Public Request List Question

[CharRay7]

Hi,

I just joined a few days ago and I have been getting emails regarding new public requests.

My question is: Once I write an article for a public request, how and where do I submit it at?

Thanks for your help!
Char :-)

[BarryDavidson]

Go to the public request, click on questions. Then just put in a little message, and put the article number (click the little "look up"), and post message.

[HayleyWriter]

Note: You can only submit articles in the usual way, and once Ed has approved the articles, you can click on the question and answer section in the request on the website and post your article with a message to the requester then. Just go through the submission process as usual first.

[CharRay7]

[quote="HayleyWriter"]Note: You can only submit articles in the usual way, and once Ed has approved the articles, you can click on the question and answer section in the request on the website and post your article with a message to the requester then. Just go through the submission process as usual first.[/quote]

Thanks for your help!
Char :-)

[PhilipYana]

I'm about to submit my first ever article, and it's in response to a public request.

Two questions...

a) Is anything in the process different if this your first time submitting ever? (I guess that is a nervous newbie talking, wondering if he's missing something obvious!)

b) When you submit, do you somehow mark it as being in response to a request? I thought of including a note to that effect in the summary, but if the article ends up displayed in the main list on the site that will look odd.

I think I'll go ahead and submit according to the normal instructions.

[Celeste Stewart]

Hi,
Welcome!
1. The process is the same for first time submissions and the 1000th submission. You'll be fine :)
2. When the article is for a public request, use the short summary as you normally would to describe the article and entice any potential buyer to buy it. I would advise against writing "for a public request" or anything like that unless the request was unusual and you needed to flag Ed that the submission conforms to the request's specifications. Otherwise, down the road, if the article isn't picked up by the original requester, you may inadvertently discourage others from buying it as they could either have the impression that the article isn't meant for general sale - or worse, potential buyers may view the article negatively in that perhaps it wasn't "good enough" for the original requester.

That said, once approved, you can go back to the original request, use the Q and A link and post a link to the article with a short note to the requester that the article has been written for the requester's consideration.

Good luck!

[PhilipYana]

Hi Celeste. Nice to meet you.

Thanks for the reassurance and the tips!

[PhilipYana]

A couple of linked questions...

What is the normal turnaround time for a client who's made a public request to a) respond to questions and b) select what articles - if any - they're going to buy?

Underlying question - at what point would you assume they're not going to take your article, and therefore maybe rework or re-price it for the general market?

Questions are prompted in this case by the direct mail request that a few of us have written for, and where so far I don't see any sales having been made.

[Celeste Stewart]

It really does vary. Some customers snap them up as fast as you can post them while others may wait a week or two before making their decisions. Some never return for whatever reason. I'd give it a couple weeks.

[BarryDavidson]

I'd say to leave the article be, and write some others. You might even consider covering the same topic from a different angle.

Now, if you have this epiphany and absolutely must rewrite the article, then it would be a good idea to go with that feeling.

[Elizabeth Ann West]

Don't underestimate the ability of a public request article to sell to another buyer. I have personally experienced BOTH of the following situations:

I posted an article on leasing office equipment for a public request, and it was snatched up within 30 minutes by a different buyer altogether.

I wrote an article on drapery trends for 2008 that was requested in January. In April, I was doing some spring cleaning (if articles don't sell here for me, I occasionally take them down and submit them to other venues, or rework it). The VERY day I was spring cleaning and about to take it down, I was shocked to find out it sold. :)

The writing game is like fishing... the more lines you have out (articles), the more bites you get.

[PhilipYana]

Good thoughts people!

One thing I am picking up from a number of the threads is that it's important to have quite a body of work out there.

And it's probably good for visibility to keep up a steady rate of adding new pieces. Then people can stumble across you, decide they like what they see, and take other pieces or make private requests.