Qondio Or Qassia, They Both Suck
It seems that this is the week for rants, the first two belonged to my Mate Mitch with his ‘My Gripe With Helium‘ and then ‘Done With Demand Studios Also; The Gripe‘. I figured the time was ripe for my own rant and so I came up with ‘Keyword Abusers Force Comment Policy Change .’
After standing back and looking at my little rant I decided it was a little lame and not wanting to be outdone by ‘Mitch the Man’ I decided I had to do better. That was when I remembered Qondio, or Qassia, as it was known there. Don’t ask me why they changed the name as I thought they were both pretty lame, but then there are probably some that would say the same of WassupBlog. Anyway I digress, and I’m not going to tell you why I joined in the first place. This is a rant remember, so I ain’t about to build it up.
The other day I was going to add an article, or intel as they are wont to call it when I was presented with the following.
Qondio only accepts material that has never before been published anywhere else on the web.All content submitted to Qondio must be previously unpublished material. This means that you must create from scratch any content you contribute.
You may NOT add content that you previously posted on your blog, website, or any other site. Material is considered to have been “published” if it appeared anywhere on the web, irrespective of whether it appeared on a high-profile site or a brand-new blog which barely gets traffic.
You may republish the content elsewhere, but only AFTER it has been screened and published on Qondio. The contributing user may republish intel he/she submitted to Qondio on other sites (such as the user’s blog, website, or a third-party site), but only after the screening process by a quorum of 7 users has been COMPLETED and the content has been published on Qondio.
This is exactly as it was printed on their site and it was displayed after clicking the add intel button. They obviously changed a lot more than just their name. I was shocked. They actually thought that I was going to give them first shot at one of my articles. They have got to be kidding. Unless someone pays me for an article it ain’t going to be posted anywhere except on one of my blogs.
So after reading that I decided I wanted nothing more to do with them and so I looked for a way to delete my account. Like Mitch it was nowhere to be found. My only option was to delete all the articles I had already posted there. Actually there is one other option.
Important!Submitting previously published content to Qondio will result in the immediate termination of your account and forefeiture of all your accumulated credit, without notice and without warning. Second-hand content can be detected very easily even if the content has been edited to make it appear original, using a technology called shingling. Offending users will banned from Qondio for life, without warning and without question. Your account will be closed, your websites and your intel deleted, and all your information will be put on a blacklist. We have already banned more than 300 users for disregarding this limitation.
So you see there is a way out, and I can join the other 300 members who’ve found this scapegoat.
Oh, one more thing, seeing as how Qondio see themselves as being a top notch professional site, how exactly do you spell forfeiture?
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I think I have a membership with them, but didn’t ‘get it’ and never did anything with it. Now I’m glad I didn’t bother too much with it.
I do have a question. I signed up with Chitika and it says the ads will only show to search traffic. When I do a test search it shows, but then any time I return to my site it still shows [even without a search], do you know anything about this? I deactivated it for now since I didn’t want to annoy my few visitors.
[testing the waters with this KeywordLuv thing]
Anne@AnneOnLife´s last blog ..Does Your Dog Do This?
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Sire Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Anne it does depend on how you set it up. Did you select the ‘Collapse into nothing’ option when setting it up. If you did it shouldn’t show at all to you unless you type the following at the end of your url #chitikatest=mortgage
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Anne from AnneOnLife Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I reactivated chitika and I think it’s functioning properly now. I’ll mess around with it more next month when I have more time for such ventures.
Anne@AnneOnLife´s last blog ..~ Global Influence Holiday Guide ~
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Sire Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
No worries Anne, I’m glad it seems to be working for you now.
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Thanks for the information. I’d never even heard of them, but you can bet that after this I won’t be ringing them up.
Heather Kephart´s last blog ..What is my purpose?
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Sire Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
Hey, don’t get me wrong, they probably still have a lot of members who are happy to sell themselves short, I’m just refuse to be one of them.
The purpose of this post is to warn people of the requirements of submitting ‘intel’ so they can make more of an informed decision before signing up.
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Nice rant Sire and there’s nothing wrong with going at a rant a little soft sometimes, it can be relaxing.
As for this company I never heard of them and it’s pretty safe to say they are out of their damn minds if they think I am going to write content for them.
Extreme John@Extreme John Blogs and Business´s last blog ..Pictures of Girls in Limos
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Sire Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 4:51 pm
I couldn’t believe it when I say that new addition of theirs John and I still don’t believe that there are people who would give them first shot at their articles. Unless that’s the only avenue they have for writing and if it is, what shell are they writing from?
All I can say is get a blot guys.
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Now there’s a nicely written rant, Sire. The two places I ranted about were exactly that, and to tell the truth, the topics weren’t something that I’d put on my blog in the first place. That, plus at least on one of them I got paid twice a month, if they approved it.
Still, these sites don’t work for everyone, as you know, so I’m with you in that regard. My disenchantment for them has started to grow, but there has to be other places where one can find good writing assignments and get paid nicely for them.
Mitch´s last blog ..My 13 Favorite Singers
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Sire Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
There must be, and I’m still looking. It would be great if someone stumbled across our blog and offered a paid spot for adding content to their site. That could be a sweet deal.
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Mitch Reply:
November 20th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Oh man, that would be wonderful, wouldn’t it? Hey, could always happen, eh?
Mitch´s last blog ..A Political Health Care Rant
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James Moralde Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 3:51 am
Hey, in case you do find one, accidentally or otherwise, please share them out. :) I’ve just started looking into this avenue for earning although I’ve never really committed myself into it yet. Like the others here, I’ve not heard of Qondio before but thanks to this post, I have now, and know not to go to them should I finally give a try into the writing business.
James Moralde´s last blog ..Track Cell Phone
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Sire Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 4:51 am
Sure we will James, and I reckon you will do the same if you come across one before we do.
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Mitch Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 9:36 am
We’ll have to think about it, James. Could be giving away classified information.
Mitch´s last blog ..34 Questions
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I did join Qondio way back when it was still Qassia and also when they did not have all these stupid new rules about submitting articles. I have submitted a few but not within the new context they are now asking. They have however changed the monetization feature on their site which appear to be interesting (although not compelling enough) as they allow you now to place AdSense ads, any affiliate links you want, etc and all earnings are yours to keep 100%. I have stopped using Qondio (it does suck) but decided to maintain my account along with other less important articles as my pages do generate a little bit of traffic and occasionally get some clicks on ads.
DiTesco´s last blog ..Make Money With Google – Increase Your Earning Potential With Ad Planner
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Sire Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 6:03 am
I was actually so pissed off I deleted all my articles. Perhaps a rash decision, but I reckon I can do without their help as far as traffic is concerned.
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DiTesco Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 6:12 pm
Can’t blame you for taking that decision (their loss, hehe) and I concur about your traffic, don’t need them. As I said, I get a bit and I was not accurate about that. I mean a bit like 5 visits per month. Don’t you just love those stats, lol
DiTesco´s last blog ..Blog Engage: A Blogging Community That Pays Off
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Sire Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 7:00 pm
That many? Gee, maybe I should put those articles back
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Well shoot, I missed my chance at Qassia. I mean I got invites long ago & was to busy to mess with it. Now, I can’t. If I joined now, it would be like a betrayal of my favorite Aussie.
Because I hold my friendship to you, Sire, above the need for a possible 5 clicks a month. I will take one for the team & not even join Qassia. Yes, I know that is a HUGE giving on my part but, that’s just how I am.
So take that you piddly site that pissed of my friend.
Ok, I gotta pop over to see what Mitch is ranting about.
Lord knows I love a good rant.
Sheryl @Internet Marketers Guild´s last blog ..NORAD Santa Tracker for 2009
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Sire Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Sheryl I so love your comments that I will now and forever overlook the fact that you’ve used three instead of two keywords in your url. That plus the fact I know I will never hear the end of it if I played around with it
Now you go on over and give Mitch some shit.
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Sheryl from Marketers Guild Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 8:11 pm
ROFLMAO!!!
I just thought of that & came back to leave you a BIG – Sorry, I am a spammer.
Dang, you were to fast!
Sheryl @Marketers Guild´s last blog ..Bookmarking for Pictures
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Sire Reply:
November 21st, 2009 at 8:19 pm
Sounds like I could make a poem out of that, :Sheryl The Spammer:
Seriously Cheryl, you have permission to use all three.
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Well now I know where those strange emsils were coming from. I didn’t know odf the name change. lol
Why exactly would one care where their article is printed FIRST…it still has your name on it, don’t it? Aren’t most good article directories the same way?
Dennis Edell´s last blog ..How Do You Feel About A Static Homepage On A Blog?
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Sire Reply:
November 22nd, 2009 at 11:50 pm
Well Dennis, if it didn’t make any difference where it was printed first, why are they stipulating they will only accept articles that haven’t been submitted anywhere else.
As to ‘Aren’t most good article directories the same way?’ Well if that’s the case, they can get stuffed too. If I come up with content that I think is pretty good, my readers are going to be the first to see it.
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Dennis Edell Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 10:10 am
It’s my understanding that the SE’s usually pick up the oldest version, so they obviously want to be the ones grabbed. Now I know we all do, but as long as your name/links are there, I don’t see the biggie…just me?
As for your readers seeing it, this is the same problem most have with guest blogging (me included), but as with guest blogging, you can always just post a post pointing readers to the post (article).
I almost swallowed my tongue on that one. lol. Anyway, good topic.
Dennis Edell´s last blog ..How Do You Feel About A Static Homepage On A Blog?
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Sire Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
But that is exactly my point, it does make a difference and why should I let them have have all the glory, when I’m the one that put all the work into it.
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I have never written for Q__, their policy is similar to that of triond.com, But I like triond because you could earn much more if you happen to land on their front page searches.
What I do is to publish it first at triond, and then after a month , transfer it to associated content. That way I can earn twice from my article.
Thanks for sounding off the alarm, at least I am forewarned about that site. And you’re right about the spelling of forfeiture…he he he…
Jena Isle´s last blog ..Serendipity and Writing to Exhale
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Sire Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 1:22 am
I knew I was right about forfeiture…..heck, I had to be right sooner or later.
Could you imagine if every site was like the dreaded ‘Q’? It would mean that you would have to write a brand new article for every site.
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They want first publishing rights over something they are not paying you for? That’s crazy. If you write reprint articles you might check out cybermediazone.com
Rose´s last blog ..Bizarre – Ugly Shoes
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Sire Reply:
November 24th, 2009 at 1:24 am
It certainly is crazy Rose, and I’ll check cybermediazone.com out. Thanks
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LOls.. I dont really believe that much in their algorithm. I remembered when Qassia was just getting started they were like offering people “Qassia dollars” w/c in real life is 0 value
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Sire Reply:
November 25th, 2009 at 8:20 am
Yeah, I had my fair share of Quassia dollars, and I am quite happy to leave them behind, because like you said, they were of no real value.
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I would like to start off by saying, thank you for this post. There have been very few posts critical of Qassia/Qondio – as far as I know only two, ever since our inception, including this one.
A critical posts helps us realize what we could be doing better.
In this case, your post is invaluable because it alerts us to the fact that we need to be doing a much better job communicating about the types of content we are encouraging users to add.
We most definitely would NOT want first shot at one of your articles. That would be presumptious.
Since inception, Qondio has been about enabling the addition of content that otherwise would not have been added to the web.
That’s why we call it intel – or intelligence.
Instead of posting one of your articles, post a snippet of info about a restaurant near your house. Or the school you send your kids too. Or a business in your neighborhood. Or a doctor you visited recently.
You wouldn’t post an article about a good dish to order at your local restaurant, since that wouldn’t be in keeping with the theme of your blog (I assume). But you could post that on Qondio. You can post ANY kind of info on Qondio – and we are looking ESPECIALLY for stuff that isn’t related in any way to your website. Content that would otherwise go to waste.
If you happen to visit a place, or come across a tidbit of info others might potentially find useful, post it to Qondio.
For more info about intel, please take a look at this page:
http://admin.qondio.com/about-intel
Allow me to also explain why we want only fresh, virgin content. We discovered (the hard way) that folks are quick to post regurgitated content already found on hundreds of other sites, rather than post something original and fresh. Regurgitated content doesn’t help our site stand out on the web, so it doesn’t do much good in providing the contributor with a good backlink.
Our site is now gradually becoming recognized by the leading search engine as a sterling source of original content, and that recognition is reflected in the serps. Despite being a new domain with relatively few backlinks, Qondio pages regularly show up in the top 10 search results. Our focus on improving content quality at the expense of quantity has enhanced traffic quality, too, improving revenue numbers for our contributors.
Again, thank you for your post, and thank you for allowing me to post this comment. Rest assured we will be working to communicate better with our contributors to minimize similar misunderstandings in future.
Aaron, of the Qondio Development Team
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Sire Reply:
November 27th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Thanks for your comment, but you must agree that the wording you used could easily be misunderstood.
I’m sure there are a lot of people that love to post little snippets, but personally I would rather save that for twitter.
I much prefer to deal with Helium as not only am I allowed to post my articles, they actually earn me money that I can use.
Once again, thanks for your comment, I’m sure my readers will find it of interest.
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I can understand both viewpoints, yours that prime content should first go to prime sites and Aaron from Qondio that they want to stay in / get into Google’s good books and search results and therefor need good, unique content. The reason I never wrote much for Qondio is that Google “doesn’t like them” imho when it comes to SERPs. Take for example Hubpages, Infobarrel or even Squidoo, their content turns up frequently in the first pages of Googles search results, never seen an “intel” there. Also when I look up backlinks to my sites, I can’t remember seeing an intel as a source. So, I concentrate on other places, but I still keep my account, you never know for what you need it one day! SY
hospitalera@oes tsetnoc´s last blog ..Time is money, don’t waste it!
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Sire Reply:
November 28th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
Oh I understand their reasoning, I’m just not willing to give them first shot at my articles.
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