The Secret of Making The Hot Content List
Some people make the list everyday, multiple times, while others can only dream of achieving this goal. This speculates the possible methods of attaining a coveted spot on the Hot Content list.
How many times have you gotten one of your articles on Triond’s hot content list? Odds are you fall into one of these three categories:
- You never have had an article make the list, and it seems a distant dream
- You have occasionally been pleasantly surprised to find one of your articles on the list
- You often see many of your articles, sometimes several at the same time, on the list
Well if you’re like me, who falls into the first category, you’re probably interested in what it takes to make the list. Let’s explore that.
Do you need to…
Get many views? It’s doubtful; personally I’ve gotten over 3,500 views on an article the day after it was published and I didn’t get on the list.
Write quality articles? Another probable no. If this was so, none of the poorly constructed, grammatically challenged articles that do slip through occasionally would be there. Also the excellent and well written work that goes unnoticed would surface on the list.
Get lots of comments? This could be it. The Hot Content celebrities usually do have a large Triond based readership, meaning that the company Triond probably records the views to that article from other Triond members. If this is so, other views from non Triond members wouldn’t count.
Write lots of articles? Perhaps this is it. Maybe the system is based more on selecting one out of every let’s say twenty articles or so. This would mean that bombarding the system with your work would increase your chances. However, some of more devoted friends on Triond write industriously and crank out about three articles a day. If this was true, they’d be on the list more often.
Build up a reputation? Maybe after getting on the list a certain number of times it becomes easier. This would explain the frequent success of the Hot Content celebrities.
Write entertaining articles about popular topics? Probably not. Many highly entertaining articles slip by while other less interesting ones remain on the list. Besides, how many times could we all write about Hannah Montana, American Idol, going green, and Barrack Obama before the system became saturated?
Just write what you love and hope for the best?? After all is said and done, maybe it’s just completely random and the popular frequenters are just lucky.
It’s mind boggling. I certainly can’t come up with a definite answer. What do you think? I’d also like to ask the Hot Content celebrities, (you know who you are), just what is the secret behind your success? The hard working but unsung ones among us implore you. We’re suffering from chronic unpopularity; together we can find a cure. Okay, I’m joking about that, but I would really appreciate it if everybody would input their two cents on this burning issue.
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August 26th, 2010 at 9:54 am
I too have thought about this, but have never understood it. I too am hoping to make it to the hot content list one day…let me see.
August 26th, 2010 at 9:55 am
Phew, this is one hell of an entry. Do I have an idea how the hot content is chosen? Of course not. I write and post articles like everyone else. You are not the first Triond writer to ask this, many use my in box looking for the secret. Perhaps only the owners know the secret. What do I think? You should not bother with the hot content list, having 3500 views in a day on an article has never happened to me and will not be happening in the near future, I really would want to know how you managed that amazing feat. Thanks.
August 26th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Thanks for sharing this information..agree 100%..added, commenting on others work is the “key” for success.
August 26th, 2010 at 10:56 am
As I had articles making the hot content list with 0 hits and 0 comments I just want to add to your conundrum
Mnof tried an explanation how he did it (check his article on it) but is floundering as much as anyone else
and quite frankly, the few pageviews you gain from the hot content pale to insignificance compared to your astounding 3,500 views in a day
August 26th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
Yeah I find this Hot Content thing a weird feature. And Lucas said he made it with 0 views and 0 comments… weird. I think I’ve got a lot of articles that make for VERY good reading (I’ll admit not all =D) and I haven’t made it once.
So just my input… maybe they’re randomly selected from like the most active users (that wouldn’t be me! lol). Or if the article is categorized under a frequently searched topic then maybe it makes it by that means.
All in all I find it very confusing.
August 26th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
The only ting I’ve been able to work out is watching the rise of articles on the Popular articles section at the right. When articles reach the top of that section in various categories, they do appear to go onto Hot Content.I do know i makes absolutely no difference to how much pay one receives at the end of the month
I confess to taking a photo of the computer screen the first time it happened to me!
Good thought provoking article.
August 26th, 2010 at 4:12 pm
Thank you all for contributing to solving this puzzle.
@Jimmy Shilaho. The article was “Ever Wonder How They Make M&M’s”
@Val Mills. That’s a valid point. I don’t look at the popular articles section much, so I hadn’t noticed. This begs the question, what is the criteria of a popular article then?
Lucas’s no views no comment’s success points to something a bit disturbing: it makes no difference whether you work hard at promoting your article or sit back and do nothing. :s
August 27th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Webiny, your excellent article and the subsequent comments say all that could be said on the subject. I agree with all the points you have made. I also appreciate the comments made by Lucas; yes, it is true. And it is also true that appearing on hot content doesn’t add to much page views, except it might give you a very short lived high. A few of my articles have appeared there, but then they disappeared within 24 hours. And the ones that did make it to the much discussed list were in no way better than the ones that did not. And conversely, compared to some of the articles that appear on the hot content, I had a better article in my name that covered more points, perhaps a little dated.
August 27th, 2010 at 5:29 pm
I have no idea. I hear hot content is computer generated but I don’t know. The hot content is of no consequence that I can see. Just continue your writing and post as often as possible for your own enjoyment.
August 29th, 2010 at 5:01 pm
Thanks for your input everyone. At the end of the day, based on all your all the points raised here, it seems that:
-No one can pin-point how the selection system works, much less affect the process in their favor
-There are much more rewarding and more, ahem, *lucrative* goals to aspire to
-Little but possible short-lived popularity is achieved by getting on the list
-The key to meaningful success is to keep writing and promoting your work.
Thanks again to everyone who helped to bring the matter to this resting point.
September 5th, 2010 at 11:09 am
I’ve only managed to be on the top content list twice before, and both of those articles were well written, had lots of comments, and lots of views. I completely agree that there is no way to tell how to get an article on there, but if you try to make all of your articles the best you can, you might have a better chance of getting on there.
September 10th, 2010 at 9:34 am
Lets just not bother about hot content. Let’s just write and write and hope for the best.
September 26th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
It is indeed a mystery. I have had several articles on the Hot Content list of late – all have been widely read, and yet, my most popular article did not make the Hot Content list. As others have stated, do not pay much attention to it – simply keep writing, and have fun. I like to mix the serious with the offbeat as that mirrors my own personality, so for me, writing is an outlet of self expression. That alone makes it worth it – though the occassional recognition is nice as well.