First time submitting article - labeled as 'too spammy'...?

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   KPriceLOVEposted 6 years ago

   Hello,
   
   I have no idea what "too spammy" means. This is the first time I've submitted an article. I wanted to keep it short and sweet. It is sort of a bio on my dog, Buddy and embedded in this is information on why Golden Doodles are the best dogs. I plan to expand in the future and talk about general canine behavior and be informative and personable, utilizing my own 2 dogs as 'props'. Why would the rating of my original article not be good enough to be published? The ONLY specific feedback given was "too spammy". Again, I have no idea why that was the feedback given the content of what I wrote. Please advise? Thanks!

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      theraggededgeposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Hi there, have you included any links? If yes, try deleting them.
      
      Hubpages isn't a blogging platform.  Articles should be of a decent length and be like those you'd read in a magazine.
      
      We have a Goldendoodle too!

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      1. 61

         KPriceLOVEposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you for replying. I did not have any links therefore the only thing I can think of is that it sounds "bloggie". Telling me it should sound like a magazine article helps a bit (although I'm an avid reader and would truly see a blurb like the one I wrote). I will give it another shot!  Appreciate it!

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2. 86

   Marisa Wrightposted 6 years ago

   The word "spammy" always means there is a problem with links.   It could be a link to a website, or to another Hub, or to an Amazon product.   
   
   You can use links in your Hubs but they must follow certain rules.  If you read my Hub on the Basic Rules, that will tell you all you need to know (you'll find it on the slider on my profile). 
   
   Did you get a general email, and the "spammy" thing was just one possible problem?   If so, then the other possible problem is that your Hub was too personal.
   
   Let's face it, no one cares how you feel about your dog, or what cute things he gets up to (unless it's really funny and you film it for Youtube).   If they're on the internet looking for info about that breed, they want information.   Your personal experience on that breed can be really valuable, but you have to differentiate between what's purely personal (not allowed on HubPages) and what's useful personal knowledge that others will want to read.
   
   Not to mention that a Hub really needs to be over 800 words, and ideally you should aim for the "sweet spot" at around 1,500 words.

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   tritrainposted 6 years ago

   I've often had the spammy link message because I referenced the source using a URL.  Don't bother with the source URL is my advice.

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      Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I have to disagree with that advice.   If the licence for the photo requires you to credit the photographer, then it's pretty rude not to provide the URL, I think (not to mention illegal).
      
      The only time you'll get a "spammy link" message for a photo source is if you've got several photos from the same website, and you've linked to that website in several photos.  Even then, the main photo sites (like Flickr) are whitelisted so you can link each photo individually without any problems.
      
      In fact if you're using Flickr, you must link each photo individually, because each photographer must have a link to their own individual photostream.   In most cases, it's the same for Wikipedia/Wikimedia - the photos don't belong to the Wikis, so you can't just credit the site.  You have to check the licence on each image and credit accordingly.  Like I say, apart from being illegal to do otherwise, I think it's unfair on the photographer to use his work discourteously.
      
      For other sites, you can get around it by putting the name of the source in the photo capsule, leaving the source URL blank, and then adding the link once, at the end of the Hub (e.g. "all photos from .....").

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   psycheskinnerposted 6 years ago

   If the problem is a legit image source website you can also request that they be 'whitelisted' so this rule does not apply to them.

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5. 61

   KPriceLOVEposted 6 years ago

   Thank you for all of your input. I appreciate it! Please note that I did not have any 'images' on my article. I posted a pic I took myself, of my dog. So, the issue may be that my post sounded too "bloggy" as they say. I will keep trying! Love the site. #aspiringbutverynovicewriter

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      theraggededgeposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Ah... well it is good to have at least one image. That's why there is one image capsule already in place when you begin to create a hub using the generic template.

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