Mass Linking to a FAMOUS download repository is NOT link-spam, darnit!

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  1. kschang profile image85
    kschangposted 12 years ago

    Hubpages, what's with your censors lately? Seems hubs gathering plenty of traffic AND backlinks are getting hit by the censors with little regard to the actual DESTINATION of the links!

    I do "roundup" reviews, where I review a whole bunch of Android apps in the same category. And since I review apps, I have to link to a download site for them. As a habit, I link to appbrain.com, which used to be the ONLY way to link to ANY Android app (Google only allowed linking directly to Android Market in early 2011).

    (Incidentally, appbrain.com is also nice enough to provide a linkback when they see enough traffic from the source)

    So what did I find yesterday? The censor thinks I am link-spamming to Appbrain.com and took my MOST PRODUCTIVE HUB (250 views a day) offline! AND it's breaking my cross-hub links! And this hub has been on hubpages for A YEAR without problems!

    ARGH!

    I have a SEVERAL MORE of these roundup review hubs in this format. One of them was even highlighted on TWIT.TV's "All About Android" podcast not too long ago which resulted in a spike in traffic. Are all of THOSE in danger of being censored as well, Hubpages?

    I don't mind you pruning the tree, Hubpages, but when you take a DRASTIC action like this, it is horribly ANNOYING and discouraging!

    1. pauldeeds profile imageSTAFF
      pauldeedsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      The issue with that Hub was not links to appbrain.com, but rather links to a blogspot site that was linked to both in an RSS capsule and in the body of the Hub.  If you click on the overly promotional warning, it generally shows you the specific sites you are linking to that are causing the problem.

  2. psycheskinner profile image82
    psycheskinnerposted 12 years ago

    If you email support with a polite explanation they will add a site to the "safe" list where multiple links aren't flagged as self-promotion.

  3. relache profile image72
    relacheposted 12 years ago

    It's quite clearly stated in the site rules that promoting the same site across a series of Hubs will be viewed as spamming.  You'd think that in the 16 months you've been here that you would have found the time to read the site guidelines.

    1. psycheskinner profile image82
      psycheskinnerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Except that certain resource websites are exempt and you can link to them pretty much as often as you like (e.g. wikipedia).

      As this one should be, as far as I can see--it is a neutral, non-affiliate depository of reliable information.

      I asked them to exempt sciencedirect and they were happy to do so. Given the subject I Hub about not referring to sciencedirect on a frequent basis would have been a problem.

      1. relache profile image72
        relacheposted 12 years agoin reply to this

        Sites that get exempted are non-commercial.  A site that has advertising on it is defined by HubPages as being commercial.  Again, something made clear if you just take the time to read the FAQ here.

        1. psycheskinner profile image82
          psycheskinnerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

          Having read the FAQ, I know that exempt sites *can* in fact be commercial (and many of them do carry advertising). They just have to be "well-known Web resources which you don't have any personal interest in".  The Hubber has no interest in the site, it is a well known web resource (PR6). So I think Appbrain qualifies. 

          If you think they don't perhaps you can point out how the site contravenes the requirements, specifically? Rather than just suggesting we... what, lazy? Or making incorrect assumptions about what the FAQs say...? http://hubpages.com/faq/#overly_promotional

    2. kschang profile image85
      kschangposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Don't be ridiculous. If you can't link to Download.com, TuCows.com, and well known software repositories, then who CAN you link to?

      I do the same thing, except I link to Appbrain, the Android counterpart.

      By your definition, if I include a ton of links to Microsoft.com, I'd be flagged as overly promotional (of Microsoft).

      1. Jason Menayan profile image60
        Jason Menayanposted 12 years agoin reply to this

        It's not the link to appbrain.com. That's fine.

        You have links & RSS feeds going to another site (a blogspot link; I'm guessing your own). The rule for those is either up to 2 links, or an RSS feed, but not both, so if you remove the link or the RSS feed and resubmit, you should be fine. smile

        1. kschang profile image85
          kschangposted 12 years agoin reply to this

          When did that shrunk to only 2 (with RSS counted as one)? I thought it was THREE links to the same website (with RSS counted as one?)

          ARGH!

  4. kschang profile image85
    kschangposted 12 years ago

    I respectfully disagree.

    1) There is NO site warning within the detailed explanation. I know about the 3-links-to-same-place rule. That is NOT violated here.

    2) My blog is an overall Android app review website, where I review every sort of Android apps. The link at the beginning is to a specific tag, namely "live wallpapers" subject of the hub, that I had reviewed but had not been added to the hub.

    The RSS feed is of the overall blog.

    That is only TWO links.

    Try again...

    1. kschang profile image85
      kschangposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Wait, TWO is considered a violation now?!

      **** me. :-P

      1. wilderness profile image93
        wildernessposted 12 years agoin reply to this

        Two links is OK, as is an RSS feed, but even one link PLUS an RSS feed is not.

        1. Jason Menayan profile image60
          Jason Menayanposted 12 years agoin reply to this

          Yes, that's correct.

          1. kschang profile image85
            kschangposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            In other words, RSS counts at 1.5, and and hard limit is 2.

            So RSS by itself is 1.5 < 2  PASS
            Link + RSS = 2.5 > 2  FAIL!
            Link + Link = 2 PASS

            Okay, there you go!

 
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