I needs some words of wisdom. I charge $1 to $1.50. I want to make more though. I graduated from one of the top schools in the US. I am new to copy writing though. I guess I need to study how writers market themselves.
Couple points: 1. Where you graduated from makes no real difference. In the world of freelance, it's your skill and experience that matter. You could have never attended college and write miles above someone with a J-degree from Columbia U and all sorts of scholastic accolades. Freelancing is about what you can and can't do. 2. If you're new to article writing, take what you can get until you get better and can charge more (and get clients). Also, focus on the things that pay the money you want. For instance, writing articles for small business owners who are looking to make money with AdSense is never, ever going to pay solid money. 3. You're right about marketing. Many writers can't market. They are just order takers. Learn the how to market, negotiate and kindle relationships and you'll be on your way to a better future.
The really Problem behind this all is that people don't want great content to entertain their visitors - they want people clicking on their ads ;-). And no thats not always the same.
That's true of buyers, but not generally true of clients. When you are working with clients who are building an actual business, there is no Adsense in the equation. My corporate clients do not have Adsense on their websites (can you imagine going to a life insurance company site and seeing Adsense??). Blogs that I write for are working on branding, community building and educating, not Adsense. When you are working for one-off buyers then you are writing for Adsense and are generally getting paid pennies per word (as Jenn rightly likes to put it). When working for buyers you are easily replaced by younger, newer, cheaper, thinner writers. With buyers, quality doesn't matter as much, there is no call to action and you're generally acting like a factory worker in a factory of words and typing. To find satisfying, high-paying work, find your market of clients don't wallow in the market of buyers. Or something like that Remember, this is your business and your career. You decide who to work with--you are not a victim of circumstance.
I see no problem in earning your credentials here on DP. I have met some succesful people here. That's key I think! You want to work with people who are already making money. Why? They understand the value of good content. Where as most struggling marketers do not. I am branching out into e-commerce selling a real physical product. I needed customization done on my oscommerce shop. I needed top quality keyword optimized content. I got lots of offers to do both cheap, but in the end I chose someone who worked for close to western wages, even though they lived in a developing country. The result was that I got it all ready and done in a few days. I had full control over the process. I got exactly the results I wanted. Those money spent will make me way more in the future. Suppose you are an affiliate marketer. If you can write a review that will have a 30-40% CTR, instead of say 10%, then that can increase your EPC from non-profitable to profitable. This is what many people on here don't understand. Those that do end up with the results. I suggest looking into other markets. Try local Craigslist Ads. There are tons of small companies that need someone to write a good copy for their website.