To delete or not to delete an un-featured hub

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   cuttlerposted 11 years ago

   One of my hubs was recently idled. It wasn't performing well, and had zero traffic for some while. In my quest for a Google Ad-sense account, should I or should I not delete it?

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      Zelkiiroposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I never delete my Hubs. If they idle, I just edit them and make them a little bit better.

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         cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks friend. I have decided against deleting it. So instead I will give it a overhaul n see where it goes from there. Thanks for your suggestion

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      Stina Caxeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I had one recently that I just fixed up a tiny bit and it is fine now!

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         cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         That's good. I never knew that by editing it would be featured again, so, am working on editing it and sprucing it up a bit. Thanks fo your contribution. I appreciate it.

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      PegCole17posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Cuttler,
      I asked myself this question too. Please give your old hubs a chance before deleting them. I'm finding some of my "best" ones have fallen to idle. I think that is one of the things that is killing our traffic. When they move to "idle" status they do not show up on your profile. Normally, I would go to your profile to check your titles and summaries to look for something of interest to read.
      
      Unfortunately, unless you have changed the block on your profile which says
      "Show only featured hubs?" which automatically defaults to Yes, your hubs will not be there for me to choose from.
      Be sure to check the NO block to allow your readers full access to your work.
      All the best,
      Peg

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         Marisa Wrightposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         If a Hub is idled, it will kill traffic - but it's not because it disappears from your profile.  Hardly anyone ever looks at your profile, so that would make very little difference.
         
         What matters is that an idled Hub disappears from Google, so no one can find it unless you actually send them a link. 
         
         If you have a Hub that is idled, it can never recover because it's semi-private - you can share it with people by sending them a link, but people can't search for it.

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         cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you Marisa Wright and Peg...I have put into consideration your advice and I think  will reedit it and see where it goes from there. I just hope that it gets back up there in the search engines

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      Marisa Wrightposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      As Simone says, it won't affect your Adsense account so you don't have to do anything about it.
      
      However, an idled Hub isn't doing you any good.  It will never appear on Google search results, so the only people who will see it are people you send the link to. 
      
      You can get a Hub Featured again if you edit it to improve it. However if you do only a minor edit, it probably won't stay Featured for long.  Try to add a couple of paragraphs.   You'll then have to monitor it - if it falls into idle again in a month or two, then at that stage, I'd say delete it and try posting it elsewhere, because although it won't hurt your account, what's the use of having an article sitting there, invisible?

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         cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Many thanks Marisa...I couldn't bare deleting something I had worked so hard for and am glad I don't have to after all. am editing and refurbishing the hub with fingers crossed

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   Simone Smithposted 11 years ago

   Is it a really good Hub? Are you passionate about the subject? Is it in-depth and reinforced with original photos or lots of helpful tips and resources?
   
   Essentially, is it worth rescuing? If so, spend some time fixing it up! If not, it is entirely fine to leave it alone for now- you don't even need to delete it. If it is a lackluster Hub that reflects poorly on your portfolio (we all have 'em- I have TONS), it should not hurt your reputation so long as it is not Featured.

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      cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you Simone, the hub is an exclusive about psychology graduate programs. I gave it my best but I guess its not a very popular topic. I am considering fixing it up...n by that I mean a complete overhaul, just to make it a bit more interesting and search friendly. Thank you again for the advice.

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   Mark Ewbieposted 11 years ago

   I take a hard look at my idled pages.
   
   First thing is... is it any good?
   
   If I don't like it, don't think I can improve it - I get rid.  I wrote a lot of garbage in my earlier days... and I still do.
   
   If I think it still has promise then I'll check the keywords.  Maybe I missed an obvious opportunity to make it more likely people could find it.
   
   And at the same time I look at the content.  How can I make it better?  Maybe some people had found it... and didn't like it.
   
   More text, better text, sometimes even less text.  Better pictures.  More interest for the visitor.
   
   It's hard writing online.  Very hard to get it right first time.

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      cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Mark..points taken and am glad that I didn't delete it before asking. Boy, what a mistake that would have been

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   LauraD093posted 11 years ago

   I've deleted only one hub within the last 13 months -as has been stated by others a good edit may make all the difference.

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      cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks Laura, I hope the edit works

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   Arielqiaoposted 11 years ago

   I also have some hubs in idle state,and I once confused about whether should I do about them. Now I learn so much here. Ha!

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      cuttlerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Sure is a lot to learn from the Hub pages community. That is what makes it so different from other niche sites whereby you are all by yourself.

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