How much to charge for articles?

Tigercub

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I want to bid on a job writing health/medicine articles. They're short, 450-750 words, but they'll need research. The client wants to know what I'm asking per article and how many I can do a week.

I'm thinking of saying $40-$80, depending on length, and 10 articles a week. Does that sound reasonable? Am I pricing myself out of the market or selling myself laughably cheap? I need to give them a response very soon.

I've been a writer and editor for many years, but this is my first real foray into freelancing. I've sold articles before, but it was on a casual, occasional basis. So I'm still kind of new at this.
 

Empress_Isis

Jenna Cosgrove
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It depends on what the articles are for. If they are for publication in a magazine, for example, they are worth more than if they are for web content or article marketing. did the client let you know the details?
 

Empress_Isis

Jenna Cosgrove
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I've been doing web articles, e-books and copy professionally for a couple of years. I don't know if it's the same deal as what you are quoting on, but what I write is normally keyword-integrated articles for search engine optimisation. They require a limited amount of research, unless you already know a fair bit about the subject, and I could write one in about 20-25 mins for a 600-800 word article.

Have they asked you to do keyword integration? Because this is very different from full articles.
 

Tigercub

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I think what you're considering asking is a bargain.

Don't be surprised if they disagree though.

So I should up my price -- $50-$100, say?

And, Empress, explain how keyword integration is different from full articles?

Edited to add: I don't know much about this other than what I've said here. It's an ad on Craigslist on a subject I'm fairly knowledgable about.
 
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Empress_Isis

Jenna Cosgrove
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A regular article would be something that is written for information purposes. Keyword integration articles are written specifically for search engine optimisation. Keyword articles are generally lower in quality and cheaper than a standard article.

If you are bidding on Guru or a similar site, you will find people who will do any kind of article of 600-ish words for about US$10. Those are pretty much the rock bottom prices. Average price I think would be about $25 - $35. What it really hinges on is the quality that the client is after. If they just want the content for SEO, then they will probably go the cheaper route. If they have a high-profile website and they need really good quality articles that will be read by a lot of customers, then they will often be willing to pay more.

My suggestion would be to go in cheaper to start with, especially with the economy where it is. People are less willing to spend a lot right now, but if you start off cheaper and prove your worth to the client, then you can up the price later down the line.

Is there any chance you can just ask the client what their price range is?
 

Tigercub

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Actually, I just looked at another writing gig, and they're offering $15-$30 for 500-1000 word articles.

Frankly, I'm surprised it's so little, although I guess it's better than the magnaminous offers of $1-$2/article that I've seen lately.

Perhaps, to get in, I'll quote $25-$50/article negotiable.

Is 10 articles a week a reasonable number?

You can tell I'm really new at this freelancing thing.
 

Empress_Isis

Jenna Cosgrove
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Yes, the problem is, even though there is a lot of work out there, there is a lot of competition, especially at the moment when people are trying to bring in extra cash.

Once you get into it, you can really reduce the time it takes you to write. My articles generally come in sets of 10 (apart from the time I got a set of 100! That seemed like an insurmountable task!), which are all on the same general subject, such as diamond jewellery. I do a broad research on the topic, come up with 10 titles and then start writing. The research might take 20 - 30 mins, and each article no more than half an hour. Then a revision, formatting etc. of the set would be another half hour. So a set of 10 would take me all up about 6 hours.

The most I have done in one week was 60, but that did my head in! I was writing every spare minute of the day, in my lunch break, on the tram etc. The best advice I can give you is to under promise and over deliver, rather than the other way around.
 
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blueobsidian

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Is 10 articles a week a reasonable number?

It's tough to answer these kinds of questions for someone, because it depends on how much time YOU have available for this job. Could I do ten articles a week on a health topic right now? Probably not, because of other commitments. You have to decide how long it will take you to complete each article and if ten is a reasonable number for you to take on.

I definitely agree with Empress_Isis about under promising. I lost a steady client because I tried to take on too much of a workload from them. Only commit to what you are positive that you can do.
 

KTC

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It varies so much. The last gig I had writing for health and wellness paid $400/800 word article. The last internet health and wellness gig I had, which was a couple of years ago, paid about $150/800 words. Craigslist is a hit or miss thing...usually miss. You're probably looking at one of those article churning sites that require writers to do a lot of work for a pittance. Be leery. Why feed the mill when you can do 1 article in a more reputable market for more pay than doing 10 at one of these places?
 

Tigercub

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Another freelance plan I have is to take some articles I've already written and offer them for one-time rights. From my research, it looks like that would pay more. But I'm still trying to figure out what to put in the cover letter. All I can find is information about query letters.

But I figured if I hit Craigslist and got a few jobs, that would bring some money in and might provide me with clips. Then I can move on from there. To make even a frugal middle-class living from the jobs I've seen on Craigslist, I'd have to be working 60-70 hours a week, at least. At least there's no commuting time waiting out in the cold for a bus, but still....

Besides, I want to be able to tell the mortgage company, yes, I have a job. Yes, I have some money coming in.

Thanks for the comments and help, everyone. One last question, how do I make a blog that pays? Would I have to create my own web page for it?
 

Empress_Isis

Jenna Cosgrove
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The expensive articles, blogs etc are all well and good, but writing moderately priced articles is something that you can do instantly, and it is generally regular work. That is why I do it. Just today I contacted someone and got 40 articles straight away because I need a few hundred dollars in the next few weeks. It's quick, easy and relatively painless, even if it isn't going to make me a billionaire!