It's always exciting to hear the sound of a new notification on your blog, a new follower, a new like etc. But its not always a happy thing to witness. There are two types of negatives that can impact your blog and your confidence as a blogger. These are trolls and spam.
Trolls are internet users that post mean, nasty messages in an attempt to cause a reaction from you. As a blogger who has been trolled, its important to know that if you do get trolled then there are things you can do about it.
- First, block them from your blog. Mute their comments so that they don't show up for you and others to see.
- You can confront them but I personally prefer the close the door option which stops anything from bubbling over. Best words to say are, "Please don't post that on my blog." "Don't be mean to me or my blogging friends."
- If in any doubt, tell an adult/teacher/the police who can then take action and investigate the trolling.
- Going back to the previous point, save any comments/photos as evidence as this will rule in your favour.
- Don't stop blogging! Carry on posting as normal so that you show to them that their actions haven't stopped you from doing the thing you love.
The other negative is Spam, when you start receiving messages such as advertising products or come play this online bingo game for example and that happens on a regular basis, it is known as a Spam comment. On WordPress, I have a Spam blocker that can detect Spam comments and get rid of the majority of them before I see it. Sometimes, it is really affective, other times not.
Going through comments of Spam that did get through can be tedious but some of the comments I have read and deleted have been hilarious. One for example was about someone who saw a bird in their back garden. My blog had no relation to birds or gardening so I knew that comment was Spam.
- Always look for a Spam blocker, this can put your mind at rest and help control what comments come into your blog.
- NEVER click links such as website attachments. They could be affected files full of dangerous viruses that could harm the security of your computer or whatever device you choose to use for your blog.
- If the same user persists with the Spam, block and mute them.