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WRITERS: If you don't want the harsh truth, don't read this.

Discussion in 'Copywriting' started by marketjunction, Aug 28, 2008.

  1. ruletheworld

    ruletheworld Peon

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    #81
    I have to agree. Almost all the Indian writers I have worked with have a superior quality English than their American counterparts. Ant it is plain BS that you can just "tell" whether someone is a native speaker looking at their writing. I can show you American writing that you probably think was translated by 1999 Google translate from Spanish! No, English is not hard to master. Not at all in fact. Try Mandarin if you think English is hard!
     
    ruletheworld, Feb 6, 2011 IP
  2. shahidusman

    shahidusman Member

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    #82
    I have worked for as low as $0.70 per article of 500 words when I started freelance writing about 2 years ago. I did not have my own website back then and I did not know how to find good clients. I have worked hard and you are probably right that writers who are content with 1-2 cents per article will not make much money. I have another view on it. I still charge less than 2 cents per word to the new clients but I get orders of 50 or more articles from them. I do have clients that pay $30 per article but they do not require more than 10 to 15 articles a month. When it comes mass article submission, I think nobody will be able to pay $30 for 100 articles.

    It is more like a mutual relationship. If you help 5 small webmasters grow their business by charging them low then you will get more business in return. It all depends on the strategy you adopt to make more money.
     
    shahidusman, Feb 7, 2011 IP
  3. shahidusman

    shahidusman Member

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    #83
    Moreover, talent is something else. Western writers may know English but may not write great like Asian writers. One thing compensates the other and small businesses or new businesses cannot afford the top writers. There will always be room for people who are dedicates and people will make handsome money out of writing no matter how low they charge.
     
    shahidusman, Feb 7, 2011 IP
  4. shahidusman

    shahidusman Member

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    #84
    Yes, there is definitely some luck involved but you cannot walk to the distance depending on just pure luck. You got to have some talent and creativity or I would say a mix of everything related to your field to be successful.
     
    shahidusman, Feb 13, 2011 IP
  5. Thales

    Thales Peon

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    #85
    To each his own, mate.

    However, in my most humble opinion, instead of slogging to support and subsidizing up and coming webmasters, could you not look out for your own interest first, and try to source for more $30 gigs?

    Freelance copywriters/writers tends to fail either from a lack of productivity or burn out.

    I have read about writers who churns out 5-20 articles daily, and I always wonder, how long will they last?
     
    Thales, Feb 13, 2011 IP
  6. shahidusman

    shahidusman Member

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    #86
    You are absolutely right about personal interest. But, when it is not happening and you are not getting what you demand then you have to alter the strategy. Yes, writing above 10 articles a day is out of question. I have seen writers burn out within a month. I myself find it hard to motivate myself to write more than 5 articles a day for my clients as I have to keep my own blogs updated.
     
    shahidusman, Feb 13, 2011 IP
  7. unique_content

    unique_content Peon

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    #87
    whew, talk about calling a spade a spade!
    I do think most of what you have written is right though. Whilst demand for good content is growing all the time, so are the content writers joining the ever expanding pool! All the more reason to produce excellent content AND give added value. Maturity and reliability cannot be underestimated.
     
    unique_content, May 23, 2011 IP
  8. harshnisar

    harshnisar Greenhorn

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    #88
    I agree, but most of the #1 and #2 writers are forced to be a part of that group because of lack of knowledge and access to better markets. Most of them also lack proper guidance.
     
    harshnisar, May 24, 2011 IP
  9. PaperEater

    PaperEater Peon

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    #89
    Haha, alright. Got it.
     
    PaperEater, Aug 4, 2011 IP
  10. contentboss

    contentboss Peon

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    #90
    there's a blog plugin coming soon that automatically checks to see whether your post will pass google, which will make it massively easier for writers to produce high quality content. Or at least, content with fewer typos and grammar f*ckups. 
     
    contentboss, Aug 4, 2011 IP
  11. hardware1

    hardware1 Well-Known Member

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    #91
    You are 100 percent correct. Plain and simple.

     
    hardware1, Oct 11, 2011 IP
  12. pragya39

    pragya39 Peon

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    #92

    Thanks. I am an Indian and right now, I am somewhere in between of 2nd and 3rd category. I have the skills of 3rd but I get paid according the 2nd category. But I am learning.


    And about getting cheated by Indians, I am sorry but you are true. I have a day job in a chop shop (SEO company) and I really hate how blatantly they lie. My company takes project by exaggeration of truth and by having several different profiles on freelancing websites, all under the name of their employees. I tried warning a client, putting my job on risk, but she didn't even cared enough to reply to my email. She is Australian.

    As said in The Simpsons, by that scientist guy, " I don't want to live on this planet anymore." :D
     
    pragya39, Jan 27, 2012 IP
  13. afterflats

    afterflats Peon

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    #93
    I've used textbroker and was pretty disappointed. You never get consistent quality, sometimes good, sometime bad. Which means you always have to be reviewing the articles, this takes a lot of time and basically defeats the purpose of oursourcing the content out.
     
    afterflats, Jan 28, 2012 IP
  14. Sam Gilmore

    Sam Gilmore Peon

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    #94
    Just wanted to add same points. Good writers not always work for a big boss
     
    Sam Gilmore, Mar 19, 2012 IP
  15. dame016

    dame016 Member

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    #95
    It all depends on the writer. He can either take the job, leave it or bid. I have started with #1 and I was paid a bit low. But, I found article directories who pay much for a single product review. I believe writers should not agree with a price that they deem low enough for their abilities.
     
    dame016, Mar 20, 2012 IP
  16. TopicBay

    TopicBay Peon

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    #96
    I have yet to see quality work from a writer that charges 1 0r 2 cent per word. Sure, maybe they can write! But, is the finished article well researched and customer focused. All to often I see original work that reads more like an essay, written for homework. Such an article will do little to drive sales or targeted traffic. I suppose it all depends on what you need your article to do for you. TopicBay.Com
     
    TopicBay, Apr 3, 2012 IP
  17. burnupinvestments

    burnupinvestments Greenhorn

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    #97
    Interesting reading. This thread started in 2008 and crosses another 4 years. So tell me people in that new 4 years how has the market changed? Was it as he predicted in 2008?
     
    burnupinvestments, Jul 11, 2012 IP
  18. averyz

    averyz Well-Known Member

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    #98
    I do agree with some of marketjunction "predictions" but I wouldn't really call them "predictions" more like common since, basic marketing and how markets react to recessions and saturation.

    I do believe the quality of writing in general has gone up, but I believe that most of the writers on DP that claim to be from the UK and America are not really "native". People from the UK and America cannot afford to live on $3-$5 an article, in many countries you can but not in the UK or America. And unless someone has lived in a country for a year or 2 their English will not pass as "native" to a real native.

    In 2008 the economy fell out so did lots of internet advertising and internet speculative markets so now we have less money flowing around and less sites being built. Usually when markets get tight and competitive the poor quality services fail and die and better quality services are forced to lower prices.

    If I remember right seems like 2007-2008 was when everyone thought they could get rich from a blog and were hiring any writer they could find. Also adsense was big and "content was king". Now backlinks seem to be king people are buying abandoned url for PR and selling backlinks. Adsense revenues are dwindling along with affiliate sales and no one was updated their failed blog in 2 years.
     
    averyz, Jul 12, 2012 IP
  19. andrekhrisna

    andrekhrisna Active Member

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    #99
    I think it's better to learn copywriting and write anything by yourself.
    It saves you a lot and will even get you new skill: writing.

    Success for you!
     
    andrekhrisna, Jul 12, 2012 IP
  20. sietch

    sietch Peon

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    #100
    I agree andrekhrisna. Copywriting is one of the most valuable skills an online marketer has. Especially in the beginning when it's just not possible to hire a $5,000/letter writer.
     
    sietch, Jul 12, 2012 IP