenge. Jacinta had a week off, Mandy went on Holiday to the US, Steve went and played Golf and I had 3 weeks off after my hospital visit
I know what you mean about the traffic boost John, I was shocked the other day when you showed me my Alexa Ranking.
Yes Jacinta has helped create a nice community spirit amongst us, which is fantastic as we can build upon that and maybe form some JV’s at a later date.
I thought you’d be pleased with being in 4th spot for the traffic count, I bet this month you’ve climbed even higher John. I’ll keep you posted on that as i know that you’re aiming for an increase in traffic, which I know you’ll achieve.
You’re more than welcome for the explanation of Twitter mate, I’m pleased that it has helped you and Bill. To be honest John, I was the same as you two prior to the challenge, but having seen the traffic stats I now get it.
Catch up soon John,
R&R Barry
Twitter: Dawn_Kay
Hi Barry
Hope you are back on your feet now after your time in hospital.
I for one enjoyed taking part in the blog challenge as it gave me the opportunity to meet people that I wouldn’t of come across otherwise and it made me sad to read other peoples negative comments when so many people put a lot of hard work into organizing it.
Yes it was a shame that some people got the comments on their blogs and then didn’t comment back but we know who they are and we don’t have to ask them on the next.
Oh and I forgot to mention…
I won a free copy of the new Camtasia software while I was taking part in the challenge so I was well happy.
All in all it was well worth taking part and I can’t wait for the next one.
Take care
Dawn
Dawn Kay recently posted..2010 Internet Marketing Plr Content For Sale
Hi Dawn, it’s good to see you again.
Things are now getting back to normal after my hospital stay, thank you.
I totally agree Dawn, it was sad to read the negative comments regarding the challenge, more so as the person who wrote the post I thought started very well. I was certainly pleased by his visit and comments on my blog as he brought value and encouragement.
I’m hoping that we will have more notice and preperation time for the next challenge, which will allow us to apply the rules a little more.
That’s great news that you won the Camtasia software, have you started putting it to use yet? I also entered in the hope of winning a free copy, better luck next time eh?
I’ll be calling over to your blog very soon Dawn, it would be fantastic to see a video there, created with your prize.
Best of luck Dawn,
R&R Barry
Twitter: Dawn_Kay
I know Jacintas sorted out a forum so that we can mingle beforehand so it will be a good way for us to get the rules ironed out before it starts.
Personally, I would like to see a guest post challenge of some sort – maybe a regular one but in smaller groups.
I’m working on learning Camtasia so I’m sure I will have a video on my blog soon so I’ll keep you updated.
Take care
Dawn
Dawn Kay recently posted..2010 Internet Marketing Plr Content For Sale
Hi Dawn, thanks for popping back.
The forum sounds like a great Idea and like you say we’ll be able to iron out any issues prior to starting the next challenge.
Have you told Jacinta your thoughts for the Guest post challenge? It would need some organising, but it’s a good idea Dawn.
Have you made any videos before, with another software? The reason I ask is that I use Camstudio Pro and would be interested in how they compare for the user.
I’ll be over to your blog very soon Dawn, catch up again then my friend.
R&R Barry
Hey Baryy,
I have to say it was not only a great idea of Jacinta`s and Steves, but a very powerful one as well, I too noticed my unique vistors soar when IOn checked mt ‘Awstats’ in Cpanel!
I think they rose by around 470 more vistors in 2 weeks, I was more than please I can tell you!
A fantastic post, about a fantastic event, thanks for the reminder of how great it was Barry….Ed.
Hi Ed, It’s good to see that you also had an increase in your traffic stats. The trick is to now try and maintain them, but not be ruled by them.
Catch up soon Ed,
R&R Barry
Twitter: JacintaDean
Hi barry,
Great summary!
Re the forum, I was going to get people to join Randy’s More Monthly, however now with the problems he has had, hopefully he will get the new forum sorted out soon.
I don’t have the time, nor do I want the stress of having my own forum. The only other thing I could think of was to start a facebook group. Where we could all communicate there as well.
Yes the challenge was a fantastic idea be it a bimbo one!
However I must admit I was absolutely exhausted after it finished and completely lost my drive and focus for a few weeks afterwards. It took me a while to get it back.
The guest post challenge sounds interesting, however I am a little confused on that one. Don’t know how to work that?
There were some fantastic suggestions on my feedback post. Comments of introducing the forum, groups, plus different challenge ideas such as web 2 ones, product creation ones etc etc.
I would like to do the 100 blog comment challenge again next year over March/April/May. March for preparation to get everyone signed up etc. April/May to run the challenge. This time for 5-6 weeks though as I think 4 weeks was really hard for some especially if they had businesses, work and other life commitments as well.
That way if we have 5-6 weeks we can do 15-20 blogs a week thus easing the stress and allowing more time.
Plus the post must be relevant to our blogs and not a sales pitch or on the challenge.
Taya is pulling at my chair. Had better go.
Cheers
Jacinta
Jacinta D recently posted..Introducing Internet Marketer – Roy Carter – Another Great Audio To Listen To!
Hi Jacinta, good to see you again.
I’m pleased that you liked the summary and I hope that I’ve done it justice.
I totally understand the forum Jacinta, the challenge itself gave us loads of work in organising it and running a challenge forum would put a stop on your other work and learnings. I’m not sure about Facebook Jacinta, I’ve never used it and have no desire to do so. But we can talk about that nearer the time.
I also lost my focus for a while after the challenge, it was brain draining trying to get everyone going and although i enjoyed the whole thing it did take a lot of effort to get going again after my hospital stay. Mind you I think that 3 weeks off would make anyone lose a little focus when it’s time to start back to work
With regard to the Guest posting challenge that Dawn suggested, I think that one concern would be the possibilty of everyone wanting to post on the more experienced blogs and poor ol’ Fred’s blog wouldn’t get an offer.
I’ll have to pop back over and check the comments that have now been left on your feedback post Jacinta and see which ideas grab me.
Your thinking for the next 100 Blog Comment Challenge sounds very good my friend. Four weeks notice will give everyone the chance to write their master pieces in line with their blog themes and a Six week challenge period would ease the stress of having to try and squeeze everything else in. We will also be able to ensure that people stick to rules then as well and don’t submitt salespages, opt-in forms or like you say posts about the challenge. Although we need one post (or place) to explain the challenge concept and rules, which i thought yours done very well, which is why i advised you to use it in the first place my friend.
Once again Jacinta, I have to congratulate you on the whole concept of the challenge. I thought it was an excellent opportunity that i grabbed with both hands. I would do so again without hesitation and offer you my full support and assistance.
Catch up again very soon my friend,
Respect and Regards, Barry
Well done Barry, it must have been a hard task and you do deserve the benefits – who ever said making money in internet marketing is a 4 hour work week, are simply lying?
Well done Barry!
John B recently posted..Correction- Hope and Forgiveness
Hi John,
Thanks for the compliment John.
I reckon the bloke that said that making money on the internet was a 4 hour working week had a team behind him that worked pretty damn hard for the whole week, or like you say was lying.
Your last blog title looks very intriguing John, i’ll be over very soon to read all about it.
Catch up then John,
R&R Barry
Twitter: thatgirlisfunny
Hi Barry,
This challenge was one of the best things I did this year for my blog. It was fantastic to meet bloggers from all over the world. So many interesting blogs to read, it got a bit overwhelming
Cheryl from thatgirlisfunny recently posted..15 things we used to complain about before life got amazing
Hi Cheryl,
I have to agree Cheryl, I learnt so much during the challenge and as a result of it my blog is coming along nicely. The people that i met during the challenge made all the effort worth while and the fact that many of us are still in touch with eachother speaks volumes.
It did become overwhelming visiting all of the blogs but it was a good learning curve for the next one, which won’t be as rushed as the last one was
Catch up very soon my friend,
R&R Barry
Twitter: asuperaffiliate
Wow Barry, congrats on this accomplishment. And boy, what an accomplishment. I’m well aware of how time consuming commenting on other blogs can be. Especially when you have 100 on top of the ones you already visit regularly.
Wish I could have gotten in on this one but will be sure to pay attention when you announce another one. Which I’m sure you’ll have something up your sleeve in the future!
Again, congrats on this huge accomplishment.
Adrienne
Adrienne recently posted..April Results- Another Month Behind Me
Hi Adrienne, I hope your week is starting well
Yes it was very time consuming Adrienne but the rewards were worth it. I’m sure there will be another one as Jacinta purchased the domain name ready for it. When it’s announced I’ll be sure to let you know
I know of one going on at the moment, as i adviced the man about it. I don’t think he’s having much luck getting people to take part though Adrienne.
I’ve just been over and checked and the organiser is the only one listed for it
If you want to check it out its at:
http://nitroinfo.com/blog/blog-comment-tt100-challenge
but like I said Adrienne, there’s only one person taking the challenge so far.
Catch up very soon my friend, have a great week.
Respect and Regards, Barry
Barry,
Sounds like a great concept. Do you know if there will be another comment challenge coming up anytime soon? I would love to take part, especially as a newbie I think it would be great. As always thank you for sharing
Lynda recently posted..Studio 6 Coupon Codes
Hi Lynda, welcome back.
The blog challenge was a great success and I took a lot away from it. I don’t think that we will be repeating it this year but I’ve got my eyes and ears open just in case.
I do know of a challenge that my good friend Ian Ieba is organising. If you visit the following site and let Ian know that you’re interested, he’ll point you in the right direction.
http://nitroinfo.com/blog/blog-comment-tt100-challenge
Best of luck Lynda,
Regards, Barry
Twitter: IMarketerLinda
I would love to do this – but not sure how to go about it! Give me a shout out using my email addy and let me know your thoughts!
Thanks!
Linda
Hi Linda, The challenge was a fantastic experience that taught me loads about blogging.
Since seeing the success of this challenge a few bloggers have attempted to organise one of their own. However most of them fail to gain the same success as this challenge.
The hardest part Linda is getting the 101 bloggers onboard. If you’re serious about oganising a challenge Linda I would recommend that you get a few people onboard to help get the word out and build interest for it.
Those same people really need to push the challenge to their readers, followers, subscribers and friends.
Once you have peoples interest and commitment i’d set up a page detailing the challenge, what’s needed and what’s expected of participants.
Take a look at my page and it’ll give you some ideas Linda:
http://barry-wells.com/contributors-to-the-100-blog-comment-challenge/
Best of luck, Barry