The rating process is critical to Helium’s success. In fact, without it our site could be comparable to everything else you see on the Internet — a fend-for-yourself, link-here, link-there, random-information overload. Yuck.

Fortunately, our rating process results in valuable and trusted information. Life is short, after all. Why not find the best-of-the-best at first glance?

If you’re a great writer, you don’t belong in the slush pile with everybody. You belong above the chaos, in our top spots. Where articles fall in rating depends entirely on the Helium community — that is, you. Vigorous and attentive efforts to rate often and well help the site as a whole. And you can even earn a bonus if you’re a five-star rater. Here’s how.

How rating works

Through the Helium rating process, writers are able to impact the site with a democratic vote expressed as “peer review.” All raters contribute their intelligence and wisdom to create the valuable resource that is Helium.

Through rating, articles are sorted and ranked. The best articles rise to the top of the rankings. In turn, the not-so-pretty articles sink to the bottom. A new article entering the ratings under an existing title enters in the middle and, through rating, works its way up or down, depending on its quality and value. Remember, you can rate only if you’ve written for Helium.

To rate an article:

• Click “Rate” in the red horizontal navigation bar.
• Notice two articles ready for battle.

• Find the article title written in bold above the windows.
• Remember, there are many different qualities to base your rating on, from grammar and punctuation to article structure and accuracy. Rate objectively, based on the quality of the writing and how informative the article is for its topic. Try not to be closed-minded by rating articles based on your personal opinion or beliefs. If you cannot be unbiased or the subject matter does not interest you, use the “Skip” function.
• Put your editor face on: Express the degree by which you believe one article is better than the other. The choices are Slightly more, More, and By far.

Rating rules and features:

• Only registered Helium writers who have written at least one article may rate article pairs.
• A rater will never rate his or her own article.
• Raters should rate others’ articles as they would have others rate their own articles.
• Bored with a topic? There’s a Skip feature that allows you to skip that title. Find the Skip link above the Submit button. You are allowed 10 skips per session.
• Articles are anonymous. There should be no knowledge of the author in the rating process.
• Writing in different channels enables you to rate more varied titles. Remember, you can rate only in channels that you’ve written in.

How to rate Debate articles
For the most part, rating a Debate article is the same as rating a knowledge article. The exception: You must vote on one side of the Debate before you can rate it. Oh, and once you vote, you will be able to rate/write only on the side you voted for. You may always skip the vote and move on to other titles. This will not count as a skip in your skip rating counter.

How to rate Leapfrog articles
Rating Leapfrog articles is different from rating Debate or knowledge articles. The primary difference is that you are rating two articles by the same author. The two articles are competing for the same title: One is the existing article and the other is the author’s attempt to replace the existing article with an improved article.

In some cases, these two articles will appear to be identical. The author is probably making minor edits. In such cases, the best approach is to rate with the “Same” button. In Leapfrogs, a tie goes to the new article. Why this approach? If a writer is going to take the initiative to submit difficult-to-detect edits, he wouldn’t go to the trouble if the changes weren’t warranted.

Understanding how you’ve been rated

When you submit an article, it lands in the 50th percentile. Why? It wouldn’t be fair to place your new article either at the top or the bottom, but it has to start somewhere. This way, once it is rated, it will rise or fall according to its quality level.

The ranking of articles is based on the idea that the #1 article is the best in its topic. However, this process can be slow. It takes a multitude of ratings, pairing your article against others, to reach its correct rank. As more articles enter an existing topic, ranking can obviously change. Be patient.

The #1 article is typically read the most. In turn, it earns the most. Aim high.

The use of flagging in rating

At the bottom of the rating screen, you’ll find “Flag this article” for each piece presented. When you click this link, you land on a page that allows you to choose the reason you flagged the article. You may also add a comment on this page.

If you do flag an article during ratings, remember to rate it as well! After you flag an article during the rating process, you will be returned to the ratings page where the same pair of articles will be waiting patiently for you to determine their fate. You have the power to send poorly written and inappropriate articles to the bottom of the ranks, where they belong. Use it!

The primary flagging options are as follows:

Serious abuses (flag away!):

• Plagiarism: Shame, shame. Someone has copied the text of another writer and submitted it as his own work.
• Adult: Adult: Cover your eyes. The article contains adult content that is inappropriate for teens and young adults.
• Profane: Does someone need a bar of soap? The article contains curse words and obscene language.
• Illegal: Cuff ‘em. The article discusses illegal activities or products.

Content issues:

• Off topic: Huh? For articles that don’t relate to the title — at all.
• Self Promotion: A member is identifying or promoting themselves, a product or website of theirs or something with which they are affiliated.
• Other: An issue that is unrelated to the previously mentioned flags. (Do not use the “Other” flag for issues of spelling, grammar, limited or formatting. Please contact the member directly with the “Contact this Writer” tool with feedback.)

Rating advice from Helium members

“Rating is a unique activity for each of us. My personal approach is to view the article in question as a stranger. If this stranger has a nice appearance (good formatting, spelling, grammar, decent presentation), I am likely to feel positive about it.

“If this stranger is also informative and convincing in its content relating to the subject at hand, I feel more positive about it.

“If both strangers, side by side, seem to be near-equals, I permit my own perspective to enter into the rating process. The article that appears more accurate gets my vote.”

- Bob Schmidt

”What I rate down:

“Poor formatting: If the author doesn’t take the time to use paragraphs and the proper use of upper and lowercase letters, I rate his article down. Sloppy formatting gets rated down.

“Poor grammar: If the grammar is horrible, I rate the article down.

“Not comprehensive: If the article is difficult to read or understand, I rate it down.

“Bad information: False or poor information gets rated down.

“What I rate up:

“Formatting: Clean magazine-quality formatting with the proper use of headings and paragraphs, I rate up.

“Grammar: If the grammar has only minor glitches that don’t affect the reading or comprehensibility of the article, I don’t let it affect the rating.

“Comprehensive: An article that is easy to read and understand is a major plus with me in the ratings.

“Good information: Good-quality, accurate information gets rated up.

“What I skip:

“If I don’t have a clue about the topic, I generally skip and go to the next set of articles.”

- Carolina Dream Coy

“For me, rating isn’t a chore. It’s a way of becoming a better writer. When we rate, we see examples of good writing and examples of poor writing. As writers, I think it’s more difficult to critique our own work. Thus, rating the work of others gives us insight into our writing.

“Also, I want to stress that the purpose of flagging isn’t to chastise or remove writers (unless they are in direct violation of the User Agreement). It is to help the writer become better at his craft.

“Think of that for a moment: Where else could you get a better cornucopia of suggestions to make your writing better than you get here? Flagging should never be thought of as slapping another writer or, if you receive a flag, as being slapped. It is a tool to improve your articles.”

- Rex Trulove

”If a Leapfrog is an honest attempt to improve an article, and we cannot discern the difference, click on ‘Same,’ even though it will not count in our rating star status.

‘We must remove ourselves from any consideration when rating. This is not a multi tasking event. We have to choose only between the two articles at hand. Our vote is only one of a collective group of votes to determine rank. We must be objective enough to give the two writers our honest evaluation.”

- Carol Gioia

“When do I rate? I rate when I feel like it. Sometimes I rate after a submission. Other times I just go back to writing and rate like a warrior later. I rate just about every day for 45 minutes to an hour. If I skip a day, I’ll rate for an hour and half the next two days.”

- Tina Hartley