Maximizing Performance Payments at Yahoo! Contributor Network

The more your content is seen, the better your performance bonus. But how do you get your content out there? What's the best way to maximize Performance Payments at Yahoo! Contributor Network (YCN)? In the over four years I spent as a contributor, I learned quite a bit about getting quality traffic, leading me to page view millionaire status times over. You also have the power to increase your page views using several different methods that can be applied right away.

Optimize your content for search. Framing one very specific topic in each article helps attract both readers and search engines. Stick to the point throughout your article and also within your title and descriptive overview. Use words people would use to find an article like yours via search engines. Correctly using these and other SEO tips found in the Yahoo! Style Guide can help increase your article's relevance to search engines, which can have a significant impact on on your page views. Using SEO techniques improperly can have the opposite effect.

Use social media to spread the word. Word of mouth is a strong force, especially on the Internet. People look to social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, for valuable information. Many are very likely to read what their friends and family members recommend and will show that same content to their friends and family. This circle of sharing that happens on various social media sites can help increase an article's performance in a significant way. In addition to sharing content on your Facebook profile, YCN writers should consider starting a Facebook fan page to build their brand. Creating a Twitter account around a specific niche can also be a helpful tool for increasing readership, thus increasing page views. Social media tools, such as HootSuite and Klout can help writers like you manage those profiles and get an idea of how effective your efforts are.

Backlinks from quality websites and blogs get you noticed. When your content is linked by multiple valued sources, that looks good to search engines. It also gets your link in front of more people. Make sure not to overdo the linking when linking back to yourself, however. That can have the opposite effect. The best backlinks are those that happen organically, meaning another person has noticed your work and linked back. You may not be able to control whether someone links back to you or not. But writing quality content that people are interested in can increase those chances.

Start a niche blog or website. If you are an expert in a topic, make it known by blogging regularly or keeping an up-to-date website. Link back to your Yahoo! Contributor Network content when relevant. Not only does this draw more attention to your content. But it helps you build your brand, which is also good for gaining and keeping readership. Regularly updated blogs and websites draw attention of search engines and readers alike. When you link your YCN content to a regularly viewed blog or website, that increases the chance of those articles performing better.

Include a related section in as much of your content as possible. Regular readers may be familiar with this section in my articles. At the end of each one, I include a section labeled "More from Lyn" and some assignments at Yahoo! Contributor Network will request this specifically. Once I started doing this, my page views increased significantly. This section gives more value to the readers while increasing the chance of greater performance of the linked content. Be sure not to include more than three links, however. They also must truly be related to the content. Unless an assignment requests not to, it is always best to include this section with a maximum of three links to related content.

Lyn Lomas is the Community Advocate at the Yahoo! Contributor Network. Please message her or leave a comment if you have more questions about increasing page views.

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