What's the RIGHT price to pay/charge for writing articles?

Well said Dr. Mani

In my opinion if a article can payback its purchaser about 500 $ a month, there is no harm in listening to the urge of the writer.

I find that it depends on the client. It depends on what they are looking for. I refer to them as McDonalds eaters and gourmet food eaters. This is based on the common reference to the idea that cheap writers don't drive more expensive writers out of business the same way McDonalds doesn't drive gourmet chefs out of business. Sometimes, a client wants -- or needs -- to eat McDonalds writing. Whether out of the needs for the site or budget needs, he just can't afford or isn't interested in gourmet writing.

I don't write McDonalds articles, so those clients are not for me. The right price to charge for an article is difficult to answer if you don't know what that article is for.

There is also supply and demand to consider. Highly experienced and educated writers who write well -- hard to find all three -- are going to command a higher price because their writing works. What they can charge is going to be more a function of keeping the clients off them. Sorta like beatin' 'em off with a stick. If you have numbers that say your copy converts or some other hook that people want to buy, then you can charge more.

It all depends on the type of writer you are, what you expertise is, and how you are approaching your market. I take a pretty narrow view of how I approach my business. Could I do more if I charged less and opened to more niches? Yes and no. I would hate different niches and I would hate bulk work. So, I charge what keeps me challenged.

There is a lot that goes into choosing a price per article. And the prices around here are FAR less than what my friends in corporate freelancing and commerical magazines earn. Sadly, I haven't broken in there yet.

Lynda

Hopefully I will not be bumping this thread. Do you think that with Google's demand for higher quality content, more writers have the ability to increase their prices and/or the bulk writers will be in less demand?

Yeah ... well it mostly depends on both the parties ..
An experienced article writer with 10+ years experience is gonna be getting $100 to write a 500 word article for a client ..
Ad also a article writer formerly as a newbie in the business is gonna get around $2-3 for writing a 500 Word article ..

And also it depends on the quality .. and the budget of the client ..
If the client is a big ticket .. You are lucky enough ..

Regards