I want to get this straight - self promotion in the forums?

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   WryLiltposted 13 years ago

   I know there is a rule about "self promotion in the forums."
   
   I just want to clarify what it means. Does it mean there is a blanket ban on all links in our own posts that link to any hub we've written or site or article we own?
   
   OR
   
   Are we allowed to post our own hub links if relevant to the topic?
   
   I ask because I've seen a few 'pro' hubbers give hub links to newbies instead of explaining further. There's a few hubs I've written that I'd like to occasionally send a hubber to, instead of writing a 300 word answer. Can I give them my hub link in this situation?
   
   Any feedback on this from other hubbers appreciated, would be interesting to receive a staff answer.

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      Marisa Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I often post links to other Hubbers' Hubs if they answer the question, but I rarely link to my own.  The most I'll do is say "I wrote a Hub on ...., you can find it on my profile".
      
      I think that's the best way to do it - otherwise you get into too many shades of grey.

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         Rochelle Frankposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I usually do that, too, if it seems appropriate. People can usually figure out how to find the hub you are talking about.
         
         Still, I don't think there's anything wrong with posting a helpful link to your own or to others if it fits the situation.

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2. 90

   Rochelle Frankposted 13 years ago

   I know it is 'illegal' to start a thread for the purpose of self-promotion.
   But if you are answering something with information relevant to the subject being discussed, it is OK to post a relevant link-- even if it is your hub.
   At least this is my understanding.

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3. 73

   Anna Marie Bowmanposted 13 years ago

   Rochelle is right.  The only place you can start a thread with a link to your own hub is if you post it in the Extreme Hub Makeover, or the Need help forums, if you are looking for advice or tips or you want to illustrate a problem you are having.  Shameless self promotion is not allowed.

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      Rochelle Frankposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you Ana Marie. It's nice to have someone tell you, you are right.
      
      The main point relates to the intention of the person posting. Are you doing it to make people look at you, or to help someone with a problem?

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   Website Examinerposted 13 years ago

   Links to individual hubs that are directly relevant to a question are appropriate, in my opinion.
   
   I have seen a pattern of posting a whole batch of links to hubs by "prominent" hubbers in an apparent attempt to point newbies in the right direction. This is wrong in my opinion, and it makes me wonder whether there is some kind of financial incentive involved. HubPages has the FAQs, Learning Center and Help sections for that.

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      Cagsilposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      There is no financial incentive. But, there is nothing wrong with providing other hub writers readers for their hubs. It's only internal traffic and even might gain them some more followers, who will read future hubs also. There cannot be anything wrong with it.
      Those sections should be read anyways.

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         Marisa Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Cagsil, my only reservation is that if people are asking for help on basic information, they're not the kind of people who read instructions anyway.  So if you give them too many Hubs to read, they may react by not reading any of them!  I usually restrict myself to one or two.

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   relacheposted 13 years ago

   Here's the rule:
   
   http://hubpages.com/help/forum_rules

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6. 0

   Website Examinerposted 13 years ago

   Thanks Cagsil, maybe I ought to change my views on this issue, although I still think that the links need to be directly relevant in each and every case.

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      Cagsilposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      When have you seen people post links that were not directly helpful to a new hub writer? Other than SPAM?

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         Website Examinerposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         There may be situations where the links provided do not directly contribute to solving a specific problem, but rather serve as general education for the hubber. I would not consider such links directly helpful, nor would I necessarily think of them as spam.

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            sunforgedposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            most answers in the forum are not directly relevant or useful to the original questioner and are not on topic.
            
            Why would the selection of links shared be any different?

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   kerrygposted 13 years ago

   I occasionally post links to my own hubs if they are relevant to the topic being discussed (I've actually written several hubs specifically so I wouldn't have to keep re-typing the same argument over and over again here in forums) but I don't start threads to promote my hubs and if a hub is only semi-relevant, I only refer to it and let people know they can find it on my profile. For example, I mention my Jensen Ackles hub occasionally in discussions about hub traffic levels or in the dreaded photo hub debates, but I usually don't link it directly because it's more an example than a piece of direct evidence. I don't remember ever having been "snipped" but I post links pretty infrequently too - probably about once for every hundred posts I make here.

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8. 89

   WryLiltposted 13 years ago

   Ok thank  you for the clarification, everyone.

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9. 72

   SteveoMcposted 13 years ago

   I have read instructions over and over, and had a hard time getting it.   On some concepts, I have had to read the FAQ's several times and finally got it with a hub that was posted on the forum.    A good example of this is using RSS Feeds.  I just could not get it and read about it widely.  It was if I had a head made of only bone.   A link posted in a forum was a breakthrough for me.
   Of course too many links could be overwhelming.   Usually I bookmark the hubs until I have a thorough understanding.   Sometimes I find that they are not useful.       
   The ones that get me the most are the ones where someone has written a "how to" hub on something like SEO and then asks the question on the forum regarding how to increase traffic.    I recently read a hub that was instructional regarding how to make a living writing and publishing on hubpages, etc. and then the writer asked the question in the forum, "How long does it take to make money on HubPages?"   Those posted links can be  offensive.
   So, I for one, being a slow learner, enjoy having the helpful links.

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    Rochelle Frankposted 13 years ago

    Yeah-- me too. It's like panning for gold. The nuggets are easy to spot, but the flakes are elusive. It takes time an patience.

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       wildernessposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       And a lot of sifting, Rochelle, a lot of sifting.

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