Could I sell this type of article?

by Hunk
34 replies
Thanks for any advice, as you can tell I am quite desperate for money for a variety of reasons.
#article #sell #type
  • Profile picture of the author robestrong
    Seems like a quality article. If I were you, I would head over to a real Freelancing site (e.g. iWriter.com, Freelancer.com, oDesk, among others), rather then battling for a pittance on Fiverr. A lot of times you can make a good connection with someone on a Freelancing site and they will give you plenty of continuing work with almost guaranteed good ratings and tips. (I say this from personal experience)
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  • Profile picture of the author Nicolaas Theron
    I think your writing is actually very good.I've had a lot worse written for me and I've seen a lot worse in the writing samples of sites actively selling article writing services right now.

    Go for it.
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    • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
      Hi -
      Your writing is just fine. My suggestion is: write some PLR packages.

      Write maybe packages of 10 articles on a given subject, then offer them here for sale at maybe $10 or $12 a package. Set a cut-off of 50, 75 or at most 100 packages and stick to it. That will enhance their value.

      Advertise them initially in your signature, then, as soon as you are able to pay to advertise, offer them as a WSO.

      Visit some other popular PLR sites to see some popular subjects to base your packages on.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rose Anderson
    You can build a free site with samples and link to it in your signature here on the forum.

    An ad in "Warriors for Hire" will cost you $20. But I think in the end you'll make more money than working for fiverr.

    Rose
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    robestrong, do those sites you mention want this type of writing, though? It is a little shallow in content because I knew nothing about the topics before starting, and i'm thinking it would be aimed at people looking for SEO article backlink type stuff. But then again, I have a degree and live in New Zealand so maybe I am in demand with my relative English grammar fluency...

    If so, are there any tips on getting started in those places? My experience is it's nearly impossible to sell services on sites without already having sold services, but maybe I'm wrong. I'll definitely sign up with iwriter tomorrow and give it a go anyway.

    Nicolaas Theron: What did you pay for the articles you're talking about, on average? I am under the impression it is conventional to pay 0.10 a word? Or is that too high?

    Thank you,
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    • Profile picture of the author honestim
      Hey Hunk,

      In my opinion your writing style is good enough for you to offer writing services online. I understand you are desperate and I will try to help you (please check your PM). If you wish to make this a long term business I am very confident you can do it, but like any other business it would take a lot of time and effort. Be focused on your goals and keep moving one step at a time.

      Please consider the suggestion given by AnniePot seriously. Those simple few words in there have the capacity of changing your life forever. There are full fledged businesses running around that very business model she mentioned.

      Cheers
      HonestIM
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    • Profile picture of the author Nicolaas Theron
      Originally Posted by Hunk View Post


      Nicolaas Theron: What did you pay for the articles you're talking about, on average? I am under the impression it is conventional to pay 0.10 a word? Or is that too high?

      Thank you,
      Think it was about $5 each. But I even saw writing samples earlier today on an article writing site that charges $20 per article which had elementary errors and clumsy sentences that your Squidoo stuff didn't have.

      Don't sell yourself short, that's all I can say. The least you should start with is $0.10 per word. If you could see how abysmally poor the quality from the $2 writers on iWriter is, you'll realize just how solid your own writing is.
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      • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
        I would strongly suggest that you avoid Fiverr. Buyers have to pay $5, but you only receive $4.. PLUS you will be competing with, and aligning yourself with, hundreds of writers, many of them mediocre who are happy to earn $4.

        I don't know how much money you are in need of right now, but take the lowest figure and divide it by $4..

        There are plenty of places where, with your writing skills, you cane make much more than $4 per article.
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        • Profile picture of the author automaton
          Originally Posted by AnniePot View Post

          I would strongly suggest that you avoid Fiverr. Buyers have to pay $5, but you only receive $4.. PLUS you will be competing with, and aligning yourself with, hundreds of writers, many of them mediocre who are happy to earn $4.

          I don't know how much money you are in need of right now, but take the lowest figure and divide it by $4..

          There are plenty of places where, with your writing skills, you cane make much more than $4 per article.
          It's true you don't get payed much on Fiverr but the trick is how you use it and how you leverage it to get bigger and better deals. I used to do some programming gigs spending at least one hour of programming on them, so it wasn't quite the fast/easy way to get rich , but that way I got happy customers who then gave me bigger projects worth many many times then a gig.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    Thank you for the comments the two people who posted above my reply post. The PLR idea is actually really good but maybe not fast enough for me right now. But I will look into it.

    Am I 'guaranteed' to make my money back by putting an ad in WFH (judging by the quality of the writing I linked to)? I know it sounds strange, but $20 is quite a lot of money to me at the moment and it looks like there is massive competition so I'm a little dubious.
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  • Profile picture of the author greenleaf5
    Try the reference given by AnniePot.

    Here is some more info that might help you:

    Try Fiverr. Offer to write one 500-word article for $5. At the same time, advertise your freelance writing services on Craigslist local to your city.

    Register at as many freelance sites as possible. One thing you have to keep in mind is that it's quite competitive to get projects on these sites. Nevertheless, you should try. Bid low prices to begin with. After you have completed a few projects, you can increase your rates.

    All the best to you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    Thanks, AnniePot. I can't send PMs I discovered but I put a post in his thread. I hope that will not be considered spamming...

    honestim: Thank you for the PM. I agree that AnniePot's suggestion was a very good one. Once I get a start it will be my next step.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    Honestim: I cannot reply to your PM, I just found out. Is there any chance you could send me an email address through PM (or mail PoisonousHousePlants@gmail.com? I can definitely provide what you want at a low price. Thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author Seatbelt99
    It looked good to me as well. The great thing about writing is the more you do, the better you'll get!

    Like others have said, start up a site to promote your work. Write PLR packs when you don't have any orders and sell them. When you've saved enough money run an ad in the warriors for hire section or a WSO.

    Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    Thanks for all the replies. Fiverr is indeed a terrible place to try and sell services. I actually feel a bit embarrassed about this thread because looking further into it it looks like most writers selling their services on Fiverr are either not native English speakers, or are using article spinning. So my writing is clearly better in that respect, and my question "is my writing good enough to sell on Fiverr" is a bit ridiculous.

    I am considering making a warrior for hire thread, where I will create Squidoo lenses for people (article and design and keyword research if needed). Is there much demand for that? I enjoy Squidoo's interface (I just find the constant need to interact on other lenses to get mine up levels a bit annoying) and could churn out a lot. Please don't interpet this as me trying to circumnavigate the WFH fee, I am just asking if people would need such a service? I could not find and equivalent offer on the first few pages of that section, so I wonder if it is needed by anybody. Please let me know if you would want such a service and I will make a thread. Thank you.
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  • Profile picture of the author MeganFreed
    Fiverr actually isn't that bad. I put up a few gigs on Fiverr a week or so ago for some extra income when my regular writing work is slow and I've made almost $100 there in just the last few days. The key is to post gigs that aren't going to take a long time to complete so you don't feel like you're doing all that writing for nothing. My most popular gig is for blog posts of at least 300 words. I can crank those out in no time.

    I do recommend you set up a website and start advertising your writing services. You'll start making money in no time.

    Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author fated82
    I would suggest you start with iwriter.com. Reason? You dont have to waste time bidding on projects. But to really make alot of money on iwriter, you must be willing to work hard. At least 30 gigs before you can move on to the next level. The highest level (elite writers) will pay you minimum $8 per gig.

    With that money, you can run your WSO or warrior for hire ads, get testimonials and then go to freelancing sites.

    Get the cash in first and iwriter is the best place to get it.
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    • Profile picture of the author goindeep
      You can definitely sell your services.

      Ive seen non native English articles and articles that have been spun so badly that the articles where almost not legible. Yet people pay for this stuff...
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    I threw together a website really quick... Squidoo Lens Creation | Wonderful Scenario
    (the domain is just for personal playing around and I coughed up the terrible logo in illustrator within minutes a while back).
    Do you think I could get any buyers with that? I'm not much of a web designer but does that really matter in this case? Do you think my pricing is right? I am getting ready to make a WFH sales thread, I am just worried because I
    1)have no idea if there's any demand
    2)have no idea how to price this type of work (is my pricing too high or low?)
    3)Am not sure if I should ask for payment first, or after I deliver the product

    I'd really appreciate any comments on the above... Am I heading down the wrong track? I would enjoy creating lenses for people, but buying a sales thread for such a service seems risky in my specific situation.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    Also, iwriter just won't load for me. I meant to create an account today but it was very frustrating. Unfortunately I can't use odesk because I do not have the neccessairy ID (I am stuck in the countryside for a few months and can't do things like get IDs), and Freelancer wants me to pay which seems a bit suspicious, but maybe not...
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    • Profile picture of the author AnilK
      Your links seem to point to the squidoo home page, so can't see your samples. As an author you could try joining an article writing service such as text broker, the content authority, text master, iwriter etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author popmarco
    Hunk, I'd go for AnniePot's recommendation too. I think that PLR business will stay for a long, long while. I even bought 5 PLR's for $5 (just now) from seatbelt99 for my wife's salon business. Though I love to write, some topics just don't get into my nerves that easily.

    So instead of spending so much time to research and write about beauty tips for my wife's website, I'd rather pay for a ready-made article and devote that time instead to a more relevant and enjoying topic which could later on be sold as a PLR package. At least I'd be paid for that same and one-time effort if I'd sell it.

    Thanks! : )



    Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    iWriter is the slowest internet site I've ever used. I cranked out one 500 word article that's pending review, it paid me only 2.43 but only took 10 minutes so it wasn't too bad. But having to wait literally at least 5 minutes between page loads is just not worth it. Is it always like this, or this just a really bad day for its servers?
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    • Profile picture of the author Brad Callen
      Originally Posted by Hunk View Post

      iWriter is the slowest internet site I've ever used. I cranked out one 500 word article that's pending review, it paid me only 2.43 but only took 10 minutes so it wasn't too bad. But having to wait literally at least 5 minutes between page loads is just not worth it. Is it always like this, or this just a really bad day for its servers?
      iWriter loads VERY fast. You must have had some sort of browser cache issue going on. Clear your cache and try again.
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      iWriter.com - The Original Content Creation Service. Now with over 350,000 active writers. Let us write or re-write your articles, eBooks, blog posts and more... for as little as $1.25! 3,711,814 articles written to date!
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  • Profile picture of the author ThereIsAlwaysHOPE
    Fiverr is a good place to start and find clients... but not a good place for long term. In fact many people use fiverr to give out 'sample' or 'trial' work. In your case $5 for an 250 words article instead on the usual 500 words.

    Build your customer base from fiverr and tell others to make custom orders if they want more word count (example: buy your gig twice or more for larger word count).

    It's a good place to find clients. Once you find them, move out of fiverr for bigger jobs.

    Of course other freelance sites mentioned by other warriors here are good as well. It's how you make things work!
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  • Profile picture of the author Hunk
    I am getting pretty confused about this whole business.I did a search on this forum to find out what people are charging and it looks like $2 per 100 words is the low end for article writers? Would I be offering an insane deal to charge 1.25 per 100 words?

    I know that 'pro' writers would charge based on the context, but for the sort of writing I linked to in the OP, is $1.25 a good deal? I was thinking it was pretty high, but it looks like I was wrong. Can anybody confirm? I don't want to turn people off by charging too much, but I obviously want as much as I can get.

    I became a 'level one' seller on Fiverr today (not from article writing, just random stuff) so I might try what you suggest, ThereIsAlwaysHOPE - offer 300 words for $5 and have a gig extra offering 700 for $10. May as well test it out.
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    • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
      Banned
      Originally Posted by Hunk View Post

      Would I be offering an insane deal to charge 1.25 per 100 words?
      Yes - insane, for sure.

      No words (at any price) can explain what a gross and fundamental misjudgment it is, in this context, to try to compete on price.
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      • Profile picture of the author Hunk
        Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

        Yes - insane, for sure.

        No words (at any price) can explain what a gross and fundamental misjudgment it is, in this context, to try to compete on price.
        I'm not sure I follow you... it's not so much competing on price as trying to find an acceptable price point to start from. I am specifically talking about the type of writing I linked to in the OP, which I can churn out on any topic in a variety of voices. You have to settle on a price when you have a consistent service to offer, right? I have no experience of what to charge, so I need to figure out what is acceptable.
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        • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
          Originally Posted by Hunk View Post

          I'm not sure I follow you... it's not so much competing on price as trying to find an acceptable price point to start from. I am specifically talking about the type of writing I linked to in the OP, which I can churn out on any topic in a variety of voices. You have to settle on a price when you have a consistent service to offer, right? I have no experience of what to charge, so I need to figure out what is acceptable.
          You are looking at your "starting point" from completely the wrong angle.

          Price yourself ridiculously low, and believe me, you will immediately be in a hole you won't be able to dig yourself out of.

          You will get assignments, but from people who are just looking for SEO "fodder", NOT quality writing. Immediately you try to raise your prices, they will drop you and move on to the next cheapo-newbie.

          You need to set your prices so that you attract website owners and bloggers looking for quality content. They are there, I promise you.

          This earlier thread explains everything beautifully: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post5148083
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          • Profile picture of the author Hunk
            Originally Posted by AnniePot View Post

            You are looking at your "starting point" from completely the wrong angle.

            Price yourself ridiculously low, and believe me, you will immediately be in a hole you won't be able to dig yourself out of.

            You will get assignments, but from people who are just looking for SEO "fodder", NOT quality writing. Immediately you try to raise your prices, they will drop you and move on to the next cheapo-newbie.

            You need to set your prices so that you attract website owners and bloggers looking for quality content. They are there, I promise you.

            This earlier thread explains everything beautifully: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post5148083
            I don't want to price myself ridiculously low, it just seemed to me that that was the average price for article writing. I think I found it hard to differentiate between people talking about "SEO fodder" and people talking about more engaging writing when I was researching, since everybody calls it article writing regardless.

            That link was really interesting, thank you. When I started this topic I had trouble looking at non-fiction writing as a "craft" (as in, requiring insight and creative thinking, rather than just busywork) because I've always been interested in storytelling and writing evocatively about characters, and I've never thought beyond the techniques involved in that.

            However, the more I learn about the possibilities of this, the more it seems like I could potentially get good at it. There's a lot more complexity to it than I'd ever considered so I'm excited to try and hone the craft, even just on an intellectual level. There's still a degree of awkwardness to my grammar and phrasing, but this is the first internet-based task I've come across that makes me want to get good at it for more than just money making reasons.

            Thanks for all the valuable comments, I think I will sit on iWriter (it's working again for me) and try to get really good at engaging writing and then try to sell myself at a proper price in a couple of months when I'm more confident.
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  • Profile picture of the author williamk
    Banned
    I think you can easily sell this articles. They are pretty good in my opinion. As robestrong said, it is better to go get some freelance clients. That is the best way for you to make money long term.
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  • Profile picture of the author williamk
    Banned
    I think you can easily sell this articles. They are pretty good in my opinion. As robestrong said, it is better to go get some freelance clients. That is the best way for you to make money long term.
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  • Profile picture of the author JeremiahSay
    Hi Hunk,

    I'm looking for 3-5 articles, hope I'm able to help a little. Please quote me a price nonetheless. Check your PM and I'm looking forward to your reply.

    Jere
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