Friday, February 6, 2009

eHowlity 5: eHow Questions Answered

This eHowlity is going to be a little Q&A session. I'm trying to draft up a little spot on the blog where you can ask a question, and I'll answer it as soon as possible. *If anyone would happen to be of assistance on this, please do not hesitate to contact me! :D

So, let's get to the question:

Tonya said... Hello fellow Ehow writer! I am so thrilled at your 100th! I have many to go before that. I would love for your to have a spot on here for questions about ehow...cause I am already wanting to pic your brain! My friend and I tried this and are doing the opposite of each other. She has 300 "friends" I have 87...and so forth. We just can't seem to figure out the "system" in which it all works, why recommended numbers go down...why some articles are viewed over 300 times and it makes no money. Will definately be following your blog.

Great question, Tonya. You definitely threw the big one at me... but I'll try my best :) First off, great idea on working your experiment with someone else. Very effective and creative idea. Second, I'll break you comment into pieces, so I can answer everything as best possible:

'We just can't seem to figure out the "system" in which it all works' - This is by far the most common question on and about eHow. To be honest, there is no answer. Even to the veteran writers with awesome Google/eHow experience... the "system"* is made to be mysterious. I know, it's frustrating, but eHow does this in order to stay competitive and fair. If someone has discovered the system, they most likely won't tell... imagine if you found a huge crate of gold in your backyard. Most likely, you would keep this secret to the public. So the only advice/ answer I have is to simply not worry about this. Instead, focus on the 'true' system: write as many keyword-rich articles as possible, and research the keywords that people are Googling.* I should note that I am using "system" to represent the eHow earning compensation program... just to make clarity on the language.

'why recommended numbers go down'- To the best of my knowledge, Recommendations go down as a result from eHow's glitching. That means, when eHow goes through updating their website, which allows the possibility of losing recommendations. However, I want to get more into the idea of recommendations itself. As some of you have known, I have voiced my opinions towards recommendations as not being of importance. Why? I believe that recommendations have no value, since anyone could simply recommend anyone on a whim. While I would love to think that my almost 100 recommendations gives a presence that I am a good writer, I know that at the end of the day it did not create earnings. So, hate to be a bit pessimistic in that aspect, but don't focus on recommendations, and as I mentioned in last question... just focus on writing quality articles.

'why some articles are viewed over 300 times and it makes no money'- This is another common, but unanswered question. However, I will definitely be able to bring insight to this area. I am pretty certain that every eHow writer has at least one, if not several, eHow articles that are viewed hundreds of times, yet have yet to earn a penny! Why is this? Remember that eHow's earning are based on ad contracts, primarily via Google's adsense program. Therefore, eHow get's payment from reader's clicks on those ads, which you receive a percentage of that earning per ad clicked. So, you have an article that has 300 views, but earned nothing. How can you get it to start earning? There are two methods:
1.) specifically create a writing style that indirectly moves your reader to do further research the article's topic, which will enhance your chances of having ads clicked. I have found this through my years of online and freelance writing, but I am amazed as to how this technique is such a secret. While I preach highest quality in your writing... mixing it up with this little marketing technique will give a creative method for earning!
2.) Start marketing heavily on internet resources, so that you can get thousands of readers that can become frequent, loyal readers of your work. Best method for this is to start a blog, and become active on internet resources, such as Twitter. ***REMEMBER: it is against Terms of Service with Google Adsense that you do not state the readers to click your ads! While not 100% certain, I am 99.99% that eHow follows this policy as well. If you do this, you will be banned from Google's Adsense program, and 'possibly' be banned from eHow. Even if you did ask... readers will quickly lose interest in you anyways, so just avoid asking for clicks altogether.
Obviously, you want to mix both 1.) and 2.), but if you must choose one, go with 1.).

So, hopefully this answered your questions Tonya. I enjoyed this post, and hope to get more from YOU, my lovely readers :) If I can leave you with one idea, let it be this: Writer right, and yearn to earn! ...sorry, it's Friday. What I mean is write with quality, and in return you will see earnings be decent! I know, a 'DUH' statement, but you'll be amazed as to how many people don't truly understand the power of quality writing.

2 comments:

Tonya said...

Thank you so much for your answers. You have given great answers. I am going to direct some of my friends this way. Keep up the great work, and I promise that I will be "picking your brain" in the near future.

Jeff Beer said...

Haha, glad I could be of assistance, Tonya! I think it is important to help and guide others... I actually am hoping to get an update toward these answers from eHow themself, but in the meantime please do stay tuned to this blog. As always, I am humbled by your support, so keep on reading and writing! :D