Your opinion on outsourced articles?

18 replies
Hey everyone,

I recently got some outsourced articles that are good (posted them to article directories).

BUT...what do you think of posting my outsourced articles on my blog?

Right now I have several articles I outsourced that are decent and I've posted all around the internet but the tone and style doesn't really feel right with my blog (although the theme of the articles is fairly consistent). What are your thoughts?

Also, what about telling people they were outsourced? (and tying this into how outsourcing can help with internet marketing).

Peace,
Darren L Carter
#articles #opinion #outsourced
  • Profile picture of the author Sam Tirut
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      Are they ghostwritten?

      If so, then consistency is the key. If you've released them to article directories under the same name you use on your blog, and they don't fit the style or tone of your blog, you may be better off not using them. I don't know that you'd want to reveal to people you didn't really write the articles you're releasing elsewhere as though you did.

      If you're using different names, then you can put them on your blog as being a "guest" post.
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  • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
    It is very difficult to find a foreign writer that can produce quality articles. It is not impossible, but it is difficult. I have spent countless hours auditioning writers. Out of about 300 writers that I gave a shot to, only four of them were hired by me. Those writers continue to get consistent work from me, but I am always on the lookout for new talent.

    Just yesterday, I submitted three articles for re-writes to a guy that represents a group of writers in the Philippines. I found him right here on the WF. I received the articles about an hour ago. They were absolute jibberish!
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  • Profile picture of the author thatgirlJ
    It depends on what the voice of your blog is. Did you specify to the writer to imitate your voice and style? If you didn't, then you might want to in the future. What is the purpose of your blog?

    There is no way for anyone to tell you what is best to do with your articles without knowing more If you just want to get additional search traffic for long tail keywords, then go right ahead and post them. If you want to develop a long and loyal readership, then write your posts yourself or be very specific with your writer so they can imitate your style of writing.
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  • Profile picture of the author humbledmarket
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    Originally Posted by Darren L Carter View Post

    Hey everyone,

    I recently got some outsourced articles that are good (posted them to article directories).

    BUT...what do you think of posting my outsourced articles on my blog?

    Right now I have several articles I outsourced that are decent and I've posted all around the internet but the tone and style doesn't really feel right with my blog (although the theme of the articles is fairly consistent). What are your thoughts?

    Also, what about telling people they were outsourced? (and tying this into how outsourcing can help with internet marketing).

    Peace,
    Darren L Carter
    Hmm,
    I think the readers would notice the change in style of writing however if you started a blog outsourced it wouldn't really be much of a difference.

    The thing I don't like about outsource articles as I soon found out is most lack a sense of personal touch and feeling into the writing.

    I use to outsource a lot of my writings until I realize the quality although had no gramatical errors or spelling errors sometimes lack flow and personality.

    As for posting it onto your site you could set the author's name as with many cms as another other so users will know that this was not written by you.

    I'm sure many major sites out there aren't just written by one person for example newspaper have several different authors it doesn't make it any less readable.

    As to if that would make a difference, it would be nice to know the reason of the change in writing if you're a loyal reader or it might not make a difference.

    I can't think of any negative aspects to it though but that's just from my opinion.

    All the Best,
    Benjamin
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  • Profile picture of the author areaK
    I think it depends. If your site is a niche site that you just need content for, and the articles are decent, then shouldn't be a problem.

    If your site is a personal site (that you communicate with people on vs. just selling niche products) you should probably write them yourself or tweak the articles (if they're good enough) to have your voice and touch on them.

    Re outsourcing writing...I see ppl say all of the time how they outsourced articles for a couple of bucks and get back poor quality. You get what you pay for. Determine your specific needs and what you are willing to spend for quality and go from there.
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    • Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

      Are they ghostwritten?

      If so, then consistency is the key. If you've released them to article directories under the same name you use on your blog, and they don't fit the style or tone of your blog, you may be better off not using them. I don't know that you'd want to reveal to people you didn't really write the articles you're releasing elsewhere as though you did.

      If you're using different names, then you can put them on your blog as being a "guest" post.
      I agree with what Dan says. I think you should always keep the same tone, style and quality in your articles, whether they're on your blog or being submitted to directories. Especially if the ones you submit to directories are going to have your pen name.

      On that same note, if you want to post those outsourced articles on your blog then I suggest you try to improve them.

      Originally Posted by E. Brian Rose View Post

      It is very difficult to find a foreign writer that can produce quality articles. It is not impossible, but it is difficult. I have spent countless hours auditioning writers. Out of about 300 writers that I gave a shot to, only four of them were hired by me. Those writers continue to get consistent work from me, but I am always on the lookout for new talent.

      Just yesterday, I submitted three articles for re-writes to a guy that represents a group of writers in the Philippines. I found him right here on the WF. I received the articles about an hour ago. They were absolute jibberish!
      LOL... Oh, I have heard that same story numerous times. I have also dealt with a lot of people who do not know how to appreciate quality and want to pay me 1 - 2 dollars per article. I do not know which is worse, those who claim to be good writers and really aren't, or those who WANT good writers but are not willing to pay the price.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mohammad Afaq
    I have never posted any outsourced articles on my blog.

    I have a unique style and tone and I like to express it in my blog posts

    EDIT: But hey, that's just me
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  • Profile picture of the author DrewClement
    It completely depends on the style and voice that you have built your blog around. If you are attracting followers and a loyal readership then I would avoid posting them on your blog, or would definitely point out that you did not write them or that a guest writer has written them for you.

    If you have followers they are going to immediately notice the different style and that the work was not done by yourself. It's one thing to outsource and we all do it from time to time.

    However, if your readers think you are trying to take credit for the work of someone else, then you may lost that loyalty that your business and blog needs.
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  • Profile picture of the author affilorama-portal
    When outsourcing and you prefer a certain tone and style, it is best that you tell your outsourcer about it. A good ghost writer will be able to mimic your writing style. However, be prepared to pay more for the good ones.
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  • Profile picture of the author greff
    My opinion is to write most of your blog articles yourself. You can always pull in a guest blogger or even post great articles from the directories. But not too often. Once you get your "voice" make sure to tell them when you bring in a sub.
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  • Profile picture of the author Shannon Tani
    I agree with what others have said so far. Your typical SEO article is going to sound different than a blog article. If you want a different tone for the blog, tell the writer what you're looking for. I've even had people show me their blog so that I could see the style that they wanted.

    Love,
    Shannon
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  • Profile picture of the author Adria.John
    Originally Posted by Darren L Carter View Post

    Hey everyone,

    I recently got some outsourced articles that are good (posted them to article directories).

    BUT...what do you think of posting my outsourced articles on my blog?

    Right now I have several articles I outsourced that are decent and I've posted all around the internet but the tone and style doesn't really feel right with my blog (although the theme of the articles is fairly consistent). What are your thoughts?

    Also, what about telling people they were outsourced? (and tying this into how outsourcing can help with internet marketing).

    Peace,
    Darren L Carter
    Whats the harm? If the articles are good and worth enough then i dont think its a bad idea. If you want to maintain blogs you will have to post contents and if we get the good contents from outsourcing company, i dont think its a bad choice. But just be sure about the quality of them.
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  • Profile picture of the author MassiveMarketer
    It's really difficult to find a good writer with quality articles. Got candidates a few days ago saying they're really good and had a lot of experience but their cover letters don't say so. A simple cover letter can say a lot how well you write.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dean Jackson
    If you have a name you have to live up to, I think its a good idea to write your own. I say this because I would hate to spread regurgitated stuff thats been done over and over again.

    But then again it depends on how busy you are, the purpose of your site and your name.
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    • Profile picture of the author FredJones
      Respect Sir,

      Me talk me for here. I articles great writer. I spin not - I spin cannot. Article I write me. Can I shoot you with articles I laser-point write? I am interesting in English and has threaded a post that bigly successed above the year 2009.

      Skills created by mine attract eyes for you? Than I getted the ordered from article you will.

      -- Fred

      *********************

      Getting serious, there are still some people in countries that do not speak English as their first language and you would still find people writing good and bad English among them. If you are in a country that speaks English as its native language (for example) and you are good at another language (say Spanish) that is not really the language spoken too much in the country, then trying to assees the Spanish language skills of others around you who claim to know Spanish to some extent would help you better understand what's going on in your case.

      For example, I had an article-writing classified running in Warrior Forum and while the number of posts appeared to be low on the thread, the sheer volume of orders I used to get from the thread literally ran me into Spondylosis (something similar to Spondilitis) - in fact I had written up to 400-odd articles for someone among many other clients (and many articles per client) who never even posted on the public thread (so the thread did not grow as much as the orders did).

      Guess the key to it? I used to write them myself rather than outsource (and in spite of me physically staying in India where finding "cheap writers" around me is much easier than cakewalks). And I was serious about it.

      Why did I stop writing? That was when I realized that if I had to write any more, my physique would not permit beyond writing for myself. And I would not dream of anyone writing anything for my pages (at least, till date).

      Why am I saying this? I anyway do not write articles for anyone else now !!

      I am saying this because I found it to be the best option to write my own articles rather than to rely upon others.
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      • Profile picture of the author ripley607
        Originally Posted by FredJones View Post

        Respect Sir,

        Me talk me for here. I articles great writer. I spin not - I spin cannot. Article I write me. Can I shoot you with articles I laser-point write? I am interesting in English and has threaded a post that bigly successed above the year 2009.

        Skills created by mine attract eyes for you? Than I getted the ordered from article you will.

        -- Fred
        Hilarious!!!
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      • Profile picture of the author renu
        Jesus! It took me like 5 minutes to figure out what's he saying lol

        But you're absolutely right! And unfortunately the net is filled with places where you can find posts and "articles" like the one above :|

        Cheers, Remi

        Originally Posted by FredJones View Post

        Respect Sir,

        Me talk me for here. I articles great writer. I spin not - I spin cannot. Article I write me. Can I shoot you with articles I laser-point write? I am interesting in English and has threaded a post that bigly successed above the year 2009.

        Skills created by mine attract eyes for you? Than I getted the ordered from article you will.

        -- Fred

        *********************
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2249953].message }}

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