Where have all good reasonable priced writers gone?

21 replies
I have hired many writers for various projects the last 5 years but lately I really struggle to find a good writer with reasonable rates! Don't get me wrong I don' t expect to pay a good writer $1 for a 500words blog post but in the past I could easily find great writers for $1,5-2 per 100words on sites like odesk , elance or WF. Now I cannot find a good writer even for $3 per 100words. So where can I find reliable good writers with reasonable rates?
#good #priced #reasonable #writers
  • Profile picture of the author Olavski
    You can go to fiverr. Contact some people to write a sample about a your topic. Then choose the one that has the best service and sample. Your article will be written for 5 to 20 dollars.

    Cheers,
    Olavski
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      Really? The answer is "go to Fiverr"?

      Simple truth is if you want GOOD writing you pay for it. You might be able to find writers for $3/100 on Freelancer or Elance.

      I'd think $4/100 is a more reasonable starting point for decent copy. One thing you can do is develop a professional relationship with a good writer (or two) when you find one. Return to that person with every project - send a bonus occasionally to show appreciation.

      You'll waste more time and money looking for "new, cheaper writers" for every project than you will rewarding good writers so you can go back to them time after time.
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      • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        I'd think $4/100 is a more reasonable starting point for decent copy.
        I think this, too. You're really looking, more or less, at a $0.04/$0.05 per word "entry-level price" for something decent, that will have any real value to you.

        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        You'll waste more time and money looking for "new, cheaper writers" for every project than you will rewarding good writers so you can go back to them time after time.
        I agree completely. It's worth paying just a little more to build a relationship with a writer who will be reliable for you. And an individual writer you can get to know, who will gradually come to understand exactly what your business needs, and maybe even prioritize your work, when you're a regular customer, will really be worth it.

        Originally Posted by N4PGW View Post

        A good writer starts cheap. Maybe she can write 50 articles in a day.
        Sorry to seem argumentative, but no "good writer" can possibly write anything like 50 articles in a day. That's just a contradiction in terms.


        .
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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    Originally Posted by kochtgr View Post

    Now I cannot find a good writer even for $3 per 100words.
    I'm hardly surprised. I don't think I know even any "competent" writers (let alone "good") who write for $0.03 per word.

    Originally Posted by kochtgr View Post

    where can I find reliable good writers with reasonable rates?
    In many places. Honestly, I don't mean it impolitely, but you're going to need either to be phenomenally lucky (and probably only very temporarily anyway) or to reappraise your understanding of what "reasonable rates" are.

    .
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  • Profile picture of the author kcbowman
    In my book "Work from home Now" I talk abut content mills as one of the jobs. You can find writers at that cheap rate on textbroker.com
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    • Profile picture of the author rseigel
      Originally Posted by kcbowman View Post

      In my book "Work from home Now" I talk abut content mills as one of the jobs. You can find writers at that cheap rate on textbroker.com
      Thanks for the tip on textbroker. I'm going to give it a shot.
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  • Profile picture of the author N4PGW
    It is a matter of supply and demand. A good writer starts cheap. Maybe she can write 50 articles in a day. After she gets 50 articles at $3 each, she has to turn down business. So, raise the price to $4.00 and now she is writing 40 articles per day. Then, she fills up again, so the price goes to $5. and so on.

    The good cheap writers go on to be the great expensive writers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Raydal
    There was a very popular 99 cents per article WSO here for
    years. I always wondered how he made that profitable. I guess
    the rates are now raised.

    As has been said before, writers who start at that level soon
    burn out or wise up, whichever comes first.

    -Ray Edwards
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  • Profile picture of the author Michael Fuentes
    Kochtgr,

    If you're looking for US-based writers, then this 2013 article about the average annual salaries of US fashion magazine columnists could perhaps give you some ideas regarding prices of authority content writing services in the US; and

    Based on that article -- It seems $26 / hour was in 2013 the average wages of fashion magazine writers in the US. And, without field work, I'd say a specialist US writer could probably write in an 8-hour work day around 2,000 to 3,000++ words of Web content about topics that are relevant to the writer's field of expertise = That'd be $0.07 to $0.10 per word...

    However, if you're looking for offshore specialist writers like an English tech magazine writer here in Manila, then you'd pay around $11 / hour or $0.01 to $0.02 / word for 1,000 to 2,000++ words of English Web content in an 8-hour work day (half the daily output of native English specialist writers); and

    In these offshore locations (especially in countries that are popular among expats and the like) -- There are also many native English speakers with specialist magazine writing experience...
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  • Profile picture of the author cypherslock
    If you want GOOD writing that converts...you have to pay for it. You cannot pay $5 for 500 words and expect quality.
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  • Profile picture of the author tpw
    I hire writers from Odesk. I pay a lot more than you pay. I get great content for a good price.
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  • Profile picture of the author arindamb
    The economy has changed for writers too. They also need to buy food and pay heating bills. So, yes prices have gone up. But, $3/100 words is still not a bad price. I don't know about freelance sites, but the forums still have writers willing to work at that price.

    You might also try iWriter.com. Go for the Elite writers. There are some good writers in there.
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  • Profile picture of the author laurencewins
    You get what you pay for. I agree with EVERYTHING Lexy has to say, and more.
    You won't find a writer who will do 50 articles in a day. You may find someone who has a team but "claims" to be an individual.

    My rates are not cheap but I have regulars who keep coming back because they know good quality is best for their business and they don't have to worry about having to check spelling and grammar when I give them what they ask for.
    I am sure many writers are in the same boat.
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  • Profile picture of the author kochtgr
    Thanks for your replies but please read my thread, I never told that I am looking for a writer for $1 per article or per 100words and off course a writer who writes 50 articles per day would be nothing more than a cheap rewriter!

    Additionally for those that say that good writers charge $0,10-0,20 per word , I know writers who charge even $1 or more per word but in the past I have hired writers who were charging $0,02 per word and were better than those ridiculous expensive writers. (I am not talking about sales copy copywriters, I am talking about blog writers)

    In the not so far away past I wast posting a thread on odesk and I was getting more than 50 applicants (with some pretty good writers) , now I do the same (actually offering more money) and I get 2-3 applicants and in most cases these are cheap writers from India or Pakistan so what changed the last year?
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    • Profile picture of the author Michael Fuentes
      Originally Posted by kochtgr View Post

      so what changed the last year?
      Google Panda / Penguin = Generating social and viral traffic is now quicker, easier and more straightforward than getting relevant top rankings for organic SE traffic. Many SEO writers and writers for article directory submissions went out of business. Also, effective paid advertising campaigns are now cheaper, quicker and easier to implement, thanks to advertising platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and so on...
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    • Profile picture of the author tpw
      Originally Posted by kochtgr View Post

      In the not so far away past I wast posting a thread on odesk and I was getting more than 50 applicants (with some pretty good writers) , now I do the same (actually offering more money) and I get 2-3 applicants and in most cases these are cheap writers from India or Pakistan so what changed the last year?

      How are you writing your job listing different from one year ago?

      I have several listings on Odesk for writers, and I have no problems finding top writers to work for me. In fact, I have more applications than money to hire people.

      Without seeing your actual listing, I can only guess.

      Interestingly, I pay by the hour instead of by the job. When I list by the hour, people can see themselves getting good wages (very likely more than they get on their jobs), no matter how long it takes them to do the writing. When I calculate the by-the-word cost, I am finding that I pay less than I would if I hired the job by-the-word.
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      Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
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  • Profile picture of the author sal64
    Probably off topic, but...

    Cheap content is false economy. You are better off with 2 very well written articles than 8 poorly written ones.

    I get the argument for search engine content, but I cannot see how any intelligent reader is going to take you seriously if your content sucks.

    Especially if you want to portray yourself as an expert or authority in your market.

    But that's just me.

    Carry on.
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    • "Cheap content is false economy. You are better off with 2 very well written articles than 8 poorly written ones."

      Truer words were never spoken.

      When I started out 7 years ago, and didn't know any better, I was writing 400 word pieces for $5.

      And I NEVER ended up with great content for my clients, never.

      Why?

      Because I had to crank out 20 pieces a day 5 days a week.

      It was a speed thing.

      And almost EVERY SINGLE ONE of those first few clients has shut down there Internet business where my content was posted.

      Why?

      Because Google and the other SEs noticed the content was average to crappy.

      I now write 400 word pieces for $40, and I have smart clients that understand the value of good copy.

      This allows me to take a full hour, if needed, to craft each and every line, title, subheader, PS and research as much as is needed to make that content work.

      Some of my clients have websites and blogs with only 20 or 30 pages.

      But the content on those pages is very strong, and the search engines reward that with tons of traffic.

      They post 1 $40 or $65 or $100 piece of content, rather than 10 or 20 $5 pieces of crap.

      And they get clicks, authority and sales.

      If you keep hiring cheap-ass writers, kochtgr, you probably won't be in business long enough to afford good ones.

      PATRICK
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      • Profile picture of the author kochtgr
        Originally Posted by PatrickBrianONeill View Post

        "Cheap content is false economy. You are better off with 2 very well written articles than 8 poorly written ones."

        Truer words were never spoken.

        When I started out 7 years ago, and didn't know any better, I was writing 400 word pieces for $5.

        And I NEVER ended up with great content for my clients, never.

        Why?

        Because I had to crank out 20 pieces a day 5 days a week.

        It was a speed thing.

        And almost EVERY SINGLE ONE of those first few clients has shut down there Internet business where my content was posted.

        Why?

        Because Google and the other SEs noticed the content was average to crappy.

        I now write 400 word pieces for $40, and I have smart clients that understand the value of good copy.

        This allows me to take a full hour, if needed, to craft each and every line, title, subheader, PS and research as much as is needed to make that content work.

        Some of my clients have websites and blogs with only 20 or 30 pages.

        But the content on those pages is very strong, and the search engines reward that with tons of traffic.

        They post 1 $40 or $65 or $100 piece of content, rather than 10 or 20 $5 pieces of crap.

        And they get clicks, authority and sales.

        If you keep hiring cheap-ass writers, kochtgr, you probably won't be in business long enough to afford good ones.

        PATRICK
        Who said that I am looking for cheap writers? Please check my posts!
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  • Profile picture of the author Tim Franklin
    Lots of great reminders, some good replies, Fiver, (to be honest I have not had any good buying experiences) even the ones that (say they are fantastic) turn out to be PLR, content which was poorly written to begin with.

    Get what you pay for, (sometimes) there are obviously different levels of what constitutes goodness, )

    Take Sales copy, as an example, there are some sale copy writers out there that have an Awesome outlook on the value of what they produce.

    I have a different outlook on what "Good Sales Content" actually is.

    For example if, a sales copy Guru, creates Super Awesome Converting Sales Page Content and you can measure that by watching your sales go from 20 or 30 sales to 5000 sales then that is Great Sales Copy.

    I have yet to see any Sales Copy Genius, produce a guaranteed result.

    To be fair that would be difficult to do, but not impossible.

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  • Profile picture of the author Richard Batt
    Banned
    Good quality writers even at the price you pay will raise their costs beyond that when they start to get enough of a portfolio to get higher paid work. When I started on Elance I happily did work for low rates but as soon as I got a few good reviews and some higher paid work I stopped.

    The main reason writers prices have increased is because of the Google update, at one point the value of good writing was low... you could churn out any crap and if it had the right keywords then you'd have your website at the top of the search engines with no problems, but that doesn't work anymore and the good writers have become more valuable which only leaves the crap or new writers still looking for lower paid work.

    I'd recommend what was said above about paying per hour as that will more than likely work out at a lower per word price. Or, if it is regular 3-4 articles or more per week that you are looking for then you'll find a lot of new-ish writers who don't have regular clients will take the lower cost articles to guarantee that they will have regular pay - take advantage of that and actively look for someone to write for you on a regular basis long term, then when they begin to require higher payments for their work than you can afford thank them for their service and repeat the process with another new writer.
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