Should I drop the job?
By GuateMom
@GuateMom (1411)
Canada
April 14, 2007 2:15pm CST
I have a potential job writing articles for a guy. Now, on my website, I specify payment in advance, but this guy refused. So I offered to do 10 articles on spec and then when he paid me for those, I would do the remaining 40 (50 total). He agreed and sent me 50 keywords. This is after about 15 emails going back and forth negotiating the price, he wanted exclusive rights for $1.50 an article, but for those prices, I resell the article in PLR packs on my website.
Ok, so I told him that that was the deal, I would be reselling the articles. He didn´t respond for two days and then wrote asking why I hadn´t answered him, was I up to the job or not? In this email was the history of all our emails, including the one I had just sent him! And now he wanted 100. So I said yes and did ten articles and sent them off. Again, nothing for two days. So I wrote again to ask if he had received them.
He wrote me back and said that the articles were too short. Now, on my website, I have a blurb saying that the articles will be 400-600 words long and he had never specified a different length. And now, he said he would pay me after I finished the entire 50 articles! If I was nervous about payment, he claims he can give me references.
My problem is this, if it is such a big deal to give me the assurance I need by paying me for just 10 articles to start with, should I really continue with this? Also, for $1.50, I´m not very interested in rewriting the articles to be another 100 words long! I need the money, but I think I can earn it better elsewhere. At the very least, writing my own articles to sell for several dollars more! What do you think?
8 people like this
16 responses
@judyt00 (3497)
• Canada
14 Apr 07
$1.50! He is so usingyou. he should be paying you much more than that. do not write one more word for him until he coughs up your$15, and then negotiate for more money. He has no intention of ever paying you and has probably sold YOUR articles under his name for at leat ten times that amount.
4 people like this
@wachit14 (3595)
• United States
14 Apr 07
I think you are getting royally ripped off by this guy. He is paying you $1.50 for an article that he wants to be at least six hundred words. Let's say it takes you an hour to write such an article on a particular keyword. That means you are only making a $1.50 per hour. Worse yet, he's tap dancing around the issue of payment which would make me very skeptical. Truthfully, I write for pay-to-post sites on my blog. I only have to write one hundred words and I get paid five dollars each. Another website, www.paytopost.com pays even more. You can also apply to about.com or Associated Content and make way more than that. Good luck to you.
2 people like this
@bluebird1956 (404)
• Canada
15 Apr 07
I honestly think you have made the proper choice by deciding not to continue with this man.
1 person likes this
@AnythngArt (3302)
• United States
14 Apr 07
From what you say here, it sounds like the guy is not being straight with you. Although I can't tell you what to do, from my point of view, I would say that he needs to pay for the 10 articles before you do anything (change them or write more). If you don't mind losing your work, you can just keep up with him, but if he is balking at paying for only 10, how is it going to be when you are trying to get payment for 100. This doesn't sound like a good working relationship. Someone WILL work with all this crap, but it wouldn't be me. What if he never pays? I think with his responses, it could be a possibility. This isn't to say that he's not on the up-and-up, but his beahviors indicate otherwise.
@GuateMom (1411)
• Canada
14 Apr 07
I agree, it smells fishy to me. Thank you for your opinion, I just wanted to make sure that this seems as bad to others as it does to me before dumping the job. I realize that it isn´t a lot of money, but since I live in Guatemala, $150 can go a long ways.
However, I think if I write 100 articles to post on Constant Content or to create more article packs for my site, I will have a much higher return rate and without the hassle of rewrites! :)
1 person likes this
@SageMother (2277)
• United States
15 Apr 07
As soon as someone starts haggling over the value of your time, it's time to drop them. This fellow sounds like he isn't going to pay you and is playing games to build a case for his using your articles for free. You deserve better than this!
I think you would be justified in dumping him.
2 people like this
@bluebird1956 (404)
• Canada
15 Apr 07
I am so glad to read that you have decided not to continue writing for this guy. I totally agree with the others that the man sounds fishy. On top of that, I don't know what the going rates are down there, but $1.50 just sounds so terribly low for a 600 word article.
I hope that something else will turn up for you. You sound as though you are a very bright, young lady and I know you will succeed once you find the right people. Good luck!
1 person likes this
@Lady_Justice (969)
• United States
15 Apr 07
It's true that when writers work for such low pay it affects other writers. It is an under-appreciated craft to begin with and when some writers practically (or literally) give their work away, it devalues every writer's work. People pay every other person that provides a service to them a decent wage and they should treat writers the same way.
1 person likes this
@asahibza (388)
• Canada
15 Apr 07
It also depends on as to what one has to write about. Some keywords may not need any research and are easy. One can just shoot off and do an article of 500-700 words in 15 minutes.
Whatever, the rate of $1.5 is ridiculous and that too for PLR. Please avoid writing for such low rates. This affects other writers as well. Unless your articles are themselves obtained from some other source, you should never give them away.
Any PLR article should get at least $15, if the topic is solid. Best of luck.
2 people like this
@GuateMom (1411)
• Canada
16 Apr 07
The reason this pay was so low is because I would compile the same articles into article packs of 10 that are then sold to 25 people for $15 each. This is actually pretty common, if you look up PLR article packs online. For custom done articles, I charge minimum $15-20 each.
@Stiletto (4579)
•
15 Apr 07
I would withdraw from the deal. At $1.50 an article you are underselling yourself. No sane person expects exclusive rights at $1.50 a pop. This guy obviously wants a lot for not very much in return! I would also be surprised if he actually pays you anyway.
I know it's tough when you really need the money but you will make better money putting the articles out there on the open market where serious buyers can see them.
1 person likes this
@desertdarlene (8910)
• United States
15 Apr 07
I agree with your last statement, you can earn the money better elsewhere. I don't think you should continue with this guy. He is hoping that you will write all the articles, send them off to him, and then say the weren't good and he's not going to pay you. In the meantime, he will use the articles anyway. I wouldn't send him anything else because he would steal it. I think he's betting that you are a novice and would be so happy to have a job that you would do anything.
I'm an artist and it happens all the time in the art world, too. If you demand payment in advance, I think you should stick with it.
@The_Eagle_1 (1121)
• Australia
15 Apr 07
The general concensus is that you are being ripped off!!
Well, I would have to agree with the majority on that view. If this person wants you to do them, tell them that money upfront, no rewritting and the last paid for in advance articles will be the specified length of words.
If they are not happy with those terms, return the articles already submitted and resind your authority to use them, and if he tries to use them in part or full, do what hurts them the most, whatever that may be! We can work for nothing for nearly anybody!!
1 person likes this
@blackkatdreamer (1461)
• Canada
15 Apr 07
Don't write for him anymore... find work elsewhere... even I know that for freelance they give you Something up front dont they? this guy sounds shady
1 person likes this
@TotalEclipse (157)
•
15 Apr 07
If he doesnt want to pay for the first 10 what makes you think he will pay after 50 or 100?
To be honest it sounds like a bit of a scam to me.
@Lady_Justice (969)
• United States
15 Apr 07
As a freelance writer myself, I would be seeing a big red flag here. You have already made concessions and this guy does not seem professional. Even if you were to wave the pay in advance policy (which you might need to adjust at times for new customers), there is no reason he couldn't pay you for what you've already turned in and pay for the rest upon completion. In fact, what I probably would have done is charged 50% down and 50% upon completion.
Personally, I wouldn't continue working with this person. It might be best to cut your losses. Since you haven't been paid, he doesn't own your articles, so you should be free to resell them. He apparently cheated you out the use of them, but it seems to me that you still own the copyright, except you won't be able to sell full rights.
I think $1.50 for 400-600 words is far too cheap to begin with and I think freelance writers need to understand that their work is worth more than that. You are providing a quality service that they buyer obviously cannot undertake himself. Even if you wrote four such articles per hour that's six bucks an hour, which is under the suggested new minimum wage levels.
Under a package deal, I understand offering a discount, but you're work is worth more than that, IMO. Best wishes.
@reginapaul (40)
• United States
15 Apr 07
Dump him! He is trying to get you to do articles and not pay you would be my guess, and then he's trying to confuse you by acting like he hasn't gotten your e-mails. You can get a much better deal by writing for Associated Content (if you don't already)and you can say non-exclusive which pays a little less per article, and then still use your articles elsewhere. I usually make anywhere from $5-$8 per article when I do non-exclusive. If you do exclusive and say you won't use them anywhere else the pay can be a bit higher, up to $13 per article, but it depends on the topic.
If you want to check out Associated Content here's the link: http://www.associatedcontent.com/join.html?refer=10892
1 person likes this
@pratish269 (23)
• India
15 Apr 07
he is A CHEAT
he is cheating on you
please do not even write a single word for him and force him and make sure he payes for your work that you have already given him
and do not work for him again
@denden (802)
• Philippines
15 Apr 07
It depends on you i think you must find another job if thats your not like then you can find another job you have a potential to have a good job here online.You know how to make websites?then you can make your own websites and make your own money there.
