Triond Online Publisher Review: Pros and Cons

A review of the popular online publisher Triond, including general pros and cons, and a detailed explanation of how the site works.

Pros:

• Anyone can join Triond and start publishing immediately.
• Triond writers can choose which topics they prefer to write about.
• The easy-to-use interface and integrated spell-check system, along with integral creative commons image finder, and keyword suggestions, make it perfect for those new to online publishing.
• Payment is monthly via PayPal, and the pay-out level at Triond is extremely low, at just $0.50.
• Triond has a members-only forum, where writers can get feedback and advice from other authors.

Cons:

• Anyone can join Triond and start publishing immediately!
• The hugely varying rates paid for articles posted on different sites are not at all transparent.
• Triond earnings are generally extremely low.
• The system suffers many glitches, and republishing an article is not possible, even if published on a non-functioning site.
• Plagiarism often goes unnoticed, or those guilty are treated differently (some are banned, whilst others are not...).
• Articles with many spelling or grammatical errors are commonplace at Triond, as are articles providing dangerous advice.
• Many Triond satellite sites now have a bad reputation with the most popular social bookmarking sites.
• The Triond forum isn't moderated, and consequently members often complain (among themselves) of being harassed or abused by other members.
• The support system often leaves questions and queries unanswered, despite its ironic name, 'Get Satisfaction.'

Triond is an Internet publishing company, publishing articles & other media produced by its members, on various topic-specific satellite sites. Triond members are free to write about any topic they choose, providing they follow publishing guidelines set out in the Triond ToS. Triond places numerous adverts on the published media, sharing any advertising revenue generated with the authors.

The most common form of media published by Triond members is informative articles, but Triond also permits the publication of poetry and creative writing, photographs and other images, music (in the form of Mp3s) and film. Media is published on one of Triond's many satellite sites. The site is determined by an automated, electronic process, based on the writer's category choice at the time of submission, keywords entered as tags, and general quality of content. This means articles may not end up on the website the writer intended.

The numerous satellite sites pay out at grossly different rates, so earnings can vary greatly, depending upon where articles are published. Triond supplies no information regarding which site pays the best rates, so - other than asking other Triond members for their opinions (and hoping they are honest in their responses!) - the only way to accurately determine this is through trial and error. This lack of transparency may be interpreted as unethical; it's certainly questionable.

Triond writers are paid monthly by PayPal or cheque, in US dollars. The minimum payout levels are $0.50 and $50 respectively, meaning those choosing PayPal payments should be paid each and every month. Triond has also enabled its members to integrate their Adsense accounts, thereby earning through page impressions and ad-clicks (though the rate for page impressions is lowered for Adsense users). Adsense integration provoked mixed reactions among members, with contradictory reports regarding financial benefit, and at least one case where a Triond member was banned by Adsense, after fellow Triond members (who hadn't read Google's ToS) clicked repeatedly on her adverts.

Triond does incredibly little to promote published media, leaving the author or creator to do all the hard work. For those new to online marketing, or without friends who use popular social book-marking sites, making money on Triond takes considerable networking effort, regular article submission, and a good understanding of SEO. Unless articles are submitted to sites like Stumbleupon, Reddit, Digg, etc. (preferably by someone other than the author), or considerable networking is done within the Triond community, they are unlikely to earn more than a dollar or so in the first year.

Many of the articles published by Triond are littered with spelling and grammatical errors; others offer disturbing or illegal advice. Articles are not read by a human prior to publication, so offensive and poorly-written articles regularly slip through the net. It's due to this that many Triond satellite sites now have a bad reputation with popular social bookmarking sites - some of which are rumoured to have blocked Triond links with a spam-filter. The consequences of such action could be dire for Triond writers, and even for Triond itself.

The best-loved Triond feature is the interface, which is easy to navigate and simple in design, unlike many other online publisher's websites. The text editor provides a spell-check, and there's also an image-finding facility. This makes life far easier for authors, who now needn't waste precious time searching for relevant, non-copyrighted images on the net. Triond usually publishes articles within around 24 hours, depending on which site they appear on, and whether there are any errors detected.  Triond earnings are updated twice daily, although with a delay of around 24-48 hours before new earnings are added, and views, comments, and likes are updated immediately.

Triond now offers a referral scheme, giving members the opportunity to increase earnings by referring friends and family, and earning 10% commission on any revenue they generate. Triond also provides an html widget, displaying members' most recent articles. These widgets can be added to websites, Facebook pages or blogs, potentially generating an increase views and earnings.

Summary:

If you're new to freelance writing online and hoping to improve your written English and/or gain publishing experience, or are writing purely as a hobby, Triond isn't the worst online publisher around. However, there are far better. On the other hand, if you're hoping freelance writing will earn you a living (or even supplement one) you will do far better to publish via another company, preferably with up-front payments instead of residual.