Auto Editing Nightmare - Removing My Amazon Modules

1. 83

   QuiltFingerposted 5 years ago

   Hi there folks,
   
   I'm really upset. I've been going through my articles, some of which date back to 2010 and the good old Squidoo days. The editing on my pages and the automatic removal of my Amazon capsules is out of control.
   
   The products are relevant. I use them personally to create the items described in my crafting tutorials. What's the deal? What can I do?
   
   I make money from Amazon referrals, but I can't if HubPages automatically removes every single product from my pages.
   
   I'm not even going to get started on the edits that have drastically decreased my traffic and pagerank.
   
   I'm ready to leave this site.
   
   Please advise.

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   1. 93

      robhamptonposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Ok. Read this.. Forget about capsules.. Use in-line links. There's been a few times I've followed all criteria for Amazon linking requirements. (I read the forums at least every few days Just to keep up with any major changes) The recent pending issues, now resolved, made me wonder but seems now like business as usual. You will experience an unnecessary "snip" occasionally. If you're article meets the requirements, try changing one or two words and re-submit. They confirmed via email that my Amazon link (snipped) was perfectly fine and to just re-insert the link and "You're right, no prob we'll make sure it passes" (it did)
      Just make sure it's very related to the article

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      1. 83

         QuiltFingerposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Ok. Thanks for your input. I can work with that. Do you need to add any kind of tracking code or do you grab your code from the affiliate center?
         
         Thanks again. I appreciate your help.

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         1. 96

            wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            When creating a text link, one of the options now is to make it an Amazon link.  Whereupon your tracking code is inserted for you.

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   2. 84

      TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I hear this complaint all the time, but what Nate told you to do is correct and may fix your issue...however, you still can't just put text links to Amazon products all over the place.  One or two per hub is appropriate in most cases...more than that can look like spam and will get your ads snipped.
      
      I've seen people voice complaints who will put 5 or 10 ads on a page, not follow the guidelines, etc and then blame their problems on the team.  If you want to earn here, you've got to learn how to play the HP game.

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   3. 86

      Robinposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I've posted this in other forums, but I'm happy to post here as well.  The policies that we have in place are to protect our authors and our sites from penalties and to create a positive reader experience.  While some authors may disagree, we believe it's for the greater good that we enforce these standards.  Here's our policy on products. 
      
      We allow products in articles and in most cases will not snip them if:
      
      1.  You have personally used the product and give a genuine, first person review of the product. (This is really important for products on Network Sites!)
      2.  They are 100% relevant to the content.
      3.  A reader would be happy to see the link and not be confused or feel like they are being sold something for the benefit of the writer.
      
      Helpful Tips:
      
      - Use in-text links that are less distracting to the reader.
      - Consider the topic of the article.  Search engines may expect to see products on commercial topic.  In most cases, an article on poetry shouldn't have a product.  You can check this by Googling your main keyword and seeing if products are shown.
      - Think about reader trust.  Ask yourself if you would be adding the product if you had no financial gain from it.  What is your intention?  If it's to help the reader, then include it.  If it's for your benefit, consider removing it.
      - Only include products that are specific and the reader might have a difficult time finding, e.g., if you're writing a recipe article and linking to flour on Amazon, this will always get snipped. 
      - Take a look at your sales for that particular product.  If you have had no sales (this includes gateway sales of other products from this page) then remove the product.  It's not in your best interest to keep the product. 
      
      We understand that our policy on products is strict, but our intention is to ensure that all articles and all Network Sites are protected.  We were told specifically that Amazon products were a problem.

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2. 83

   QuiltFingerposted 5 years ago

   Thank you all for you input. I didn't know that in-text links were handled that way nowadays.
   
   I don't like the look for the new Amazon capsules, personally. There's so much white space and that big "Buy Now" button. It's hideous and makes me want to hide my wallet in the freezer.
   
   TIMETRAVELLER2, you're right. It is a game. But it doesn't have a rule book. Naturally, I'm not adding five or 10 capsules, only one or two. I simply want to link to the products that I use and to promote my own items, such as $2 - $5 PDF pattern downloads through affiliate links. However, even those links have been automatically snipped.
   
   I have multiple complaints about HP practices. Maybe things will change after the acquisition, but I only want to address one issue at a time.
   
   Amazon referrals are valuable to me and to others when exercised with discretion, so it's unfortunate that legitimate authors can't use them when they are appropriate. Is that the point of HP?
   
   I appreciate the community's advice, and perhaps it will help me in the short term.
   
   Thanks and keep it flowing!

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   1. 96

      wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I think we all have complaints about some thing or another with HP.  But it's hard to be very angry when traffic, and earnings, are up 2, 3, even 4 times what they were just a couple of years ago.
      
      I don't like having Amazon links snipped either...but find that after removing at least a hundred of them my Amazon earnings are near double what they were before it all happened, and total income is at least triple.  When it is all said and done I can only applaud the actions of HP, not complain about them.

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      1. 87

         Camille Harrisposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you for your feedback and understanding! My earnings are up as well

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3. 83

   QuiltFingerposted 5 years ago

   I'm really glad to hear that some of you are making more. I wouldn't be complaining if I were as well. Maybe this advice will help.
   
   Thank you for your input, Robin. I did search about the topic before posting, but your answer was more thorough. Sorry, I didn't see it when I replied earlier. We must have been typing at the same time!
   
   I'm also upset because the editors removed all keywords from my subheads. This particular article used to be one of my most trafficked and had excellent Amazon results, but since the edits, my traffic has plunged. What can I do about that?

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