ASK AN AMBASSADOR: You're Asked Twice, Is This Original Content?
Great post by BLiz about using original content. Duplicate (or worse, plagiarized) content hurts the entire platform, so it's important to report it.
The ActiveRain staff does a great job addressing this when it's brought to their attention. This is a blog post everyone can benefit from, but especially newcomers to the rain.
ASK AN AMBASSADOR: You're Asked Twice, Is This Original Content?
One of the surest ways to earn the disdain of your fellow Rainers is to get branded with the scarlet P (Plagiarist). It's a big sin and to those that bust their brains and fingers writing original content week after week, well let's just say "irritated" under describes the emotions involved.
Now if you fall in love with something you read here and say "Self, my local readers will LOVE this!", ActiveRain has provided a way for you to do so. It's called Reblogging. At the bottom of the original post is a place labeled REBLOG. Click that, type in your intro, submit and you're in green pastures. The original author gets credit, you get to share, and no one looks at you sideways thinking you're a word thief. This is all assuming the blogger has authorized reblogging (you can't reblog a Members Only post for instance).
On the other hand if you just cut and paste into your ActiveRain blog OR some other website of yours, that's not going to fly UNLESS you've gotten permission from the author AND proper attribution is provided (e.g. a link back to the original post for instance). And you'd be surprised at how often folks get busted for that (programs like Copyscape are on the hunt for lifted words).
Now there's another category that gets folks into trouble here and that's content they've paid for (e.g. Keeping Current Matters aka KCM). You can pay for the right to use material on your sites, but here's the thing, when you see several Rainers post the exact same title, graphics and words and there's no attribution, that shoots up some red flares! It would be different if the source is attributed and no points claimed, but that's not the way it's always done (and you KNOW how Rainers are about their points!!).
So as you're getting ready to submit your post, don't go into autopilot. READ what you're checking and clicking. ActiveRain gives you TWO chances to correct yourself.
First at the bottom of the post (note what comes up if you click the "?" icon:
Then again when you hit Submit, one more chance to correct yourself if you're posting something that is not original content:
Bottom line, don't let chasing points get you in big trouble with ActiveRain and your peers (or Getty or whoever produced the original content or photo). What ActiveRain doesn't need is Google and the Bots thinking we're mass producers of duplicate content. Sure, we write about similar topics often enough, but we all do it in our own ORIGINAL voice. That's good for AR. Plagiarism and duplicate content, not so good.
And if you find plagiarized content, you're asked to email Support@ActiveRain.com and include a link to the AR post and a link to the original content. You SHOULD see post go POOF or get the proper attribution added.
Questions? Just Ask An Ambassador!
Liz and Bill aka BLiz
REALTORS(S) Serving Warren County Ohio & Adjacent Areas
The Liz Spear Team of RE/MAX Elite
Elizabeth & William Spear
Ask for us by name if you visit the office!Two locations: Lebanon & Mason, OH
Direct: 513-520-5305
Direct #2: 513-265-3004
Fax: 866-302-8418
MailTo: LizSpear@Go-Concepts.com
Our Website: www.LizTour.com
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