New to Yahoo! Contributor Network? Submission Status Terminology

You found Yahoo! Contributor Network and have just started submitting content. But, now your article has a status you don't understand. Incomplete, Submitted, Offer, Processing, Removed, and Delivered are submission statuses you might see on your article. Go to the Content tab in your account to view the status of any of your submissions. What does the status of your YCN submission mean and what should you do in each situation?

Incomplete
I can't tell you how many pleas for help I've received regarding articles listed as incomplete. This is generally a simple fix. Incomplete simply means you've missed one or more steps somewhere in the submission process. First, check your list of submitted articles to see if the same title as the incomplete one is also listed under "submitted" status or if there are other incompletes. If so, check to see which one (if any) has your article text and delete any unneeded ones. There should only be one. If the incomplete submission is the one containing your content (or if you don't have any duplicates), click the pencil icon to edit the incomplete submission. Go all the way through until the final preview page. Make sure to hit "submit" or "publish" on that last page. Failing to do so will leave the article (or other content) status as incomplete once again.

Submitted
If your article is in submitted status, that means it's waiting to be reviewed. Review time on YCN is fairly quick, generally taking up to ten business days. Once you have submitted an article, you simply wait to see if you get an offer, a request to edit, or a rejection. Because waiting is no fun, even when it isn't that long, I suggest writing more articles to bide your time. Besides, that will likely earn you more in the long run and help keep you less anxious over waiting.

Offer
If you see an offer, especially if it's your first one, you might be jumping for joy - or was that just me? You can choose to accept the offer, edit and resubmit to try for a better offer, or reject the offer. Remember that if you choose to edit and resubmit, you should change something significantly, so as not to waste the time of your Content Manager (CM). The CM is the person who reviews your content. Once you accept an offer, the article status will move to pending. If you decline the offer, you need to either delete the article from the system or (if warranted) edit and resubmit.

Processing
If you have an article in processing status, it means you either accepted an offer or an assignment you submitted has been accepted. A pending article is one that is waiting to be published. Some articles may stay in processing longer than others, such as some targeted and partner assignments. This can happen for a variety of reasons, but some may have a specific time and day they need to be released. However, many articles go from processing to published or delivered very soon after acceptance.Processing is necessary for payment, as well as for other reasons.

Published
This means your article is now live - published. Now you can be proud of yourself and let the world (or your friends) know that you have published something. You can access your published articles by clicking the link in your content tab when logged in (for Associated Content articles), by clicking the link in your email notification, or by going to your Contributor page and clicking the article title. Article links are sorted by site on the Contributor profile page. Select the drop-down menu for the site your article is located on. Associated Content is currently the default.

Delivered
When an article has been delivered, it has gone to another Yahoo! site besides Associated Content or it has gone to a partner site. Delivered does not always mean published. It simply means the article has been sent to the appropriate party. It is then up to that party to publish it as they see fit. If it gets published on a Yahoo! site, you will receive an email notification soon afterward. It will also be linked on your Contributor page. If it gets published to a partner site, you will not get a notification or a link. You can always do a general search on Yahoo!, Google, or another search engine to find your article.

Declined
This means what it sounds like - your article was not accepted. Don't fret. This does not necessarily mean you are a bad writer. It may simply mean you forgot something listed in the submission guidelines, like citing sources or the minimum word count. It also may mean you simply should study the submission guidelines, TOS, FAQ, forums, and articles and advice from veteran Contributors to get a feel for what works at YCN. If the CM left you instructions to edit and resubmit, follow those for better results. If the CM has left you instructions to delete the article from the system, you cannot publish that piece on YCN at all, even as a display only item.

Removed
If you have an article listed as removed, you cannot edit or republish that article. Articles are most often removed for not following submission guidelines and/or TOS. The CM may or may not leave a note explaining the removal. If you would like clarification of an article removal or have good reason to request its reinstatement, contact staff. In the meantime, studying the submission guidelines and TOS can help you avoid future removals.

*For more questions about this process or other general guidance, contact the author, as she loves helping Contributors.

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