Please give us a tip button or link

1. 87

   theraggededgeposted 2 years ago

   I know this has been requested before. It would be the easiest thing in the world to allow writers to include a link to Ko-fi or similar.
   
   I just got a £33 tip via Medium (which feeds my six dogs for two weeks). It would be cool if HP did the same thing, especially given the falling traffic and earnings.

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   1. 96

      letstalkabouteducposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Agree. Traffic is falling like a brick. A tip button would be great. Also, it would be nice to hear from someone in the know at HP about the current situation and what's being done to improve it.

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   2. 83

      bravewarriorposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Bev, I don't thing TAG/HP would ever consider this because they wouldn't get a piece of the pie. They prefer that we get the crumbs left over from the bounty they reap at our expense.

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      1. 73

         Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

         A+

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2. 73

   Miebakagh57posted 2 years ago

   That's great. But can hubpages hear this?

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3. 96

   eugbugposted 2 years ago

   Agreed, but the request always falls on deaf ears. Maybe it's against TAG's ethos, but we could lobby and nag them on their socials? Or is Hubpages responsible for policy? Who knows. The last time I talked about adding my own tip button, I got my knuckles tipped promptly. I think a tip button should be used for any premium Q&A/help service implemented on pages. At least then we'd be earning the tip for doing something other than providing information. I've spent hours for instance helping readers debug problems with their mower or other garden equipment on my faultfinding  guides.  On other articles, I've looking up datasheets, solved trigonometry problems for builders and sourced products. I'm sure some of those readers would have given a tip, rather than it just being a "thank you" job. Strangely years ago, I seem to remember Hubpages suggesting that writers' primary task should be to help readers and earning a little money on the side should be a secondary consideration. Why would they have thought that we wouldn't want to make money and was their model at the time something like that of Wikihow? Maybe that's the way it's heading? Perhaps we won't get paid anymore for views and revenue will just pay for running the site like it does on Wikihow.
   Making images clickable so they navigate to a tip site would be a minor HTML task. The button image doesn't necessarily have to be fancily animated with a pressed down state.

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   1. 87

      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      HubPages employees expect to earn a decent wage, I'm sure. Why they think all writers here are hobbyists is beyond me. There are people here with thousands of articles; they are clearly not here to play.
      
      At least they should help level the playing field a little and give us the chance to build on our efforts.

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4. 96

   eugbugposted 2 years ago

   "Googlebot doesn't click on buttons", so if a button was implemented rather than a link, there wouldn't be an issue with links that could affect ranking:
   
   https://www.searchenginejournal.com/goo … ad/400242/

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5. 97

   PaulGoodman67posted 2 years ago

   I don't really care much for tip buttons, referral schemes, etc. They generally just bring in money in dribs and drabs for me and can seem a bit tacky.
   
   I'd rather HP just focused on fixing the issues with search engine traffic and revenue. It's the best way to ensure regular and reliable income.

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   1. 96

      eugbugposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      I don't like the idea of a donation button per se. It's a bit like begging. I think a tip could be reserved for when we go out of our way to help a reader, for example in a comment. So we earn it.

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      1. 87

         theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

         No, I don't, actually. But right now, every little bit helps, especially how things are going in the UK.
         
         You're right though; a tip, rather than a donation sounds better. Some writers go out of their way to be helpful.

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   2. 96

      gerimcclymposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      ++

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   3. 95

      Madeleine Claysposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Well said, Paul Goodman. I agree with you completely.

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6. 96

   Rupert Taylorposted 2 years ago

   "Some writers go out of their way to be helpful." But none do as much as you Bev and Alicia (LInda).

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   1. 96

      eugbugposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      +1

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   2. 87

      theraggededgeposted 2 years agoin reply to this

      I mean by letting readers contact them to ask questions. I don't do that

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7. 82

   Brenda Arledgeposted 2 years ago

   Tip button is a great idea...but sadly I think it falls on deaf ears.
   
   Congratulations on your success on Medium.
   
   Listen up Hubpages...please care about your writers.
   
   The cost of living keeps going up and up.

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   1. 73

      Miebakagh57posted 2 years agoin reply to this

      Bravewarrior, I agreed, and I'm completely with you in that.

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