The Hot List: The Final Word on How to Get There
An end to the rumors and fairy tales.
I have found certain things to be true over my time here at Triond. One of which is this; when someone first has an article make it onto the hot content list, they will invariably write an article on how to make the hot content list. (Being that they have now ‘cracked the code’, ’solved the puzzle’ , and effectively mastered Triond). As often as not, this article will also make a brief appearance on the list (after all, Trionders all fall for the titles about making money on Triond), prompting said individual to inundate us with a string of further articles telling us all of their ’secrets’ to making it big here. That isn’t to say there aren’t helpful articles out there in this vein, but it is to say that 99% of them are, at best, simply rehashed ideas that have been published dozens, if not hundreds, of times before.
These articles are also, in most cases, harmless. But not in all cases. Some people, in their hurry to pick up a hundred or two cheap views, will spread misinformation. This is potentially harmful, especially to newcomers looking for genuine advice on how to succeed here.
So let’s take this opportunity to dispel the rumors and lay out the cold hard facts. For starters, I may not qualify as an expert, but I have had nearly 100 articles to date on the hot content top 10 list. I have studied Triond, and while I am in all likelihood not the top earner, I am one of them. I have studied in great depth the workings of promotion. So it is fair to say I at least have a more than passing knowledge on the subject.
We will start by dispelling a few of the rumors and misconceptions.
The Hot Content list is not a golden Ticket to thousands of views
It isn’t even a ticket to hundreds of views. If you appear there regularly, you’re talking dozens to a couple of hundred, depending on subject matter. If your article is only there briefly, you probably won’t even see dozens.
The Hot Content list increases your rate of pay
Again, total crap.
There is an algorithm that determines what reaches the list.
This is actually true. And therein lies the ’secret’ to the list. Which brings us to…
How you actually get there.
According to Triond, the algorithm is a combination of Views, likes, comments, and age of the article. All of the research I have done backs this up completely. So the answer here is that anyone who states that they have figured out the answer is one of three things… misled, wrong, or making it up as they go along. Here, however, are some observations I have made.
Views are the most important number. I have a series of sports articles I do weekly that nearly always lands at the top spot, and stays for a few days. It receives huge numbers of views, far into the thousands. It has hit #1 without a single like or view. On the flip side, I had an article called ‘Triond Roll Call’ which received 80 something comments, and only made an appearance at #9 for a few hours.
There is blind luck involved. I have had articles make it with just a few dozen views. This is, often times, because nothing of consequence happened to publish that day. Some days a 30 view, 5 comment piece may land you at #5; others, a 200 view 10 comment piece might not make it at all.
If your article does well, it will probably make it. If your article does views in the hundreds on the first day, it will probably make it. The age of the article matters quite a bit. I have seen a few make it days after publishing, but only a few. And I have never had one get there more than 48 hours after publishing. If it’s not there after 2 days, it probably won’t be.
The bottom line is this; there is simply no concrete formula, because some aspect of it is arbitrary on Triond’s part. Here’s my advice… work on your product. Work on promoting. If you do the work, the rest will take care of itself. Stop worrying about a riddle for which there really is no definitive answer, and learn to sell your articles. Do that, and I promise… the Hot List will take care of itself.
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November 1st, 2009 at 3:52 am
ROFL -it seems I may just copy the same comment again, and again, and again … – how do you explain articles of mine making the hot content list with zero views, zero, likes, zero comments?
But I certainly make more views from just about anywhere else than from the hot content list …
November 1st, 2009 at 4:05 am
A good article, makes sense to me. I’ve had a couple of items on the hot list, but found nothing special about it.
November 1st, 2009 at 4:12 am
This one is headed to the top of the list for sure!
nice work
November 1st, 2009 at 4:28 am
excellent
November 1st, 2009 at 5:34 am
A sensible advice.
November 1st, 2009 at 7:00 am
I think it’s very important to have as much as possible links to your article “out there”.
November 1st, 2009 at 8:07 am
Woo-hoo – I’m top of the list for the first time! I’ve been on the list previously with zero views, but thanks to someone stumbling an article I wrote late last night I’ve had 1500 views in just a few hours! (Massive thanks to the stumbler, whoever they are!)
I’m really pleased, simply because this information provided is something I genuinely want people to see. Luckily I thought to add a link to a related article, which also had 1500 views over-night!
November 1st, 2009 at 10:03 am
Good points. I have only made the list ONE TIME, and it was almost two years ago, with audio. I had 1200 plus views in about 10 minutes! I do have articles with over 1000 views, and some that consistently get 15 to 20 views a day, but they never made it to the HC list. I also don’t do much in the way of promotion.
November 1st, 2009 at 10:47 am
I’ve made the hot list a few times, but that has been months ago.
November 1st, 2009 at 11:05 am
I hav an article that gets 100 views a day and it didn’t make it
November 1st, 2009 at 5:09 pm
Why is everyone so worried about making the list? If I write a good article and it receives a decent number of wiews then I will make money. It really is irrelevant whether or not it is on the “list”.
November 1st, 2009 at 5:09 pm
Thanks again. I am less interested in HC than in views. Tips on promotion are always helpful.
Thanks.
Ron
November 1st, 2009 at 5:21 pm
It is still a mystery to me because I have been here for almost a year and have posted over 300 essays here and have never been on it.
The law of averages dictates that I should have been on it by now, but I haven’t.
November 1st, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Appreciate you sharing your knowledge – very useful information.
November 1st, 2009 at 9:17 pm
i am HOT enough
it doesn’t bother me
whether or not i am on trionds hot list
my friends really give me lovely comments
and some standing ovation
so what is more hotter
i really can’t see
November 1st, 2009 at 9:44 pm
All I know, and I learned it the hard way, is NEVER go to webring. It is the worst site I’ve ever seen with arrogant reps who only seldom respond to your requests and usually the response is refusal to help you. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
November 1st, 2009 at 11:52 pm
I had an article on ranking writing sites make it to the bottom of the hot content list on the very day I submitted it. This was a week ago. It only lasted one day on the chart but I made a PDF of the page so that I will always have proof that I made it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:06 am
Good information! When my article landed in HC List, I was so happy and thought that I’d be earning bigger in it… we’ll not that much and until now I’m still figuring it out how to arrive there.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:20 am
i have tried all the information that you have given in your articles and still have very little veiws. so either i am not a good writer or i just dont get it. not worried about the hot list cause i wont make it i am sure, but veiws and feed back would be nice… thanks for the info again
November 2nd, 2009 at 4:57 am
LOL.. This is a very good article. I am glad it’s based on your observations ..and not “revelation of the hidden truth” lol
November 2nd, 2009 at 6:32 am
Thanks for the article, MN!
November 4th, 2009 at 2:45 am
I kind of wish they would just get rid of the stupid hot list. Not really indicative of anything, but so many people stress out about it.
Good article though dude. Lays it out honestly.