Strategies to Sell on Multiple Sites

[Valerie]

Greetings! I'm new here and have 7 articles accepted by CC so far. Still waiting for that first big sale!

I'm excited to try and make at least a bit of money by writing articles. My thought was that it would be best to sell for usage on CC and also publish to a couple of other websites, specifically Yahoo! and Squidoo.

I'm interested in getting feedback on this strategy. Does having my articles actively published elsewhere diminish the chance of making a sale on CC, or is it best to spread my articles around these three sites? I would be happy to learn about other strategies that CC authors use.

I'm not expecting to get rich quick; I'd like to build my online writing to generate some level of income, and I'd like to do this as sensibly and effectively as possible.

Thank you for your advice!
Valerie

[Celeste Stewart]

Hi Valerie,
Welcome! I prefer to sell full rights here and not worry about the usage thing, but I understand the appeal. What I used to do is move some of my older articles to usage only if they didn't sell within a given time period and then post them to Yahoo (AC). Back when I did this, AC was paying $8-10 upfront (last I checked $2-$4 was more likely) and could bring in decent page views each month. So if I had10-20 unsold articles laying around, I could make a quick $80-$200 just for changing gears plus get recurring page views. It was a nice option.

That said, I have 200+ articles on AC/Yahoo and have watched page views decline dramatically in the last few years due to Panda and now Yahoo's domain switch. My page view payment for January for 200+ articles? $9 and some change. Seriously pathetic. I have a so-called Clout 10 rating there and am one of the "Hot 1,000." Sounds impressive, but it's really not as you can see from my January paycheck. I can make more in a month selling articles for full rights on CC than I've made in 5 years over there. Hey, I also got a $7 or $8 payment from Squidoo last year (granted, I didn't add anything but still). My opinion: CC is getting stronger while the other guys are getting weaker.

Edited to add:
Yes, I believe asking usage here and posting an article elsewhere does diminish the article's chance of selling. Most customers want full rights, so an article that appears elsewhere isn't going to fit the needs of most customers. I hope I don't sound discouraging, because I don't mean to. CC is awesome! When I started I had the same idea about usage as you. Back then, though I found the idea not as profitable as I hoped, it at least somewhat made sense in terms of getting a decent return. Today, it's a different story.

[Valerie]

Thanks for your insight, Celeste!

I have a couple of follow-up questions.

Do you or did you have any emotional difficulty selling for full rights? It's a little upsetting thinking about MY story being "out there" somewhere where I can't use it or see it. (I guess I have both emotional and control issues here!)

If an article sells for full rights on CC, how much would I have to change/re-write in order to put another version on Squidoo? For that matter, how much would an article have to be changed in order to sell it again on CC?

Thanks!
Valerie

[Valerie]

Still trying to figure out how to get all the pieces of the puzzle to fit!

Is it permissible for me to put my content on Squidoo and then remove it if a CC client wants to purchase full rights to the article, or is the full rights option negated once the article's been published anywhere?

~Valerie

[jadedragon]

Still trying to figure out how to get all the pieces of the puzzle to fit!

Is it permissible for me to put my content on Squidoo and then remove it if a CC client wants to purchase full rights to the article, or is the full rights option negated once the article's been published anywhere?

~Valerie

No once you publish the content elsewhere you can never sell it for full rights. Kind of like virginity - once its gone you can't get it back.

What I've done is republish articles that first sell for usage here. I would not take some I used elsewhere and try to sell it here.

[Valerie]

Thanks, jadedragon! That makes sense, and I appreciate the analogy! HA!

~Valerie

[Celeste Stewart]

Do you or did you have any emotional difficulty selling for full rights? It's a little upsetting thinking about MY story being "out there" somewhere where I can't use it or see it. (I guess I have both emotional and control issues here!)

Not at all. Try writing an article specifically with the intention of selling it for full rights and you might have an easier time accepting its eventual fate.

[jellygator]

I've sold more for usage, but they hadn't been used at the time. (I price my articles toward the high side.)

I post some that are for usage only that I've used elsewhere (my blogs) and some for full rights that don't fit my blogs' niches. In doing so, I've been submitting fewer for full sale and have seen sales drop a lot. I suspect I'll be coming to the same conclusion as Celeste, but I'm experimenting with affiliate marketing on one of my blogs and preparing to launch a service pertaining to the other, so my efforts are a bit different, maybe.

[Valerie]

Not at all. Try writing an article specifically with the intention of selling it for full rights and you might have an easier time accepting its eventual fate.

Excellent advice.

~Valerie

[Valerie]

jellygator,

I'm thinking about what my niche/"pet projects" are for Squidoo, then focus on Constant Content for the others, using the advice I've gotten on this thread so far.

~Valerie

[dbvirago]

Question for Celeste and others. So it's better to offer full rights only? I usually include all three, then if it sells full rights, the buyer has that and it can't be sold again. OTH, if it sells for usage, I then post it elsewhere. As you stated, ref share sites have all but dried up, so if Full rights only option makes it more attractive, I'm gonna start clicking some buttons

[Judith]

Question for Celeste and others. So it's better to offer full rights only? I usually include all three, then if it sells full rights, the buyer has that and it can't be sold again. OTH, if it sells for usage, I then post it elsewhere. As you stated, ref share sites have all but dried up, so if Full rights only option makes it more attractive, I'm gonna start clicking some buttons

When I first started I offered full rights and usage, but I quickly switched to full rights only and it has been good to me. I think I sold 2 articles for usage before I switched. It has never slowed my sales because they are for full rights only.