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Making Money Online – Three things that have worked for me at hubpages

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By Mark Knowles



There is much discussion about making money online and the internet is chock-a-block full of “guaranteed returns,” and “amazing opportunities,” to make money easily. I laugh at some of the ridiculous claims made. I am not going to make any such claims – in fact – It is hard work making money online. I have chosen hubpages as one of the income streams I currently enjoy, and as I am unlikely to ever get this page found in the search engines, thanks to the promotional efforts of the numerous spammers, scammers and occasional honest Joes, targeting "making money online," I will stick to discussing making money here on hubpages and talk about how I make the most of the various affiliates offered here, in the hope it will be of some use to the community. I will not discuss Kontera - I personally think it is a scam and a waste of time.

The learning curve was steep, and I was singularly un-successful at first. Partly because I was unable to pick the wheat from the chaff as far as advice goes and partly because I am naturally cynical. I automatically disbelieve most things I am told – especially if they make no sense. I will give you an example:


Making Money Online
Making Money Online

I was told “Submit your hubs to social bookmarking sites to generate huge traffic, “ and I was told this by every would-be internet marketing guru on the ‘net, so I diligently signed up for every social bookmarking site I could find and began submitting my hubs to them. What an incredible waste of time that turned out to be. It turns out that stumbleupon users are not interested in where to find the best foreign exchange broker. They are more interested in pictures of half-naked Indian chicks, but I don’t do hubs full of stolen photos of half-naked Indian chicks, so I was shit out of luck.

I have since found better ways of promoting my work, but it would be a waste of time to go into specifics, because what works for me is unlikely to work for you unless you know the same people I do and write the same stuff as me. Plus the link exchange programs do not work here, and I have a feeling they will be going the way of the dinosaur once google get on top of them. What I will say is – if you can develop a relationship with any high traffic site, do so, and if you can take the time to create funny, useful content – do that also.


Google Adsense

I saw the recent hubchallenge as an opportunity to increase my adsense income. The community publishing aspect naturally generates more traffic to hubs created in this way. I do not usually go seeking internal hubpages’ traffic because it does not convert very well but hubs that attract outside traffic are usually ranked higher and google is a strange beast.

Google will rank you based on the traffic you have and therefore place you higher up the search engine rankings which will increase your traffic, so the benefit of hubpages internal traffic is to boost your authority with very little work on your part. I suggest taking part in the hubmob and other devices that are run. You will see increased activity and therefore increased rankings with the search engines.

I did not finish the 100 hubs target - I managed 51, but I wrote them all myself in between arguing on the forums and real work. :) I wrote them all to a standard format - 400 words, one photograph; specific high paying keywords targeted with each one, using the keyword I was targeting in the url, the tags, in the content and as the photo description and with no more than one outgoing link, mostly to other hubs using the keyword in that hub I am after. My daily page views have gone up by around 50% since doing the hubchallenge and my adsense has gone up by around 20% - I expect to make at least $500 this month and when the hubchallenge hubs are properly “aged,” I expect that to continue to increase. My goal is $1,000 a month within the next three months.



Ebay

A lot of people seem to have trouble using ebay correctly, as I did for quite a long time. There are several hurdles to over come, but I did finally work out what to do. Some time ago, I wrote a set of hubs around 2008 motorcyles. I wrote them knowing full well that I was unlikely to make much adsense income from them. Although I came in for a lot of flack at the time when I described how little I promoted them and several people kept telling me how useless the titles were as far as making money and attracting traffic, I did not write them for huge volumes of poorly-targeted traffic in the hope of generating a few adsense pennies.

I wrote them with the intention of making money from ebay when the 2008 motorcycles started being offered for sale as used bikes and spare parts. In the year or so since I wrote them, they have had almost 200,000 page views and rank pretty well for exactly the terms I wanted.  Do a google search for “2008 gsxr 1000” and you are going to find one of my hubs. The others get found pretty well for similar searches and I am now making about $90 a month from ebay sales.  I expect that to continue for at least five years and eventually drop off as they become more spare part sales rather than bike sales.


Amazon

In my not-so-humble opinion, there is only one way to make money from Amazon in any quantity – product reviews. I certainly wasted an awful lot of time adding an Amazon capsule to a lot of my hubs thinking that if some one was looking for a recipe, they might also be needing a skillet or a chef’s knife. And occasionally, they do, but nowhere near enough times to bother with.

So, I targeted specific ranges of products and wrote reviews. Some worked better than others. The two I targeted were iPhone accessories and Digital cameras. They balance each other well, because although people rarely seem to spend $3000 on a camera within Amazon’s short cookie life span, they are quite happy to spend sixty bucks on an iPhone Bluetooth headset so I usually get 7% commission on the few camera sales and occasionally 7.5%. These two groups of hubs earn me between $200-$600 a month and traffic continues to grow. Once again, my target is $1,000 per month and I have no reason to think I will not achieve that within the next three months.

I hope that helps any aspiring money-makers out there. You can make money with hubpages, but sometimes you need to think sideways to do so and be pretty focused to make it work. It is a waste of time adding capsules on the off-chance, and this is where most people become disheartened I think. Yes, once in a while some one will buy a skillet from my “how to make hamburgers” hub, but not nearly often enough for me to consider that a success. If you are a regular hubber, I hope this is useful information, but if you are new visitor and would be interested in making money on hubpages, you can sign up here. If you a are also interested in other ways of making money online, I have also written a guide on making money blogging. Combining the two approaches, i.e. hubpages and blogs has worked very well for me. I have also written a more comprehensive guide to making money online here. With more detailed explanations of how I go about using both hubpages and my blogs.

The other key to making money blogging - either here or on your own blogs is getting a large amount of links pointing at your pages. There is an art to this, which I describe in more detail here - Making money online ? Not without some incoming links you aren't.

Now buy a damn skillet.

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khmohsin profile image

khmohsin  says:
5 months ago

nice information, since it is based on self experience

guidebaba profile image

guidebaba  says:
5 months ago

Fantastic. Even I created another profile on Hubpages just 3 months back and in these 3 months published 100 Hubs. The revenue has increased many folds. The highest till date was $35 which I had NEVER expected from Hubpages. The average earnings from HP alone is now around $15 per day. I learnt some of the tricks from you, initially when i was new and we often used to argue in the forum. I am glad that I argued with someone experienced like you. I am also very-very glad that I joined hubpages. Initially I thought I was wasting my time and energy here but ai was wrong. All my 100 Hubs with the new profile are on one single Subject and are linked with each other in some way or the other and almost all of them are on the first page of Google. You finally tought me how to make money here at Hubpages. Thanks !

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

My pleasure. Glad you are doing so well.

Nolimits Nana  says:
5 months ago

I don't need another skillet, Mark, but I sure needed your information in this hub. Thanks to you, Lissie, and others who give so generously of your knowledge.

Captain Dad profile image

Captain Dad  says:
5 months ago

Mark --- Brilliant hub. Thanks for separating the wheat from the chaff.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

My pleasure guys. Hope it proves to be usable information.

fortunerep profile image

fortunerep  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for the very useful information. It seems only time will tell,

dori

eovery profile image

eovery  says:
5 months ago

Thanks Mark.

This is really helpfuf. And if I understand things right, the better we do it adn get more traffic, the better hubpages overall will rank and help bring in more traffic overall, no?

So thanks again.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Quite right. Their alexa ranking is down to 376 from 666 a year ago. :)

RGraf profile image

RGraf  says:
5 months ago

This is great advice. I appreciate your candor about what works for you might not work for me and that you weren't successful immediately. Thank you.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

My pleasure - I like to be honest with these things.

William F. Torpey profile image

William F. Torpey  says:
5 months ago

You always offer good advice, Mark, and it's appreciated. Fortunately, for me, it's not critically important to make money here -- and I don't -- but I do want my stuff to be read. HubPages is a good thing!

eovery profile image

eovery  says:
5 months ago

I spend some time looking at your hubs you talked about. You did a lot of work and research on them. There are a lot of links in and out. Google is eating that up. I will remember this in my writing from now on.

Keep on Hubbing!

Don Simkovich profile image

Don Simkovich  says:
5 months ago

Hi Mark,

I've had days where I felt like using a chef's knife but not in the kitchen. I like your input. I feel I'm really learning Google AdSense after 2 years on my own blog. I've not signed up yet for eBay but I will. And I like your input on Amazon in terms of product reviews. I guess book reviews, too, would be useful for amazon.

I like how Hubpages can be used strategically.

I should "I thank God for having you provide the information" but . . . you might just get a kick out of it.

I also want to say congrats on writing 51 Hubs. I've started writing again on a regular basis. Good quality Hubs with good quantity is certainly one of the ingredients for Goodle Adsense success.

Don Simkovich profile image

Don Simkovich  says:
5 months ago

One more comment. One of my current top ranking Hubs on top tier gasoline was written last Aug '08 but didn't start getting lots of search engine until the last two weeks . . . I've read about this happening before.

Hovalis profile image

Hovalis  says:
5 months ago

Mark, Thanks for the hints on adsense. I think that's the one area I'd like to expand, because it seems like the easiest way to get a little more income (and they don't pay by cheque like Amazon do, either).

I've only ever made money from ebay on a a couple of websites I have, never here. The sites, though, work on much the same principal you talk about here.With Amazon reviews are the way to go. The only income I've made are from the couple of review hubs I have up.Although I would say that book reviews really don't garner much profit, you're better off looking at appliances and electronic items.

Tiptopcat profile image

Tiptopcat  says:
5 months ago

Just wanted to say thanks for the tip about amazon. I know that I waste far too much time looking for relevant products to add to my hubs. Now I won't bother too much. I know that eBay is a really good earner. Unfortuately I can't get accepted as an affiliate and there seems to be no way of contacting them to ask why. very annoying.

Oh well, i will keep plugging away and hope to do well with adsense. Thanks again.

Don Simkovich profile image

Don Simkovich  says:
5 months ago

Hovalis, I looked at your Hub on tea kettles review and it was helpful. I like how you add the Amazon and eBay capsules. I wasn't aware of how to do that. I usually only add Amazon at the bottom of my Hub and not throughout. Also, I will sign up for an eBay affiliate account. I will do some product reviews.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

@ William - I agree, writing to earn money is not the sole reason to write here.

@eovery - good luck.

@Don - lol Thanks. Yes - sometimes they take a while to mature. Usually, I see a big surge on publishing, themn it dies off and then starts to pick up again. I expect it to take three months for these hubs to start paying off properly.

@ Hovalis. I do OK with books, although people often buy a different book to the one I wrote about - but I have had better success with the inexpensive electronics.

embitca profile image

embitca  says:
5 months ago

"I wrote them with the intention of making money from ebay when the 2008 motorcycles started being offered for sale as used bikes and spare parts."

Whoah! I am totally impressed with how far you think ahead. I never even thought of doing something like this.

The Amazon thing is interesting. It has always been my worst money maker here and I was looking at my stats recently and realizing that actually I make quite a few Amazon sales. My conversion rate is about 3%, which I think is probably average. But the problem is.... it's all books and dvds and CDs. And they are all ridiculously cheap on Amazon. So I need to target some higher paying items and do some product review pages.

If you don't mind my asking, what's your conversion rate for Amazon?

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Thanks - I was not having much success with ebay, so I figured this would be a good approach. I am a little disappointed at the income generated - as I said about $90 a month, but if it keeps going for long enough it will have been worth it - the financial crisis will certainly have had an effect and I think I may have to wait until next year to get the full benefits when the bikes are more affordable.

 

My Amazon conversion rate is around 8% - it was up to 12% over the Christmas period.

Jewels profile image

Jewels  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for the tips Mark.

cindyvine profile image

cindyvine  says:
5 months ago

Great info Marko am going to give it a shot!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

My pleasure guys - good luck.

charanjeet kaur profile image

charanjeet kaur  says:
5 months ago

Thumbs up on this hub, reading your hub gives me hope like no other hub ever has. I have not reached my first payout yet so im still workin and finding my way around will surely learn from the tricks mentioned. Great practical info here and an excellent read. Thanx for sharing.

Singular Investor profile image

Singular Investor  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for the info Mark - got to agree about Kontera. I'm surprised HP even use it. For those who don't know, Kontera has an infamous Clause 4.2, also known as Catch 4.2, which says that if you earn less than $5 in a month then Kontera keeps the money for themselves ! You have been warned.

lindagoffigan profile image

lindagoffigan  says:
5 months ago

Thank you for writing such an informative hub on effectively writing hubs to generate money. I am not one of those writers who does it for the pure enjoyment though writing comes easily to me. I have written over 400 hundred hubs but has been inuadated with google adsenses incremental earnings.

After reading your hub, I realized that people buy products and not words. I enjoy writing to my relevant audience but now will begin a separate hub on product reviews and products catering to amazon. I appreciate you for letting me know that because you write about a subject does not mean that the reader will click on a relevant product of the subject matter.

embitca profile image

embitca  says:
5 months ago

Yeah, I think this has been a tough year so it is really hard to gauge success of a particular strategy because of the way everything just took a dive. Right now, i feel like a lot of what I'm doing is only resulting in maintaining a level. Hopefully, if and when things improve economically, I should see some better results from the work I'm doing now.

But if you continue getting $90 a month for the next year or two from those hubs and then it peters off slowly, I think you'll still be way ahead for the amount of work put in.

8% is quite excellent conversion! I think I will have to tinker with my Amazon strategy. Hmmm.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Yes - it has been a tough year. Unfortunately, with the central banks printing money hand over fist, maintaining a level is not going to be good enough lol

Good luck with your amazon. :)

Lissie profile image

Lissie  says:
5 months ago

I don't want a bloody frypan - it would cost more to ship to Austraia than the discount on Amazon! Couldn't you have found a relevant make money while you sleep and retire to the South of France on your Adsense earnings book/DVD to promote instead?

I'm finally getting some traction with ebay - on second parts to though not motorcycles. Stuff thats easy to mail but impossible to get in Walmart (well I assume so never having been in a Walmart in my life!)

I also have the feel for affiliate sales such as Amazon and eBay I need to write a more "selling" type hub - like you call to action at the bottom of this one "now buy a damn skillet" - I think I forget to do that a lot.

 

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Dammit - when will I sell a skillet lol

Lissie profile image

Lissie  says:
5 months ago

well it would help if you called them frypans - far more searchers than for skillets!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

How about if I call them "penis enlargers" instead? lol

No1beautytips profile image

No1beautytips  says:
5 months ago

thanks for the info, its very usefull and alot of what you written makes sense, i only been on hub pages for 2 weeks now, thanks again

Bible Studies profile image

Bible Studies  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for the good information. I know there is a lot of bad information out there.

I know I don't make much with my hubs, but sometimes you just need to write about what is important to you and what interests you. I'm not much good with findng trends and writing about something I really know nothing about.

Good luck to you and everyone who can.

bingskee profile image

bingskee  says:
5 months ago

hi, this is interesting. like you, i tend to be cynical. all things have to be proven first before i believe what those 'gurus' are saying. even the hub challenge i doubted. i doubted that it could make me earn money more than the little that i expect.

i like your being straightforward. i am now a fan.

thanks for sharing.

livewithrichard profile image

livewithrichard  says:
5 months ago

Hey Mark, this is great info you are sharing with us, thank you. I'm definately going to put some of your ideas to use.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

My pleasure every one - I hope yoi can put my past mistakes to good use lol

esllr profile image

esllr  says:
5 months ago

Great advice, what a pleasure to get it from a straight shooter. I will be thinking sideways!

Dang!Were are those skillets? lol

2patricias profile image

2patricias  says:
5 months ago

An interesting Hub, and some good ideas for us. We suspected Kontera was a con and never signed up. Sounds like we'll have to try HubMob.

We had found that including product reviews on our own website increases traffic. Actually, we don't like writing them, but since we can see the benefit set ourselves targets.

Thanks for giving an idea of how much money you are earning. Mostly we simply don't believe what we read about how much it is possible to earn, but your hub stands out as being credible.

hipriestess4u profile image

hipriestess4u  says:
5 months ago

I write short stories on line at writer's circle helium and social content,

so I though I'd go to hubpages to see if I could make some money.

Not much so far, product reviews sound pretty good. Might try that

Dale Mazurek profile image

Dale Mazurek  says:
5 months ago

Very interesting stuff.

Outside of HubPages I do quite well with eBay and adsense but from this hub I have some great ideas on now expanding my income into HubPages.

I knew I followed you for a reason

Cheers

Karen Banes profile image

Karen Banes  says:
5 months ago

Great info. As I've said before in the forums my amazon ads seem to be wearing some sort of cloaking device, but I've got some good ideas from this hub. By the end of all that good advice you had me so sucked in I almost bought the skillet!!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Thanks guys - "almost bought the skillet" huh? LOL Just not good enough :(

RKHenry profile image

RKHenry  says:
5 months ago

Why isn't this a Hubnugget???????????? Great hub!

Pearldiver profile image

Pearldiver  says:
5 months ago

Good advice as usual Mr Mark.. thanks for the golden hub...

Now if it was a Wok .....

Garrett McLee profile image

Garrett McLee  says:
5 months ago

I laughed when it got to the end and said "now buy a damn skillet" and sure enough, skillets on amazon. Your attitude and delivery is just up my alley in the styles I like to read, I'm adding you to my list of favorite writers. Happy days!

Dana Chadwick profile image

Dana Chadwick  says:
5 months ago

"Now buy a damn skillet" I loved that line. This hub was a great read- nice flow, great information.

negacrowbar profile image

negacrowbar  says:
5 months ago

Great hub, Mark..how long have you been at this here MMO game?

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

THanks guys - @ RK - I think that is for new hubbers only?

pgrundy profile image

pgrundy  says:
5 months ago

Thank you for sharing this. You are truly amazing and this is good info. I did not even care about income at HP for at least the first year I was here. I just was having fun spouting off about whatever. It's only been in the past six months or so that it has hit me that putting more effort into increasing revenue here might be worth my while. I didn't finish the HP challenge either, but even only hitting 25 it looks like I will get a monthly pay out starting in July (if everything keeps going as it has). That was my goal for the challenge--to hit a monthly payout. That amazes me in itself, that I could bumble into THAT. I'm going to take your advice to heart. Thanks again.

llanishen profile image

llanishen  says:
5 months ago

Pretty cool ideas and interesting things to say.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

Aw shucks.. @ Pam - you can make money if you wish, so good luck :)

hipriestess4u  says:
5 months ago

I started looking around because I have made some money on

associated content, and helium.org, so I came to hub pages. I only have

a few hubs, and they are short stories of literature of the fantastic. However

I do write esoterically. I don't know if I will make anything, but this was

both educational and funny. Don't know if I'll buy a skillet.....

Kosmo profile image

Kosmo  says:
5 months ago

I hope one of these days I can write about making money online with the experience you have! As you've suggested, Amazon ads seem a waste of time, so maybe I'll give ebay a chance. Later!

gunsock profile image

gunsock  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for a brilliant hub. Great Advice. I'm glad someone else hates Kontera as I do. I, too, used to add Amazon capsules in the vain hope of flogging a skillet or two, but, no longer!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
5 months ago

lol Still no skillets sales huh? Oh well -

@ gunsock - Yes took me a very short space of time to ditch Kontera.

Useful Knowledge profile image

Useful Knowledge  says:
5 months ago

Thanks for giving us some of your knowledge. I have created an astore through Amazon, but I am not sure if you can use on Hub pages or not. I hink you can post a link at the bottom of your hubs, but it redirects traffic to a new page with your store. In summary, I am learning how all of this works and your page was helpful. I have been here 5 days and had almost 600 page views, a good many form other sources than hubpages. I guess that's a good start.

Lupo profile image

Lupo  says:
5 months ago

Great hub and I really got a nice laugh out of your putting those skillets at the end.

Thanks Mark.

Johnyboy profile image

Johnyboy  says:
4 months ago

For me Ebay and Amazon are the best.

On ebay you can make a bunch of stuff and earn money almost over night. Amazon is a bit time consuming. But very effective in a long run.

jayb23 profile image

jayb23  says:
4 months ago

Brilliant Hub. Thanks for sharing with us.

Rudra profile image

Rudra  says:
4 months ago

I dont bother with amazon anymore.

caymanhost profile image

caymanhost  says:
4 months ago

LOL @ "I don’t do hubs full of stolen photos of half-naked Indian chicks, so I was shit out of luck"

Very interesting reading. As far as Kontera goes they have now removed the infamous monthly $5 minimum or tough s**t clause. Having said that, a lot of people find these kind of ads really annoying when trying to read something.

Being from a small speck in the middle of the Caribbean, I see very few Kontera ads on my pages due to geographic targeting and it's a bit annoying because it makes it impossible for me to guage how many my visitors see and consequenltly how intrusive they might be if I run them here on Hubpages or elsewhere.

Again, thanks for a good read.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

Well, as a reader - I dfind those Kontera type ads often irrelevent and very annoying. So it is not just their lopsided TOS that put me off. Thanks for stopping by :)

BrianS profile image

BrianS  says:
4 months ago

Bit slow commenting on this and reading it I have to admit. Been worth the visit and very helpful, I had been drawing similar conclusions myself having been guilty of providing far too much information to make any money, by the time I was finished no one needed to buy anything. Well my future hubs are going to be much shorter and highly targeted, god I am a slow learner as well.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

LOL - I guess we all are :)

glendoncaba profile image

glendoncaba  says:
4 months ago

Thanks for the hubmentoring. I'm patenting that word and all while I'm at it. Now to write my first 100 hubs.

I have material in ezine articles that I would love to move here but unsure of the dangers of duplicating my work.

I'm new to hubpages but very impressed with the sense of community and the potential for success.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

Hubmentoring - I like that :) I think there will be a penalty for duplicating anything that has already been published online.

wordscribe41 profile image

wordscribe41  says:
4 months ago

Great information, Mark. I'm new here, so I'm in the same boat you were in when you started writing online. The concept of not putting quite enough information into the hubs to increase clicks is intriguing to me. I'll look through more of your hubs to see how you acheive this. Lots of learning to do, thanks for giving me some great ideas.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure - I hope it helps.

thranax profile image

thranax  says:
4 months ago

Helpful as always Mark!Oh yeah, I always loved your humor you mix in too somewhere.

~thranax~

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

I try - hitting funny and serious at the same tme is a little tricky :)

Eric Graudins profile image

Eric Graudins  says:
4 months ago

Well, after 4 hours, the domain name hubmentoring.com was still available so I registered it to protect it. You guys obviously aren't action oriented :-)

It's a good name with possibilities. Perhaps something can be done with it.

Anamika S profile image

Anamika S  says:
4 months ago

You have some great Tips here Mark. HubPages have added to my income significantly. After the HubChallenge my earnings increased too. But no where near what you mentioned. I guess that is because I am a zero when it comes to keyword targeting and seo. I don't know how it happened but my blog on Mantras which I primarily started to promote my religion hubs have ended up having more traffic than my religion hubs and have majority of keywords within the first five in Google search.

I do an okay business with E Bay but Amazon was a disappointment. Mostly what i sell are MP3's which earn me $0.10 per and occasionally some books. Now I am going to try doing product based reviews to improve the probability of selling.

Kontera was a loser and i dropped it after watching it through 6 months of disappointment.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

@ Eric - lol - Great minds - I registered hubmentors.com :) Wanna do something with them?

@ anamika - good and bad for you. :)

quicksand profile image

quicksand  says:
4 months ago

I have been following your guidelines from the time I joined hub pages and have been successful. My hub score went up after I "re-arranged" some of my hubs in accordance with what you had suggested.

Just like everyone else I am also much obliged to you. Cheers! :)

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure - there is so much BS out there, I am happy to oblige.

Eric Graudins profile image

Eric Graudins  says:
4 months ago

@ Mark,

Yes, something could be built where those who have something to share in a structured manner could make it available.

But there's no reason why that couldn't happen in a specialist forum at HP.

And given that it's related to Hubpages, it would be wise to get their blessings before using an associated term like that for anything.

Trouble is, I can't work out what, assuming that everyone would want everything to be free.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

Well, I was thinking a password protected Q&A - I will drop you a pm.

traceye profile image

traceye  says:
4 months ago

Thanks for this great hub. You are so right about targetting product names if you are going after Amazon commission's. So many people put on an Amazon or eBay capsule if their hub is only somewhat related and wonder why the don't make any money. Now if I can just figure out Adsense I'll have all three working for me .. LOL

I'm going to go and read some of your other hubs that someone mentioned about the 'best' layout for your hubs to improve hubscore. (not that I'm really that interested in hubscore - it doesn't bring you any more traffic depending on how high it is - but it's nice to boast about).

Take careTracey

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

That is what I used to do with Amazon and Ebay - now I know better :)

Camping Dan profile image

Camping Dan  says:
4 months ago

This is some good advice on getting some action from Ebay. I have not had any luck with it, but maybe with a new approach I can make something happen.

Bob Ewing profile image

Bob Ewing  says:
4 months ago

Sound advice, thanks Mark

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure guys - hope it helps. We all need a little help lately I think....

ajm5050 profile image

ajm5050  says:
4 months ago

Excellent hub Mark, this is by far one of the best hub I've read and I read hundreds so far. I'm making few hundred dollars with couple of my blogs, but I'm thinking of creating hubs primarily from now on. The akiles heel of Hubpages is that it's got so many leaks, but I think it also offers many advantages over blogs. Thanks for sharing some great info.

gusripper profile image

gusripper  says:
4 months ago

So mark,definetelly you dont need to have your own website,only write hubs?Can you see my hubs and tell me what is missing?

popintervention profile image

popintervention  says:
4 months ago

Insightful information that you don't get a lot of places. And good humor, too! can I somehow rate you 5 stars?

Google Biz Kit  says:
4 months ago

Have you tried switching to independent affiliate programs..seems like you'd be able to make a lot more from the traffic you're getting from those instead of ebay and amazon.

jennifer maurer profile image

jennifer maurer  says:
4 months ago

Great hub. I need to bookmark this and read it over several times. I know just enough to be dangerous at this point. Just started a blog, working on hubpages and trying to figure out this whole "monetizing" thing. Your hub will prove to be very useful. Thanks!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

@gusripper - I do have my own websites also.

@GBK- Not so sure about that - I write on a lot of different topics so that would be an awful lot of different affiliates. Plus I would ned to change my writing style.

@Jennifer - good luck. I hope this helped.

Sandra James profile image

Sandra James  says:
4 months ago

great advice I tried the hubchallenge but was not able to complete that because of some urgent work at home. I am now completing those 100 hubs and many more though yet to see any significant income. Is there something which I am missing or is it a matter of time.

Andrew0208 profile image

Andrew0208  says:
4 months ago

A disciplined and humorous writer you're Mark. Thanks, I'm encouraged.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure guys

@ Andrew - thanks for stopping by :)

Cindy Letchworth profile image

Cindy Letchworth  says:
4 months ago

I like your honesty about making money online. I'm with you, everyone acts like it's so so easy, when really it isn't.

Thanks for the tips, as well. Now if only I can find the time to try them....

badcompany99  says:
4 months ago

Mark I had already learnt a lot from you and Lissie but this was a great read which I thank you for !

badcompany99  says:
4 months ago

Oh forgot to say, Good Luck !

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure - thanks for the comments - hope it helps.

1cardude profile image

1cardude  says:
4 months ago

Great hub...I am just starting to see some smaal cash from my hubs....I have yet to expand into the Ebay and Amazon realm just yet!

02SmithA profile image

02SmithA  says:
4 months ago

Nice work Mark... very helpful info, especially the ebay tips..

KCC Big Country profile image

KCC Big Country  says:
4 months ago

Great hub, Mark. It's very helpful info for all anyone wanting to crank their earnings up a bit. I've been here 10 months and I'm looking at my first payout in the next 30-60 days.

Sure are some nice looking skillets you got there! :)

viryabo profile image

viryabo  says:
4 months ago

Thank you so much Mark, for this vital info. I should have read this much earlier when i 1st joined HP.

I'm definitely going to take your advice on Amazon. I use only the capsules and of course, i get nada from them. I dont know how to do reviews yet, but want to try.

Kindly give me info on hubs that can show the way to learn 'making reviews'

Really great hub. Short and to the point.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

Thanks guys.

@ viryabo - there are some links in this hub to product reviews I have done.

viryabo profile image

viryabo  says:
4 months ago

Just went to view them. Great, and, thanks Mark.

Dorsi profile image

Dorsi  says:
4 months ago

Thanks for sharing this advice Mark. I haven't been spending much time writing and or thinking about the marketing of my hubs but I know without a doubt that HubPages is a viable way of making a decent monthly income. I have managed to start getting a monthly Adsense check now so I know I'm on my way. This hub helped me to think about refocusing my energies again!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

@ viryabo - my pleasure

@ Dorsi - I agree - It took me a while to work out what works, but it is doable.

Johnyboy profile image

Johnyboy  says:
4 months ago

I finaly got my Maverick money makers hub on the first position on Google. I don't know what I did but .... there it is :D

iyoung03 profile image

iyoung03  says:
4 months ago

I'm just starting out and found the article to be very helpful, since it is written from personal experience.

Thank You!

Balinese profile image

Balinese  says:
4 months ago

Hi Mark

very interesting- i would love to make some money from hub but have no idea yet how to do it -

i hope you dont mind if i ask you more question in the near future . - thanks for the hub - great stuff

Balinese

sandra rinck profile image

sandra rinck  says:
4 months ago

So how do you find out what key words pay well? Misha was showing me how to pull a pretty good key word list, how many times to use them and how to embed them in the hub.

I have gotten more traffic this way yet still not a lot in the adsense department. I think my highest click was 3.11 but I have no idea what word it was plus they seem to change, right?

Anyways I am still plucking away at it figuring one of these days it is gonna happen for me.

ryankett profile image

ryankett  says:
4 months ago

A great hub Mark, really useful for somebody that published their first hub 8 or 9 days ago. I have been bitten by the hubpages bug. This week I have already made my first ever $5 on adsense, I will be joining your fan club and looking out for your hints and tips. One question, are their any other hubbers that you know of making more money than you? or are you the top dog?

Staci-Barbo7 profile image

Staci-Barbo7  says:
4 months ago

Mark, thanks for providing us with the benefit of your experience.  Learning from mentors is one of life's truly viable shortcuts.  

I have an idea about the skillet-frypan dilemma - anyone who would like to support Mark for providing such valuable information to the HubPages community, just contribute to his PayPal account directly, instead of his waiting to receive that whopping commission from Amazon.

Wonderbaum profile image

Wonderbaum  says:
4 months ago

Hi Mark. First of all thank you for taking the time to write this hub and doing so with such detail. Of all the things you have written I am especially glad that you tell people that making money online requires WORK. Nothing comes from nothing and that applies both offline and online.

Mikael

simplyjo profile image

simplyjo  says:
4 months ago

Lol - Loved the last comment :)

Super cool hub - well written and to the point.

Well done, Mark! I hope I can earn money thru hubpages soon enough too :)

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

@ Sandra - Misha is definitely a better person to ask than me. :)

@ everyone else - Thanks all. I hope this is useful information for you.

pmalik profile image

pmalik  says:
4 months ago

hi Mark..

thank you..thank you.. thank you.. i celebrated my birthday yesterday and this hub is a great gift **happy dancing**

practical, real advice.. no nonsense ideas and no trying to sell my anything (except, maybe the skillet..LOL) I had almost given up on hubpages, since no adsense and no eBay.. but now i wanna give it a really good shot and would.. So, when I make my first dollar at Amazon.. you get the credit :-)

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
4 months ago

My pleasure - good luck :)

emievil profile image

emievil  says:
3 months ago

Thank you very much for this hub. I was wondering how I can earn from Amazon. Your hub just provided me the answer. I also became your fan after reading this so that I can always go back to your hubs. More power to you Mark Knowles and thank you very much for sharing your knowledge to us :)

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Hope it helps. Let me know how you get on. :)

Sajid Saleem profile image

Sajid Saleem  says:
3 months ago

welldone marks knowles thanks for sharing such fruitful knowledge.

plz tell me your perday hubpages earnings

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Sajid - if you are unable to divide one number by another, you will probably not be able to work out how to make money here. Sorry.

sivaskumar profile image

sivaskumar  says:
3 months ago

I am aspiring to earn some money using hubpages. I did most of the mistakes u did earlier. Now I've got an idea about what not to do...thanks for the info. That was a great content.

pisco profile image

pisco  says:
3 months ago

Great info on the matter, seems quite straight forward, the last two income sources i could identify with, but i wasnt really sure that adsense would have made any significant income here.

That 2008 motorcycle hub is a lost gem, wouldnt think it would be that easy, going to have a read on that to see how it works.

CoachFreville profile image

CoachFreville  says:
3 months ago

When eBay starts treating sellers better, I'll reconsider. Others points good.

cjcarter profile image

cjcarter  says:
3 months ago

Sounds like a plan! Great info.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

@ CoachFreville - ebay treat everyone like shit - buyers, sellers and affiliates. :(

Lady_E profile image

Lady_E  says:
3 months ago

This caught my eye on the Homepage when signing in. Very useful info. It's interesting to see how you used your Foresight for the bikes. Nice of you to share the Tips. Cheers.

ingrid4 profile image

ingrid4  says:
3 months ago

gracias thx a lot

durien  says:
3 months ago

This is my first time on this hubpages.com . I like your post and your sense of humour!

lyrogersle  says:
3 months ago

Thanks. I think I made four cents yesterday. Maybe I'll double it today.

Barb H profile image

Barb H  says:
3 months ago

Hi Mark, Thanks for the valuable information. It gives me hope. I’ve been on HUBPages for 3 months and yesterday made $1.57 with adsense. It was very exciting. I also enjoy your forum battles you have a knack for firing up a crowd.

deeli82  says:
3 months ago

i have heard so much about sites like hubpages and wanted to know if it was all hype. i have only been on a few days and have just 6 hubs but i am working on it. your info was so detailed and i think it will work for me.

EnrapturedFlame profile image

EnrapturedFlame  says:
3 months ago

I love your witty, get straight to the point, no beating around the bush and this is how it is tone! Very informative! Thank you!

karpouzian profile image

karpouzian  says:
3 months ago

Great information. I've seen a few 'product reciew' hubbers, and I may try to break into the market.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Thanks guys - I hope you can put this information to profitable use. :)

elainevc profile image

elainevc  says:
3 months ago

Very informative - thanks so much =)

mattn78 profile image

mattn78  says:
3 months ago

Ebay still has room to got with sellers, in my opinion.Too much poor customer service + high fees and rates across the board = win us back.

Kathy  says:
3 months ago

I've been reading a bit more than writing for a bit, trying to learn I guess. Anyway, what you say about eBay, has put me in "inspired," so thanks! For the record here, about 6ish years ago myself and a room mate paid for ALL our living expenses through eBay. But I guess I should write a hub about how to REALLY make money on eBay! People don't know, it's a virtual money tree but you've GOT to know more than "how to post" an item! And bulk isn't really the best target. Trends change, and sometimes you won't have time to keep up with a changing trend! I enjoy your hubs, and am sending a friend invite! Maybe put our knowledge together and help a lot of people and ourselves at the same time! Hope you agree! :)

-Kathy

Chris Fletcher profile image

Chris Fletcher  says:
3 months ago

"Mark Knowles says:

2 days ago

@ CoachFreville - ebay treat everyone like shit - buyers, sellers and affiliates. :("

Well said!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

@ Kathy - any time.

@ Chris - well, they do - paypal is worse. LOL

CoachFreville profile image

CoachFreville  says:
3 months ago

Yep, with you Mark and Chris. Dislike Paypal's control, where you have to use Paypal cash on hand as priority, then bank accounts. I wish you could choose credit cards as default for hands off fast transactions.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

I have a dollar paypal account. But I live in Europe. So - my affiliate sales are in dollars - they insist on transferring them to Euros (for a commission) then they are transferred to my account in dollars (for a commission) AGAIN LOL

I fuckin hate ebay.............

varonny profile image

varonny  says:
3 months ago

I have, first, to thank you for this of yours. I'm honestly getting tired of all these "big-bucks-in-your-pocket-online" claims. I've tried surveys, affiliate programs, I now started with hubs, but nothing. Partly because I'd need more time to devote myself to writing online and all, but I think the main reason I have so many ideas but no will to publish them here (hence only 1hub so far), is because I fel into disapointment. So much time I've spent (elsewhere) and all I know is that I could have used for better purposes.

Reading your hub, made me realize that it's not really as they say, and maybe I shoul just try different ways that are not so much part of a big cliche of this wireless world.

Thank you :)

RachelGB profile image

RachelGB  says:
3 months ago

Very helpful hub, and funny, too. Thanks for writing it.

lilmom0413 profile image

lilmom0413  says:
3 months ago

Great hub, I hope I can become as successful at this as you have.

Pen Style  says:
3 months ago

Thanks for the straight forward advice. I've done the whole social networking, bookmarking for links thing too, without much ROI despite what the gurus say. I hate relying on Google though because their adsense program isn't transparent. There's no way of knowing if they're ripping you off, but I guess a little revenue is better than no revenue at all.

Bo Bixbie profile image

Bo Bixbie  says:
3 months ago

So what you're saying is that my hub about getting fired from my job for doing 10 shots of Jagermeister one day at work isn't going to make me any money. That would explain my Adsense balance.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Thanks guys - I am sure you can use my experiences to help.

@ Bo - That could be the case lol

upal19 profile image

upal19  says:
3 months ago

I never tried ebay. I don't know whether ebay will approve me as I've only a few sites ang receiving very few traffic. anyway, thanks for your amazing tips.

eswar profile image

eswar  says:
3 months ago

That was a wonderful analysis, with a lot of truth from the heart, I have also come across some hurdles and learnt a lot and recovering from all the wrong route that i have taken, but as for as i am concerned i still believe that an outstanding content with full of good valuable information (what ever be the niche) is still ruling, and standing out no 1 reason for getting good traffic, unless until you establish yourself as an authority of the content you choose i don't think that its possible to attract more readers (for Ex. Lissie, Misha and now you at chart). Once you do that and establish that point with your readers in a way that they can take your words, i believe you hit the jackpot, yes what everything you say and you talk about and publish you going to be followed, because readers want some good analysed reports that can save their time and energy and ofcourse easy going.

Share your experiences Mark continue to do it you will certainly will grow a lot and by way we too;-)

"The world has the habit of making room for the man whose words and

actions show that he knows where he is going"

Napoleon Hill

magnoliazz profile image

magnoliazz  says:
3 months ago

Excellent hub! Thank you!

Can anyone tell me why google adsense has not placed any ads on my hub that is rated a 96 and going up? http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Legally-NOT-PAY-You

I just don't get it, all the other hubs have adsense all over them, but when I finally write a really good hub...nothing!

And... I have al least two hubs that made it to the first page on google, but that does not mean much at all in terms of making more money with adsense. This entire thing is as murky to me. Sometimes I think I really get it, then I am just confused all over again!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

@ magnolia - I see google ads when I visit that hub.

@eswar - thanks. Tell it like it is is one of my mottos.

kmackey32 profile image

kmackey32  says:
3 months ago

Great Hub Mark. I have got to start learning from someone because I am only making pennies.

Chris Crow profile image

Chris Crow  says:
3 months ago

I agree with your point about Amazon product reviews. The hub has to be directed at the product because there are few casual Amazon purchases it seems. Maybe some niches do well with Amazon, but for me, I concentrate more on Adsense. Just makes more sense for me.

mchebli72 profile image

mchebli72  says:
3 months ago

i need the help but i dont know how to start my adsence account its always at 01 since i start 2 weeks a ago i dont know what am doing wrong u have great info thanx sir

eswar  says:
3 months ago

Yes! Motto's always help you a lot, just like your set of hubs about the 2008 motos;-)

LOL

ktowers profile image

ktowers  says:
3 months ago

Some good advice thanks

frenchge profile image

frenchge  says:
3 months ago

Thanks for all the good tips.

bird toys  says:
3 months ago

Read some of your hubs. Full of well researched information. Thanks for the tips and good luck to you.

Carly Mitchell profile image

Carly Mitchell  says:
3 months ago

Really useful hub for someone like me who joined yesterday. You have a nice writing style too which makes for easy reading and a bit of humour. The moneymaking tips are good, thanks for sharing.

Indigestion  says:
3 months ago

Thanks for the info, Mark.

I've joined today, and however I had used AdSense before in my website, your personal opinion is a good thing to hear.

Thanks!

AmbrosiaFineArt  says:
3 months ago

I'm fascinated, but confused: Exactly how does AdSense generate the income you speak of ($500 per month currently)?

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Thank you all.

@ Ambrosia - this may help:

http://markpknowles.com/how-to-make-money-blogging

jz22blue  says:
3 months ago

Being new to hubpages, it's refreshing to see someone who's honesty and hardwork is paying off. I hope this does well for you, it seems to have so far. Thanks for all the tips and how not to waste time.

colorcode profile image

colorcode  says:
3 months ago

Very enlightening!! Thanks

Wealthmadehealthy profile image

Wealthmadehealthy  says:
3 months ago

What a totally informative hub!! I too have done the gamit and am still attending webinars, but I feel hubpages will be better than all the stuff I have accumulated thru the years. I'd love to buy a skillet, but am looking for a new wok...got one?? LOL Great Awesome Hub you wrote!!!

goodfriendiam profile image

goodfriendiam  says:
3 months ago

Thanks Mark, I really enjoyed reading this. Denys

dottttt profile image

dottttt  says:
3 months ago

yeah god blog mate and i got your dam skillit just got to figure out what its for now i like your blog have to keep reading it, there is alot of info in it could you run your trained eye over my page and see what you think thanks

x3n  says:
3 months ago

Making money from the internet is easy. Trust me, you're simply doing the wrong things.

lrohner profile image

lrohner  says:
3 months ago

Fabulous information as always, Mark. Thank you for sharing.

ajcor profile image

ajcor  says:
3 months ago

Thinking sideways - what a great idea - Thanks for your advice and generosity in sharing Mark...cheers

lindseybee profile image

lindseybee  says:
3 months ago

I'm new... And I'm not sure how this works. Do you only make money if you put ads or just by posting hubs? Anyone?

Raggits profile image

Raggits  says:
3 months ago

Wow great information. Will try it when I come up with ideas for Hubs. Thanks for your intuition and foresight.

Amanda Severn profile image

Amanda Severn  says:
3 months ago

I've been here over a year now Mark, and I've yet to hit my first pay-out. It's been fun, but it's time to get more focussed. Thanks for the straight-talking advice.

K Tannahill profile image

K Tannahill  says:
3 months ago

Awesome hub - and a wealth of information for a newbie like me. Thanks! I love that last sentence :)

meez33  says:
3 months ago

I've known you around the net for years now and you certainly have mellowed. Back then it was big bark, but really little bite while you were learning your trade.

mecheshier profile image

mecheshier  says:
3 months ago

Hi Mark

What a following... No mention of cast iron skillets.. I am very new on the block. Created the first HUB almost a week ago. You have some great info. I will definitely have to check out HubMob. Not making a dime on adSense, love angle you got going... It is always good to step back and take a different perspective. Mary

JonSterling profile image

JonSterling  says:
3 months ago

Damn Mark - Just like Lissie's posts you get a sore wrist scrolling to the bottom to make a comment! LOL - Anyway great advice and appreciate any MMO nuggets that we can use to squeeze another penny out of the net. Again Thanks.

Anthony James Barnett - author  says:
3 months ago

Interesting Hub, although I found I made next to nothing from Adsense.

Talisommi profile image

Talisommi  says:
3 months ago

Loved the Skillet remark at the end.

fgenerallee  says:
3 months ago

iam very new here and your article will be helpfulto me i need to come up with some topics ti write about. some of my ideas may not be acceptable

Yolanda Denise profile image

Yolanda Denise  says:
3 months ago

Thanks for your article. I joined yesterday, so I'm trying to figure out how everything works here. Your response to a comment has helped me already. I thought I could post my previously published work here as well as original work. Thanks for the save.

wsxzaqq1 profile image

wsxzaqq1  says:
3 months ago

I didn't realize people were making a decent amount of money on hubpages. I just use it to increase traffic to my site using back links and such.

Cool hub very informative.

Dave Wilkes  says:
3 months ago

Great post! Thanks

options-investing  says:
3 months ago

really useful post! I did not believe that we can earn much money from social network sites. however, this article seem to make some change. i just create an account. let me try! thanks!

clifffoulkes profile image

clifffoulkes  says:
3 months ago

Hi and thanks for some interesting reading, i am very new to hubs and blogging and so forth so hope to learn from your self and others, nice reading!

jnnfr271 profile image

jnnfr271  says:
3 months ago

The problem with skillets is that it's too easy to go to a local store and buy one. Why would I pay shipping charges and wait for it to be delivered when I can have it now? I'm trying to pick items that are related to my hubs and not as readily available. We'll see how that approach works.

I was not looking for a way to earn money online when I found hubpages, but if I can get paid for something I enjoy doing that will be a welcome bonus. Great advice. Thank you.

SolarGoddesss  says:
3 months ago

Hi Mark, excellent info!

When I first started making money online, it was with eBay and Amazon. I have since graduated from both.

I developed my own product and now spend a lot of time promoting that.

In addition, over the last 10 years online, I have written 3 books that I also sell.

And on top of that I have 3 (just three) affiliate websites which do pretty good as well.

I think diversification is the key to making money online. You MUST have an autoresponder and you MUST begin compiling your own list.

And the key to diversification is to make sure that your promoting time is effective, which means tracking where your sales are coming from.

It can be rewarding work if you enjoy it, as you obviously do.

Keep up the good work!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

thanks guys

@ Jennifer - That sounds like a good approach, although I have found it more applies to the overall cost of the it. People seem not ready to splash out thousands before Amazon's cookie has run out. Let me know how it works.

@ solar goddess - too right. Multiple streams of income is the way to go. That way when you lose one you are not going to go broke.

Crazdwriter profile image

Crazdwriter  says:
3 months ago

Great hub. I definitely will have to look into Ebay and Amzon since I only have the google one and making NO MONEY lol But hey it's all good I did just join 3 weeks ago and have not a lot of hubs. I need to write more hubs I guess.

Oh and NO I'm not gonna buy the damn skillet HEHEHE Sorry couldn't resist.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

lol

Nobody does :(

JonSterling profile image

JonSterling  says:
3 months ago

Mark,

Maybe you should try selling "Spider Skillets" - It's more of a long-tail keyword anyway :)

Here is a photo of one (not my website)

http://www.frontieramericatrading.com/images/C1686

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

lol

I would totally buy that skillet. I have quite a few cast iron skillets - and buy them used - all rusted up and crusty like that. It is amazing what a good scrub, wipe with oil and bake in the oven will do to fix them up. :)

V.C  says:
3 months ago

I was wondering how can you make thousands of dollars with amazon.

I can't sell any products with them :(

T R Upshur profile image

T R Upshur  says:
3 months ago

Thank you. This was straightforward, to the point and contained no b.s. I love it! I will continue reading the rest of your hubs as I have much to learn.

P.S. You've already got me sold on a Nikon for my next camera!

Mac Mission profile image

Mac Mission  says:
3 months ago

I have lots of thinks to learn from your sites

winterwong profile image

winterwong  says:
3 months ago

Hi Mark, great info you have here. I've learn a lot from you. I just joined HP few weeks ago but just published my 2 hubs yesterday. I am browsing around HP and your hub is listed first when i check out the hubs pages. Great work and good stuffs here.

wengelman profile image

wengelman  says:
3 months ago

Great Hub, I will try some of those tips or maybe try to get to know an Indian Broad!

What is the Guarantee on those skillets?

Thanks for the Hub I laughed so hard at the end!

Creaminizer23 profile image

Creaminizer23  says:
3 months ago

it's nice to learn from you, thanks

crazybeanrider profile image

crazybeanrider  says:
3 months ago

This is a very informative hub. Some excellent ideas. I can use some of things you have suggested. I am interested in writing better as well as earning a bit of money. And your hubs contain enough information to do that.

Seasons of Life profile image

Seasons of Life  says:
3 months ago

Thank you for the information. I am still trying to figure this whole thing out. I think I need to pay someone to come sit with me and walk through with me on this adsense. :) Liked your ending. lol

Rebecca E. profile image

Rebecca E.  says:
3 months ago

Thanks for the information, it's even better that's it's all your experience.

MikeNV profile image

MikeNV  says:
3 months ago

The comment about Amazon is interesting. I don't think that most people understand that Amazon has such a short cookie. And as a result you have to catch people in the buying process... they have to be actively searching to buy, so your reviews comment is spot on. I sell a lot of little stuff on Amazon and I believe that you are on target. People that buy big ticket items really research and stop and think. This is why they usually don't buy within 24 hours. So if you focus on things they are not reluctant to buy now you will actually make more.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
3 months ago

Hi Mike Yes - a lot of people miss that. I mean, my reviews about expensive things are just as informative, but my conversion rate is far lower, and I have come to the conclusion you have.

People just do not spend $3000 fast enough to catch the cookie. Occasionally they do, but something priced around $60 seems to work best for me.

I am still pushing and experimenting of course.

moonvine profile image

moonvine  says:
3 months ago

This is so helpful to me as I am trying to learn hubpages! Thank you for your candor!

rmcrayne profile image

rmcrayne  says:
3 months ago

Great hub and hubber comments. Where can I go to learn what Hubmob is? Where can I find tips on choosing Amazon products for product reviews?

dyesebel10 profile image

dyesebel10  says:
3 months ago

I learned something from your hub like you make money thru product reviews. I looked at samples of your hubs. I'll try writing product reviews especially on products I've bought online. Thanks for the input.

Destrier profile image

Destrier  says:
2 months ago

Well written, easy to digest and I appreciate your candor and humor. Great job! Thank you.

lelanew55 profile image

lelanew55  says:
2 months ago

I read this hub a few days ago bookmarked it because i knew i could learn a lot. I came back lol and am off to read more of your hubs to learn some more. thanks.

Kiki Hu profile image

Kiki Hu  says:
2 months ago

Thank you! I'm learning a lot but I'm not buying the skillet now. :P

dave272727 profile image

dave272727  says:
2 months ago

Mark,

I have been perusing all your how to hubs and I have to say thank you. I am very new to all of this. I didnt know much about anything and was a lot overwhelmed when I signed up for HubPages. Your advice in these hubs has helped me tremendously. Thanks again.

juhi basoya profile image

juhi basoya  says:
2 months ago

I guess you already know how useful your hubs are (my finger has been on the scroll button for five minutes, just to post a comment!!!). So I will simply say Thank You.

TonieTate profile image

TonieTate  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for sharing, I am new to Hub pages and I am in the learning stages of how to make money on the internet. I really enjoy article writing so I am trying to see what works with making money on squidoo, hub pages and ezine articles.

Kerry43 profile image

Kerry43  says:
2 months ago

LOL, love the skillet add on the bottom. Now if it were a George F. grill instead........Thanks:)

PastorBrady profile image

PastorBrady  says:
2 months ago

Greetings,

Ok you've certainly my attention. I placed several Fresh Water Fishing widgets on my web page titled: "Tackle Shop". It's part of our new web site until I get my own online Tackle Shop going in conjunction to our Pro Family Fishing Park.

How the heck does one "review" items for Amazon for money?

Thanks,

Pastor Brady

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

Easy - buy a fishing rod, or reel - use it and write how good it was, :)

dohn121 profile image

dohn121  says:
2 months ago

Thank you Mark for giving me good, sound advice on everything. You continue to earn my admiration and respect. Those skillets would be fantastic against those trying to steal your work :D

Aliswell profile image

Aliswell  says:
2 months ago

Hi Mark, Thanks for your comments on my Hub!! I really enjoyed your article and being a complete Newbie to this thing, I hope to someday absorb enough info to make a penny!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

My pleasure guys

Good luck making a few pennies.

Thamisgith profile image

Thamisgith  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the advice - I ejoyed reading that.

Do I really have to buy a skillet now?

dika profile image

dika  says:
2 months ago

Hey Mark....nice work!!! Keep it up...:)

kev8 profile image

kev8  says:
2 months ago

Great article, thanks for the information!

crayonbrains profile image

crayonbrains  says:
2 months ago

Great advice, superb money making tips! Thanks for sharing!

mroricle1973 profile image

mroricle1973  says:
2 months ago

Thanks Mark.... I am new to this and I have read a few of your hubs and I like for people to be straight forward with no fluff... Everything that I have read that I have read that you have written is just that...

hollycarten profile image

hollycarten  says:
2 months ago

Thank you Mark!! I'm quite new on Hubpages, so your article for me was very useful! Thanks, Holly

sfirecruiter  says:
2 months ago

Great Article! I am new to hubpages and your article has great information.

facebookchat profile image

facebookchat  says:
2 months ago

51 hubs in a month! You're a monster!

aj's profile image

aj's  says:
2 months ago

Great great great hub... I dont know how to tell... im gonna apply your methods hon. pls keep up the good work. Oh, and here, i become your fan...:)

csd1509 profile image

csd1509  says:
2 months ago

waw ur great and your hub 's very interesting as am stil a bit mixed up with hubpages...

Dolores Monet profile image

Dolores Monet  says:
2 months ago

I signed up for Hubpages to make some 'pin money' then went off and just blathered for my own entertainment. Thanks for pointing out how to actually make money and get your stuff high on google.

Sammy193 profile image

Sammy193  says:
2 months ago

Found this hub by accident and have enjoyed it very much and have bookmarked it. I am now interested in reading more by you. I like your writing style, it has humour and honestly combined. Well Done!

Iceee  says:
2 months ago

hehheh

brownlickie profile image

brownlickie  says:
2 months ago

Good hub Mark. I am having a little trouble with the Amazon capsule. I pick my products from FISHPOND AUSTRALIA by the IBSN number add the products(BOOKS) and the discription to the hub. However, it puts a price down that is not the price that is advertised on fishpond leaving me unsure whether I am doing it right. I was wondering whether you could advise me. regards brownlickie

Melody Lagrimas profile image

Melody Lagrimas  says:
2 months ago

Oh, how I wish I could earn even just $50 a month from HubPages. Great hub.

rumbling profile image

rumbling  says:
2 months ago

It is always good to hear from someone who has already made money from Hub pages.I only have few hubs so I'm not making much money but I think I will get there if I keep on making hubs

Tonie Tate  says:
2 months ago

I stumbled upon your hubs today and I am glad that I did! I appreciate your honesty and your humor. I am looking forward to reading more of your hubs and applying the knowledge that I am gaining. Thanks.

ThePeeDeeWildcat  says:
2 months ago

Thank you for your instruction and, hopefully, help for a rookie learning the ropes! I will keep this Hub handy.

anglnwu profile image

anglnwu  says:
2 months ago

I would buy the d. skillet--but from what i'm currently making on HP--i would take years before i chalk up enough money to buy it. Anyway, i'm glad I stumble upon your hubs--great advice from someone who has been there and done that--not some advice skimmed from other sites. Bookmarked it already.

Any idea why they would not accept me at ebay affliate program?

Definitely going to try product reviews.

Thanks for sharing--love your humor!

aaronswriting  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the help Mark! I just joined yesterday so I'm still pretty new at this whole hubpages thing. But I will definitely start up an ebay and Amazon account. Thanks again for the words of wisdom

newrich66  says:
2 months ago

This is gold. Thanks for the "real life" explanation. This is similar to a post I saw about hubpages and posting 100 hubs, don't know if this is where you came up with the idea, but that was good, your's was great! Thanks for this!

franel79 profile image

franel79  says:
2 months ago

Thanks Marks for this useful information, I like your work and I admire your success. I am new and just created my hubpages account today. I would love a few tips via comments on one of my hubpages, on how to write to get search engine traffic here's the link: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Detect-Fraudulent-O

WhiteOak profile image

WhiteOak  says:
2 months ago

I really liked this article. I was wondering though, you think in order to successful on hugpages or other networks, you need to find your niche? I have spent two years trying different tactics and it seems I am just not catching something. Promoting your work is another whole adventure because chances are everyone you know is everywhere else too. Does that make sense? Using keywords is very important I have learned this in the past six months.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

The key is a combination of research and promotion. I will sometimes go for a more competitive term here on hubpages than I will do for some of my own sites. Read this now:

http://markpknowles.com/how-to-make-money-blogging

Pieter  says:
2 months ago

Thank you..

Definitely need money over here, but my first goal is TOTAL TRANSFORMATION OF THE HUMAN RACE! (Don't be afraid.. only partially serious)...sigh. I love the thinking, research, and writing part, but marketing sucks!

Steve R McDowell profile image

Steve R McDowell  says:
2 months ago

Very nice! I've thought of some of these methods before, but I wasn't sure if they would work or not. Now I know that they do!

Cranoo profile image

Cranoo  says:
2 months ago

Thanks Mark! :)

adwordsconsultant profile image

adwordsconsultant  says:
2 months ago

My question is this: If you're going to spend so much time writing about stuff in the hopes of making money, why not spend that time making a good informational product (one that actually has information) and sell it?

For someone who has such writing capabilities, $1000/month seems like a small goal. But then again, I'm not the free traffic expert.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

I am making $1000 from adsense here now, $800 from amazon and $90 from ebay - plus the income from my other sites.

But I am all ears if you have a plan - I am all over it. What do you suggest?

Don't recall mentioning free traffic either.

Dirtdog profile image

Dirtdog  says:
2 months ago

Congratulations Mark for reaching your goal very interesting article . good thoughts to go by especial for the noobie. such as I especially not reading the fine print as I did reposting from one of my pre existing blogs oppps which gave me a 49 on my photo and a over all 58 yikes well so what I guess even noobs make mistakes ha ha ha ! I have 60 blogs on blogspot and several hundred pages with them I wonder if it will just piss em off if I reposted every one here . snickers snickers what do you think ? ha!

well I can still create plenty of original product but wonder is the posts here mine or they'res . ? you have any idea as of owner rights original works here ? thanks for any thoughts or considerations of your point of view and reflection .

Cheers Dirtdog

TechieGuy profile image

TechieGuy  says:
2 months ago

Great hub. I just started with hubpages and am still learning and looking around.

It is good to get advice from someone that is actually successful. The fact that you make that much a month from hubs alone means you are successful, ask anyone that has tried or is trying.

Louidam1 profile image

Louidam1  says:
2 months ago

"Buy a damn skilley!" Now that is just too funny! Love your humor and your hub. Keep up the good work Mark!

dharokowns  says:
2 months ago

I love the ending: "Now buy a damn skillet." That makes me laugh out loud!!!

Louidam1 profile image

Louidam1  says:
2 months ago

Oops! I meant to spell skillet.

yasmintoo profile image

yasmintoo  says:
2 months ago

Thank you for the information. I'll try it with my next hub post tomorrow.

Marisa Wright profile image

Marisa Wright  says:
2 months ago

Better late than never - found this Hub on Dale's blog.

Question - I recall you used to recommend people to follow the Flagship Hub format. For the Challenge, it sounds like you went for a severely cut down version. Was that just to get the quantity churned out, or have you changed your mind?

olga-kay profile image

olga-kay  says:
2 months ago

thanks so much for posting your experiences! I found this very helpful since I am new here.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

Hey Marisa - I still do recommend that, but if you can turn out 20 of these short ones instead - you will get much the same results financially. :)

Marisa Wright profile image

Marisa Wright  says:
2 months ago

Thanks Mark! There have been a couple of forum discussions where newbies are complaining they're getting "conflicting advice" about whether to include pictures and videos. I'm one of those saying to include them - no idea who's arguing the contrary, but I was starting to get worried I'd missed something!

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

I am tending to include photos, but I am making certain that they are underneath the fold, and after the first text capsule to maximise ad placement above the fold. Like this:

http://hubpages.com/hub/skiproperties

Jyle Dupuis profile image

Jyle Dupuis  says:
2 months ago

Great hub. Thanks for sharing that information. So basically it's all about quality and quantity.

give_me_da_chatz profile image

give_me_da_chatz  says:
2 months ago

O.M.G... great hub i loved it.. i could use some help.lol.

Larry Ivey profile image

Larry Ivey  says:
2 months ago

Your writing is like a cool breeze! Very instructive, and easy to read. Now, I'm going to join your fan club.

JeanMeriam profile image

JeanMeriam  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the great advice. I am very new to hubpages, so I need all the advice I can get.

mdawson17 profile image

mdawson17  says:
2 months ago

Great hub Mark very useful info!

poppa123 profile image

poppa123  says:
2 months ago

Very nice. Great information.

Lynn Star  says:
2 months ago

What a refreshingly honest take on writing for the internet markets. And great advice, too. Much appreciated. I'll be incorporating your ideas. Thanks.

create a page profile image

create a page  says:
2 months ago

Mark I made the same mistake you made, which was to sign up for the social bookmarking sites with the hope of getting more traffic. If I did get more traffic, it was very insignificant. I will take the advice you gave here though, if, or when it works I'll let you know. Thanks.

luciano63 profile image

luciano63  says:
2 months ago

Great stuff! I also am starting to write a bit more even if time is always short...I hope to get better!

Thanks

earner profile image

earner  says:
2 months ago

The issue I have with the ebay modules is that they are for US ebay and a lot of what I write is UK specific, or people wouldn't want to buy from a foreign ebay site.

It's a pity it's not geo-targetted to link to the country-specific ebay so that if people are interested they will be looking at products for sale in their country/currency.

Zeanne Galbo  says:
2 months ago

fantastic hub mark some great information here. i am new to hubpages but intent to build lots of hubs and try to increase my adsense income

choxter profile image

choxter  says:
2 months ago

Great, info and thank you

olga-kay profile image

olga-kay  says:
2 months ago

I meant to comment yesterday telling you how much I appreciated this lens and the advice you've given. I'm taking LOTS of notes that's for sure!

TysonFaulkner profile image

TysonFaulkner  says:
2 months ago

This is some great advice from a guy thats actually doing it and not just selling info on how to do it. Nice post, looking forward to reading more of yours

James A Watkins profile image

James A Watkins  says:
2 months ago

This is good sound advice, well presented of course. I enjoyed learning by reading your story. Thank you.

Bronzilla Sheppard  says:
2 months ago

Mark, this is great advice and you are telling it just the way it is.

prasadjain profile image

prasadjain  says:
2 months ago

This hub has attracted much discussion. Perhaps the discussion is equally better to the original hub.

But, though my hub ranking is increasing, my income is not. My technical knowledge is also poor. I am learning myself. Only one well wisher gives me some tips now and then and that has certainly helped me.

I have not made much from adsense.The reason may be-i have not yet been able to fix adsense for search.I have only used adsense for content.Ebay and Amazan have not given me anything.

We have to link our articles to directories. But not to maany.Is is anough that each article may be tied to 2-3 directories.

Those who have not added keywords, need not worry. They can add them even after publishing the hub-by frequently editing them

tgpmaker profile image

tgpmaker  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the tip Mark, that greatest.

Georgiakevin profile image

Georgiakevin  says:
2 months ago

Great tips for making on hub, thank you.

paulanderson1979 profile image

paulanderson1979  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the tips Mark, found some great info in your hub especially about your hub challenge. Thanks

Leop profile image

Leop  says:
2 months ago

This is great Information. Thanks a lot. I am new to hubs and I am learning my way around on how I could increase traffic and write better targeting words. thanks again

EWealthGuide profile image

EWealthGuide  says:
2 months ago

Great information about making money from a hub. Thanks

maximgirl profile image

maximgirl  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for such quality Money making Information. Very good tips.

loveofnight profile image

loveofnight  says:
2 months ago

i truly understand the method to your madness and it has inspired me......thx much

Mike Lickteig profile image

Mike Lickteig  says:
2 months ago

Thanks for the advice. I am new to this and would very much like to make it work for me. I've got some ideas and perhaps now have the beginnings of a plan. Thanks again.

LViddamoy profile image

LViddamoy  says:
2 months ago

Hi Mark, am new to this whole scene, have read some other make money advice before but have always took it with a grain of salt. Its great to read this hub, i was very surprised at how honest and sincere it is. Thanks for the great advice.

lovelights profile image

lovelights  says:
2 months ago

I'm totally new here, and just started, however, I found your hub very interesting. Very informative, and well-written. I have no clue what I'm doing yet, but have articles over at eHow that I'm doing pretty well with. Thanks for the information. Really appreciate it. :)

Smellen profile image

Smellen  says:
2 months ago

Hi Mark, this is helpful information for newcomers. I look forward to reading future posts from you!

kirstenblog profile image

kirstenblog  says:
2 months ago

I really enjoyed the style of this page, the information was straight forward and easy to understand. I will be re-reading this! I to started out making mistakes but don't regret that, it was fun! I am now bogged down with work and have the time to read but not write so am looking around to increase my understanding of how all this stuff works and how to hone my strategies. When things calm down again for me (I work at a school so term time is difficult but then the holidays are brilliant for doing a bit of work online) I hope to have a full arsenal of easy to implement ideas that will lay the ground work for some consistent earnings. I would love to link this page on a future hub page of mine as I think many others may well find it as valuable as I have.

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
2 months ago

Please do Kirsten. I have also written a few more on similar subjects:

http://markpknowles.com/how-to-make-money-blogging

http://markpknowles.com/making-money-blogging-not-

http://hubpages.com/_mpkblog/hub/making-money-onli

I hope they help also. :)

ripplemaker profile image

ripplemaker  says:
6 weeks ago

Hi Mark, okay no more amazon capsules unless I am doing product reviews. LOL I would love to follow your footsteps and earn a monthly income too! Bookmarking this hub. Now on my way to read the other links you posted. Many thanks! :)

Mark Knowles profile image

Mark Knowles  says:
6 weeks ago

Hi Michelle - I made the same mistake and it is very easy to convince yourself (as I did) that you are doing the right thing, but it "just isn't working" lol

christophallen profile image

christophallen  says:
6 weeks ago

Great Hub. Thanks for being honest about this because it reinforces a lot of the experiences I have had. Now I know it's not just me screwing up.

getting there profile image

getting there  says:
5 weeks ago

Fantastic hub mark. I particularly found the Amazon section to be the most useful for me. I am grateful to frogdropping for referring me to you. Be sure to update your pages to follow the new FTC guidelines concerning reviews. It looks like you have done quite a few. I had a discussion with the FTC this morning about how the new guidelines might affect us hubbers. I wrote a summary of my discussion here: http://hubpages.com/hub/New-FTC-Guidelines-Affect-

I would welcome your comments. Thanks!

GBN-Online profile image

GBN-Online  says:
4 weeks ago

This is one of the best hubs I have read about making money on hub pages. It was very direct and provided me with a sense of direction. I am on my way to writing my 30 hubs in 30 days. 26 more to go.

wendi_w profile image

wendi_w  says:
3 weeks ago

Thank you for the information as a new hubber I am just looking into the money making part and am very confused . This hub was very straght forward and informative

Richard Cash profile image

Richard Cash  says:
3 weeks ago

Yup, I'm a fan

den85730 profile image

den85730  says:
2 weeks ago

Great Information! I was just curious about writing articles and came accross Hub Pages a couple of nights ago. Every "ad" or "spam" about making money on several of the sitex makes it sound easy to make extra money on line. I'm a firm believer that it takes work and passion to make any money at all. But, I honestly believe that in order for ME to make money, I have to enjoy what I'm doing.

I still don't understand the exact procedurs for writing articles and how it all works, but your article gave me a much better understanding.

Thanks again,

Dennis

johnmce profile image

johnmce  says:
2 weeks ago

"Now buy a damn skillet." - classic conversion rate optimisation technique!! Nice one Mark

mega1 profile image

mega1  says:
7 days ago

Thank you for all your good, supportive help with blogging. I wish I could peek over your shoulder and actually see how it's done - just reading about it is good, but I need to SEE how its done before I'll ever be able to make any money. Writing comes easier for me than the linking and site building and all that. So for now I am just trying to make some interesting content - humorous, usually, because all this seriousness makes it feel too much like WORK! I know it is work, but I'm trying to fool myself and others into thinking its all for fun! So thanks, again. I will keep reading and maybe it will get absorbed- your experience that is.

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