Web Content Sites vs. Private Clients

Hat Tip: The inspiration for this post stemmed from a discussion at the WAHMs Who Write forum. Several of the WAHMs in that discussion raised some good points which I outlined here today.

Have you ever sat down and thought about the types of writing you do and the reasons behind your preference? Have you thought about switching from writing for various content mills in favor of private clients? Maybe you’d like to supplement your private client income with web content writing? Each have their pros and cons and there are terrific reasons for working for both. If you’re considering taking on some private clients or supplementing your freelance writing income by working for web content sites, you might be interested in this look at both options.

Web Content Sites vs. Private Clients

Pay

Depending on the type of content you’re writing and your terms, client payment might be a better per project fee. For instance, a content site might pay a firm $15 or $20 per article while a client will pay a mutually agreed upon, negotiated fee. With the proper agreement in place, a writer’s fee will go up if more research, word count, promotion and other work is involved.

Content sites don’t necessarily raise their rates just because one topic might require more research over another. Some content emporiums do offer a base fee plus bonuses for traffic and this can work well to a writer’s benefit.

Some writers also report success with residual based websites, where they’re paid only for the amount of people who read their articles – this isn’t always a great deal however. Generally, private clients pay more, per piece, than web content portals and blogging networks.

An important thing to remember about content sites vs. private clients is that writers are able to negotiate payment with private clients. Sometimes they may have to go lower or pass on a particular client, but the writer has more control over his or her earnings. With content sites, you ‘take what you get and you don’t get upset.’ A writer can’t just apply for a content site gig and say, “hey, I want to earn $30 per article” when they only want to pay you five. There’s no negotiating.

Pay Raises

As mentioned above, private clients are generally more agreeable to raising rates when there’s an increase in the workload. Writers with private clients can also raise their base rates periodically as they build up experience and experience. Many writers give themselves annual cost of living increases, or at the very least, re-visit their finances and earnings to see if a pay raise is necessary. Some web content portals will give their longer-lasting writers an increase in pay – usually a few dollars more per article. This amount is generally non-negotiable. A client who is impressed with a writer’s work and wishes to keep retaining him usually has no problem paying a reasonable, periodic pay raise.

Experience

Private clients prefer writers with a bit of experience, especially experience writing for individuals or businesses rather than websites. While some web content sites are selective about the writers they hire, many sites will hire writers with no experience – in fact, they don’t always need writing samples.  Thus, web content sites are an easier way for a brand new writer to get her foot in the proverbial door.

Job Security

Write for Cash, The Vines, Know More Media…these are all names of web content or blogging network sites that employed writers but closed their doors as soon as they ran out of money, leaving hundreds of writers without a steady income. Those writing for web content clients should probably remember these places don’t last forever. In fact, they may one day disappear, taking your writing with them. Recently, the content site E-How, which pays on a residual basis, deleted hundreds of articles without warning. The writers who wrote these articles now lost a chunk of their income and have to scramble elsewhere to make up the difference.

That isn’t to say, however, that clients don’t come and go as well. Some are good for a one off gig, while others have long term or continuous work for writers. Many writers have been with the same clients for years. Writers who prefer to work for private clients tend to work for several clients so as not to be left short if one client doesn’t have work for a while.

Finding Work

Content sites are always hiring and always advertising so it’s easy to find these types of jobs. Visit any writing blog or forum and you’ll find listings of web content sites. Private clients aren’t as easy to land. Though many do advertise on the job boards, they’re more selective with their hiring process and competition is tougher.  Still, there are plenty of private clients hiring each and every day. Still more can be found via various methods including cold calling.

The Writing

Web content site articles can be fluffy, general articles which don’t require a lot of heavy research. Writers use a search engine to find information about topics and rewrite what they found via these search engines. For blogs and less research intensive sites, many bloggers and writers create general essays about topics they already know about.

Private clients expect a lot more bang for their buck. If they’re paying more money they want quality, original content. Private clients expect clean, factually correct copy. The private client will expect the writer to be an expert in the topic and write independently while meeting deadlines. Since the writing reflects the client, via website, brochure, sales letters, etc., it’s important for them to hire the best person for the job as opposed to the most prolific writers.

Editors & Rewrites

Most content sites have editors assigned to read over and approve articles before they’re posted, mostly they’re looking for typos and grammatical errors. If an article doesn’t make the cut either it will be sent back for a rewrite or rejected outright. It’s not unheard of for one content site editor to oversee twenty to thirty writers or more. It’s also not unheard of for a writer to re-write an article several times.

Private clients expect their writers to work independently. They’re willing to pay more for quality writing and don’t want to have to edit. Many private clients are trusting their writers to already know how to write well and have subject matter expertise.

The Job Hunt

Web content sites aren’t difficult to find. Visit any job search site and you’ll find tons of advertisements for content site writers. Many of these sites post dozens of job ads a day. There’s are a couple of reasons for this:

• Some have a high turnover rate: Some web content sites aren’t known for paying out large sums of money. Writers use them as a starting point and move on.
• Some are more interested in content than writers. Some web content site owners and editors prefer to make it about the content rather than the writers. As long as they bring in the search traffic and get the revenue flowing, it doesn’t matter if writers stay or go. Trying finding the sites that do the most for their writers and don’t make it about content only.

Private clients also advertise on job boards, their ads aren’t difficult to spot at all. However, unlike website content sites which hire multiple writers at a time, private clients only choose one or two writers out of (maybe) hundreds of applicants. Writers also use other methods, for instance cold calling, to find private clients rather than rely solely on job boards.

The Resume Factor

There’s endless debate over whether or not writers should list content sites on their resumes. For instance, many editors automatically reject resumes listing nothing but Associated Content articles. The reason for this is that Associated Content doesn’t screen writers before hiring them. They accept anyone without even having to see previous samples or proof of subject matter expertise. Also, certain schools won’t allow web content from sites such as Associated Content and Wikipedia to be used as sources for term papers or articles because the writing isn’t always factually correct. There are some web content sites with stricter acceptance policies, for example About.com, LoveToKnow and even Demand Studios that are better for listing as a reference. Think about who will look best on your resume before applying for a web content job.

Many people who hire writers find private clients to be good experience, especially if they’re a well known or prestigious brand (for example I wrote for Oxygen Media at one time). Because private clients are pickier over who they accept as writers, hiring editors are more impressed with these experiences.

Is There a Better Choice?

Is it better to write for a private client over a content site? That debate will probably go on forever. The choice is up to the writer. Many writers prefer one over the other and have very good reasons, such as those mentioned above, for doing so. Many more writers use a combination of both as the content sites are a great way to supplement income between income and jobs.

As long as the job is paying you the money you deserve and you’re not being taken advantage of, you can earn a lucrative income doing either. Just making the choices that are the best for you and your long term career.