(Earlier posted as a comment)
As has been discussed in many places, including some recent Gather posts, the mindless gaming you and your friends so love has drained the system.
Real content increases search engine ranking, which in turn increases how much Gather gets per ad spot. This increase is passed on in the form of points and eventually gift cards or cash payout.
Conversely, nonsense strings of words, such as "Name A Word Starting With A Letter" is picked up by Google and other search engines as spamdexing and this causes the site ranking to go down or even get dropped altogether...
Which leads to the site being less desirable to advertisers so the ad space is cheaper and there's less for everybody.
Those of us complaining about these mindless games were complaining for a variety of reasons, and killing Gather's revenue stream is one of those reasons. Thanks, y'all.
The Gather welfare is done dried up, enjoy the pockets of free sample all of you grabbed before you drove the store out of business.
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Comments: 69
I think you're just doing this out of spite.
Hater.
Frightening Icon ~ Official Varmint of the State of Franklin - Gather is a place for EVERYONE and we ALL enjoy doing different things here! That's all part of the FUN! I'm sorry you aren't happy with what's going on, but it's a choice to be here!
Guys, you can DB1 me all you want, but your points will still keep slowing. I'm not doing it to you - you are. Each of you is just as capable of writing actual articles as I am - some much more capable. Do a little research on search engine optimization (SEO) and ad revenue and see how right or wrong I am on this. ABC games are killing your no-work-for-cash cow.
If one of your kids asked you if it was okay to turn in a one-line essay because the assignment was worded so they could get the same grade for it as someone who wrote two pages, would you tell them it was OK to do it?
Lydia, you said it sooo well. I only hope she came back and read your comment. My guess is she did, but will never let on. It would be too embarrassing.
Of course, if Tom and them want to share what they're making, that would be fine too. ;)
There's a screencapture of my total points/gift cards earned.
And just so you know, an article like that would go very well on AC--you could probably break it into several parts.
To add to that, people read what they are interested in reading. Hermit Crabs are a hobby of mine (much like this...), but that doesn't mean it interests everyone out there.
I used to write- a lot. I've had poetry published in literary works. I've written fictional stories that have gotten a lot of attention & reviews online. I'm not without the smarts or ability to write- when the mood strikes.
My own specific problem, is that my muse is quite often lacking. I can literally open a word document wiht a fantastic idea, and nothing comes out. I enjoy writing, the same as I enjoy reading.
But, certainly my own posts here don't often reflect that. I see Gather as a place to make friends, and get to know people. I enjoy playing around online, and with the stress I often have of having 3 kids in the house all day (one a hormonal pre-teen girl, 1 highly innattentive adhd son, and 1 highly hyper adhd daughter), I need to have a place I can go where I can "unwind", without having to worry about having a highly intellectual conversation, or writing something artistic for the sake of appeasing the people who don't like me to begin with.
It's currently free of charge, but I know it will soon be a pay-to-use program. It can be downloaded here:
jingproject.com
To paraphrase Stephen King (roughly, because I'm lazy and don't want to go look it up in his preface to Skeleton Crew) we don't do it for the money, because there's never enough money from it--we do it because we have to do it. :) We also shouldn't be doing it for anybody but us. (That part's me.)
If I may offer a suggestion, I find the muse strikes a lot more when I sit down at a regular time and place--and I know where you're coming from, I have a teenager with Asperger Syndrome and a ten-year old.
We only get so much time, and a certain talent. :) It's up to us what we do with it--it's all, like Bridget says, a choice.
I can't justify why anyone else is at Gather other than myself. I'm here because I enjoy the site, and because yes, I do enjoy getting rewards online. Sure, I strive to earn more when I can, but my only options due to conflicting work schedules, and children, is to earn what I can from home.
Sure, picking up pennies in a parkinglot sounds like -loads- of fun, but I like posting here. Do I sit here all day? No. I do chores, I get the kids ready for school, I run errends, I watch TV, I pay bills, I occasionally take naps during the day, I sleep at night, I shower, etc. But I do take the time to post here occasionally through out the day. Some days I can do more posting than others. Some days, I hardly post at all.
Help my wife become a published author -
please read and rate her Romance entry on Gather!
A Scandalous Overture
Fools.
About 7 years ago, I was on a writer's site that started out paying 10 cents per view of each item read, then went to 5 cents. When I joined, it was 2 cents per view. That was fun. I think I got one check before the site folded up. Why? Because people were posting only what would get views, not what would attract more advertisers. They were encouraging family members to look at the same articles a dozen times a day - all counted as views. So, the cheaters ruined the whole thing. And the site closed up...owing everyone money.
It helps if everyone learns the ins and outs of things, why they are working now and why they won't continue working if people don't at least write SOME good content. But it seems like this is falling on deaf ears...from the responses.
Lisa - Yes, it probably would help to delete the ABC games and chats after they're done. A no-points chat area would help too. Also, respecting group rules would be a big help - a group only for terrier articles, stories, and photos would be a very attractive ad spot to a company that sells terrier related items.
I don't buzz here, but I'm a buzz agent. That's how I got to Gather in the first place - an entire campaign to talk about Gather. That was over a year ago.
Y'all, Gather is back in at BzzAgent to attract new members. That's not good. It shouldn't need a booster.
So, having divulged that, I may get booted from both BzzAgent and Gather.
Lydia, I love you for that. Have some pride, people! You're bragging about taking the cyber version of welfare - other people work (and I mean other people, the ones who write and post incredibly well thought out and researched articles, not me) and yet you get paid for it!
They attract ad revenue and you pick their pockets through empty volumes of posts.
now ive heard everything,lol
you get a 10 anyhow from me
ty also for commenting on my article