Constant Content

Hi, all,

I'm a bit frustrated and hoping those with more experience can give me some guidance. I received a public request yesterday that was due today. It was my first time responding to one and it was a subject that interested me so I went ahead and wrote it. This afternoon, it was still in review so I sent an email to admin with my concern that I would miss the deadline (although the turn around time here is amazingly great!). It was approved shortly thereafter, but when I went to submit, the request has disappeared even though the deadline hasn't yet passed. Does that happen often? If so, it seems pointless to write for public requests when they may or may not buy anyone's content. Am I just missing something?

It doesn't often happen that there are actually deadlines for requests (at least not stated ones). It's possible that they bought an article already (deciding to go earlier than their deadline), or that a source outside of CC came through for them.

I don't know what the request was, but often the stuff you write for public requests here is of general interest and may resell. For one of the recent public requests (effects of the recent interest rate cut on the housing market), it looks like three of the articles submitted to that request may have sold. (Three sold on that topic. I assume they were written for that request.)

Anyway, it sounds like you just had some bad luck, and I hope you won't let it discourage you too much!

Hi,

That is discouraging but it's also rare that the deadline was so short. Most requesters don't have such tight deadlines. Fortunately, real estate and mortage articles are hot right now so it could very well find a home elsewhere.

Thanks to both of you for your replies. It was in fact the rate cut request that I was writing for. I guess I just didn't get it done fast enough!



[quote="Lauren"]It doesn't often happen that there are actually deadlines for requests (at least not stated ones). It's possible that they bought an article already (deciding to go earlier than their deadline), or that a source outside of CC came through for them.

I don't know what the request was, but often the stuff you write for public requests here is of general interest and may resell. For one of the recent public requests (effects of the recent interest rate cut on the housing market), it looks like three of the articles submitted to that request may have sold. (Three sold on that topic. I assume they were written for that request.)

Anyway, it sounds like you just had some bad luck, and I hope you won't let it discourage you too much![/quote]

Well, here's some information that may make you feel better: three different people purchased three different rate cut articles yesterday. (I keep tabs on sales.) It's obviously a topic in demand. I wouldn't be surprised if your article is purchased quickly too. If it currently contains specific mention of the public request (for example, a mention of it in the short summary), just edit to make it generic for anyone who might want to buy it.

Thanks Lauren, I'll keep my fingers crossed. Would you mind sharing how you can track sales? Thanks!


[quote="Lauren"]Well, here's some information that may make you feel better: three different people purchased three different rate cut articles yesterday. (I keep tabs on sales.) It's obviously a topic in demand. I wouldn't be surprised if your article is purchased quickly too. If it currently contains specific mention of the public request (for example, a mention of it in the short summary), just edit to make it generic for anyone who might want to buy it.[/quote]

The only way to really track sales is to vigilantly watch the "Recently Sold Content" tab. It is on the left hand side after you sign in as an author.

Personally, I like to track that and public requests I write for. I can sometimes tell if a buyer has filled their need for an article by watching their customer rating increase. If someone requests 3 articles on a subject, and their customer rating goes up 3 points, I can usually assume they have filled their need, even if they don't take the request down.

It's a little bit guesswork and a little bit of experience with the site. I have had articles I wrote for a public request be snatched up by other buyers before the original requester even gets a chance to see it!

I agree with Lauren and Elizabeth -- watch that Recently Sold section. Not only can you get a sense of whether the requester might have made the purchase, you can also spot trends.

It becomes a bit of an obession, checking requests, watching the recently approved articles, and watching the recently sold list but it does help you to get a pulse of the CC market at any given time.

As Lauren said, several "Interest Rate Cut" articles sold in a single day. If you've been watching the recently added content list and the recently sold list, you might be able to come to some conclusions. For example, if all of the articles that sold were approved and showed up for sale in the same general time period but were sold sporatically, you could assume that they might have been sold to separate customers. If they sold one at a time, as they were approved, it could be the requester buying them as they became available. If the articles are all purchased in one clump, then you can assume one customer bought them in one batch.

You don't have to make detailed notes or copy and paste the information into a database, just check it out regularly and compare what's sold to what you remember about recent requests. If you see a rash of items selling related to a certain topic that isn't a request, it could be a new trend. If you see a bunch selling for a specific request, then you know the requester was serious and could need more (or you could conclude that he's bought as many as he wanted - it's not an exact science). No matter what conclusions you come up with, I guarantee you'll have a better handle on what to write about by paying attention to the recently sold items.

You'll also see that certain topics are timeless - real estate, pets, insurance, etc - and with that background, you'll feel more confident writing to requests that you know will have widespread appeal if for some reason they don't sell to the original requester.

Sheesh, sorry for the lengthy post!

What they said!

I actually copy from the Recently Sold Content list into an excel chart. But I agree with Celeste that you really don't need to do this. In theory this is so I can track trends, but in practice it may just be a huge time-waster. I haven't decided yet, so I keep doing it for now. But all three of those articles were sold at different times, and that's how I got that information.

Anyway, Celeste and Elizabeth certainly covered what to watch.

Thanks all!


[quote="Lauren"]What they said!

I actually copy from the Recently Sold Content list into an excel chart. But I agree with Celeste that you really don't need to do this. In theory this is so I can track trends, but in practice it may just be a huge time-waster. I haven't decided yet, so I keep doing it for now. But all three of those articles were sold at different times, and that's how I got that information.

Anyway, Celeste and Elizabeth certainly covered what to watch.[/quote]