Deleting Outdated Hubs?

1. 89

   Stacie Lposted 12 years ago

   I've tried to update a few dated hubs but still getting no traffic. I'm concerned that deleting them completely will hurt my score.
   Maybe rewriting them with a new twist and publish  after a while"
   I don't want to summon the duplicate police...
   any other ideas or suggestions?

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2. 73

   relacheposted 12 years ago

   Over the last couple of months, I've deleted a few weak performers and it hasn't hurt anything.  Why do you think getting rid of something that's getting no traffic will be harmful?  I mean, who's going to notice if those Hubs are gone if no one is visiting them?

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   1. 89

      Stacie Lposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      ok,

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      1. 89

         Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I ahve deleted my short stories because after my HP fans read them then they go dead and my score went up because they were dragging down my hub average. If your hubscore is too low your average sags. Getting rids of hubs that have dropped because of no traffic will increase the average again.

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         1. 83

            mary615posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I'm thinking the same thing, Cardisa.  My short stories are "dead in the water".  I was thinking of "unpubishing them and rewriting them as a poem in some way.  Hubbers love poems, I think.  What do you think of that idea??

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            1. 89

               Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               I am not sure because the URL will remain the same. The title and the URL must be similar even it you change the title it still must have the same subject as the URL. But rewriting the story and adding poetry to it and tweaking the title just a little might do the trick.
               
               I also have another trick I use. I delete the hub, then it starts to gain points again (don't ask me why, only HP knows) and before the 24 is up I  undelete and republish.

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                  WryLiltposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Why do the title and the URL have to be similar?

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               2. 83

                  mary615posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Cardisa, I'm a little slow today!  What do you mean "before the 24 is up, you undelete and republish?"  When I have the time, I'm going to persue this little project.

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                     Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     Sorry Mary, I meant 24 hour period before HP permanently deletes it.

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                        mary615posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        Gee, I wasn't aware of that at all.  Thanks a bunch!

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                           MP50posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                           hello Mary, how are you today?

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                           1. 83

                              mary615posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                              Sure is nice to see you!  Hope you are OK.  Have you written anything lately?  I wouldn't want to miss your Hubs, my friend!

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                  MP50posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  One smart lady.

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               4. 72

                  Maddie Ruudposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  This actually does nothing for your score or traffic long-term.  There isn't any point to it, and it could do harm if Google happens to try to crawl the page when it's unpublished and finds it isn't there.

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                  1. 89

                     Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     Really? Wow! I usually delete then republish but I won't do that then.
                     
                     @Mary,I suggest you don't either. I think what Maddie is saying if you are deleting the hub then go ahead but don't delete and republish cause that's bad for us.

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                        mary615posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        I think I've got it now!

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                  2. 89

                     WryLiltposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     +++ As for the title and url being the same, often I make them completely different.
                     
                     It means you can go for more LSI keywords. For instance:
                     
                     Title: Red Striped Hats
                     Url: maroon-christmas-headgear

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                     1. 89

                        Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        I did say the title and URL must be similar in subject, not exactly the same. What I mean is that if your title is about dogs it doesn't make sense that your URL is about trees. Just saying....

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                        SmartAndFunposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        I have been wondering if more keywords are better, like the example you gave with the red hats. Is instead of zeroing in on one phrase and repeating it throughout the hub, I'm wondering if it would be more effective to cover more bases by using a vaiery of search terms. For example using "recipe for salmon patties" in the title, "how to make salmon croquettes" in one of the subheads and then "salmon cakes recipe" in the body of the hub.
                        
                        It's similar to what I do when titling an item for sale on ebay. Instead of just "Dallas Cowboys Coffee Mug" I title my ebay listing with all the search terms I can think of, say "Dallas Cowboys NFL Team Football Coffee Mug Cup." (Not that I would use such a crazy title for a hub.)
                        
                        What is the general consensus on that strategy?
                        
                        P.S. What does LSI stand for?

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   2. 72

      livewithrichardposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I think the whole point of writing and publishing online is to find a voice and be read. Maybe it's an ego thing, maybe not but just publishing to publish will get you nothing in return and if you are really trying to become a professional writer then leaving 'crap' up under your name is going to do some damage, especially if you choose to use your writing here at HP as your source portfolio.
      
      @Stacie  You originally wrote the hub because for some reason the topic peaked your interest.  Don't trash it, revise it.  Find what is missing and which elements are needed to bring in the traffic.  Determine if it is a topic people are searching for, even a low searched topic is better than a no searched topic.  If your topic gets no searches then it probably is a good idea to ditch it and start fresh.  By ditching it, I mean taking it off of HP and placing it on your own blog, not deleting it.  Sometimes an article just needs a new home to let it shine.  I've done that with nearly 80 of my hubs so far and they are shining where I placed them where they were getting little or no views here.

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      1. 89

         Cardisaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Well said!

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         wordscribe43posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Sometimes I wonder if a hub that doesn't do well here may not do well anywhere, though.  Meaning, Google just won't take a shine to it no matter where its home.  It depends upon the hub, though.  Now that my subdomain is doing well, I regret moving some of my better producers to my websites.  Ugh!  Might have to move them back...

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         1. 72

            livewithrichardposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            The thing is, here on HP a hub has to stand or fall on its own.  When you take an article and publish it on your own blog, it becomes 'filler' for the most part and if you have your ping plugins set then the locations you have set will be notified that you have new material.  It's not so much that they will do better there, its just that on a blog, more is better.

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   3. 87

      Dorsiposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      But ohhhhh...it's just so HARD to press that delete button!! Seriously though, I am going through all my poorer performing hubs and either going to revise them , delete them or put them on my blog if I just can't quite let them go yet....
      
      Time to clean house!!

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3. 89

   Stacie Lposted 12 years ago

   thanks to everyone who made their suggestions.I have revised them Richard and they are not working...I may put them elsewhere.

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