How Important is Grammar and Mechanics in a Hub?

1. STAFF

   Paul Edmondsonposted 8 years ago

   I wanted to share a graph that shows traffic change for the September Panda update by grammar and mechanics score.
   
   This is a significant correlation.  We've also tested "light" edits where grammar and mechanics is improved along with basic cleanup of spammy elements, and simple organization improvements.  The impact is over a 70% improvement in traffic.
   
   
   
   
   

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      MariaMontgomeryposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      This doesn't surprise me. Poor grammar and punctuation, as well as misused and misspelled words are some of my pet peeves.

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      TIMETRAVELER2posted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I have been harping on this point forever, and now there is proof that I was correct.  In the past there seemed to have been a general attitude that these things were relatively unimportant, but I never agreed with that.  If you could integrate Grammarly with the hub tool...boy would that be powerful!

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   SANJAY LAKHANPALposted 8 years ago

   Thanks for the update.

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   colorfuloneposted 8 years ago

   That is a significate increase. Thanks for sharing the graph.

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   NateB11posted 8 years ago

   Good info, thanks Paul.

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      sallybeaposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Very interesting Paul  I have been using the free Grammarly download.   What a difference it makes to have a free grammar and spell checker which is accessible whenever I need it, even when I am making a comment:)

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      1. STAFF

         Paul Edmondsonposted 8 years agoin reply to this

         I gave the grammerly plugin for chrome a go yesterday and I think it's really good for hubs. I'd like to do a test where we fix grammar and spelling with grammerly and see if it has the same impact as our light edits.

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            sallybeaposted 8 years agoin reply to this

            I think that is an excellent idea.  It has been a big help to me.  Prior to this I used Word, cutting and pasting everything into it before inserting the writing into my hubs.  I find this is better because it also helps to ensure that I don't make too many mistakes with comments as well.  I do however find that my computer has run a little slower since I used the plugin.  I think I am prepared to put up with this because I see that it really does make a difference.

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            TIMETRAVELER2posted 8 years agoin reply to this

            I tried to use Grammarly with my Chrome browser and it caused all kinds of problems, so I had to remove it.  Wish I could figure out what the problem is!

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   Chriswillman90posted 8 years ago

   That's quite a difference and great info as well.

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   The Examiner-1posted 8 years ago

   Very important. There are several other items grammar and mechanics are considered one of the top priorities.

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   Marcy Goodfleischposted 8 years ago

   This is really interesting, Paul - it raises a question for me, though. My content is pretty solid in terms of grammar and and mechanics, but even at that, I tweak and improve. However, some high-performing (and well-executed) hubs that were stolen early on have never recovered. Some were stolen multiple times.
   
   Do you have any data on content that has been violated in that manner, and how we can recover from the lost traffic?  Yes, I've filed DMCAs (until I want to scream), and I refiled when things were stolen again. I've edited and changed layouts, etc. as well.  Still seeing about 1/3 of the former traffic.
   
   Thanks for any advice you can offer!
   
   Marcy

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   1. STAFF

      Paul Edmondsonposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I know it's really frustrating to have content scraped. I've studied it and I rarely find hubs getting out ranked by the scraper.  I suspect it's something different causing your traffic changes. I wish I could tell you what was causing the issue, so we could all fix it.

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   blessedmomto7posted 8 years ago

   Thanks for posting.  I'm always turned off by poor grammar and mechanics, so I think it's very important.

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   jansharesposted 8 years ago

   I really appreciate this post, Paul. I'm a stickler for grammar so I'm glad to know it's important to our readers, too. They deserve top-notch professionalism and we get views in return. Good deal.

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    Peggy Wposted 8 years ago

    That is a significant increase in views by simply improving grammar.  Thanks for the update!  I for one appreciate reading well written articles with good grammar.

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    mary615posted 8 years ago

    I use PaperGrader on my articles before I submit them.  It does a great job of  checking grammar, etc. and will even grade your paper.  If an error is found, it will suggest alternatives.
    It is free to use.

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       mary615posted 8 years agoin reply to this

       Oops. The name of that program is PaperRater, NOT PaperGrader.

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