I just finished reading a post from Josh Battelle that addresses a few of the issues I raised in my discussion of Angela Hoy’s assertions regarding content mills and the quality of online writing.

Battelle also notes that much of the responsibility for the Rise of the Mills rests with Google.  As long it’s possible for content based on the right keywords to rank well (regardless of said content’s actual value), the game will continue.  He writes:

Audiences always route around that which they don’t want, and when something better comes along as a navigational interface, we’ll pick it up, and quick. If Google doesn’t figure this out, someone else will, and the cycle will repeat.

I believe that Google will “figure it out” or they’ll die trying.  They have too much at stake to allow users to jump ship for alternative means of information acquisition.  They might not be as fast at arriving at a solution as some of us may like, but you know they’re gonna give it the ol’ college try.

If they don’t…

Well, let me put it this way…

I found Battelle’s post via Topsy, one of the many non-Google search tools with a more folksonomic base that I find myself using with greater frequency.

The days of the old school, ambitious human-edited directories are long gone–the volume of content production is simply far too great to go back to those days.  Those of us who remember that era will tell you that it didn’t work all that well, anyway.  Plus, as Battelle notes, our expectations with respect to search are far greater than they were back when we were pleasantly surprised to find any relevant material on our dial-up external modems.

At the same time, we’re discovering that even the best algorithms can’t serve as a replacement for human judgment and assessment.

In the long run, this state of affairs will undoubtedly undermine the content mill model.  It’s going to have an impact on the value of low-grade SEO content, too (although its story will be slightly different, I’m guessing).

Unless you believe that people will continue to butt their heads against walls of lousy search results for an extended period, you must assume that some of these strategies based on sheer content mass and the long tail of search are going to eventually sputter.

What does that mean to writers who are currently making the bulk of their money from content mill contributions?  I have a few ideas…

First, don’t assume that you have long-term buyers for your work.  Some of the mills will undoubtedly adapt to retain their profitability, but others will fold.  Those that do adapt will be working from a different model. Feel free to make your money while the marketplace is still gung-ho for quickie articles–just don’t assume you’ll be making your house payment that way in a few years.

Second, get better at what you do.  You may be able to churn and burn passable work that will earn you a solid per hour equivalent right now, but there’s reason to doubt that particular skill set alone will translate into long-term viability.  At some point, the bar will go up and you need to be ready to make the leap when that happens.  Quality is a subjective concept, but I think we all know that there’s a difference between the “How to Make a Tin Kitchen Sink Backsplash” article for your a mill and the one you’d write for a leading home improvement site.  What’s “good enough” for one, won’t work for the other.

Third, I’d consider a one-two punch.  One, write material that exceeds the mills’ minimum requirements and expectations.  Two, maintain rights to the work.  A properly leveraged article submitted to multiple mills/sites that don’t require exclusivity and that pay based on residuals can earn as much, if not more, than a submission that requires you to relinquish all rights.

That approach allows you to hold onto good work when the smoke clears after a mill collapse.  And, if I’m wrong and we’re still years and years away from The Fall, you’re still going to be earning more simply because the higher quality of work will naturally tend to garner more attention in the interim.

Fourth, weave a few additional baskets.  Find other means by which you can turn your love and skill for writing into regular bank deposits.  That may involve chiseling a space for yourself in more traditional markets that have greater long-term viability.  It might mean developing a niche expertise that will allow you to prosper based on your unique combination of knowledge and writing skills.  It could mean finding alternative ways by which to publish and monetize your own work online, bypassing the mills and creating a profitable quality outpost of your own.

The nice thing about the Internet is the fact that there are so many different ways to earn and so many opportunities for those willing to combine creativity, skill, research, experimentation and initiative.

I’m not saying anyone who enjoys or who makes good money doing millwork should immediately ditch all of it any more than I’d say that to a traditional newspaper columnist who’s still drawing a paycheck.  Make hay while the sun shines, right?

The writer on the daily’s city beat and the millworker who churns out 400-word long-tail masterpieces should both be aware that the times are a-changin’, though.  It makes sense to understand and to be prepared for those changes while one still has the time to do so.