Soapboxie

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   paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

   My instincts tell me this site is as dead and void of traffic potential as flash fiction for example. I am starting this thread in the hopes that my instincts are wrong, reason being I'd like to write an article for this site.
   
   I would very much like to hear any and all opinions and about all experiences concerning this network site. Anyone getting daily organic traffic? Most articles just lay there and collect dust? Problems getting articles successfully posted there or tampered with? Anything and everything having to do with Soapboxie. An article these days is a lot of work for me, I'd like some assurance it is worth the effort.
   
   I do not want this to be exclusively a cheer leading thread or a bashing thread. I truly want to hear about all both positive and negative experiences and opinions. The article is probably going to be written no matter what; the question is whether to risk exposing the content to Google here first. If there are excessive rejection problems, I'd just as soon skip it; same if getting organic traffic is a rarity. In both cases I'd just as soon use the article to bulk up my website. So really the question is whether I compose this masterpiece here or there.

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2. 96

   Beth Eaglescliffeposted 4 years ago

   I think it depends what your topic is. I had about half a dozen hubs on Soapboxie, but I've deleted them all bar one as they never gained any traction.
   
   The only one left is an "evergreen" topic that gets a regular drip of traffic. I think it would do better on another niche site, but HP staff don't agree. (I'll wait until I do a major update on it and then request once more for it to be moved.)
   
   In conclusion, I don't think Soapboxie is a site worth spending a lot of effort on.

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3. 97

   RonElFranposted 4 years ago

   I have nine articles on Soapboxie, and none are world beaters as far as traffic goes. But I don't think that's because the site is under some Google penalty. Rather it's simply because opinion- or viewpoint-based content doesn't get a lot of traffic in the first place unless it's on a widely read magazine or newspaper site. For example, my most productive article on Soapboxie ranks 3rd in Google search for the most pertinent keywords (this is with private results turned off). But those keywords only generate 390 searches per month.
   
   That said, I suspect the cause/effect vector goes something like this: Soapboxie topics generate few searches -> Soapboxie.com gets a relatively low number of views -> being on Soapboxie doesn't add any extra search boost to an article.

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4. 97

   jansharesposted 4 years ago

   I have one article on Soapboxie. It's about doing community service and volunteering. It gets decent organic traffic, between 200 and 300 views a month. I think it does well because of the topic. It's an old article which was doing not bad before niche status; it has done much better on the niche site. Students and parents are always looking for volunteer work for requirements and philanthropic reasons. Views increase slightly around spring break and Thanksgiving holidays.
   
   I'm not sure why it's on Soapboxie; it's not about opinion. But I guess service implies some type of cause and this niche provides the best fit.

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5. 89

   lobobrandonposted 4 years ago

   I just did some research on what the site ranks for and I realised it ranks for: "what meth looks like" #4 on Google.com
   
   If you are writing on a topic that fits on this niche site, there is a very good chance it will rank well. The best way is to test it yourself.

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6. 96

   Beth Eaglescliffeposted 4 years ago

   @janshares - My one remaining hub on Soapboxie is about volunteering too. I wondered why HP thought it belonged there and your explanation makes sense.

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      jansharesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      +1

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7. 93

   Shesabutterflyposted 4 years ago

   I have two articles on the same subject, however the topics are heavily covered by state and federal government sites so my one article does not rank and gets basically zero traffic. The other ranks on the first or second page if the keywords are put in the right order, otherwise it's hard to find as well. The second one does better and got just under 1k views in the month of March.

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8. 92

   DzyMsLizzyposted 4 years ago

   Para, I only have one article over there, so I really can't make any reasonable assessments.
   That said, the stats said I have more of the (small amount of) traffic coming in from Google than from here on HP.

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9. 95

   TessSchlesingerposted 4 years ago

   Luck of the draw. Some of my articles have had quite a bit of traffic in short bursts while others get a small regular bit. I think it has to do with whether people are searching for that topic or not.

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10. 86

    Wesman Todd Shawposted 4 years ago

    I currently have a Soapboxie article which has been stolen by 5 different websites. I've several more there, and they get traffic. It's not a news site, at least not for me. I guess what I do  that winds up there are things which are short biographies of political figures.   When David Rockefeller died I got tens of thousands of page views for days at a time to my article about him on Soapboxie, and so, I'm quite pleased with the place, although it isn't my primary target for publication.

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11. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    Hey, folks! Just wanted to thank everyone for their replies.
    
    Am happy to see there are no complaints or bad news about the site, itself. As for the traffic reports; it's about what I expected, but it does look more promising than the flash fiction traffic experiences I've had.
    
    I'm going to go ahead and give it a shot, leastwise I'll work on the article until a better topic idea comes to mind. May we all have a prosperous April.

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12. 95

    TessSchlesingerposted 4 years ago

    Yup. I love to write fiction, but it's difficult to get web traffic for it.

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13. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    Am having a tough time with my article, just can't seem to work up the enthusiasm that I used to have in years past. I hope that enthusiasm comes back, cuz it sure used to be fun! Haven't completely given up yet.

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    1. 89

       lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       One section a day of the hub is what I aim to do when I find it hard. Try that

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          paradigmsearchposted 4 years agoin reply to this

          My problem is that I have lost hope. When one loses hope, that is the end.

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          1. 89

             lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

             Oops.

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14. 94

    UnnamedHaraldposted 4 years ago

    Hey, Brandon. Way to go! A million is a great milestone.

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    1. 89

       lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       Haha thanks

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15. 94

    UnnamedHaraldposted 4 years ago

    Duh. Clicked wrong "Reply" button.

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16. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    My profile score dropped below 90 for first time this year. I guess HP doesn't like unhappy campers. Or maybe it's cynics.

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    1. 89

       lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       It is because you are scared to edit your articles, as you pointed out in other threads. Your average hub score is probably around 80 - 85, therefore your profile score is below 90.

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       1. 60

          paradigmsearchposted 4 years agoin reply to this

          I went and looked. My profile score and average hub score are the same; another first! Both are exactly 89 at the moment.

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17. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    Used to be my profile score was always 10 points higher than my hub average, but that changed quite sometime ago.

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18. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    Next my profile score will be less than my hub average score.

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    1. 89

       lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       Let me know when that happens haha.

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       1. 60

          paradigmsearchposted 4 years agoin reply to this

          Maybe I should just kill off my soapboxie draft and compose it on my website instead.

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          1. 60

             paradigmsearchposted 4 years agoin reply to this

             Update:
             
             Been having photo editing problems here anyway.

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             1. 89

                lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                How are you having photo editing problems? All you do is upload a picture. You can't do anything to it here. You need to edit on another platform if you want to edit it.

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                   paradigmsearchposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                   Exactly right.

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    paradigmsearchposted 4 years ago

    HP continues to show promise. Will do the editing and transfer back to HP.

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20. 95

    PaulGoodman67posted 4 years ago

    As with all the niche sites, in my experience, informative evergreen articles with general appeal usually do just fine.
    
    If you expect people to Google for your own opinion piece on politics, current events, or whatever, then you will be disappointed in most cases.

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