EC labels on hubs.. is it REALLY worth it??

1. 71

   Aneegmaposted 9 years ago

   I'm just following up on this discussion:
   
   http://hubpages.com/forum/topic/129147
   
   For the last two weeks I have read and monitored a lot of hubs (about 150 hubs) that have been labelled "Editor's Choice." Based on the ones that I read, about 90% of them I would NEVER read and the only reason I read them was purely for that label and also to see if I can get tips to improve my hubs and maybe get myself that prestigious label.
   
   I've also seen several discussions of people that have that label complaining that their traffic has gone to the bin. So again I ask myself... "do these editor's wake up every morning and have a meeting of how to destroy hubs today?" Because quiet frankly I think this EC thing sucks. Take for example with the case of the discussion I mentioned above.
   
   Her hub was positioned next to several hubs that had that label and I read all of the hubs and her hub was the best one and yet didn't have that EC title. So naturally a non hubber or a visitor passing by will not know that and they will opt to read the ones with labels because they look "cooler"
   
   So now it seems to me that getting that label means "your hub is about to die a painful traffic-less death"
   
   So for those of you that have EC labels, can you shed some light on here and tell us if your traffic improved or plummeted? I want to prepare myself in case I ever get that email that says "your hub has been selected" (which I highly doubt anyway).

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   1. 90

      Patty Inglish, MSposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      My EC Hubs experience increased traffic over the non-EC Hubs most of the time. I still update them as needed, though - new pictures, that sort of thing.

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   2. 95

      sallybeaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      All of my EC Hubs appear to be doing far better than the non EC ones at the moment.
      If  I received the monthly cash payout I would definitely feel it was worth opting in.
      My chances might be better than my winning the lottery:)

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2. 84

   psycheskinnerposted 9 years ago

   The last staff report was that for any given hub being made EC versus being opted out did not effect traffic or earnings
   
   You may see a difference between those selected for EC and those not selected, but that is about the kind of hub they are, not EC adding any value to the hub

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   1. 95

      sallybeaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Perhaps more interesting to note is  that EC  Hubs cover a very wide range of scores,  One would expect them to score higher than the average hub but this is not always the case.  Scores don't relate to views either apparently.

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   2. 96

      wildernessposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      It will be interesting to see if that changes with the inclusion of the labels in the "related hubs" section.  If it doesn't, the furor over those labels is misplaced.

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      1. 92

         Jayne Lancerposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         It's not misplaced. It's justified by the mere intention.

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         1. 96

            wildernessposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            The intention of the labels is apparently to reward those that put the effort into writing better hubs.  And that justifies the outcry over them?

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            1. 92

               Jayne Lancerposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               If that's the sole intention, then I rather regret the fact that none of HubPages' staff are creative enough to come up with a better idea.
               
               Besides, those hubs are not necessarily 'better hubs'. In particularly because not all hubbers have opted into the program.

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               1. 71

                  galleryofgraceposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  EC hubs are not better hubs but don't tell the thieves that. The main reason traffic stops on hubs that get tagged EC is because it's been copied somewhere in the nether world.

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               2. 96

                  wildernessposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  Personally, I find the EC hubs to be better on the average.  There are lots of exceptions, both ways, but on the average they are much better than the average non-EC hub.

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            2. 84

               Marcy Goodfleischposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               Wilderness - I have dozens of hubs labeled EC - and I am known for good content and good writing. I opted out recently for various reasons.  Does that mean the hubs I wrote now have a lower quality than before? Does that mean they should be penalized because I opted out?
               
               By the way - most were written prior to the "EC" effort & HP converted them to their own domain name when they created the program. My traffic went down, but I was trapped due to the AP program.
               
               The reward for good writing should be for it to stand on its own merits, and not appear next to something that more or less says, "The editors picked this one!  Read it now!"

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               1. 92

                  Jayne Lancerposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  +1

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3. 91

   aesta1posted 9 years ago

   Personally, when EC first came out, I read many of them. So, based on my reaction, EC matters because they get read by people looking for quality. Some of the EC hubs were awesome but some were very average. Calling them stellar will only disappoint readers and will not improve the image of HP. Several had spelling mistakes and one in particular, was paraphrased from a book read and having corrected many student papers, I can easily spot this.
   
   HP has to raise the standards of what is stellar and clearly define these for the hubbers so they can aspire to that when they write.

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4. 92

   Jodahposted 9 years ago

   I have three EC hubs, but all are over 18 months old. I feel they are all quite good quality and they have varying scores and traffic, though are far from being my highest traffic hubs (one actually has almost the lowest traffic of all my hubs). I don't seem to be able to meet the criteria any more for my recent hubs to be considered for EC. There seems to be pros and cons as to whether having the EC banner is beneficial.

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