I'd like feedback on my Hub: 10 Reasons You Should Move to Ireland

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   C L Mitchellposted 9 years ago

   Hi Hubbers,
   
   This is the first time that I've had one of my hubs not featured so quite disappointed. I'd like some help with passing the Quality Assessment Process on my Hub 10 Reasons You Should Move to Ireland. The feedback email that I received stated that I should remove the links to my website. I was surprised by this as the two links that I have added are relevant and provide somewhere for the readers to go to to find out more about those particular areas of my hub (i.e. working and studying in Ireland). Obviously I'm also wanting to promote my website, but didn't think that I was being overly promotional.
   
   What can I do to improve? Thinking it may just be easier for me to move it over to my own website instead of publishing it on Hubpages.
   
   Thanks!

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      theraggededgeposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Lovely hub and quite good timing as my partner and I are thinking of hopping over from Wales to Ireland. His sister has recently moved to Clonmel. I've visited Ireland a few times but not since the 90s.
      
      There are some negatives though, compared to the UK - there's no NHS, so all health care has to be paid for. Expensive for someone with a chronic condition - hubby has asthma.
      
      Property is cheap, but you have to be careful as some houses were just thrown up in the last decade or two. The Euro is weak so if you are moving from the UK your sterling is worth more, but of course it works against you if you get paid in Euros and come home to visit. It makes it very difficult if you want to return to the UK any time in the future.
      
      Unemployment is a huge problem in Ireland currently, especially as there are lots of Brazilians and Eastern Europeans prepared to work for minimum wage - there are stories of jobs being passed on; sold to the next person for their first week's wage.
      
      So yes, there are many positives for moving but people must do their research. We're in two minds; we have teens just starting out on their life journeys and they are not too keen on being uprooted right now, so we may have to wait a while.

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         C L Mitchellposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         I love Wales, so green and great for enjoying the outdoors. Very similar to Ireland in that regard.
         Yes those living in the UK are better of under the NHS. GP visits in Ireland can be expensive. But I guess for those coming from countries like the US, the public system is good in comparison. (In fact apparently some US health insurance providers have partnered up with Irish hospitals to provide their customers with the option of getting treated here since its cheaper than getting the same service in the US).
         The employment situation is variable depending on where you live and what sector you live in. If you do IT or finance there seems to be lots of those jobs.
         To avoid the currency issue I've been doing most of my holidaying in countries on the euro, or in those EU countries that have good exchange rates with the euro. But I imagine this would be difficult for you if your wanting to return to the UK. But its hard to predict the exchange rates. Maybe by the time you are ready to move it might be ok.

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      TIMETRAVELER2posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      This is a very nicely done hub, but I can see why the team unfeatured it.
      
      First, you sidebar and bold your links, and two of them do not relate to Ireland.  Sidebars do not show well on Mobile Applications.
      
      I would dump the Transylvania links and make the one about Ireland contextual...meaning, you should use it within a capsule.
      
      Also, although you do not link to your website in your profile,you mention it.  This is highly promotional.  While I understand why you have it there, I would suggesting removing it, also.
      
      You might get by with it if it is not a link, but self promotion is frowned upon here at HP.
      
      Good luck.

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         C L Mitchellposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks for your feedback Timetraveller2, the hub has now been featured.
         
         Surprisingly it didn't seem to be an issue with the side bar, it related to 2 in text links that I removed yesterday which I had originally added to give people further information about working and studying in Ireland. Which surprised me as they were very relevant links and this doesn't seem to have been a problem when I did it in my other hubs.
         
         I had put the Transylvania links in there because they were general travel articles, but take your point. Especially in regards to the side bars not displaying well in mobile, I will go through and try to fix that on my other hubs when I have time too.

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   helenstuartposted 9 years ago

   HI C.L.!
   I really really enjoyed your post! I was so busy reading it I didn't notice any links. (I learned to read WAY before links were invented, so I tend to ignore them still) I will tell why I think your post deserved more notice and praise but didn't get enough. And I think its all because most of the Western world and Civilized Europe is still quite prejudiced against Ireland. Even though almost every American citizen with any European descent will have a good deal of Irish blood running through his veins. But we're proud of our own Irish blood! It's strong, feisty, and unpredictable. Maybe that's why people have to be CONVINCED that they can go to Ireland and live through it. As I commented on your post, it's been my #1 travel dream since I was a kid. So just because you did ask for input, I will say maybe you should have written your post from the argumentative essay stance. Instead of just starting out like "everybody wants to go to Ireland" you know, mention the banshees, or how the emerald isle is only green because bent back men slogged peat up the rocky .... whatever. I've never been there. I guess the rocky rocks. Start off with the scary Angela's Ashes stuff that people already believe, and then burst into a cozy pub where everybody is so drunk off their asses on that Irish kind of beer that its better than mardi gras. oh yeah, and those sweaters. ONe thing I would love to know, what are the "black Irish" I am pretty sure they are from the North, my mom said once conquering Vikings? thats what I have a lot of in me, so I wish I knew what it was. The last name on that side is Jacobs, which happens to be a very common name in every part of the world, I think. I hope you didn't mind my advice, because your post really was impeccable. Just thought, since you asked, I would suggest a  little drama taken from both persuasive essays as well as fiction.

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      C L Mitchellposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks helenstuart, I think it may be suffering from being too positive and looking on the bright side! Maybe I should begin the hub about the difficult and tough side of Ireland to create the drama so I can then lead them into the light side at the end.

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   DrMark1961posted 9 years ago

   It did not seem overly promotional, but I think you could remove the hyperlink to your website and see if it passes then. If that does not work, make only the link to the Irish hub functional--maybe they consider the links to Transylvania not appropriate, despite the fact that they are about travel.
   (HP is trying to remove all of the what they consider unrelated links since they think it affects our rating with Google. They then add all sorts of unrelated hubs and unrelated ads to the page, which definitely does not help our ranking with Google.)
   BTW, I lived in Ballyferriter (Dingle penninsula) over 30 years ago. Did you know the stone entrances to the beehive huts are new? (Not the small grey stones with which the huts were built, just the larger stones where people go in and out.) I was just curious if they tell visitors that.
   Interesting reading material. Thanks.

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      C L Mitchellposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for taking the time to read it and respond DrMark1961. I found it weird that this hub seems to be caught up with this issue when I've done exactly the same on other hubs and haven't had an issue with them not being featured (maybe I shouldn't point this out as I may see them not featured soon!).
      The symbol on it has changed from 'not featured' to 'pending' so not sure if I should just leave it now to see the outcome of the next assessment?
      I did not know about the beehive hut stone entrances being new. However, it was a very rainy day when we were there (hence I had to brighten that photo up a lot otherwise it was very grey) so maybe I just missed that bit of information as we did not stay long.

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         DrMark1961posted 9 years agoin reply to this

         My greatest memory from living in Dingle---it rained every single day! I took a lot of pictures there but all most all of them were too grey.
         That pending symbol should be gone within 24 hours, so if your hub is not featured this time you try another post on the forum. Probably this time you will get a better Mturk reader though and the hub will pass QAP.

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   calculus-geometryposted 9 years ago

   Your hub is very beautifully formatted and well-written and I hope it passes soon.  HP is funny about what it considers a "spammy element," to use their lingo. A scientific approach to linking often works: write the article with no links to other sites or Amazon products, then after the hub passes edit it to include links one at a time until you discover what the saturation point is.  It's more work, but it removes uncertainty as to which links are the problem.
   
   HP seems to  tolerate links listed as sources, so that might give you a way to link to your site without running afoul of spam rules. If you try it, you should include other trustworthy sites such as news outlets, articles on .gov and .edu sites.  Best of luck with it.

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      C L Mitchellposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      That's a really good idea about adding them in one at a time after it is featured. I have gone in and removed the 2 links. Hopefully that will do the trick then I can play around with it after that.

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