Niche Site Videos and Reader Trust

1. 96

   EricDockettposted 3 years ago

   I am not super upset about the video at the top of the articles like a lot of people are. However, I do think it is important to try, as best as possible, to make the video valuable to the reader.
   
   The PetHelpful video isn't great, but at least it tells the reader what to expect from the site. If they watch it they get an idea of the kind of site they landed on.
   
   On the other hand, the video on SpinDitty isn't for the reader's benefit at all. The first thing it says is that SpinDitty is a place for writers. Then it seems like an ad to get people to sign up to write for SpinDitty.
   
   Most people who come to the niche sites are not writers and have no interest in becoming writers. They are there to read articles. They are there to learn or be entertained. Readers need to know SpinDitty is a site for them, not a site for the people creating the content.
   
   When the first thing they see is an advertisement to get people to write for the site I have to think it is a major blow to their confidence in anything they are about to read. Reader trust, out the window.
   
   Any writer capable of contributing worthwhile content to HP is also capable of finding the link to sign up to write for the site. You don't need to troll for writers.
   
   I have made this analogy before: It is like going to an LA Lakers game and seeing an advertisement to play for the team. Which team are you betting on in that game?
   
   I don't know what the ads/videos are like on the other sites. I only looked at these two. I have been trying to keep quiet about these things lately, but this one really struck me. Hopefully, someone somewhere is still listening to the community.

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2. 89

   lobobrandonposted 3 years ago

   The one on Dengarden ends with: Ready to start? Sign up and get published instead of asking the reader to go ahead and read the article they intended to read.

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   1. 96

      EricDockettposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Are these new or has it always been this way? I don't recall the SpinDitty video being this before but maybe I don't remember right. When Samantha said they were going to improve the videos at the top of the page I can't imagine how this is what they came up with after listening to the community.
      
      I mean, I'm not that upset about it. Everything is kind of like "whatever" with this site right now. Not sure what direction we are going except I want to continue to try to be part of it. My earnings and traffic are up and I have new articles I intend to write. I just don't understand what's going on around here sometimes.

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      1. 89

         lobobrandonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         I have no clue about what is going on either. A simple thing as an H1 to regular paragraph with styling seems to be impossible with this fancy new theme. Something which should take literally no more than 2 minutes.
         
         Traffic and earnings are up, but that is mainly due to the quality of content which they have helped develop rather than the site design and other features.
         
         Today was the first time I watched the entire video, was never a fan of them, so never bothered before. So I can't really say.
         
         Just like you, I still like being a part of this and I publish some articles each year.

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      2. 94

         Shesabutterflyposted 3 years agoin reply to this

         These are new. They use to end with the Hubpages logo, never advertising people to join first. Nor did they advertise what we could find on each of the sites.
         
         I looked at Delishably and Owlcation the two I have most of my work on. I actually prefered the old Delishably video. The new one is fine, but it doesn't add any more value than the old one and I would argue is actually less specific. I honestly don't care what else I can find on Delishably if I can't even read the article I'm on now. Not to mention the few items they described in the video had nothing to do with the recipe I had clicked on so it was still pretty unrelated to the content which is not surprising.
         
         The Owlcation one was better than the previous one in regards to actually being a bit more broad, but it's technically factually incorrect (I'm sure entomology encompasses spiders here, because they have limited subcategories, but technically it shouldn't).
         
         I also did not appreciate the huge spider in my face and I don't even have a fear of spiders. It is a ways into the video, so maybe not many people will see it, but it still seems like a huge misstep. Anyone with even a hint of arachnaphobia is likely to click away and that is a pretty common fear.
         
         I'm kind of surprised they would even highlight entomology, especially with a spider. There has to be more popular subcategories on Owlcation. At the very least pick an actual insect and one that will not scare readers away if picking less popular subcategories was the goal (which did not seem to be the case). Again they went through some of what I could find on Owlcation, but they didn't actually mention the subcategory I was actually in. Nor any category that would actually interest me.
         
         My biggest complaint is that the video doesn't even fit my computer screen. If I wanted to read the text on the video I had to keep scrolling the video up and down. It all fits if I scroll and make it small, but I find the little scrolling video even more annoying.

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