My Hub Challenge Results So Far

1. 76

   sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

   I started the Hub Challenge on Sept 28th, so my challenge will run from Sept 28 to Oct 28th making 30 days.
   I thought I would take a moment out and post what progress has been made so far.
   Well since you aren't supposed to discuss Adsense earnings that's out, but as far as traffic goes....
   
   Sept 1st to Sept 7th....2,426 page views.
   Oct 1st to Oct 7th (I know the 7th isn't actually over yet) 5,665 page views.
   So my traffic has over doubled since this time last month.
   And I'm only nine days into the Challenge.
   
   Plus I have learned a lot and gotten a lot of good habits.
   I used to think nothing about posting a 300 word Hub, but now I try to do at least 700+ words.
   (I did say TRY...LOL)
   
   All in all, if you have the time to do this, I would suggest doing the Challenge.
   
   It does help a lot.

   replyreport
2. 76

   frogdroppingposted 15 years ago

   Yes it does sabre and thanks for sharing. Keep at it and good luck

   replyreport
3. 61

   Rehma Jamshedposted 15 years ago

   Wow!!Great Work Sabre!!!

   replyreport
4. 78

   KCC Big Countryposted 15 years ago

   Awesome results!!  Thanks for sharing!!!  Keep up the great work.  It can only get better from here with Christmas coming.

   replyreport
5. 0

   Nelle Hoxieposted 15 years ago

   Fabulous increase in traffic. Be sure to let us know when the money starts rolling in!

   replyreport
6. 76

   sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

   In a weird piece of synchronicity I just noticed, when I finish my 30 Hubs, I will be at 100 total Hubs.
   Spooky huh?
   
   And I will Nelle, I have already seen a slight jump.
   But that may have something to do with the fact that I am pouring over a lot of the SEO tips put in Hubs by our own people.
   
   I have been doing Blogs since 2007, but I still learn something from the Hubber here almost everyday.
   
   BTW, to some of you Hubbers out there reading this, do a few search terms in the Hubs category like SEO, Keywords, Traffic etc. there is a ton of good info out there by fellow Hubbers for FREE!

   replyreport
7. 84

   earnerposted 15 years ago

   Well done!
   
   I opened my account with Hubpages about 3 years ago, so the casual observer would think I was a long-standing old pro ... so to speak.
   
   But at first I didn't really "get it" so wrote hardly a thing.  The occasional line would come through in my adsense account and that was exciting, then it was every day - but it wasn't until about a month ago that I thought "hey, I've missed out here" and decided to put more effort into serious hubbing.
   
   I did start a 30 day challenge a few months ago, did about three, then life got in the way... but I came back and on 26 September decided to give it another crack... this time I was determined to complete the 30 day challenge.
   
   I'm now thinking hubs from the minute I wake, to the moment I go to sleep and I have spent a lot of time tweaking and fiddling with my hubs.  I've also got round to installing Google Analytics, which is great.... but I didn't do that until 2 October, so just a week's worth of stats from that.
   
   I have introduced 2 close friends to hubbing in the past week too and have been nudging them along and coaching them; one has published 3 hubs and one has published 1.  They're keen, but from scratch (neither has ever done anything online ever before), you can imagine it can be slow going along with their other commitments.
   
   I am hoping to extend the 30 day challenge to the end of October to complete 100 hubs, although I'll probably do 101 to go the extra mile.
   
   The past week's stats have shown 2,758 visits.   
   
   For every hub I write, I also promote it immediately, not a great deal but every inbound link will help over time. 
   
   Hubpages is a great opportunity for anybody to give it a go, have fun, earn some money - and I want to promote that accessibility to people through word of mouth or any other means.

   replyreport
   1. 76

      sabrebIadeposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      I know exactly what you mean!

      replyreport
8. 68

   wesleycoxposted 15 years ago

   My stats really suck.  during the hubchallenge I got about 100 pages views a day, from hubpages.  So it didn't really mean much.  A couple of them get viewed from organic sources.  I have learned that social bookmarking sucks.  In defense of whatever about half the hubs I did for the challenge were stories, the other half about exercise and fitness, like types of workouts and such.  Plus I only promoted them through social bookmarking sites... digg, SU, and so on.
   
   Lately I have been fooling around with other methods of promotion like creating new shorter sumarized articles out of the ones I wrote here and submitting them to other high PR sites like Ezine.  Gotta wait for the first one to be approved by Ezine then see what happens with it.
   
   I have found some links in hubs that I had nothing to do with and am kind of curious as to where that link goes and came from.  Anyone have any ideas?
   
   The hubchallenge didn't really do anything for me yet, but am waiting and hoping for something.  I have about five or seven stories left to tell, some are funny and two are very sad.  Then I will start writing based on what people want to know about, hope it works out.

   replyreport
   1. 84

      earnerposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Google will place Adsense links in your hubs, I'm guessing these are short links, 4-5 of t hem on one line, between your text modules?

      replyreport
      1. 68

         wesleycoxposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         No I am talking about the link *'s in the hubmetrics.  Those links, I don't know where they came from.  Its cool though

         replyreport
9. 60

   articleposterposted 15 years ago

   Thanks for sharing.
   
   I should start mine as well

   replyreport
10. 78

    KCC Big Countryposted 15 years ago

    Wesleycox, do you look at your Google Analytics? I also place each hub's URL in it's own URL channel so that I can see where the money comes from.  I think you really have to experiment with which topics bring your traffic and why.  It makes sense that with 100+ fans that you're going to have a bit of hubber traffic everytime you post a new hub. But, you're right, if you want to make money you need outside traffic.  I don't like using the social networking stuff myself.  I have used RedGage and SheToldMe but I can't see that either resulted in anything worth the effort I put into them.

    replyreport
    1. 68

       wesleycoxposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       You are right about those two, I am not sure but I think shetoldme was earning me like two and sometimes three cents per day, but that's over.  I would love to be able to use analytics the way it was designed to be used but I am afraid that my technological savvy is not what it needs to be.  I'll piece it together someday.

       replyreport
11. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

    Okay, two more Hubs and I will hit 30.
    Now, do I have the intestinal fortitude to make it 60 in 30 days?
    I gotta tell you, I am literally amazed at what has happened to my stats.
    The weird thing is, the Hubs I thought would do great didn't, but the ones I did out of fun took off like rockets.
    
    Rule One I learned from this....
    Expect the unexpected!

    replyreport
    1. 0

       Nelle Hoxieposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       You never know which hubs will take off and be successful on any given day. That's why I'm a big proponent of the Hub Challenge. To be consistently successful here, you need a large portfolio of hubs. So when one falters there's another one to step in.
       
       It sounds like you're doing great. I say go for 60 and see what happens.

       replyreport
12. 78

    KCC Big Countryposted 15 years ago

    That's awesome sabreblade!  You have done really well.  Has it been easier than you thought?  For me, once you get in that 'writing mode' it just seems to flow.
    
    I've experienced crazy stuff like that too.  I love it when an older hub suddenly springs forth with new life for no apparent reason. 
    
    Keep up the good work!

    replyreport
    1. 76

       sabrebIadeposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Not easier so to speak.
       I still hit major blocks some days and cant think of ANYTHING to write!
       
       So I go do other things and let my mind get off of writing for awhile.
       
       That seems to help a lot.

       replyreport
13. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

    Well I just finished my 30th Hub for the challenge, and 100 Hubs overall.
    Looking at going for 60....but right now the ideas are drained...LOL
    
    As far as stats go....
    Sept 1st to Sept 14th (before the Challenge)
    4,890 hits
    
    Oct 1st to Oct 14th (during challenge)
    17,608
    
    Adsense...I cant give figures, but my Adsense earnings tripled (actually a tad over tripled) for that time period.
    
    Does doing the challenge pay off?
    So far yes.
    I'm really gonna be interested in seeing the long range results.
    
    Now back to thinking about that 60 in 30 days thing.....

    replyreport
14. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

    Well my 30 days are over.
    I got my 30 Hubs, but I guess maybe shooting for 60 was too much.
    Now I am looking at doing another 30 day challenge in November.
    
    But...here are the results so you can kinda see the benefits of doing the 30 Hubs in 30 days.....
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    Adsense:
    You know we can't give out exact figures, but the profit went up almost 6x.
    
    You can easily see the benefits to doing the challenge.
    My Hub pages went from almost nothing to outperforming all of my blogs which have been around at least two years.
    (and that is comparing thousands of blog pages to a little over a hundred Hub Pages)
    
    Plus what I have learned about SEO and promoting from tip and tricks from the more experienced Hubbers (and the less experienced one too) is invaluable.

    replyreport
    1. 62

       Ryan Hupferposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       This is awesome news, sabreblade -- thanks so much for sharing!
       
       We're all working on the new, November HubChallenge as I type this, so it will be good to go by the time any of us see November 1st in out computer taskbars.

       replyreport
15. 66

    Flightkeeperposted 15 years ago

    Very nice illustration of the advantage of doing the HubChallenge, even if you don't get all 30 in time, you still get traffic to new hubs and old hubs and more articles to add to your list.

    replyreport
16. 64

    prettydarkhorseposted 15 years ago

    thanks everybody, how do I join in the HubChallenge?

    replyreport
17. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

    Go to http://hubpages.com/forum/topic/17849 first and check out everything, then let it rip!

    replyreport
18. 60

    mufasakingposted 15 years ago

    30 hubs in six days.  I just started, this is kind of addicting.lol

    replyreport
19. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 15 years ago

    Okay, since tomorrow is the last day of my November Hub Challenge, I thought I would update how things are going.
    
    If you saw my earlier posts you know the old figures....
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    Well here are the new stats....
    
    October 28th to November 28th
    123,658!   
    
    (these figures came from Google BTW)
    
    And the kicker here is that in November, I decided to calm down and only do one Hub a day, not two a day like I tried in October.
    
    So is the Hub Challenge good for building traffic?
    You tell me...LOL
    I went from 12,000 to 123,000 hits.
    
    Again, we know we can't tell Adsense figures, but lets just say my Hub Pages are kicking the crap out of my Blogs as far as earnings go.
    
    Now as far as December....well I think I will take December off and look at hitting the January Hub Challenge.
    I have a lot of personal things going on here that will take up my time and I am interested in seeing if backing off affects the long range totals.
    Oh I'll publish Hubs still, but I want to try to fine tune the Hubs I have up already.
    
    So that includes this installment.
    I wish everyone out there success and remember...if I can do it...YOU can do it!

    replyreport
    1. 58

       darksideposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Fantastic!

       replyreport
20. 61

    Angela_1973posted 15 years ago

    This is good to know Sabre, thank you for sharing, I have always wondered if the hub challenge will help the traffic increase!

    replyreport
21. 78

    KCC Big Countryposted 15 years ago

    Fantastic results, Sabreblade!  Thanks for sharing!

    replyreport
22. 0

    shinujohn2008posted 15 years ago

    Great

    replyreport
23. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 14 years ago

    Okay, so here is another update on the 30 Day Hub Challenge results.
    
    As I said in my last post, I took December off from the Challenge....though I did try the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge (I didn't make it very far).
    
    But here are some real time stats of how I have benefited from the doing the 30 Day Challenge...
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    October 28th to November 28th
    123,658
    
    November 28th to December 28th
    185,481
    
    So during a month WITHOUT doing a challenge, my traffic still increased 61,823!
    
    And if you compare August/September to November/December, you have no doubt that the Challenge is worth the time.
    
    So now I am looking at the January Challenge!

    replyreport
24. 0

    Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years ago

    Thanks for sharing these really inspiring results.

    replyreport
25. 60

    The10DollarMarkposted 14 years ago

    I wanted to try the 30 day hub challenge as well but it seems I failed. It's the 29th and I only have 11 hubs published.
    
    Oh well. Maybe next month.

    replyreport
    1. 85

       viryaboposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Don't you give up The10dollarmark. You haven't failed. You just haven't decided to give it your all.
       
       You must never underestimate the 'power' of participating in hubchallenges. I know it did real wonders for me and brought me to where i am today.
       
       I took a break for December so as to enable me finetune my earlier hubs that were lousy, and to work on backlinking.
       
       I'm sure you'll be giving us your great testimonies soon. If i could do it, anyone surely can.
       

       replyreport
26. 60

    The10DollarMarkposted 14 years ago

    well I wasn't gonna give up. It's jut there's only 3 days left in the month and I can't write 19 hubs in 3 days . (especially with New Year's Eve coming up and spending it with my fiance's family)
    
    I just figured I'd try again in January. Less holidays, more time to hub.

    replyreport
    1. 76

       sabrebIadeposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Good idea.
       And try formulating ideas for Hubs before you start.
       I'm not starting till January myself, but I am writing ideas down now so that when I start, I have a backlog going.
       And I am also going through and re-vamping Hubs that are not doing so well now.

       replyreport
27. 80

    Sally's Troveposted 14 years ago

    This is a great forum thread, sabreblade.  Not only are your experiences valuable, but those who posted their thoughts added to the richness.  A thought...I think this forum thread contains a lot of "meat" for a Hub on not only the value of the challenge but also on the personal thoughts and processes that accompany such a demanding task.
    
    Congrats to you!

    replyreport
28. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 14 years ago

    Okay, so here is another update on the 30 Day Hub Challenge results, this time for January.
    
    Like I said last time, I took December off, but went back to the Hub Challenge for January.
    
    Recapping.....
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    October 28th to November 28th
    123,658
    
    November 28th to December 28th
    185,481
    
    December 28th to January 28th
    175,277
    
    So there was a drop in traffic in that date range.
    Now...was that because I took December off?
    Did that make my traffic go down 10,204?
    
    To me....a 10,000 plus drop is pretty darn huge!
    And notice, that time frame is AFTER Christmas so I cant blame the Holidays for that.
    
    Also, my Adsense profits are dropping dramatically, but losing 10,000 hits can do that.
    
    Now that I am back with the challenges, will we see another upswing at the end of February?
    
    I certainly hope so.

    replyreport
29. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 14 years ago

    Here is another update on the 30 Day Hub Challenge results, this time for February.
    
    Recapping.....
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    October 28th to November 28th
    123,658
    
    November 28th to December 28th
    185,481
    
    December 28th to January 28th
    175,277
    
    January 28th to February 28th
    170,642
    
    After doing the January and February Challenges (I skipped December) my traffic is still dropping.
    So long range...does the Hub challenge do any good?
    Or is it just an initial burst when you start?
    
    The drop in traffic has slowed from last month, cut almost in half.
    But the Adsense earnings are on a steady, deep decline.
    And the CPM is ridiculously low now.
    
    So I didn't get my end of February upswing I was hoping for, but at least the decline was slowed.
    
    Of course I can blame the Olympics, the natural disasters, the snow etc., but I'm not going to. 
    Every time I have a drop, I blame some external source, but I am seeing now that this is something deeper.
    
    Maybe I should just face the fact that what I like to write about isn't high paying or high traffic.
    That if I want that, I'd have to write about stuff I'm not interested in and that would kill all the fun in me doing Hubs.
    
    For the first time I am actually thinking about deleting low score / low traffic Hubs just to see if that brings things up a bit.
    I know I have said not to do that in the past, but I'd really like to stop this downward spiral.
    
    Of course it you look in long term, my views are WAY up since August.
    Maybe this up and down in the past few months is a plateau.
    
    So I'll keep going, but hopefully I will be starting college in March (Computer Administration), so I'm not gonna have the time for Hubs that I did.
    
    Funny, this started out as a post, but now it's turning into a monthly diary.
    
    Maybe this should be a Hub.....

    replyreport
30. 59

    lender3212000posted 14 years ago

    Nice to see some of you with such big traffic numbers! I would imagine having almost 200,000 visitors in a month yields some pretty decent earnings.

    replyreport
31. 76

    sabrebIadeposted 14 years ago

    Here is another update on the 30 Day Hub Challenge results, this time for March.
    
    Recapping.....
    
    Traffic:
    August 28th-September 28th (before challenge)
    12,833
    
    September 28th-October 28th
    64,145
    
    October 28th to November 28th
    123,658
    
    November 28th to December 28th
    185,481
    
    December 28th to January 28th
    175,277
    
    January 28th to February 28th
    170,642
    
    February 28th to March 28th
    166, 901
    
    As you can see, traffic is still falling.
    Down another 3,741 hits.
    
    And profits are dropping even harder, my ECPM going down to about half of what November was.
    
    So with more Hubs, I am making less money and traffic is going down, not up.
    
    Maybe it IS time to eliminate some low traffic, low paying Hubs and see what that does.

    replyreport
32. 78

    KCC Big Countryposted 14 years ago

    I may be too late to stop you, but don't eliminate any of your hubs!  If anything, tweak them.  Tweaking them generally causes some activity on them.  Eliminating them does nothing to help you as far as I know.  They aren't hurting anything by being there.  You never know when one might take off.

    replyreport
    1. 76

       sabrebIadeposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Some of those I have worked on for literally months and nothing did any good.
       You can only tweak so much till you have to trash it.

       replyreport
33. 68

    Cagsilposted 14 years ago

    I have found tweaking hubs to be tedious work. But, the wording on the page changes. Thus, something new for the SE's to grab a hold of. It renews/refreshes the rate of your page.
    
    Tweaking takes a long time to work or get results. I have been here six months and I am still playing with title adjustments, such as wording. What perspective does it give off? What message is it delivering?
    
    I have hubs that are doing well, for viewers, but fail on clicks. Then, I have some hubs that get clicks, but fail to keep the viewer for long.
    
    Tweaking is a long and tedious road one should carefully walk.

    replyreport