Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I am in the process of making some changes on my website, and I'd love some feedback. I noticed that ever since I did my redesign over two years ago, I get much fewer comments on recipes, probably like 50% less. Traffic has increased, so I don't think that's the problem.

What I would like to know is: is there a reason that you don't comment on the blog? Whether it be for technical reasons or social reasons, I'm just curious if there is something I should be improving.

And secondly, how do you visit the blog? Are you subscribed via a reader or do you just go there when I post on Twitter or FB? Or is it some other way? Would you prefer an email subscription?

OK, thanks for the help. I always appreciate feedback! <3

I just check the blog now and then, i dont use twitter or facebook.

I don't comment because, um, I think mostly because I dont comment on blogs that have many comments anyway? Unless its something "urgent".

It doesn't occur to me to go to the blog because it doesn't say "blog" on the link from the forums, which are what I go to mainly. I forget that theppk means the blog since in my mind "theppk" is the forums. So good luck brainwashing me differently.

I'm relatively new to The PPK. I can tell you I don't generally comment because I'm usually making a recipe way after it was posted, and I just don't know if that's helpful or relevant anymore. If it is, then I'll comment more when I make things.

I check the website and blog pretty regularly. What I've noticed is that the recipe featured on the front page of the website isn't always the latest one on the blog, so I've gotten in the habit of clicking on the "blog" link rather than the recipe directly in case there's something newer. This means that when I scroll down and look at the blog entries, the comments field isn't right there - it's still another click away. If there's one thing I know, it's that people are lazy, and the more steps there are in something the less likely they are to do it.

I subscribe to the blog via Google Reader and now Feedly since GR is no longer. So I read the post from that. And I don't comment much on anyone's blogs or recipe post unless I have a question or think I can give some feedback.

Basically your recipes are flawless and fantastic so other than saying "OMG this is amazing" over and over again I have nothing to add!

I do read the comments from others though. Normally there are so many that if I had a question its already been asked and answered. So the comments are helpful.

this for me too.

i already replied on your fb post but ill expand a bit here.

i typically forget there is a blog because i have the forum page bookmarked and only come here.
maybe everytime you do a blog post maybe post something here??? (not sure if that is a pain in the asparagus for you)

also since it's a recipe blog not say more of a discussion blog it doesnt occur to me to say anything. also if i do want to try out the recipe it's more likely than not for me i wont try it right away but somewhere down the road so the only thing i would have to say would be "omg looks great cant wait to try it"

im not much of a blog reader in general so i dont know what people mean by "subscribing" to it but if i got an email everytime there was a new blog post i would click on it to go read it. not sure i would have anything to say but it would make me read it more regularly.

im gonna go look at the blog now to see how many recipes are new to me since the last time i looked.

i do see the facebook posts and sometimes click on the link depending on whether or not the recipe sounds like something i might be interested in.

Yes, I am the same

I think I need to move the blog to the homepage. I guess when I designed it, I thought I'd be blogging more, but really the blogs are recipes, so "Recipes" and "Blog" are almost the same thing. On the other hand, I don't blog about other things, because I don't have the technology to categorize it, since Wordpress is so limited.

SO. I think I am going to turn "Blog" and "Recipes" into one section somehow.

I have ppk in my reader, obvs, but I also have a ton of boring spammy/tumblr shiitake that I'm too lazy to delete from my reader. Thus, I end up clicking through to your blog through the FB posts. I definitely always read an Isa post, because they are so polished, the recipes are great, and even if I've already seen the recipe in the testing forums I like to read the preamble.

I don't comment a lot because it's not my thing. I probably should though. If a post/recipe is life-changing I definitely will! The weird thing is that when I read a recipe post I'm not going to comment "mmm....looks good!" because that's a waste of everyone's time. I think it's far more helpful (I think?) to comment after I try the recipe, but I already do that in testing.

I am a bad blog reader.

I don't really mind it the way it is right now. If I'm on the homepage I see the options at the top. I figure you always blog about food and new recipes. So I click on the blog to read the post and then I know that there is a recipe section with archived blog posts, really. That works for me! For people who use E-Readers to manage all the blogs they like there shouldn't be any issues. Anything you post will show up in my feed and its always there for me to look at. So even if I haven't looked at the blog for months I know in the back of my mind that I'm not missing anything because it's all in my reader.

Sometimes I'm more likely to comment on a blog (any blog) if the blogger kinda tells me what kind of feedback they're looking for. Like, if I read a post and it says something like "Let me know if you try this recipe!" or "Any suggestions for what to pair this with?" I'm more likely to think "oh, this blogger wants me to comment on their post". I've found that with my blog too...I'm more likely to get comments if I tell people I want comments.

I read the posts when you post them on FB but I would love an email subscription!

I just commented on your Negimaki post. (They were awesome!) Ha!

I don't post much in general and I guess I'm shy/awkward/lurky and I figure you celebrity types probably get tired of people like me fawning all over you. But you rock, and I have made lots of your blog recipes lately (the spring rolls, the deviled potatoes, the strawberry salad...which were all excellent!).

I just check your blog out regularly, so don't go changing to please me. I love you just the way you are.

I get the impression (from library literature as well as personal experience) that there's a general shift away from blog commenting to facebook, twitter, and instagram. That's not to say that people don't read blogs, but they reserve their comments for other social media. Do you notice a higher response rate in other places?

I read all my blogs through a reader and I very rarely comment. The highest form of praise from me is when I pin something to Pinterest for safe keeping.

I also want to say that the question at the end of a blog post (the kind that's supposed to encourage people to post) is a huge pet peeve of mine. It usually feels forced and artificial, formulaic. I'm always happy when people don't rely on that, though I know I'm representative of a very tiny group of over-educated, antisocial vegans.

Well, I tried to comment on a couple of recipes some time ago, and the comments never appeared. So I stopped commenting, however since other comments do appear, I wonder if I'm just being technologically incompetent.
In any case I normally only look at the recipes section, very, very rarely at the blog. I approve of your plan to merge the two!

I was going to say this too. You could make it so that comments are done through Facebook, though I always hate that myself.

I agree. Even though I feel like a negative nancy for agreeing. But I will never answer those questions. Let the blog content inspire comments! If it doesn't, it's not like people aren't still reading.

Unless I'm looking for a specific recipe, I only visit the blog via a facebook post. And if I want to comment about it, it feels more streamlined/familiar to just comment on the facebook link. So maybe that plays a part in people leaving fewer comments on the actual blog.

P.S. I love when new blog posts show up on my twitter/fb feed!

I read most blogs by following them on facebook and then going to the blog whenever they post. I don't comment because...no good reason, I guess. I love the look of the new site, though.

yep. i look down on bloggers who do that.


same here. i don't want to waste my time nor others' eyeball space with empty "mmmmm"s if i am going to comment, it will have purpose. (and now that i know you actually read them, i might comment in the future. i thought with all the spam, that you weren't actually reading them.)

as for the e-mail subscriptions, i've gotten around that by making a macro on IFTTT. easy peasy. (i've even unsubscribed from some other peoples' blogs in favor of sending it through via IFTTT. the default settings on feedburner make each e-mail as generic as can be, and the way i use my e-mail for blogs, i need the subject of the blog post [as opposed to just the name of the blog] to be the subject of the e-mail. that way i can actually do a search and find things. and use my ipod in the kitchen.)

Yeah, I won't do that!

I'm not actually looking for more comments, I'm sorry if my request for feedback sounded like fishing for comments! I was just wondering if there was a REASON people weren't. Be it technical, or that they comment on FB or whatever. Just wondering, since I'm putting work into a rededesign. There used to be more discussion there, and I'm not trying to force discussion. Mostly curious if there's something preventing it.

Oh ALSO people used to give more recipe feedback and now they don't so much.

Make it so the blog pops up whenever you come to anywhere on the ppk and you have to comment before you can enter the forum. Then everyone will see it for sure.

You can call it a rad new feature.

I think people are seriously commenting less, as like, a thing. It's more spread out, because the same person isn't usually going to comment when you post it on facebook, twitter, the actual blog, etc. (although, some totally may). Just observations from my obsessions! I think if you called for feedback from folks who *are* making the aforementioned recipe and links their creations, etc, you'd get more. Technically though, there are things you could do, like folks are saying, without being too annoying, but it can be a fine line! I like the idea of cute little pop ups ON side bars of recipes (NOT pop-up up up) on other pages.

Same here. I am a blog comment virgin.

i check the blog when you post an update on facebook. i really enjoy your blog posts and usually read through even if i don't intend to make the recipe-- it just has lots of fun, creative ideas.

i go through the recipes on a fairly regular basis; mostly when i'm in a, "i should do something creative with X ingredient," mood.

i'm fine the way it is too! i also don't generally comment because i'm like that.


maybe that's because they're all perfect? i mean, could there be a more logical explanation? but for reals they are great + there's sometimes discussion in the kitchen about it. Red Hot Tahini anyone?