Help:Drawing attention to new pages

The best articles on Wikipedia are worked on by multiple editors. It is to the benefit of yourself and all others if others are able to find and work on the articles you create. When you create a new page, it is very likely it'll go unnoticed at first. Wikipedia has millions of articles, and any given article may be a needle in a haystack, particularly if it refers to a topic that is not known to many. Since a good article usually has not been worked on solely by one person, but is a collaboration of many editors giving it their very best, it is in your best interest that you try to enable others to be aware of the new article's existence.

Why should the article I created get noticed?

There are a number of good reasons why you would want a new article you create to get noticed by others. These include:

1. Sharing your knowledge: The new article you create has some useful information, and you want others around the world to learn what you know.
2. Cleanup: No one is perfect, and all of us make errors from time to time in typing, spelling, grammar, and other aspects of writing style. Even the best editors and proofreaders may let a few mistakes slip through the cracks. The quality of an article improves in direct proportion to the number of people who read it.
3. Improvement by others: You may have created a short article, even a stub, on a topic that you know little about, and would like to know more. By bringing the article into existence, you open the door for others with greater expertise in the topic to add their knowledge, making it more useful for all readers.

There are some other reasons why you may feel motivated to get the page you created noticed, but even so, these are not always the best:

1. Showing off your work: Your writing on Wikipedia may feel like your crown jewel that you want others to see, and you may pride yourself in showing off your writing skills, your hard work, and knowledge. You may see it as something you can share with other Wikipedians, your family, your friends, someone you want to date, your employer, or an elected official. Your contributions are very much appreciated, and anything you do to better Wikipedia will improve your standing. But no matter what you write, you do not "own" your work. The page you create does not belong to you, and you have no more power over it than any other Wikipedian. You are merely the one who had the idea for it, who decided to start it. But this does not make you any greater than anyone else who has made useful contributions toward the page. The very best contributions come from idealistic editors whose goal is to improve the encyclopedia rather than the promotion of themselves.
2. Promoting your interests: Obviously, if you created a page, you must have some interest in its topic. Most likely, the topic is perfectly legitimate in an encyclopedia. But keep in mind, it must be written from a neutral point of view and not advocate for a cause. Also, Wikipedia is not an advertising space, and any blatant spam will be speedy deleted upon discovery.

How do I get others to notice the page I just created?

Here are some tips to enable an article to get noticed:

1. Place it in some categories: Attempt to determine at least several categories where the page may fit. First, identify one or more parent categories. Then, see if the parent categories contain any subcategories that are more appropriate. Only assign the article to the parent category if there are no subcategories that are more appropriate for the page. Or you may wish to create a new subcategory if you find many other articles exist that may fit into one. This will make the article visible to those viewing the same category. (see WikiProject Categories)
2. Provide internal links to the article from other pages: Attempt to identify other articles that contain the title of the new article referring to that exact topic, or some description in other words referring to the same topic. On those other pages, change the plain text to a link to the new article. If the new article was split from another, larger article, or if another article has a section summarizing the content of your article, you may want to add the template {{main}} at the beginning of the section containing the summary. Otherwise, you can find relevant articles by entering the article's title in quotes into a search query (not all results will be worth linking, and in some, the term may have a different meaning), looking at other articles in common categories, or just using common sense. If you cannot find any other places to link, you can add the article's name to a "see also" list in one or more articles on a related topic. (see WikiProject Orphanage)
3. Provide links within the new article: Internally link words or terms on the page itself to other Wikipedia articles. This way, anyone clicking on "What links here" from that page will learn about the new article. Remember, link only in moderation; do not link unnecessary terms, even if they will link to another article. (see WikiProject Wikify)
4. Add article to a navbox: Many templates called "navboxes" exist that list all or many of the articles within a particular topic, and are displayed on all pages they list. You may be able to identify a navbox where the new article will fit, and add it to the listings in the navbox. This will instantly link a large number of pages to the new article, since navboxes often contain dozens of articles. You will also want to add that navbox to the newly created page. If no such navbox exists, and you can identify a series of article that can fit together in one, you may create a new navbox, but before doing so, you should familiarize yourself with how articles can be presented together in one. (see Help:Template)
5. Inform others: As you edit, you may get to "know" other editors who have made major contributions to one or more of the same articles you have (though you may not know their actual identities). If you become aware of someone who you think may have an interest in helping to build the new page, you may send them a friendly message informing them you have just created a new article to their interest. Of course, it is up to each individual if they want to help. (see Wikipedians)

In addition, you may be able to get the following help without doing anything:

1. New page patrol: All newly created pages get checked by a new page patroller within minutes of their initial creation. The new page patroller may or may not be interested in making any further improvements.
2. Red links: Some pages may already contain existing red links to the title. Click on "What links here." You should make sure that the same term in those articles has the meaning intended by your creation, or else you should change or remove those links.
3. Search engines: Soon after a page is created, it is very likely it'll appear on many search engines, including Google, so when the term is entered into a search query, it'll appear in the results, often as one of the first, sometimes the first hit. Anyone using a search engine to look up information on the topic, or sometimes an unrelated topic with some of the same words, will find a weblink to the page.

Remember:

1. Use good judgment: Make intelligent decisions on what to link, and don't overdo it!
2. Be patient! With all that you do, it may take a long time before the article is found by those who can improve it.

See also

• Building the web
• Orphaned pages
• Page stats
• Starting an article
• Your first article

External links

• View amount of traffic on any Wikipedia page