Article Syndication and Copyscape

9 replies
OK, I understand the basics of article syndication from all of the WF posts I’ve been reading about the subject. I am confused, however, about why someone would want to post an article on their site if I have already posted it on mine before sending it to them. I’ve encountered a lot of people who use Copyscape, and if a webmaster runs an article I offer them through, and it comes up as duplicated content because it is already on MY site, then why would they want to post it on theirs?

And a subtle link to my site at the end of the article is the goal here, right? I thought it might be kind of obtuse to leave a big resource box at the end. How many site owners actually leave the link or credit in the article?

Just curious. I want to start this article syndication thing, but it would be pretty fruitless if I did it the wrong way. I’d be writing for free…

Sooo.... Any advice?
#article #copyscape #syndication
  • Profile picture of the author NicoleBeckett
    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    OK, I understand the basics of article syndication from all of the WF posts I've been reading about the subject. I am confused, however, about why someone would want to post an article on their site if I have already posted it on mine before sending it to them.
    Because it's well-written, offers alot of important facts in an interesting way, and provides real value for the website's readers (I'm really not trying to be sarcastic here. That really is the reason! )

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    I've encountered a lot of people who use Copyscape, and if a webmaster runs an article I offer them through, and it comes up as duplicated content because it is already on MY site, then why would they want to post it on theirs?
    Yes, the article will show up in Copyscape, but that doesn't mean it's "duplicate content". Duplicate content refers to content that's been duplicated on your own site - not other sites around the web.

    The only possible effect this website might see is that the page they post your article on shows up in the supplemental index (what you see when you click "get similar results"), rather than the "traditional" results. But that's not a punishment. It's just Google's way of making sure that searchers don't wind up with an entire page of search results that's all pointed to the same article - just on different websites.

    If an article is good enough to produce the value that I mentioned above, it's well worth it to run the risk of the page being in the supplemental index.

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    And a subtle link to my site at the end of the article is the goal here, right? I thought it might be kind of obtuse to leave a big resource box at the end. How many site owners actually leave the link or credit in the article?
    You want a strong call-to-action, without being obnoxious. There are Warriors who are far better at crafting resource boxes than I am. I hope one of them comes in here and offers some advice!

    As for leaving the links intact, anyone who syndicates one of your articles is required to leave them in (both by the terms of service of the article directory they found the article on and by your own copyright as the author). If you find articles of yours that don't have the links intact (or have changed the article in any way), it's no different than stealing - and you're well within your rights to file a DMCA complaint against them.
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    • Profile picture of the author nellterry
      Originally Posted by NicoleBeckett View Post

      As for leaving the links intact, anyone who syndicates one of your articles is required to leave them in (both by the terms of service of the article directory they found the article on and by your own copyright as the author). If you find articles of yours that don't have the links intact (or have changed the article in any way), it's no different than stealing - and you're well within your rights to file a DMCA complaint against them.
      Thank you for this. I was wondering what the incentive was for a webmaster to leave the article as-is on their site if they choose to publish. This is good information!
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    I am confused, however, about why someone would want to post an article on their site if I have already posted it on mine before sending it to them.
    Why are you confused about that?

    What is it that you're thinking, that turns that into an issue for you, when it so clearly isn't for people who syndicate others' content?

    Look at what an article directory is, and why it exists.

    It's a depository of content for re-publication, isn't it? That's why article directories exist - they're there for publishers to go to, to source the content they need for their readers. Ezine publishers, webmasters, whoever. They take that content and republish it with the authors' backlinks there (we hope!). It's a "content for links" deal. That's what article marketing is.

    Clearly none of those people is remotely concerned that all that stuff has been previously published, are they? Otherwise they wouldn't take it?

    Why would you expect that other people, other publishers, other webmasters would be concerned about that? What makes them different from anyone else? :confused:

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    I’ve encountered a lot of people who use Copyscape
    Really?

    I haven't.

    I've been doing this full-time for 3 years (and have over 1,600 articles in EZA alone) and my articles have now been syndicated elsewhere, a high 5-figure number of times, and that's where nearly all my traffic comes from, and nobody's ever mentioned "Copyscape" to me. Why have they to you? :confused:

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    and if a webmaster runs an article I offer them through, and it comes up as duplicated content because it is already on MY site, then why would they want to post it on theirs?
    Why do you imagine that this would be a problem for anyone?

    Might it possibly be because you think it would, for you, on your site, and you're wondering if others might feel the same?

    They won't!

    Absolutely no disrespect implied at all, but people would have to have a pretty mistaken and misguided impression of what "duplicate content" means, for this to be a concern to them, you know?

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    How many site owners actually leave the link or credit in the article?
    It doesn't really matter.

    Even if it's only 50% of them, that's still hundreds more people than you'll get syndicating your work (in front of thousands or tens of thousands of already-targeted readers) if you don't put it out for syndication, isn't it?

    The ones who take it without your link aren't actually doing you any harm, are they?

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    Sooo.... Any advice?
    Yes.

    1. Have a think about what "duplicate content" means and read this little article: Article Marketers - Lay the Duplicate Content Myth To Rest Once and For All | Internet Marketing and Publishing

    2. Have a think about what an article directory really is, and how they work, and then have a quick read of this thread: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ries-work.html

    3. Have a think about what the purpose of article syndication is, and then read this post: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post5035794

    Hoping it helps!
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    • Profile picture of the author JLA
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      • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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        Originally Posted by JLA View Post

        That has got to be a necessity for getting this whole thing off the ground, a good resource for finding ezines? Is this right?
        Yes indeed - it's at least as good a starting-point as any other.

        Directory of Ezines
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        • Profile picture of the author JLA
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          • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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            Originally Posted by JLA View Post

            I would have been satisfied with the first two words of your answer
            You can ignore the rest.

            Originally Posted by JLA View Post

            I'd have to have you clarify or simplify that second part of your sentence if you wanted that republished for the simpletons who subscribe to my ezine.
            I'm used to replying to people who ask this question when they have absolutely no money at all and want everything to be "free" and not to have to buy anything. In which case it's possible to start by trying to get webmasters to syndicate your content and not getting to work on ezine publishers until after making enough money to subscribe to the directory of ezines. In which case I explain that there are also other possible ways to start. But if you can, it's probably the best way to start.

            I actually started "another way", even though I had money. But that was because I'd never heard of the directory of ezines and I didn't really know what an "ezine" was, when I started. I had to work out a lot of stuff "the hard way", because when I started the forum was full of people explaining that the way to do article marketing was by spinning articles and submitting them to hundreds of article directories "for the backlinks"!

            It took me about 4 months' work to realise that I was never going to earn a living that way, even back then (and of course all the more so, now, post-Panda).

            No reason for others to share that problem.
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    • Profile picture of the author nellterry
      Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

      Why are you confused about that?

      What is it that you're thinking, that turns that into an issue for you, when it so clearly isn't for people who syndicate others' content?

      Look at what an article directory is, and why it exists.

      It's a depository of content for re-publication, isn't it? That's why article directories exist - they're there for publishers to go to, to source the content they need for their readers. Ezine publishers, webmasters, whoever. They take that content and republish it with the authors' backlinks there (we hope!). It's a "content for links" deal. That's what article marketing is.

      Clearly none of those people is remotely concerned that all that stuff has been previously published, are they? Otherwise they wouldn't take it?

      Why would you expect that other people, other publishers, other webmasters would be concerned about that? What makes them different from anyone else? :confused:



      Really?

      I haven't.

      I've been doing this full-time for 3 years (and have over 1,600 articles in EZA alone) and my articles have now been syndicated elsewhere, a high 5-figure number of times, and that's where nearly all my traffic comes from, and nobody's ever mentioned "Copyscape" to me. Why have they to you? :confused:



      Why do you imagine that this would be a problem for anyone?

      Might it possibly be because you think it would, for you, on your site, and you're wondering if others might feel the same?

      They won't!

      Absolutely no disrespect implied at all, but people would have to have a pretty mistaken and misguided impression of what "duplicate content" means, for this to be a concern to them, you know?



      It doesn't really matter.

      Even if it's only 50% of them, that's still more people than you get syndicating your work if you don't put it out for syndication, isn't it?

      The ones who take it without your link aren't actually doing you any harm, are they?



      Yes.

      1. Have a think about what "duplicate content" means and read this little article: Article Marketers - Lay the Duplicate Content Myth To Rest Once and For All | Internet Marketing and Publishing

      2. Have a think about what an article directory really is, and how they work, and then have a quick read of this thread: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ries-work.html

      3. Have a think about what the purpose of article syndication is, and then read this post: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post5035794

      Hoping it helps!
      Yup. It does. I think the issue for me has been that I'm coming from a place where all of my clients want original content (obviously) when they pay me to write for them. So, changing my mindset to fully grasp the pillars of article marketing has been a struggle.

      It's a different realm of the writing game altogether - and it must be a profitable one at that, from the way you talk, otherwise why you you do it?

      I want to get off of the $10 article treadmill and start IM. Your posts around WF are helping me better understand how to accomplish that, so thanks..

      Long road ahead.

      n.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Hi Nell,

    Sorry to follow up my post with another post, but I've just noticed and been thinking about one sentence from your OP in this thread, with reference to your sig-file (which I've only just noticed! ).

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    I’ve encountered a lot of people who use Copyscape
    I think I understand this comment, now. You're a ghostwriter! So people are paying you for "original content" because they're buying it. And they want to check that the articles you've written for them have been written "for them" and not copied from somewhere else online (in which case they wouldn't be able to submit them to EZA, for example, because EZA would work out that it's "stolen content"?!). So that's why you've encountered a lot of people who use copyscape ... because the people you've encountered are article-buying customers?!

    This makes sense!

    But it doesn't have any bearing on article syndication of your own articles.

    As long as you've written an article yourself (or in the case of one of your clients, as long as they've bought it themselves, i.e. they own the rights to it) they can put it on their own site (just like I do), send it to 100 other people to syndicate on their sites/in their ezines (just like I do) and then end up submitting it to EZA in case anyone else wants to syndicate it further (just like I do). You/they can't do that if the article's stolen property, clearly. EZA don't care how many times it's been previously published as long as their author owns it, and the author's names/pen-names match.

    Is this the point that was confusing you, perhaps? :confused:

    None of that applies to you, when you're syndicating your own articles ("your own" meaning either "written by you" or "written exclusively for you as proven by a Copyscape test"): the people who re-publish don't expect or want or need them to be "previously unpublished content". Does this explain it?

    Edited to add
    : I posted this while you were posting above, sorry! I think we've both said more or less the same thing? It makes sense now. I apologise if my initial reply was less helpful than either of us would have liked!
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    • Profile picture of the author nellterry
      Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

      Hi Nell,

      Sorry to follow up my post with another post, but I've just noticed and been thinking about one sentence from your OP in this thread, with reference to your sig-file (which I've only just noticed! ).



      I think I understand this comment, now. You're a ghostwriter! So people are paying you for "original content" because they're buying it. And they want to check that the articles you've written for them have been written "for them" and not copied from somewhere else online (in which case they wouldn't be able to submit them to EZA, for example, because EZA would work out that it's "stolen content"?!). So that's why you've encountered a lot of people who use copyscape ... because the people you've encountered are article-buying customers?!

      This makes sense!

      But it doesn't have any bearing on article syndication of your own articles.

      As long as you've written an article yourself (or in the case of one of your clients, as long as they've bought it themselves, i.e. they own the rights to it) they can put it on their own site (just like I do), send it to 100 other people to syndicate on their sites/in their ezines (just like I do) and then end up submitting it to EZA in case anyone else wants to syndicate it further (just like I do). You/they can't do that if the article's stolen property, clearly. EZA don't care how many times it's been previously published as long as their author owns it, and the author's names/pen-names match.

      Is this the point that was confusing you, perhaps? :confused:

      None of that applies to you, when you're syndicating your own articles ("your own" meaning either "written by you" or "written exclusively for you as proven by a Copyscape test"): the people who re-publish don't expect or want or need them to be "previously unpublished content". Does this explain it?

      Edited to add
      : I posted this while you were posting above, sorry! I think we've both said more or less the same thing? It makes sense now. I apologise if my initial reply was less helpful than either of us would have liked!
      No, it's cool.. Yea, we are on the same page. I write original content, I can syndicate it, and it's not like ghostwriting. Different ballgame. Got it!
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  • Profile picture of the author milkyway
    Nell,

    Originally Posted by nellterry View Post

    OK, I understand the basics of article syndication from all of the WF posts I've been reading about the subject. I am confused, however, about why someone would want to post an article on their site if I have already posted it on mine before sending it to them.
    What Nicole Beckett said. Plus:

    - I have only 24 hours per day. If you give me good content, I can build up and maintain more sites...

    How many site owners actually leave the link or credit in the article?
    My viewpoint is: This is a business relationship. You get something out of it, I get something out of it, and my audience does, too.

    Plus when I leave your links intact, I can ask you to put me on your distribution list (given that I liked your content). That's even more free, suitable content coming straight to my inbox.

    Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

    Absolutely no disrespect implied at all, but people would have to have a pretty mistaken and misguided impression of what "duplicate content" means, for this to be a concern to them, you know?
    lol -- Alexa, in all fairness, a lot of people HAVE that impression...

    Regine
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