Calling for ideas?

Do you have any feature requests or suggestions for the Authors/Writers accounts? Post them here!

Moderators: Celeste Stewart, Ed, Constant

anarch
Posts: 42
Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2005 8:14 pm

Post by anarch »

I like the suggestion of removing the article posting date from potential buyers. While I like being able to view when I posted something, etc., I do wonder if a lot of articles aren't overlooked because they are considered "old" and brushed aside for the more recently posted.
constant-content
Site Admin
Posts: 1330
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2005 9:20 am

Post by constant-content »

this is going to happen along with many other changes..
J. A. Young
Posts: 249
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2005 1:27 pm
Location: U.S.A.

Post by J. A. Young »

That is excellent news! I'm a great fan of the "no date" upgrade. Thanks! :D
Aariana Adams
Posts: 129
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 10:41 am

Post by Aariana Adams »

dittos on all the above.
Aariana
Celeste Stewart
Posts: 3528
Joined: Sun Jan 08, 2006 5:28 pm
Location: California
Contact:

Post by Celeste Stewart »

Hi guys! I know your changes will all be wonderful. Thanks for checking with your users for input.

What I really hope for is some sort of notification when requesters respond to you or ask you questions. As it stands now, you must specifically go back to the request and check. Fine for one or two requests but unwieldy for any more than that...

I know you were trying something, but at least for me, it never worked. So I'm always clicking on requests to see if there's a response. It gets even more critical when working on private requests (a good problem to have) because you want to provide fast answers and great service. Just when you think a thread is dead and stop obsessively checking, wouldn't you know - they pose a question or assign a new task.... I hate to think that the customers think we're ignoring them! An alert or email would be so great!
damyanti
Posts: 95
Joined: Sun Sep 11, 2005 7:38 pm

two cents

Post by damyanti »

I have been thinking about stuff writers might like to see on CC, and here is a short list:

-of course, the dates of submission removed from articles
- ability to edit keywords and Title (to submit already written articles for new orders)

- links with articles saying..."if you liked this article, you may also like to see..."...and leading to articles with similar keywords.

-ability for the customer to comment on articles while browsing...may be just 200 characters: so they can leave a message...price too steep, or condense content, or whatever...This way if a customer saw one of our articles, and did not buy it because some small tweaking was required, we writers would know and possibly do the tweaking....just a thought...maybe this will take up too much bandwidth?

- if possible, to agree on a minimum rate per word, above which all writers will price their articles. Newer writers tend to undersell themselves( I did too, when i was new, because i did not know any better)...which brings down the prices for all of CC: minimum per-word pricing may help prevent that.

- email alerts on messages from requesters.

- different colors for hot/recent requests, so they are easily discernible.


I have mostly consolidated the inputs from other writers, and added my two cents, hope this helps!

And you guys at CC, i want you to know that you are the best site I have ever worked for, and I keep recommending you at forums:)

Cheers,
Damyanti
anarch
Posts: 42
Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2005 8:14 pm

Post by anarch »

Following the recent oops that we had with my account, as a means of keeping track for both CC's sake, as well as the author's, is there any way of letting us track how much we make from our affiliates on a daily basis as well? I know it can get confusing, figuring that into our accounts, especially when it just shows an all-time figure.

Thank you!
TheWriteKind
Posts: 39
Joined: Wed Oct 12, 2005 8:25 pm

Post by TheWriteKind »

*brushes off the dust*

Hey everyone...I have a few ideas for some changes that I would like to see.

I would like "my account" to be a little cleaner and with an easier layout.
My sold articles
My available articles
My pending articles

Just something so I dont have to keep scrolling through wads of lines to find one art.

No more dates...I dont date my work...and Im excited that you're not going to anymore either.

I love the idea of a min. price per word, however, that would kind of make free articles more prolific I think.


Anyway, that's all I have.
REason
Posts: 90
Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2005 2:36 pm
Contact:

Search

Post by REason »

Here is my input:
- Ditch the bidding system. My experience is that it will only work for certain kinds of products. I believe that it will portray a lesser quality and the results will "cheapen" your marketing strategy.

- Emphasize better searches. I hate to bring it up, but I just tried to search for an article (using the advanced search) that was posted last month on an exact keyword and the results were zero. I am receiving zero results for many articles that were posted last month. Index or spider the search collection weekly (at the least). Strengthen the search engine.

- Let potential buyers preview images within the articles. I noticed that there have been some requests for articles with images and I have noticed more printed publications becoming potential buyers. By throwing those articles with images into the spotlight there is more potential of sales. As of right now the editors are gambling or guessing what the images might be. With a preview there are no more surprises. By adding image data like width, height, pixels and color (RGB, dotgain, CMYK etc.) that will assist editors and peak their interest. Or even a more simpler approach; perhaps a checkbox that states web image or print image. Of course I can see several challenges to overcome with this.

- Similiar articles: good idea. Give the author of the article a chance to select 2 of their "similiar articles" to showcase. Show a total of perhaps 5 (or a certain number) that are similiar. The other 3 or non-author specific. To see this in action and to illustrate my point checkout TurboSquid.com.

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to give you feedback.
Greg Melikov
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Aug 03, 2006 2:16 pm
Location: Greater San Antonio
Contact:

Post by Greg Melikov »

REason:

:lol: You are absolutely right on all your suggestions, especially the QUALITY reference. I have pulled off all my articles, partly because of what you found needs improving, and will not repost. But I shall continue to check every once in a while because I like to read various opnions on freelancing. Maybe the powers that be will follow your lead.
Lizaj
Posts: 101
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2005 5:01 pm

Post by Lizaj »

How about a cool banner to put on our websites that brings people in under our particular writer number? (for affiliate purposes).

I apologize if I'm repeating a suggestion.
constant-content
Site Admin
Posts: 1330
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2005 9:20 am

Post by constant-content »

Lizaj wrote:How about a cool banner to put on our websites that brings people in under our particular writer number? (for affiliate purposes).

I apologize if I'm repeating a suggestion.
http://www.constant-content.com/banners/1/
topdycke
Posts: 105
Joined: Fri May 26, 2006 8:15 am
Location: Ohio

Post by topdycke »

Hello Everyone,

I really like most of the suggestions, but please no bidding. While writing for another site that is nothing but bidding, I discovered writers who are willing to sell their articles for next to nothing under cutting everyone. I would like to see an absolute minimum. This may prove difficult, but I'm saddened by writers who are willing to give their craft away. If building a portfolio is the only thing they're interested in, there are sites that accept any article and pay for it. I'm just curious how does it behoove a writer to ask so little for an article?

Sorry to ramble on...

Happy writing!
T
Lizaj
Posts: 101
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2005 5:01 pm

Post by Lizaj »

:oops: I really did look before I asked! Thanks. I'll put one on my blog right away.
Lizaj
Posts: 101
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2005 5:01 pm

Post by Lizaj »

I don't mean to be a pain (it just comes naturally) but...if I put one of those lovely banners on my blog and someone clicks on it and becomes a producer, will they get signed up under me? I couldn't tell from the tag.

If it isn't that way, can I tweak it on my blog so that it is?
Locked