Why I Love HubPages-One Year of Successful Hubbing
My Feelings on 1st Anniversary
First thing first. What is HubPages? Simple, it is the online platform for Global Writers in English. HubPages is also the best place online to express your interests and passions and earn money from your writing.
How I reached the HubPages Platform
It was accidental. I had no idea about it till I read that Magazine. It was an evening in March 2012. The Mag "Sampadyam" in Malayalam (my mother tongue) had carried an article 'How to make money writing online article'. The author gave a detailed account of HP (HubPages) and its features.
The article ignited a passion in me. It fired my writing mood. I was confident that I could write something. In fact, I was searching for doing some online writing. I had a flair for writing. Though I had done some Blogs by then, I was not serious and regular. Ideas were there so was time too. But my usual nature of laziness kept me idle for long. I felt a kind of missing when remained inactive. 'You should write' my mind always reminded me. I thought it is the right time. I must give a try to sharpen my writing skill. The night I planned some strategies lying on the bed.
March 18, 2012, Sunday
Though holiday, I had official work. Being a Tax Official, I was working in a Check Post, which functioned 24X7. The flow of goods vehicles never ends here. They enter the Check Post and account their transportation before me. Arresting tax evasion and accounting all trade transactions before the Government is our prime jobs in Commercial Taxes Department. And myself being an Inspector, had to look after all these things with round the clock vigilance. Still, it being a Sunday, I had free time. Moreover, the flow of vehicle was thin.
I started typing my first web article for HP, which we call Hub. It was about Radio, my another passion. 'My Romance with Radio'- that was my first hub. The doing (read hubbing) and learning went on simultaneously. On finishing, I clicked the 'Publish' button. Anxiety was there. Hope was there. And enough of confidence too.
Wow! I got the confirmation- Your hub has been published! How to share this feeling? How to describe this joy? My write up has been published. It is ready for the whole world to see and read. What would be the feeling of a mother when she delivered a baby? It was exactly like that, my mood. I was jumping with excitement. I carried a mood of thrill and excitement.
The very day I ventured another one titled "The Food Bowl"(now the title changed to "The Benefits of Vegetarian Foods"). When luck is with you or your time is fine, whatever you do, it gives you only positive result. Thus, on the first day itself I published 2 articles. Needless to say, I had a sound sleep that night.
The Unexpected Development
It was with a cheerful mood I logged into HP account the next morning. But what was in store for me for the day was something unexpected. My first hub has been rejected. The reason quoted was "text is too short". Along with the warning message, they also advised me to write more stuff and try to publish again. I did exactly what I was told and got it published.
By then there were some comments in praise of my write up. I felt happy. I replied soon to all comments.
On the fourth day of my hubbing, I published yet another titled "How to reach Kollur Mookambika Temple". It was a great attempt incorporating some capsules like Photo, Video, Map, etc. I was slowly learning and experimenting with the concept of 'capsules'. The video capsule stole my energy and time much as I found some difficulty in cracking the nuts.
Kollur Mookambika temple is a favorite choice of writers, artists and people fond of any kind of arts. It is believed that if you pay a visit and pray well before the Goddess (the Goddess of Knowledge), you would be blessed. Your talent would be sharpened. For your information, at the time of preparing this hub, my score on the hub on Kollur Mookambika touched 99. Yes, 99 out of 100. Truly amazing!. I haven't achieved that much even during my primary class of schooling.
I felt the power of the Goddess. I experienced it. After writing that hub, everything went on smoothly. The flow started. The flair worked. The fire in my writer ignited. I was sure the Goddess blessed me immensely.
Had it been not so, how could I achieve 45 hubs in one year and get IV Level Commenter badge?. How could I achieve a total viewership of 25,978 on the closing day of the 1st year hubbing? What are the reason for 223 precious comments and the support of 50 Followers to observe and compliment me? Prayer is great. God is greater. The blessing of the Almighty is the greatest.
My Advice
Patience pays well. It is true with HP too. The growth is sure though slowly. Consider the traffic history of my hubs. On completion of six months hubbing, I got a viewership of 5511. But the going was at a high pace during the next six months. It recorded 20,647. We need to work out some promotional drills to boost traffic to our hubs. If you know the tricks of SEO or Search Engine Optimization, you are lucky and can expect more visitors. I am yet to learn all these. Yet, it is of no use, if the quality of your writing is not up to the mark. Bear in mind what matters finally is not quantity but quality.
On completion of my six months hubbing activities, I checked my statistics. It showed the result as given below in the Table.
Statistics of My Hubs On Completion of 6 Months (September 18, 2012)
Statistics Collected on Completion of Six Months (Sept 18, 2012)
| Projection for Next 6 Months(By March 18, 2013) (Prediction)
| What Achieved (On March 18, 2013)
| |
---|---|---|---|
Total Hubs
| 24
| 50
| 45
|
Comments
| 103
| 200
| 223
|
Page Views
| 5511
| 12000
| 25978
|
Author Score
| 87
| 90
| 89
|
Followers
| 27
| 50
| 50
|
Accolades
| 6
| 8
| 7
|
Commentor Level
| II
| IV
| IV
|
On analysis, it is clear I have almost achieved or came near my fixed goals. The most remarkable gain being the viewership (read by people) of 25,978 as against 12,000 predicted.
Being a Government official and occupied in an executive post, time was limited to me to allocate for hubbing. For that reason, I couldn't move on with HP the way I expected to pedal on. I excuse (or justify) myself on shortfalls.
Advantages of Associating with HubPages
- A good platform to write what you feel to share.
- Ample opportunity to gain name and fame globally.
- Largest visibility (for your name and articles) on cyberspace.
- Expands your overall knowledge.
- Improves your writing skill.
- Achieving Accolades boosts your confidence level.
- The opportunity to explore your chosen topics like Technology, Travel, Culture, etc.
- Friendship with people across the world.
- Reading (following) hubs keeps you updated on many subjects. It is like Encyclopedia or Wikipedia.
- Your knowledge of Computer and Internet get fine skilled.
- Last but not the least, extra income through Adsense.
A Word of Caution
Hubbing is exciting. It keeps you engaged and motivated in several ways. At the same time, it may affect you badly if you fall in too obsessed with the online writing process. It is a kind of addictive activity. If we cannot manage things with the right amount of attention, we may skip our other activities. The family may be left unattended. Personal issues ignored. To keep the writing targets, you may keep you locked in your own den. At times, I have felt it all. It is a bad experience. We need to focus on everything in the proportionate degree of attention and alertness. If not, you kids may complain, the spouse may cry and friends may avoid you.
Also, don't think of money. It may or may not come. Getting your Adsense account cleared itself is a task. My application was rejected thrice. It was on the fourth attempt I got the confirmation with a congratulatory message. Still, I find some problem with its set up. I haven't earned even a single buck through hubbing. I need to crack the issues with my Adsense configuration set up. Hope in the distant future, I too can earn a few dollars.
I am not disappointed even if my revenue shows a zero balance. My primary concern is to keep on my online writing. I wish to write more. I wish to achieve more Accolades. More Comments, Followers and a large viewership are what I wish for the time being.
Future Plans
Fine, as on my 1st Anniversary, I am contented and confident. My limited targets have been met. The successful hubbing experience keeps me thrilled and motivated. It did improve my confidence. I don't hesitate to reveal my plans or targets to be met by 3rd week of March 2014 when I celebrate the 2nd Anniversary of hubbing.
I wish to list my plans here.
- Achieve 100,000 Viewership. I know this is the toughest thing to achieve. But my confidence says I will achieve it.
- Reach Author Score 90 & above.
- Number of Hubs to reach an impressive figure of 100.
- Try hard to gain Accolade for Level V Commenter (If possible VI too!).
- Gain a total follower-ship of 100.
- 200 Questions to be answered.
- Last but not least, earn at least 5 $ as a reward for my hard work. (Yes, I don't try making big money; hence such a small target. I am also aware that earning revenue through HP is like receiving Glucose through the hospital equipment (tube)! It comes drop by drop!)
The Final Bell
My long felt ambition of becoming an online writer is met. Name and fame through online writing achieved. My writing skill, the grip on language, the flow of writing, the expression of ideas, the expansion of knowledge, exploring new fields for writing, everything has got a life. It has got a flow, flavor, and fragrance. I know still, I have to improve. I do know I have miles to go. I will try to improve. I will improve.
My followers, fellow hubbers, readers, friends in FaceBook, Pinterest, Tweeter, Google+, Yahoo, HubPage Authority- all of you are there behind these achievements. I thank all of you for your patience and support.
I cannot stop this note without passing my love, regards, and thanks to my 11 years old son Atul Krishna, studying in 6th Standard for he always stood with me, encouraged me and alerted my targets. His timely reminders helped me to keep track and meet deadlines. A son like him is any father's delight.
I hope to do more. Hope to improve further. Hope to achieve more Accolades. For me, HOPE is just not a four-letter word. It is something beyond that. My dreams for the 2nd Season of Hubbing are even greater. I hope I could achieve it if my spirit is not lost.
It is time to relax. I need to enjoy my cup of Coffee. I will be blessed if my writings touched you positively. I hope It will. It would be my pleasure if you could leave a few words in the COMMENT column. Finally, I sign off with pleasure. See you soon!