The New Yahoo! Contributor Network and Reaching Clout 10

My Yahoo! Contributor Profile

So it's been a whirlwind of a weekend. 

First, AC contributors knew that AC would be going down for maintenance Sunday evening.  We were told there would be a big change.  So I hung around Facebook between 8 and 9pm last night waiting for the word from fellow contributors while also checking Associated Content's site for any sign that we were kicking again.  Not that I was waiting to publish anything.  I just wanted to know what was going on.  Pretty soon, Marie Anne St. Jean wrote, "AC is up!" and it was on from there! 

My first stop was at the new Associated Content homepage.  I was blown away. I really like the new front page (and hope at some point, I can make it on there).  

Now, of course, there's gonna be a few glitchy parts here and there, for example, payment reports are a bit screwed up.  They are still showing 0 for the month and I have a notice of 4 pending payments when I'm not owed anything right now.  So definitely there's some adjustments to be worked out but all in all, I think this is a fantastic change.

And the best part is that contributors are now being offered performance pay on Yahoo! sites.  Some of our previous Yahoo! published content have shown up in our accounts with back pay attached; even though we had a legal agreement that we wouldn't be paid page views for those pieces.  This, in my opinion, was the step that I talked about in previous posts when Yahoo! was publishing our DO content.

At this point, I'm certain the forum is rife with questions and discussions of the new Yahoo! Contributor Network.  I, personally, am avoiding the forum for now until I've caught up with work today because I know it will be a long read that will probably take some time to sift through.

On that note, if there is anything substantial to add after-the-fact, I will post at a later date.  So far it looks great and the opportunities are exciting.  I'd also like to direct your attention to contributor Lyn Lomasi's blog where she provides some good information: Associated Content and Yahoo! Reveal Yahoo! Contributor Network.

Great job, AC and Yahoo! team!

And on to a second note...

I reached Clout 10 this weekend!

I wasn't really expecting this for another couple of weeks.  Getting to Clout 10 was slow going.  My little percentage bar on my account page had been leisurely inching along.  The last I looked, I was sitting at 95% and then suddenly, I had almost 10,000 page views in a span of two days!  So I've topped out on AC performance pay.  My next milestone will be the half million page view mark.  Hopefully, it won't take me but a few months to reach it.

Enjoy the new AC and keep checking back here for any additional info when I come across it.  As always, if you have a question, feel free to ask.  If I don't know the answer, I'll find someone who does.

Where is my account number for my Associated Content W-9?

When you make enough money to finally be responsible for the taxes from your Associated Content income (hurray?), you'll get an email that states you'll receive no more payments until you turn in a W-9.

In the email, it states that you can fax or mail it, but you can also print it, fill it out, scan it and attach it in an email.

You'll also notice at the bottom of the email that you must put in your account number.  Community Guide Marie Anne St. Jean often tells contributors to "click to your profile page, then look at the number just before your name in the URL".  This is your account number.  There is a space at the end of the first section of the W-9 where the account number can go.

Why does AC require them?

I have no clue.  According to knowledgeable contributor (and tax mogul) Angie Mohr, no non-IRS numbers should be going on a W-9.

I did not know this when I submitted my W-9 and after consulting Angie about it, I simply submitted my W-9 without one.  I included a note in the email that I had no clue what it was for or where to find it as my first email to them asking where to find it went unanswered.  I never got an email stating whether that was okay or not but I started getting payments again so apparently they accepted it. 

It's unclear why AC is requiring this number but so far, using Marie Anne's advice hasn't produced any further questions on the matter.