10 Tips on Writing and Publishing Articles on Hubpages
HubPages is a good source of extra revenue if you know how to do it right.
Find Success on HubPages
After five years on HubPages, I have learned a lot about writing, publishing, and making money on the internet. In fact, I have managed to bring my income, from HubPages alone, up to a satisfactory level.
It's not enough money to make a full-time wage, but I also earn money from other online sources, so it all adds up to make me a nice little tip at the end of each month in addition to my earnings in the real world.
So, how did I bring my income from HubPages up to a satisfactory level, and what tips can I offer after this five-year-long learning process?
Read on to find out!
Tips for Writing Articles on HubPages
- Write unique, rich content.
- Develop your own writing style.
- Study SEO, keywords, and promotional opportunities.
- Social network.
- Keep your content updated.
- Watch out for spam.
- Never publish early.
- Monetize and optimize your articles
- Branch out.
- Collaborate.
Tip 1: Unique Rich Content
If there's one thing I've learned from Hubpages, it's that nobody is interested in reading your articles if they can access the same information elsewhere online.
Every single hub needs to offer something unique which cannot be found elsewhere, and for this reason, heavily researching the content you are writing about is an absolute necessity (unless you already have unique knowledge to share).
When researching, you may find that different websites, newspapers, books, magazines, etc., offer various bits of information on the topic you are studying.
However, I have always found that when I am researching a topic, I never manage to find a webpage, magazine, or book which has adequately consolidated all the information available on that subject . . . and so this is what I aim to do with many of my hubs, and this often results in them receiving high traffic.
People would much prefer to visit just one website or page where all the information they need is available, rather than having to visit page after page looking for extra tidbits of information.
Consolidating the information into just one hub also gives visitors a reason to bookmark your page so that they can come back to it in the future.
Including relevant, high-quality videos in your articles is also another way of increasing the richness of your hubs. You are not restrained to just one or two videos but can add several. Not only does this keep readers coming back when they haven't had time to watch all the videos, but it also keeps visitors on the page for a lengthier period of time and also ensures that your hub contains rich content. However, videos alone are not sufficient enough and must be accompanied by a high-quality, original, informative, unique, and rich write-up.
Tip 2: Develop Your Own Writing Style
This is not just about developing your own unique style of writing but is also about improving your spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Just one simple spelling mistake can seriously downgrade your article in search results (believe me, I know from experience).
Additionally, developing your own sense of character and personality through your writing adds to the uniqueness of your content. Maybe add a few personal thoughts or speculations about the subject topic into your article. However, you shouldn't overdo it.
It's important to strike a balance between not being too formal and not being too personal in your writing. How would I describe my own writing style?
Assertive but sometimes subjective.
Tip 3: SEO, Keywords, and Promotion
Many people are put off by the technical aspect of using SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and keywords. However, you don't need to be a genius, and Google actually seems to be focusing less and less on SEO and keywords and more and more on actual content.
Your title needs to say everything about your article, it needs to grab the attention of potential readers. If the title sucks them in and they want to know more, or they have specifically searched for words in the title, the next thing they will look at is the summary or the first paragraph of the article.
For this reason, it's important that the summary and first few paragraphs of your article really tell the reader all about the fantastic information you have on offer. Additionally, your title, summary, and first few paragraphs should remain consistently focused on the relevant topic and should regularly include certain keywords (which people are likely to be searching for) that are closely related to the topic.
However, this should not be too obvious, or it can damage the consistency of your content, and it shouldn't be done extensively, or it could be classed as "keyword stuffing," which would result in Google penalizing your article.
Promoting your content on other websites is also important. Build up a following on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and other social networking websites (only as many as you can handle). Not all of your readers may want to register with Hubpages to follow you, and so this gives many of them the opportunity to follow you on a different website. You can then post links to your content on those websites.
Not only are you posting links to your content right in front of your followers on those social networking sites, but you are also helping to generate inbound links. This may generate a temporary boost in traffic. However, these types of inbound links are considered low quality. What you really want is inbound links from high-quality websites and web pages which are also relevant to your topic. The more high-quality inbound links you can build, the higher search engines like Google will rank your content.
Tip 4: Social Networking
Social networking is not just about posting your links in front of people hoping that they'll click on them. It's about communication and networking. Following just anybody on Twitter hoping that they'll follow you back (even if it works) is not the best way of promoting your material. What you really need to do is communicate with people who have a genuine interest in your work.
Don't just post links for them; communicate with them directly, and learn about who they are and why they are interested in your material. Some of them may run websites or blogs or may be in a position where you can both be of benefit to each other—keep your eye open for such opportunities. Additionally, it's always also good to show your followers your gratitude, it makes them know that their support is appreciated and that they are an important part of what you do.
Each of your hubs has three small social networking buttons on it: Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. Sign up with all of them but don't just promote your own material, do some cross-promoting and help promote Hubpages material that was written by others that you think is useful.
Tip 5: Keep Your Content Updated
Keeping your content up to date is important, although if you have hundreds (or thousands) of articles published, then it can be a time-consuming chore. However, it's well worth the effort. When you're not writing hubs or are out of ideas for new hubs, it's a good idea to go back through older hubs, checking them for mistakes and consistency, and it's also possible that you may have learned something new that you can add to those hubs, which you hadn't learned at the time they were originally published.
If so, let your followers know that you have added more information. Updating older hubs usually results in those hubs receiving a little boost in traffic. Another reason why this is important is that as time goes on, the more you will refine your writing technique and skill, which will (or should) improve. By updating older hubs you had published before developing and refining your writing skills, you will give them an upgrade.
Additionally, more and more information is constantly being released on a wide range of topics, some of which you may write about (technology or space discoveries, for example). Search engines like up-to-date, unique, and rich, high-quality content, so when you learn something new, add it to your hub(s).
Tip 6: Watch Out for SPAM
Not only is SPAM bad for you (pun not intended), but it's also bad for Hubpages. For this reason, it's a good idea to moderate your comments and don't approve them until you have checked them. This also helps prevent derogatory comments from being published on your hubs without you knowing until you see them.
Sometimes people can be crafty and may leave a long significant comment and then slip an email address in their last sentence, hoping you might not notice it. Additionally, some people may skew the wording of their comment so that it affects the quality of your hubs and downgrades their ranks.
Tip 7: Never Publish Early
This is an important one that many creative people, whether they be writers, musicians, web designers, or graphic artists, often mistakenly overlook. Many people are eager to get their work 'out there,' usually for several reasons. They may want to find out what people's reaction to their work will be, or they may want to get the piece finished so they can get working on another one they have in mind or have started working on, or they may even want to get their information out before it becomes outdated. However, this is one fundamental mistake that can result in people not bothering to take any notice of your newer material, even though you may have improved your writing.
Make sure you include, in your hub, everything you can possibly think of which is relevant to the topic. Do not publish your hub until you are absolutely certain that you have included everything you possibly can. However, it's also important to ensure your hubs are not too long either. Some readers tend to look at the first paragraph or two to see how interesting it is, then scroll down to find out how long the page is (i.e., how long it's going to take them to read it).
Additionally, publishing your hub early and then adding more information or making changes later may attract new traffic but may also be overlooked by your regular readers. If you have made significant changes to a hub, let your followers know.
Tip 8: Monetize and Optimize Your Articles
Don't just use Google Adsense - integrate it with your Hubpages account, you'll be surprised how different the results are. Also, make sure to use either eBay or Amazon affiliate links on your hubs too, but not both—one or the other only. Personally (and if you are in the UK), I recommend using the eBay affiliate scheme, as I have had the most success with this one. However, it's also important to have the capsules well placed on the page, where they are not intrusive but the reader can see them clearly. Also, make certain to advertise products relevant to the content of the hub.
Tip 9: Branch Out
Don't place all your eggs in one basket, as they say. Although you may have found some success by using a website such as Hubpages, this doesn't necessarily mean that this will always be the case—this is the internet, and anything can happen. Consider trying out other websites, not just to see if you have any success, but to help build your online presence. Your material which is published on other websites, could act as a supplement to your hubs.
If you have published many articles/hubs and have managed to build a good following, consider writing a book or at least an eBook. Self-publishing websites such as Lulu make this extremely easy for any writer to do. You can get an ISBN (International Standard Book Number) for your book and can sell hard copies to your readers on demand through a wide range of well-known distribution networks.
Also, consider starting your own website or blog where you can be more personal whilst building your brand (if you are a writer, your name is your brand). Your blog or website can then be used to help compliment your already published material.
Tip 10: Collaborate
This is one that I don't see happening anywhere near as often as it should be. Not only can it help writers to cross-promote their material, but teaming up with another writer or other writers and publishing material together can certainly help raise your profile. There are many advantages to this:
- Two heads are better than one, three heads are better than two, etc.
- You have a combined audience to market your material to.
- You help to cross-promote each other's material.
- Both (or all) of you end up with more readers.
This tip actually has plenty of room for flexibility and expansion. For example, a small team of writers could link up and collaborate to form their own website, blog, book, collective of writers, and/or even their own publishing company.
This article is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.
© 2013 Marc Hubs
Comments
Abby Slutsky from America on July 10, 2020:
You have some excellent ideas. Thanks for sharing.
NARNI SATISH from HYDERABAD,INDIA on June 08, 2020:
Very Nicely Presented ,Thanks for sharing very informative
Expert Village Media from Long Island City on June 04, 2020:
Useful information. Thanks for sharing
Talha Hamid on May 08, 2020:
Thank you for your guidance
Talha Hamid on May 02, 2020:
This is an important information for those who is working on hubpages.
Thank you for this help.
Marc Hubs (author) from United Kingdom on January 14, 2020:
I'm glad you found it useful.
Raymond Le Blanc from The Netherlands on January 14, 2020:
Hi Marc, I needed this to get me active on hp again. Thanks
Reginald Thomas on December 21, 2019:
Thank you for writing a very helpful hub. I needed this for a refresher course. Great stuff!
Nauman Nazir from Pakistan on November 21, 2019:
How can we collaborate on HP? it work for both parties on youtube, but HP?
Farrah Young from Lagos, Nigeria on November 07, 2019:
This post is choked full with helpful information. I especially like the ones about branching out and collaborating.
Azhar Thiraj from lahore on November 06, 2019:
Very nice and full of information article
Vineetha from NAVI MUMBAI on October 22, 2019:
This was a very very informative article. I have prior editing experience and have been writing all my life. But, Hubpages happened to me very recently. Your article shed light on many things doable. Thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
Shotodol71 on August 31, 2019:
hank you for an excellent article. Just what I needed.
https://shotodol71.blogspot.com
Chloe Evans from Florida on February 02, 2019:
Thanks for a very informative post. I have a question: I have a good idea for another hub or even a couple of hubs I can do on HP, so, what's the latest on having multiple hubs? When I researched this in Google all the responses are over 4 years old.
Just like you advise, I tried building a footprint out of HP but I have to admit I have ADHD... well, sort of... and I find it hard to be in several places at the same time. So, I was thinking to leverage HP for now.
Thanks, I will be grateful for a response.
Shaib Montachir on January 12, 2019:
Thanks for sharing an informative post, really effective
Spencer Lewis from Sw region,Kumba on November 04, 2018:
U are welcome ..sir, I pray for more wisdom to proceed
Spencer Lewis from Sw region,Kumba on November 04, 2018:
Thanks
Khal Rasdam from Penang but occasionally traveling. on October 28, 2018:
Thanks for the article. Just what I needed to improve my HP articles.
Paul Joseph from India on August 30, 2018:
Thank you for posting this article. Informative enough.
Khadeeja Waseem from lahore ,Pakistan on August 11, 2018:
i am new to hub pages ... i need your help or anyone else if possible ... my questions are quite basic like how do we increase the text size there is no option when u click on text ... and how do i enlarge a photo that consumes a wide space to attract readers and a few more questions ... plz tell me if u know ...
Mithowbaba on June 15, 2018:
great tips
Johnmacnab on March 12, 2018:
Thank you for an excellent article. Just what I needed.
Shaloo Walia from India on February 12, 2018:
great tips!
Dave Zinck from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada on February 07, 2018:
Great article. I enjoyed reading it and came away with more knowledge than I had before. That's the point, right? :-)
Thanks!
Dave
Ultra man from Pakistan on December 21, 2017:
sounds great. Thanks for sharing your knowledge
Muhammad jamshaid from Pakistan on December 11, 2017:
Please tell me how to write an aticle
gyanendra mocktan from Kathmandu,Nepal on December 11, 2017:
Collaborate, this is word which needed not only in the writer's world but in the other part of the world too. Thank you.
rafiqbd561@gmail.com on November 08, 2017:
It is absolutely nice advice for those who are intended to writing on Hubpages to earn money with Adsense account. Congratulation for these valuable tips. God bless you.
Julia Simons from India on May 29, 2017:
I am new in Hubpages and hoping a long term relationship with this. Just learning how to write in an effective manner and connecting world with the power of words.
Munna Hossain on April 30, 2017:
Wow! Great sharing. I have learned a lot from your article. These tips must be helpful for me.
I had a little idea about writing a hub on hub pages but now I know how to do it. Thanks for sharing with us.
Akhilesh Jain from Rajasthan, India on April 11, 2017:
I too have written 2-3 articles for hub pages, but unfortunately as they were told that being sub standard they are not published. Just wanted to know what the key things that one has to remember while writing for hub pages.
https://gethealthyfitnesstips.blogspot.in
Joe Masters on February 08, 2017:
Great advice. I am about to get started on publishing but always found there were so many rules... but now I see its for a reason! Thanks :)
Marc Hubs (author) from United Kingdom on November 26, 2016:
Poetry doesn't tend to do too well on HubPages. It's really more for rich, lengthy and detailed searchable articles with lots of supplemental content, such as videos, polls, etc.
Ernest Oddiri on November 25, 2016:
Please, can I write short creative romance poems for publication on HubPages? Will they be published? Your reply will be highly appreciated.
John on September 28, 2016:
Fantastic
Luis E Gonzalez on July 20, 2016:
Great tips. Thanks!
Mona Sabalones Gonzalez from Philippines on July 18, 2016:
These are wonderful tips for.hubbers to benefit from their writing. They also help to upgrade the quality of hubs an help us to market our hubs betters. Thank you so much.
Marc Hubs (author) from United Kingdom on January 24, 2016:
I wouldn't worry about it, everyone makes mistakes. Even the best of us. There's not really any damage that you can't undo anyway. There have indeed been lots of changes and lots of ups and downs but it's still the best website on the internet for writers and has been for the last eight years!
LaurieNunley517 from Deep South on January 24, 2016:
Good information that I needed badly. I have made many mistakes, it seems; most recently, publishing too soon. I see a lot of changes I can make to one of my Hubs. I am a newbie and really needed this advice. I made a false-start in 2013 that may have damaged me here. I don't know yet. There have been many changes on HubPages since I was here last. Thank you for the information!
Kurt James from Loveland Colorado on August 30, 2015:
Some great advice for sure..thank you. Awesome hub
MG Seltzer from South Portland, Maine on June 02, 2015:
Thank you for this. I'm new so it's nice to hear from someone with experience here. Voted this thumbs up.
Marc Hubs (author) from United Kingdom on May 20, 2015:
Some hubbers often just leave a comment at the bottom of the article saying "updated" - it then shows up in the feed and anyone who previously commented on that article will be notified. You can also post on Facebook, Twitter, etc to let followers know it's been updated.
Joyette Helen Fabien from Dominica on May 13, 2015:
This is impressive! You have been very thorough and your information is very useful and interesting. Voted for both!
Thanks for sharing!
One question though. How do you let your followers know that you have updated a hub?
Gail Meyers from Johnson County, Kansas on December 18, 2013:
Congratulations on five years at HubPages. Perhaps I am late in reading this and you are now nearing your sixth year. In any case, thanks for the practical and useful tips, sharing what you have learned. Voted up.
Marc Hubs (author) from United Kingdom on May 07, 2013:
Thanks all for your comments.
@Jordan Hake,
"Are there any ways of earning money with Hubpages besides affiliate programs and Google AdSense?"
You can link your Adsense account to your Hubpages account and this usually results in higher earnings than you get from Adsense alone. Apart from that, it's just eBay and Amazon capsules.
@Thomas Swan,
"Can one put a bunch of hubs into an ebook or should it be completely original? Wouldn't that break the copyright that hubpages shares?"
I have compiled hubs into an ebook before, but I took the hubs down after I'd done it. I don't think Hubpages takes any of your copyright as such though they do require original content. I've never had any problems doing so though.
Elias Zanetti from Athens, Greece on May 06, 2013:
Interesting hub with very useful tips. Although I do follow most a them too, it's always nice to listen to someone with much more experience. Congrats on your five years at HP!
Chitrangada Sharan from New Delhi, India on May 05, 2013:
Extremely useful and informative hub! Congratulations for completing 5 years at HP.
Following most of your advice, but few things I learnt, such as ebook.
Voted up and sharing!
Thomas Swan from New Zealand on May 05, 2013:
Very interesting. I follow most of these tips already, but I have never tried an ebook. Can one put a bunch of hubs into an ebook or should it be completely original? Wouldn't that break the copyright that hubpages shares?
AlexK2009 from Edinburgh, Scotland on May 05, 2013:
Very good hub. I have been thinking of collating some hubs into ebooks, but selling an ebook is very different from posting an article here (I know, I have not had success with the maths textbook I published a while ago ) so I have held back.
Barbara Badder from USA on May 05, 2013:
You gave me a few new ideas. Thanks for the info. Everything helps.
Dahlia Ambrose from United Kingdom on May 05, 2013:
This is very useful information for anyone who writes. Thank you so much for sharing this with us. Voted up and sharing!
Tirralan Watkins from Los Angeles, CA on May 04, 2013:
Sparkster, I love reading about hubpage tips and writing tips in general. This was a very well written, well thought out hub with useful and informative information. Thank you for sharing this with all of us.
Willette from Michigan on May 04, 2013:
Congratulations of your 5 years with hubpages. Thanks for sharing your tips. That updating thing is my struggle, but working on it! Appreciate you sharing your experience. Thumbs up and worth a share! Keep on hubbing!
Jordan Hake from Southwest Missouri, USA on May 04, 2013:
This is a really helpful article!
Are there any ways of earning money with Hubpages besides affiliate programs and Google AdSense?
rebekahELLE from Tampa Bay on May 04, 2013:
These are great tips for anyone writing on HP, especially your first tip. You're so right about making a hub resourceful and worthy of being bookmarked/shared. It's always great to see a longtime hubber sharing their successful tips. Congrats on the five years!
