Article Directories: Which Is Best?

I ran into a discussion on this subject today. It’s one of those things that comes up all the time among new freelancers, like “How can I make money online?” comes up in just about every forum thread relating to SEO, blogging or… well, pretty much anything at all.

There are a lot of article directories out there and many people see them as slave labour sites. Raven, for example, can (and does) get terribly upset at people wasting their time producing content for a couple of dollars per thousand page impressions. Admirably, she always backs it up with sensible comments and some darned fine suggestions of where to look for better work: this is not just ranting, but frustration at seeing fellow freelancers being underpaid.

However, there are also some firm proponents of content directory writing, and some pretty good arguments for producing work for them. The main advantage they have is freedom: rather than writing about specific subjects to order, writers can just produce whatever they want – and they can produce it when they want, with no deadlines.

They are also generally unmonitored – by this, I mean “unedited”, as in there is no one to check the quality of the work. Consequently, they’re a haven for people with unusual style or who can’t write with perfect grammar and spelling.

They’re a good place to start building a reputation, as well. Many of the more established freelancers (or new ones with the courage to leap in with both feet) may forget that it’s very hard to find any ‘real’ work when you have no history, no published content and no previous contracts. Article directories can provide a very basic foundation for the first steps to better jobs.

And finally, they pay regularly and reliably, even if it’s only a few dollars. There is an argument that says they’re worthwhile because they’re “residual income” – those same articles will be paying out in five or ten years’ time, regular as clockwork. If you have several hundred pieces on the site, that can add up to a tidy little bit of spending cash over time.

Regardless of your opinion of the value of these article directories,there is still the question of which is “best”. Here’s some thoughts:

The Top Six Directories

Associated Content (PR 6) is still pretty much the leader in the field. They’ve reduced their up-front payments recently (and those are only available in the US), but they still get roughly twice as much traffic as Helium or HubPages. They pay a certain amount per 1,000 views of each article.

Without the up-front payments, the main advantage of the site is that there’s no editing and no strict quality requirements: writers can produce whatever they want and throw it onto the site to get some hits. They say they also distribute articles to third-party sites, but I have not seen much of that happening, personally.

Helium (PR 6) is the other end of the directory market: stricter, more controlled, lower traffic, and much more quality-oriented. Their system demands that all users rate other people’s work (at least 10 articles every 30 days) to be eligible for payment, and the more appropriate rating and quality writing a member produces, the higher their payments go. Pay is calculated per 1,000 views of each article.

The site has a lot of ‘hidden’ bonuses as well – the Marketplace pays very well and is often busy with opportunities, Marketplace articles get a ‘kill fee’ even if they’re not bought and the first person writing to a previously empty subject gets a bonus. Subjects are pre-determined by the site editors, but members can suggest new ones.

Triond (PR 4) is the odd member of the family. It’s the only one that will accept content in any language. In much the same way as the more web-oriented directories (HubPages and Squidoo, further down), it pays a revenue share dependant on the amount of money your articles generate.

It’s also unusual because, rather than keeping all the content in one place and syndicating some of it out, Triond places content primarily on niche sites appropriate to the subject matter. It acts as a sort of distribution centre, rather than a content warehouse.

Bukisa (PR 4) is the new kid on the block. It’s a content directory like the other three, which pays for unique visitors to each article created. In a slightly more ‘PTC’ approach, it has a referral system, whereby any referred content creators also provide income to their referrer. Obviously, since it’s the newest of the sites listed here, it has fewer visitors than the more established ones.

HubPages (PR 6) is the flashy cousin of the basic directory. With similar traffic to Helium (though starting to outgrow it last time I looked), the articles are more web-oriented, with pictures, video and other content. There’s no per-view payment, though: income is generated through a share of AdSense, Amazon, Kontera and eBay revenues via click-through referrals.

In similar fashion to AC, HubPages doesn’t restrict subjects: writers can produce whatever they want. The site does, however, include a requests system, so that visitors and Hubbers can ask content producers to build a page for a specific subject.

Squidoo (PR 6) is similar to HubPages in many ways: web-oriented in the same fashion and flashier than just pure text content. They share royalties in the same way, too – Amazon, eBay, Cafepress, Google Ads and Glam Ads.

A nice touch with Squidoo is that they pay 5% of their revenue cut to charity and also provide a means for lens builders to send their royalties to charity as well. Helium is the only other site that has a built-in charity donation system.

So Which Is Best?

From a lot of discussions with different people producing content on one or more of the sites, and taking into account certain personal likes and dislikes for those people (as well as ignoring a few rants here and there), here’s how I’d sum them up:

• For simplicity and flexibility, Associated Content.
• For a great Marketplace with serious earning potential, Helium.
• For shorter, simpler articles in the ‘top ten’ style, Triond or Bukisa.
• For non-English writing, Triond.
• For the multi-media-minded author, Squidoo or HubPages.

What’s Missing, Pussycat?

I have undoubtedly missed several specialist content directories and I haven’t covered the article markets (such as Constant Content) at all. Why not? Mostly because this entry would go on for ever, but also because I don’t know them all and I haven’t produced content for any for a little while.

I’d love to have a more complete list and also your opinion of any of the ones you’ve tried – content, earnings or just thoughts on whether directories are worthwhile or not.

Go on, empty your head into the comments. You know you want to.