eHow Endeavor: Week 14

With a busy work week, it's hard to find time to write articles. I'm sure as I get used to my new job, I will be able to write more. The great thing about eHOw is that my articles are still earning even though I'm not writing! The more articles I write, the more money I will make.

In the beginning, I purchased a "How to eHow" book and I'm glad to report that following the advice in the book helped me increase earnings. In the book, the author provides a formula for figuring out how much money you can make at eHow per month based on the number of articles you write. After following all the tips in the book, the formula works and I can estimate earnings based on the total number of articles. This is why I want to write more articles -- I'll just have to find the time. The book I read was How to Earn Passive Income on EHow.com. The author's name is WriterGig and you can look up her profile at ehow.

Status Summary

57 articles written $52.53 total earnings 21,508 page views 67 recommendations 330 eHow friends

How to Prepare for Job Interview #2

Have you made it past the first interview and been asked to return for a second? This is good news! Follow the steps in the article below to make sure you blow them away during the second round of interviews.

eHow article: How to Prepare for Job Interview #2

eHow Endeavor: Week 13

I skipped a week 13 report. Life happens. Turns out I will be employed full time starting Monday. My creative adventure is going to slow down quite a bit now. My articles will still continue to earn which I find really cool. I hope to find time here and there to keep writing. My articles at Demand Studios are also doing quite well so I may focus there.

Status Summary

57 articles written $48.39 total earnings 19,704 page views 67 recommendations 330 eHow friends

eHow Endeavor: Week 11

This week has been all about job interviews. The economy must be picking up because I had 4 interviews. I'm jazzed that even though I didn't focus on eHow, I still made money. Passive income rocks! I did manage to write two articles and connect with some more eHow friends.

Status Summary

56 articles written $33.81 total earnings 13,601 page views 62 recommendations 301 eHow friends

How to Email Your House Represenative and Senator

Your elected officials need to hear your voice. Have you ever wanted to send an email to your house representative or senator? The following two articles take you step by step through the process. Become an active citizen and email your congressional representatives

How to Email Your House Representative

How to Email Your Senator

eHow Endeavor: Week 10

The elusive writing bug has trotted about but hasn't stayed with me this week. I am adding to my list of possible titles, but not writing as many articles. I found www.redgage.com this week and am curious to explore it more. You submit links to your online content and earn money based on views. Free money?! Perhaps. Other than that, things are progressing slowly but surely. Life is good.

Status Summary

54 articles written $29.77 total earnings 12,155 page views 61 recommendations 270 eHow friends

How to Print Typed Post-It Notes

Printing on post-it notes is an old office trick. It's great for mass producing typed messages or customizing communications. Teachers can even use it as a "ticket out the door."

How to Print Typed Post-It Notes

How to Print Custom "Tickets Out the Door" on Post-It Notes

How to Microwave Beets

Beets are a great fiber source and a delicious treat. They can be quickly made in the microwave. Perfect for a small lunch or a nutritious side dish.

eHow article: How to Microwave Beets

How to Make Fresh Mango Ice Cream

Summer and ice cream go hand in hand. This low-fat dessert uses fresh mangos and honey to create a delicious ice cream treat.

How to Make a Low Fat Dessert (Fresh Mango Ice Cream)

eHow Endeavor: Week 9

This week I took a little break from eHow. Well, sort of. I wrote all my articles for Demand Studios (they own eHow). They are offering a 50 dollar bonus for every 10 articles written. I wrote my 10 articles and hope to focus on eHow again. I have an ever growing list of article ideas that I want to whittle down.

Status Summary

50 articles written $25.21 total earnings 10,251 page views 59 recommendations 258 eHow friends

eHow Endeavor: Week 8

My two month mark, and I expected to do a little better. My earnings seemed to have slowed despite writing more articles. I have read that it takes 3 months for an article to mature so I will be anxious to see my progress at the 3 month mark. In the beginning I didn't think it would be possible to get to 10 bucks, so I am quite pleased that I finally get a pay out.

Status Summary

50 articles written $18.71 total earnings 6,452 page views 56 recommendations 250 eHow friends

Past: What I Learned

Avatars are important. If I had it to do over again, I think I would have picked a better avatar. I love my pic, but I notice that I like to click on avatars that are bright and simple. Sure, I will click on another cat avatar, but only because I'm a pet owner. I doubt non-pet owners or even dog owners are very interested in clicking on a picture of a cat. I am considering changing my avatar at the risk of losing any branding I do have.

Present: Questions I Have

How long before I get paid? I reached the 10 dollar mark and should get a payout. The payment status section says "pending." How long will it be before it actually shows up in my account?

Future: My Next Steps

Clean up my profile page. I think I want to add categories to my article links and draw more attention to other links about me (twitter, bukisa, this blog, etc).

How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

Do you have the key words you need to drive traffic to your online articles? There are many ways to check SEO, but have you tried an infographic tool? Tag clouds, wordles, and phrase nets all provide a visual representation of your text. A quick glance can help you improve SEO. Click the article link below for the necessary steps.

eHow article: How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

How to Make Visual Summaries of Text (Wordles)

Are you a visual person who loves getting to the point? Try using visual summaries for text to view an article's main point. Online writers can use it to check SEO. Students can use it to analyze writing styles. Teachers can use it to make writing fun. The applications are endless. Click below for the steps needed to make your own visual summaries out of any text.

eHow article: How to Make Visual Summaries of Text (Wordles)

How to Dry Shampoo a Cat or Dog

Does your pet hate water baths? Try giving your furry friend a dry shampoo bath. It works for both cats and dogs. Use the steps in the article below to remove odors and restor shine to your pets fur coat.

eHow article: How to Dry Shampoo a Dog or Cat

Click below for a visual summary:

For information on wordles, check out my article: How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

How to Make a High Fiber & Low Calorie Sandwich

Ready for a quick, high fiber sandwich that sounds odd but is quite delicious? Try mixing black beans and a low-fat hot dog. Click below for all the steps to make this healthy, high fiber sandwich that is both filling and nutritious.

eHow article: How to Make a High Fiber & Low Calorie Sandwich (Black Beans with Hot Dog)

Click below for a visual summary:

For information on wordles, check out my article: How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

How to Follow-Up a Resume

Are your job application materials getting little or no response? It may be necessary to improve on follow-up techniques. Instead of just sending in the resume and hoping for a call, use the steps in the article below to follow-up a resume. Check out the resource section for several example follow-up emails

eHow article: How to Follow-Up a Resume

Click below for a visual summary:

For information on wordles, check out my article:How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

How to Cool Down a Hot Mouth

Need a quick remedy to cure the effects of spicy food? Milk is the best answer, but what do you do if milk is not available? Click below for the steps necessary to cool down a hot mouth.

eHow article: How to Cool Down a Hot Mouth

Click below for a visual summary:

For information on wordles, check out my article: How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

How to Make a Healthy Side Dish (Green Beans and Bok Choy)

Healthy vegetable side dishes should accompany every reciple. They are low calorie and filling. Make a healthy side dish with green beans and baby bok choy by clicking the link below

eHow article: How to Make a Healthy Side Dish (Green Beans and Bok Choy)

Click below for a visual summary:

For information on wordles, check out my article: How to Check SEO Using an Infographic Tool

Ehow Endeavor: Week 7

Six weeks and still having a blast. I never thought I would enjoy writing so much. I still wish I was a little
better at it, but I feel like I'm improving each day. My eHow endeavor has been a great creative outlet for me and
just what I needed to stay sane in this crazy world.

Status Summary

45 articles written $15.92 total earnings 5,255 page views 52 recommendations 231 eHow friends

Past: What I Learned

It is possible to make a steady income at Demand Studios. Demand studios owns eHow and I applied to be a writer with them. I wrote two articles and one of them is finally earning (.22 cents!). I will consider writing more for them. But, I also applied to be a title proofer and just got an email requesting that I take a test for the position. I passed and have begun proofing titles for them. I have made about $80.00 in the last 5 days just proofing titles.

Opening another eHow account may be a good idea. I have opened another eHow account to use for experimenting. I write articles there that I don't necessarily want to be apart of my portfolio. It's freeing to have an alternative identify that is completely free to fail. I put my crazier how to articles there and have made 60 cents so far.

Present: Questions I Have

Do Demand Studio articles make more money in the long run? My articles at Demand Studio have started to pick up steam. Will these make more than if I had just written them under my admiller account? Do they have better marketing? Are they posted in more than one place? It might be a good idea to write more for them to see how the articles perform. They have a bonus for writing 10 revenue share articles. I should probably find time to do that to help me answer this question.

How do I balance my time? I still have a lot of old school papers that I can submit to Associated Content. My last one is doing quite well. Should I spend time doing that, or writing eHow articles, or writing for Demand Studios, or writing for Helium? Or, all of the above. There is so much I want to do and I need to prioritize.

Future: My Next Steps

Re-write and re-post. With my low earning or no earning articles, I think I will re-title them and post them at Associated Content or Helium. Since they aren't earning, I don't think I can dilute them.

How to Check for Dehydration

Summer is here and dehydration is a common problem. There are visible clues indicating dehydration. Click the article below to see how you can check for dehydration in yourself or in another person.

eHow article: How to Check for Dehydration

How to Stop Drinking Your Calories

The first step to dieting is to stop drinking your calories. By just eliminating sugary drinks, you can lose weight. Click the article below for steps on how to eliminate liquid calories from your diet.

eHow article: How to Stop Drinking Your Calories

How to Use a Black Light to Check for Scorpions in the Home

If you live in a warmer climate, you probably have encountered a scorpion. Scorpions belong under rocks not in your bedding. Click the article below to find out how to check for scorpions in the home by using a black light.

eHow article: How to Use a Black Light to Check for Scorpions in the Home

eHow Endeavor: Week 6

I met my goal of making 10 dollars through eHow. Now I get to see how the payout system works. So far it's still fun and a great way to stay motivated while continuing my job hunt. I have become a better writer (if only slightly) and have developed a small portfolio of writing samples.

Status Summary

40 articles written $13.27 total earnings 3942 page views 47 recommendations 219 eHow friends

Past: What I Learned

Articles Do Mature. Several zero earning articles have started to make money. I have read that articles need time to mature, and I guess this is true. I guess 2-3 weeks is a good time frame before I go back and start tinkering with an article with zero earnings.

Earnings Fluctuate. It seems that earnings are largely based on ad clicks. Earnings for specific articles will fluctuate as ads for that article change. One of my high earning articles stopped making money and this might be due to the elimination of a backlink somewhere out there or the removal of a specific money making ad on my article's page.

Present: Questions I Have

What Happens When I Change an Article Title? I tried changing the titles of some of my zero earning articles. I'm wondering what effect this has. When I do a Google search, the old title still comes up. Once you pick a title, are you stuck with the SEO consequences of that title forever?

What are the Benefits to Multiple eHow Accounts? I've been following a discussion on the forums about people with multiple eHow accounts. Is it a good idea to develop a niche (recipe articles) and use a different account for multiple niches? Apparently it is okay with eHow to have multiple accounts linked to one paypal account.

Future: My Next Steps

Stay Motivated. Now that I met my first goal ($10 bucks), I have to keep up the motivation. I guess my new goal will be about an article a day until I find a job. On some days I can write 2-3, but on others I become busy with other life things. An average of one a day is within reason.

Explore Other Writing Possibilities. I am having fun at Helium, but it does not appear to be a money maker. I'm going to try writing articles to their marketplace to see if that improves earnings. Demand Studios is just weird. I wrote two articles for them. It took forever for the articles to appear at eHow and they put it with a poor resolution image of me even though I provided them a high resolution jpeg. I'm going to wait to see how those two articles perform before I consider writing more for them. Bukisa seems great, but I'm wondering if it's okay to have basically the same content on Bukisa and eHow. Will it dilute my articles? Does Bukisa mind? (it seems they are changing their standards). I also enjoy Associated Content because they buy my old college papers. They just paid $3 for one of my longer research papers. Bizarre!

How to Estimate Portion Sizes

One cup is about the size of a baseball. Use this and other handy everyday references to estimate proper portion sizes. Click below for full details.

eHow article: How to Estimate Portion Sizes

How to Burn Extra Calories and Exercise that Brownie Away

Did you eat too many calories today? Instead of feeling guilty, use the steps in the article below to find the perfect exercise to burn extra calories.

eHow article: How to Burn Extra Calories and Exercise that Brownie Away

How to Make a Low Calorie Dessert (Smore in a Cup)

Read for more "in a cup" recipes? This one is a low calorie dessert that makes the perfect end to a long day. Click below for the recipe.

eHow article: How to Make a Low Calorie Dessert (Smore in a Cup)

How to Use a Food Label to Calculate Calcium Intake

I use CalorieKing's software as a food journal and calorie counter. I love that it tracks calcium intake. The problem is that food labels list calcium as a percentage instead of in milligrams. There's is a quick way to convert that percentage to milligrams for your food journals. Click below to use a food label to calculate calcium intake.

eHow Article: How to Use a Food Label to Calculate Calcium Intake

How to Make a Healthy Breakfast on the Go (Egg in a Cup)

Eggs are amazing nutrient-rich foods. They make you feel full and give you energy for the day. Click below to make a healthy breakfast on the go -- an egg in a cup!

eHow article: How to Make a Healthy Breakfast On the Go (Egg in a Cup)

eHow Endeavor: Week 5

I thought I would know more about how to Ehow by now, but I still feel like a complete newbie. My public avatar says I am a "novice" but my article by line calls me an "authority." As you can see bugs in the system still abound, but I feel it is an apt description. I find it hilarious that I am at $9.99 right now. At the beginning of the process I said I could call myself a writer at ten bucks because that is when there are tax implications. Not quite there yet!

Status Summary

35 articles written $9.99 total earnings 3,039 article views 45 recommendations 204 eHow friends

Past: What I Learned

eHow Book Advice Helped. The articles I am currently writing seem to be making more than the articles when I first started writing. Now I don't feel so bad shelling out $25 bucks for the eHow Ebook I bought. The SEO advice did seem to help.

Long Article Titles are Okay. With good SEO research, longer titles are okay and may be even better than shorter ones. The long ones really tell what the article is about so you are less likely to get a disgruntled clicker hoping for more than you deliver.

Demand Studios Owns eHow. I am writing for Demand Studios now. Well actually, I wrote two articles for them. They own eHow and put many articles written by their writers up on eHow. I have yet to see my articles appear however.

Present: Questions I Have

What do I do with high viewing articles with no earnings? I understand many of my zero earning articles had poor SEO and limited earning potential. But, there are a few with excellent ads (I even want to click on them), lots of views, and zero earnings. There must be a way to fix these.

Future: My Next Steps

Yahoo Answers and Forums. I keep meaning to browse forums and Yahoo Answers to put some links to my articles up in an attempt to get backlinks, but I have yet to do this. No time! I'll probably be writing this on my to-do list in perpetuity.

How to Eat Healthy at Sweet Tomatoes

Sweet Tomatoes is a popular salad bar also known as Souplantation. Salad bars can be a downfall to dieters. Watch your portion size by following the steps in the guide below.

eHow article: How to Eat Healthy at Sweet Tomatoes