Content marketing had a quite turbulent year in 2014, filled with plenty of highs and lows. Online writing services have also been both benefited from and been a victim of this roller coaster ride.
Now that 2015 is here, it is a good time to look back at 2014 and analyze what website content writing services did in 2014 and what that means for 2015.
End of Free For All Content
With the shut down of the Yahoo Contributor Network, there basically aren’t any more online publishing websites that allow writers to get paid for undirected content. This hurt some writers initially, but it also means that there is less content clogging the internet, which benefits website content overall.
Panda 4.1 Update
Google’s Panda 4.1 update rocked the content marketing world. Keyword density went from being absolutely critical one day to potentially detrimental the next day. Search engine rankings and page hits fluctuated wildly, with some content seeing massive drops while other content improved astronomically. Writing websites adapted by focusing less on keywords and more on quality content. The overall result was simply better output from content writers at every level.
Social Media
Social media has been around for decades, but 2014 saw significant changes in how content publishing services approached it. Instead of treating social media like just another website, content writing strategies developed that were customized to specific social media platforms. This trend will definitely continue into 2015, with video content almost assuredly becoming an option on many website writing services, since 85% of internet users visit YouTube every month.
Content Marketing Won Advertising War
The greatest accomplishment of website content writing services in 2014 was winning the advertising war. Content marketing was the highest advertising priority of businesses in 2014. This is both an acknowledgment of the degree to which the internet has become a part of everyday life and the high quality of the content these writing services produced in 2014.
Superior standards were a priority in 2014 and should definitely remain a priority in 2015 if these writing services want to continue to be in such high demand.
Edith Whitley says:
I just wanted to mention that even though Yahoo Voices shut down, there are still several sites that will pay you to write on any topic you want. It’s just that not many of them offer any upfront pay anymore, or not very often. Examiner and Hubpages still pretty much let you write about what you want when you want (Examiner does restrict you to certain topics or locations, though). There are a few other sites like that, but are less well known.
And, of course, anyone can set up a blog and earn money through Adsense.
Georgia Potts says:
I was sad to see Yahoo Contributor Network. I sold my first few online articles there, and it was always a fun place to read and write. Since the algorithm changes, though, it just hadn’t been worthwhile for quite a while.
Earl Dotson says:
It’s always a letdown when a good site starts declining. It sounds like you miss the original version of Yahoo Contributor Network more than the site it became.
Georgia Potts says:
Yes, back then it was called Associated Content, and it was fantastic. I sold my first article online through that site. You could write about anything you wanted and they’d pay you for it. I wrote some of the weirdest stuff for them.
Naomi Barceloni says:
Sometimes it hurts a writer’s creativity if they only write about topics given to them. For instance, writing on this platform. I find it difficult to come up with something relevant to content writing to post. I’m proud of my creativity, and I love to share it whenever possible. I know I will eventually figure out something to write that may get posted.
I write on Wikinut with whatever topic I choose. Only thing, it may take 10 to 20 years before you receive any pay from it. So I do it when I feel the need to share some thoughts with the world. Responding to posts on this platform gives me the opportunity to write a little freer, (is that a word?) so to speak.
As for social media, I think I would freak out if I had to do visual advertising on sites like Youtube. I like being in the background and writing, rather than on the front lines putting myself in the public eye. I’m not the actor promoting content, I’m the writer that gave the actor the words to promote the content. I like it that way. I want to be the one that gets thanked at the Oscars or the Golden Globes for writing the script or byline that just won an award.
Okay – OK- getting the award will also be a pivotal point in my life, but it’s not the point I’m trying to relay. I hope there will always be the need for the little guy that wants to remain hidden, but so desperately needs to share their words with the world regardless of their insecurities.
I know I can persevere if I ever have to get on the front line. I’ll just pay someone to pretend to me and they can read the content that I wrote 🙂 🙂
Naomi Barceloni says:
* that’s pretend to BE me…
Myra Michaels says:
Mickey, I am fairly new to the content writing game and actually am happier that quality content is now the way to go rather than stuffing keywords into blogs and articles. It is very encouraging to me and other writers that we can concentrate on providing informational and interesting writing that will be purchased and appreciated by both the customers and their readers. That’s good for our creativity and continuing interest in writing on all sorts of subjects, which keeps our brains extra active!
Victor Peters says:
Thank you David for appreciating and noting the fact that content marketing did it in 2014.It won the advertising war and we look forward to having it as the undisputed champion.
Val Tanaka says:
I just found this, and I immediately felt nostalgia for Yahoo Contributor Network. What a great place that was. The problem was that you are correct that the quality suffered greatly. It should have been more tightly controlled. But because it was so undirected, there ended up being a lot of really great high quality work that you wouldn’t see anywhere else.
I agree that 2015 has been all about higher standards.
Georgia Potts says:
I know, I still kind of miss that site. You could write just about anything and have a place for it. The earliest days of it were spectacular- they paid pretty well even for weird essays.