Diversify Without Spreading Yourself Too Thin

Online freelance writers or SEO writers can easily find themselves spread thin trying to write for the many residual and up-front payment sites available. Freelance writing is as much about being a multitasker and time manager as it is about being a skilled writer and researcher. So how do you know where and how to spend your time?

Originally, I thought that I would spend most of my time writing for up-front payment sites like DemandStudios because it seemed like I could make the most money from those sites. After I thought about it though, I realized that they couldn't pay me what they were offering for my articles if they weren't making money off of them. That's when I realized that writing for residual pay had the most potential for long-term money making. That's not to say that I didn't still write an occasional up-front payment article. It's always nice to have immediate money. I just figured that I wasn't going to spend much more time with up-front payment sites than I needed to.

So, I am currently trying to add as much quality content as I can to two residual sites: E-how and Suite101. I think that these two sites have the greatest money-making potential. Suite101 even offers a 10% bonus once you reach 50 articles. I am also slowly sprinkling in articles to sites like Bukisa and Associated Content. I am working hard at producing high-quality articles with optimized keyword usage. By honing the majority of my focus on two specific sites, I am able to be more productive and feel less like I am spreading myself thin.

Am I The Only One Confused By Helium?

So I am trying out Helium for the first time. I have heard very little about it and I'm blindly feeling my way through the site.

Initially it sounded pretty great because you supposedly get up-front payments and residuals on your articles. In fact, I was offered a payment of $5 for my first article.

I guess my problem is that their site is difficult to navigate and I'm taking a while to fully understand what I need to do. For instance, I wrote my first article, but I don't know where to check to know if I was paid the $5. Also, they require writers to not only write a certain amount in a given time, but also to rate a certain amount of articles in a given time. I've never worked for a site that required writers to make ratings. I guess it makes sense, but I am still confused.
I just wish there was a simpler way to check what I needed to do.

Now for what I do like about Helium. The site allows you to write about topics about which other writers are posting articles. If you are reading an article based on a writing prompt, you can click on a little pencil logo and write an article based on the same prompt.

All in all, I still think it's a little early for me to sum up my overall experience with Helium, but I hope that my confusion lessons as I continue to use the site. What are your thoughts about Helium? I would love to hear how others are using the site.