Comment posted on 7 Practical Ways to Keep Your Blog Comments Out Of Spam by bryan
I think the first point you made is so true. Even if your comments are good and if your comments don’t come with a name, I don’t approve mpst of them. That’s because I really don’t know who I’m talking to although I would love to approve them.
I think Akismet does a good job of blocking spams but there are a few that just slips through their spam filter but fortunately that doesn’t always happen.
Hmm i didn’t know the length of your URL link plays a role in being marked as spam. Good to know that 
Recent comments by bryan
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Ana, I’m sure to come back and check out your commenting tips again. Good list here. I think if you can also make a comment that contributes further to the content like say another tip that can make ppl notice your comments too and then a threaded comment will soon follow from that, like what you’ve mentioned. - Picture This: 5 Stages of Blogger’s Life
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Gosh Ana, have you revealed your secrets to link building or is it just one of them
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Oh yeah, can i quote you in a future blog post? I might wanna use some info that you have here.
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{ 62 comments }
If the comments I’m getting over at my blog do add value, then I won’t care much if the person uses a real name or a keyphrase instead. I still agree that using your real name is the better choice. Username like “make money online” for instance won’t make you stand out of the crowd, when every second commentator goes with something along those lines. The real name is far better if you want to gain recognition. There’s no problem of adding keywords if the KeywordLuv plug-in is present though.
Great article Ana!
Daniel Sharkov@Blogging Tips´s last blog ..Utilize These Blogging Tips to Lift your Blog Off the Ground
Well said Daniel. I couldn’t agree more.
By the way, I also love your blog, keep it up.
Take care
Ana
Thanks for this post, Ana! Last month I was marked as a spammer by Akismet and after reading your post I’m still not sure why. I went through the their contact page and they removed me from the list immediately and apologized.
I’m surprised at some of the words that are on the spam trigger words list, like wife!
Stacy
Stacy@Grow With Stacy´s last blog ..Favorite Links of the Week
Hello Stacy,
Nice to see you again. Yes sometimes I also find the spam trigger words list really weird and we are sometimes marked as spammer without any reason at all which is very frustrating but I’m glad that they removed you from their list and even apologize, that’s impressive on their part.
Have a wonderful day!
Ana
Hey Ana,
I sometimes have the problem of my comments ending up in the spam filter. But most of the time they don’t. The thing is that even long comments will end up in the spam folder. When I look at the comments in my spam folder then a lot of them are rather long spam comments.
I think the best way is to simply use your name instead of a keyword or name + keyword. You should do that especially on blogs you haven’t been to before.
Julius @ Wordpress Speed´s last blog ..How to Build More Successful Mini Sites
I fished this one out of my spam folder, Julius - long URL?
Using your name is definitely a safe bet when commenting, unless you are doing link building of course.
Thanks for stopping by!
Ana
Hi Anna
These are all very useful and valuable tips. Proving quality comments that add to the post or challenges the author’s POV definitely reduces your chances of being filed in spam, and should be common practice with every commentator - sadly, it isn’t.
Thanks for the super-duper post.
Michael
You’re welcome Michael. I ‘m glad you like my post and learned something from it.
Have a nice day!
Ana
That was a very precise answer Ana. However I am still in doubt with the linking to homepage point. We linkback to other pages because we want backlinks to those pages for better SEO. Shouldn’t this be done. I do understand that an author might mark you as spam but I guess Akismet has no issues with you giving longer URLS?
Himanshu Chanda@BizDharma.com´s last blog ..Why you should never use Google Instant
You are absolutely right, Himanshu; that’s why I said in the article that these tips do not apply for link building, rather traffic generation.
Ana
Hey Ana thanks for the post, I got worried a bit about the part where if you get onto the Akismet spammer list, it will be difficult not only to get out, but to be able to do any commenting on any other blogs that do use it, since you will automatically be marked as spam.
I’m a new blogger with little experience about blogging and so far my posts titles have been quite large, so their link is kind of big. I better watch it or I might automatically end up on that list. Good to learn this now than later.
Thanks a lot for sharing.
Sayed´s last blog ..What Is “NoDoFollow” And How To Identify It
You are very welcome, Sayed; and you are absolutely right, it’s much better to learn from other people’s mistakes.
You have a great blog; keep going with it!
Ana
It is always good to read an d learn and do this ona regular basis - I personally don’t use Akismet but Defensio - yet I guess the questions are pretty much the same. I have never seen “proper” comments show up as spams, but there are dozens which are generated on autopilot which are flooding blogs with some traffic. Mostly “odd” email addresses from Russia or other language remote areas. Mass removal always works LOL.
Keep up the good work, Ana!
Cheers
Frieke Karlovits
Frieke Karlovits´s last blog ..Blue Personalities – Traditionally Called Sanguine
You are right, Frieke - no matter what comment filter you use, they work very similarly to each other.
By the way, I would not call Russia a “remote area”.
Ana
I rarely get tagged as spam though there are a few blogs that just don’t agree with my comments @ all. It’s always good to contact the blog owner whenever your comment hits the spam bucket. At least that’s what I do in some cases
Udegbunam Chukwudi@Wordpress Blog Setup´s last blog ..Adsense Smart Pricing & Blog Posts Of The Week 30
Hi, Udegbunam - your comment DID end up in spam.
Go figure…
Glad I found it though and see you back soon.
Ana
Ana, actually one of my e-mails is in Akismet’s hatebox, even though my comments were (in my opinion) honest and useful. I tried actually contacting them at their form, but there was no action taken, so I think it’s pointless to recommend people to use that form.
My hope is for people to stop using Akismet and use things like “Anti-Captcha” plugin, that differentiates between users and robots, instead of relying on such a bad technology that is Akismet. (I bet it would get 0 rating evetually if it wasn’t pre-installed in every Wordpress).
Another way that I get my comments to appear is to actually contact owners of the blogs to manually find my comment in spam. Once they approve me - rest of my comments on THAT particular blog will not go to spam. Tedious, but probably the only way if your e-mail/ip got blocked by Akismet.
Slava´s last blog ..Write your blog posts as if you were trying to impress a girl or a man
Hi, Slava - I actually heard from many bloggers that Akismet was responsive to their contact form requests, but I don’t have any personal experience with it.
I personally don’t like the websites that use CAPTCHA from a user’s perspective. So I don’t want to do it to my readers.
Contacting blog owners should usually work, although you are absolutely right about it being so tedious.
I guess there is no perfect answer here.
Pleasure to meet you!
Ana
I use akismet and there sure are a lot of legitimate comments that go to the spam folder. So what I do, I always check the spam folder. However, I think I’ll do what you said regarding trashing a comment you’re not sure about instead of marking it as spam, that would be a safer course of action.
Andrew @ Blogging Guide´s last blog ..Has Social Networking Gone Too Far
Yes, Andrew - I think it’s better to trash rather than mark as spam.
When I check my spam folder, I always look for gravatars and my name mentioned; most of the times everything else it trash.
By the way, your comment was stuck in spam as well; go figure.
Ana
Hey Ana,
I was wondering how akismet knows what to throw into the spam vault… The ‘spam words’ make a lot of sense…
I’ve never been labeled a spammer (yet) and aim not to be (of course). I’m hoping not to experience too much on either side of the ‘Spammer’ fence.
Thanks for sharing this, it’s really useful info I’ve not come across anywhere else.
Jym
Jym´s last blog ..The MLM Industry- Echoes Of A Bright Future
I’ve had that happened to me a few times, even within our EIF group, Jym.
Many times I could trace it back to a lengthy URL. Sometimes, I simply have no idea why.
Ana
I think the first point you made is so true. Even if your comments are good and if your comments don’t come with a name, I don’t approve mpst of them. That’s because I really don’t know who I’m talking to although I would love to approve them.
I think Akismet does a good job of blocking spams but there are a few that just slips through their spam filter but fortunately that doesn’t always happen.
Hmm i didn’t know the length of your URL link plays a role in being marked as spam. Good to know that
bryan´s last blog ..Developing a Content Plan That Ensures Online Success
Thanks for stopping by, Bryan.
I know, some people go after link building without thinking too much what it sounds like to blog owners.
Ana
Ana,
Wow-I am like so many others and did not know this valuable info. I have come across this a few times with comments of my own on other sites. Made me wonder, why someone would say I had spammed them. It didn’t make sense. Because I knew I had not sent anything to anyone without permission. But now it does. I will pay close attention in the future so that I can try to rectify the issue with them personally if possible. Also thanks for doing the research on this issue.
Keep up the Great job!
Carol Perdue
You are very welcome, Carol - I am glad I was able to provide an insight into spam issues.
Ana
Ana, I somehow wound up in the Akismet doghouse on Monday morning for reasons totally unclear to me. I think I’ve been cool on all 7 of your rules.
I immediately contacted all 6 blog owners where my comments hadn’t appeared and asked them to approve. All did.
I then took your advice and contacted Akismet. I got a reply about 12-16 hours later with an apology and the news that the problem had been fixed.
Still don’t know why it happened…
John Soares´s last blog ..When You Should Do a Half-Assed Job
Hello John,
Sometimes it really happens, that is also my struggle but I’m glad that the problem has been fixed and they apologized for the trouble they have caused you.
Take care
Ana
Hi Ana,
As always I learned a lot. I had always wondered why nice comments that were so obviously not spam ended up in my spam folder and I never realized that it could depend on what happens on other blogs. It makes total sense now.
Thanks for the information!
Heather
Heather C Stephens´s last blog ..Napoleon Hill- The Master-Key to Riches 9 Motivatiors of Life
Yes Heather, now we all know how to prevent that. I also asked the same question before.
Thanks for the comment
Ana
Thanks for pointing out a very important aspect about blog commenting. When I write a comment I think of them as a mini blog post. I try to add value to the post by continuing the discussion.
Thanks again for posting. I look forward to reading more of your posts in the future. Subscribing to your RSS feed!
Cheers!
David´s last blog ..Valuable Blogging Tips for Beginners
You’re welcome David. I’m glad that you also find it important.
Thanks for dropping by and hope to see you again
Ana
Hi Ana,
Whenever one of my comments happens to be tagged as spam, the first thing I do is not get upset about it.
I know I’m not a spammer in the true sense of the word so I don’t waste time fretting about something that is not worthy of my energy.
I find a quick note via email to the blog owner concerned works most of the time. Once they have “un-spammed” my comment once this rectifies the situation going forward.
Thanks for always sharing valuable tips.
~Marcus
Marcus Baker@network marketing Internet business´s last blog ..Skittle Your way to Success With Your Network Marketing Internet Business
Great Attitude Marcus. I admire how you handle the situation. That was a very good approach. Thanks for sharing
Have a great day!
Hi Ana,
it’s not only an issue for the commentator but also for the blog owner. I have to release at least three comments a day from dear blogging friends of mine a from the spam folder - how do I know how many of them are really sent to neverland ?
Well, sometimes my comments on other people’s blogs don’t get through automatically even if they did before - is that a sure sign that it was caught by spam protection ?
Thanks for a great post with sound advice - what’s true needs to be said, right, regardless of spam filters
Take care
Oliver
Oliver Tausend´s last blog ..Lessons From “Think And Grow Rich” – Chapter 2 “Desire”
You are right, Oliver - sometimes those spam filters seem to have no rhyme or reason in the way they function.
Yes, if you don’t see your comment show up in any way or see the message that it’s in moderation, it most likely went into spam.
Have a great weekend, Oliver.
Ana
Hi Ana,
Super tips here
I’ve been marked as a spammer sometimes because of the “cash” in my domain name. The length of my link might be an issue too. Either way I seem to have made it out of the aksimet folder on most people’s blogs. As you note making your comment longer and approval worthy are 2 key elements in not being labelled a spammer. Even if you break another rule a blogger might look past it if you write a quality comment.
Thanks for sharing and have a fun day!
Ryan
Ryan Biddulph´s last blog ..How I Produce Up to 45 Pieces of Captivating Content Each Day
I’m glad you did Ryan. I guess you learned something out from that experience. I appreciate you for sharing that.
Cheers,
Ana
A friend of mine started getting smacked by Akisment, just this week. A quick email to them cleared it up - which I thought was pretty impressive response, on their part.
That was great Roy. It’s indeed very impressive how fast they responded to that problem. Thanks for sharing that.
Hope to see you again
Ana
Hi Ana,
I don’t use Akismet so thanks to tell me that info. For my part I use “wp captcha free” a free wordpress plugin. That plugin surely not prevent spam to appear but it is a minimum to protect from random comments. I have some irrelevant comments but not a lot, so I think maybe I am more lucky than Mona!!
Thanks
Dave B
Income Automation System´s last blog ..Income Automation System
I think you are Dave. If it works for you then that’s great.
Keep it up
Ana
Having a Gravatar image helps a lot too. I am not sure if it matters to Askimet or not, but I Know I check out my spam folder once a day and stop to read every post with a gravatar image to make sure it is not sent to the wrong place.
I am sure over time having a gravatar image will help a lot to get spam binned less because it will get you more “approvals”
Great tips though, I know I have occasionally been bounced to peoples spam bin for no apparent reason. I do not know if any of these reasons were the particular culprit but they are a good place to start to know what to avoid.
Steve@Lifestyle Design´s last blog ..How to Make Money with Affiliate Marketing
Good point Steve. Double checking our spam folder is also necessary to be certain. Thanks for telling us about gravatar image.
Thanks for stopping by
Ana
I don’t really like the homepage URL rule whereas internal sites are seen as spam. Sometimes when commenting an internal site would fit better to the comment than the homepage url.
I absolutely agree with you, Andreas.
I would much rather link to internal pages as well. And I do that on blogs where I am a regular commenter and I know they will fish my comments out of spam.
Unfortunately, we don’t set the rules.
Ana
Ana, as usual your emails get my interest and you allow me to learn a tidbit more of information that could help me in my challenging endeavor to be as successful as you.
Keeping you in my my bookmarks!!
Take care
Tonyknuckles @113tidbits´s last blog ..Where to Post All Those Articles You’ve Been Writing
So good to hear that, Tony, and always a pleasure to see you on my blog!
Ana
Thanks Ana for some great insights on how spam works. Always wondered how Akismet knows it’s spam. I get heaps of valid comments ending up in the spam folder, but I moderate all comments, so i will retrieve them. Amazing how many say “my cousin recommended your site”, or “I used this for a class assignment”. The dead give-away is they never refer to anything that was said on the post. They go straight to where they belong-the trash bin. Too bad it is so easy for spammers to have their friends help get their names out of the “doghouse”. It should be harder so they would stop wasting our time with their ridiculous comments.
SenseiMattKlein´s last blog ..Martial Arts Training- The iPhone as a Teaching Tool
I think you’re right because sometimes those spammers make our blogging life harder.
Thanks for dropping by
Ana
Hi Ana,
Your emails are always welcomed with me and even though I don’t have the time now, I enjoy reading through your info and the comments left by your friends/readers as well. Thanks to all.
Pearl
Thanks for coming by, Pearl - always appreciated.
Ana
Hi Ana
I use akismet and check my spam folder every day. Occasionally genuine comments end up in the spam folder but usually it does its job well. If I get a new commenter I always check their site and if it is obviously spam I delete. Sometimes it is okay and can be a rather short comment because the person commenting does not have English as their first language.
The longer I have a blog and move around the blogosphere the better I get at spotting spam but mostly people want to interact and be part of the blogging community.
Patricia Perth Australia
Patricia@lavenderuses´s last blog ..Growing Lavenders-Are You a Purist
Hello Patricia,
Yes sometimes we can’t avoid seeing genuine comments in the spam folder that’s why we also need to double check that which is additional work on our part although it doesn’t happen all the time. Good point also on giving considerations to commenter who’s English is not their first language.
Thanks for sharing that.
Ana
Hello Ana, great tips I check my spam filter once a week just to make sure some of the good comments are not in it. My only tip would be to sign up for Gravatar, Don’t quote me on this one but I read that Akismet give a lot of authority to Gravatar users since you have to validate your email,
Marios
Marios´s last blog ..How To Find a Hungry Crowd of People
Hi Marios,
I appreciate your tip. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
Cheers,
Ana
I comment on a lot of blogs, especially when I am trying to build up my traffic, but I think that just commenting just for it’s own sake is a waste of time. By far the best way to avoid being detected as spam is - well, not to be spammy.
Read blogs for the love of it - if you are trying to build an income, or even just a following or a community online, you want it to be genuine. Blog because what you just read was so interesting it compelled you to say something. I can hardly read something without thinking about it in my own way, so I think if you actually read the blog you are visiting, commenting in a credible way becomes easy.
I don’t see the need for spamming at all. I don’t recall ever having had this problem - and I have left hundreds, maybe thousands, of blog comments in my time.
Vernon´s last blog ..Craft A Blog Youll Be Proud Of
It’s great to hear that your comments have never been marked as spam, Vernon; I must admit you are the first one I know.
Even when you don’t mean to spam, your comments could end up there anyway - and this is what this post is all about.
Happens to me all the time, believe it or not.
Ana
Ana,
I don’t see how anyone could consider you a spammer. It takes a bun ch of digging to find out what you actually do sell! Or maybe I don’t understand what spam is. Thanks for showing us these tips. Considering how important get links is to page ranking and traffic to yor site, this is a must read.
Lou Barba
Lou Barba´s last blog ..CATERPILLERS- GIANT SEQUOIAS- AND JUMPING OUT OF AIRPLANES
Thanks Lou, I appreciate that. I hope you’ll find these tips useful as well.
Have a nice day!
Ana
Getting marked as a spammer sure is annoying
, this will help most of us to know and giving a good quality comments. Thanks for the information.
Wish you the best,
Wen.
Wen@Doreki´s last blog ..Disqus Comment System
You’re welcome Wen. I hope I was able to help you.
Thanks for dropping by
Ana
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