Why not add comments to pages?
I am beginning to think that all webpages should allow the ability to leave comments. Almost all blogs allow comments on entries – why not web pages?
I got thinking about this today when I had a question about the Rock the Garden event at the Walker Art Center. My question, “Is re-admittance allowed?”, is simple and could probably be answered quickly by any number of staff members over at either the Walker or at The Current. The problem/opportunity is that the official web page advertising the event for The Current does not allow commenting. There is also no contact email listed on the page. So, I am left without any recourse for finding an answer to my simple question about the event.
It seems that web pages don’t allow commenting, simply out of tradition – an old tradition that pre-dates Web 2.0 functionality.
Are there other reasons why people shouldn’t allow comments on web pages?
I totally agree–the vast majority of web pages should, IMO, allow commenting. Commenting engages readers with the content, opening up space for better ideas, elaboration or refutation (or both) of the original content, etc. This is a big part of what we want to do as we rebuild a U of MN Extension forestry website (http://www.myminnesotawoods.org), and I would like to see many others adopt this approach.
-eli
Well said, Eli!
I believe it may be time to get rid of this old “no comments” standard of website interaction, particularly on content-specific pages (i.e. sub-pages).
Is there still merit in limiting comments on main landing pages, though? For example, in what ways might the U of M benefit by allowing (or not allowing) comments on http://www.umn.edu?
Allowing comments increases overhead for content managers, but it also increases interaction, decreases bounce rates, and gives visitors a better link to finding information/answers – isn’t that the whole goal of websites?