Writing: How to Track Your Writing Success Beyond Associated Content

To be a successful Internet writer, the author must have a means of tracking which articles succeed and which fail. Though Associated Content provides a meaningful count as to the number of times an article has been viewed, this figure is somewhat misleading when related to the Internet popularity of the article. Articles that remain limited to Associated Content remain limited in their long-term value.

Unless the author writes for pleasure alone, getting read and recognized is the purpose and goal of his efforts. We want links that carry traffic back to our web sites or other income sources. We want name recognition so as to create a valued following which in turn brings traffic to our main source of writing income.

How do you track your writing success beyond Associated Content?

Start by establishing the following naming and submission habits.

1. Choose unique article titles. Open a search engine. Input, in quotes, your planned article title. Example: "Writing: How To Track Your Writing...". If the title in quotes returns other articles, use different wording. The goal is to establish a unique name key.

2. Use the primary title word more than once. Notice how "Writing" appears twice in this title. The Google Adwords Tool reveals that during the month of January this word received over 13 millions hits.

3. Write and submit the article.

Start Tracking.

1. Logon to AC.
2. Got to your account page.
3. Open content views.
4. Sort the list by all time views; this so that you can see the article's relationship between the number of AC view counts versus the article's Internet activity.
5. Open a new browser search window.
6. Using your listed AC content to recall exact article names, input the same title name, in quotes, into the Internet search engine. Close the quotes, skip a space, and then input your assigned AC user name. Example: "The God Box: Packing Christ Into A Small Mind" +rmharrington. This will show you where your article is being used in such a manner that keeps your name and links directly accessible to readers. Example, AC shows only 25 views associated to the "God Box" article. Yet several Christian sites and even Amazon books have picked up the article such that it is becoming one of my major Internet traffic sources.
7. Now clear the search field. Input the same information, but leave off the "+yourname" component. Example: "The God Box: Pack..."
8. Do this for every article that you wish to examine.

Notice how leaving your name out of the search often brings back many more results. These are usually the sites that have picked up your article. Do not worry that the sites are not linked to your name; most of the articles will eventually lead back to AC and your full author page.

What is the point?

Articles that are not being picked up by other sources pretty much limit your traffic to that which comes from AC readers. Articles that are merely showing up on sources to which you have submitted are also limited in their reader appeal. Articles that are being picked up by RSS feeds are the type articles that a successful author will continue to write. They are drawing readers and customers.