Affiliate Marketing Forum

Mike Long · Joined: 12 Sep 2003 Posts: 84 Location: Las Vegas, NV, USA

It's a tough balancing act. On one hand, we need to hire writers on the cheap to keep our costs down. But a good writer is worth gold, so you want to do what you can to keep them happy.

The best compromise I've found is to keep my pay rates the same, but pay out a "bonus" at the end of the month if the articles have all arrived on time, and are of good quality.

I'm more then happy to do this, as it allows me to keep my basic rates down, not overpay for so-so work, and reward those who do an excellent job for me.

~Mike

speedguide · Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 12:45 am Post subject:

I've been hiring writers for a few years now. The eBook I wrote - How to Create Website Content FAST - I still follow. I keep working and pushing for ways to get better content.

Lots has been made on what you pay and the quality.

Without giving lots of details... because I want you to think about it and stimulate some talk. If you were having 1 article written on the phrase -- I'm going to reach here -- Igloo Cooler -- what would you send the writer?

Hopefully this will help your writing --- it's blown the doors off of mine.
_________________
Gary
- ONE is to small of a number to be a success!
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Mike Long · Joined: 12 Sep 2003 Posts: 84 Location: Las Vegas, NV, USA

I can't remember who said it, but the quote "begin with the end in mind" seems to come to me here....

My first thought is, what purpose is the page going to serve?

I'm going to work under the assumption that this is going to be an article page for a Martell-style website.

Okay, first I'll turn it around and try my best to think like my customer. When they type in "igloo cooler", what might they be looking for?

(See Gary, I was listening the other night!) Wink

This is where I normally hit my blocks, but I'll do my best.

There is a chance that this person is just looking for a cooler in general, but since they used "igloo" (which is actually a brand name in the USA) I'm going to assume (dangerous I know) that they are looking specifically for information about Igloo branded coolers. (Also known as "ice chests")

Now, Igloo makes a ton of coolers, this person could be looking for anything from a 6 quart, personal, lunch-box sized cooler, all the way up to a Max-Cold 150 quart cooler that could be used for camping, or tail-gating.

Knowing this, I would prefer to have several articles written that are more specific. But as this "assignment" is for just one general article, I would give direction as follows:

"This page is designed to be an introductory and informative piece to those looking for information on the "Igloo" line of coolers.

Please give a quick, 1-2 sentence overview of igloo coolers, (if they're searching for this phrase, odds are that they know what an igloo cooler is) and dedicate a few sentences to, at a minimum, the smallest, largest, and in-between sizes of igloo coolers that are available on the market.

Try to note at least one positive feature and one benefit of each size in your article. Do not try to sell the products. Just provide solid information that *you* would learn something useful from - if *you* were searching for information on an igloo cooler"

Okay, that's my best shot at it. Anyone else? Very Happy

~Mike

speedguide · Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:18 am Post subject:

Excellent start Mike!
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Gary
- ONE is to small of a number to be a success!
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primenet · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 5

Hi All,

I was wondering if there are any elance user group forums that discuss the ratings of various writers ( good vs bad ones). A kind of elance's buyer's experience.

I am asking this because I just recently got burned by a writer. I gave her 45 days to write 100 articles and sent her a down payment (big mistake). By the end of the 45th day she didn't write any articles and took my money and ran. She has since been deactivated from elance.

I chose her because she had great reviews on elance. I even had her sign a contract but it will probably cost me more for a lawyer then the down payment is worth. Also she is California and I'm in Canada.

Thanks,

David

speedguide · Posted: Mon Jan 17, 2005 12:57 am Post subject:

primenet,

Not aware of any elance user forums. I always try to keep groups of articles down to 25 or so until after the writer has proven themself.

All the Best,
_________________
Gary
- ONE is to small of a number to be a success!
Learn HOW TO create targeted, focused Content for your website!--> http://webcontenttips.com - Join Our Weekly Newsletter

lurathsw · Joined: 24 Oct 2004 Posts: 13

Hi primenet,

in Elance, look at the feedback that writers have gotten, how many projects they've done and how much money they've earned.
While not foolproof, this should help with your selections.

From my own experience: I just finished a project (10 articles) with a writer from India - she had done numerous projects on Elance and all the feedback was very good. The project worked out well, and I am giving her more work now.

Best of luck,

-Lukas
_________________
"Just remember - whereever you go, there you are!"

John Lenaghan · Joined: 09 Nov 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Langley, BC, Canada

primenet · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 5

Hi Gary,

Yes I think that is the best way. Only post a small group of articles at a time, and beware of sending down payments.

I also was wondering how much detail you should send a writer in regards to the keywords. I want to send a writer the primary keyword, tier1, variations and tier2 keywords for each article, as well as the number of times to use each variation of the word within the article. Is this too much information to send a writer, or should I just send them the primary keyword and place the rest in myself?

I also want to add that I had purchased your ebooks and think they are EXCELLENT. I really like both "Creating Web Content Fast" and your most recent "Content Made Easy". Really like the keyword and wordtracker info.

Thanks again,

David

John Lenaghan · Joined: 09 Nov 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Langley, BC, Canada

primenet · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 5

Hi John,

Thanks for the chargeback info. My credit card was tied into eLance. Not sure if I could still do this it has been a few months now since this had happened. The writer has taken the money out of her elance account. I did choose the writer based on her reviews and amount of money she made (not always accurate I guess).

In regards to writers being deactivated. When I click on this writer's name or profile, a page comes up that says "The Profile for this User is Unavailable". I filed a report with elance investigation and they basically cut her off for not responding.

If you can still see your writers profile then I think she is still active. Have you tried to see if she left a phone number in her profile. I had a few writers that left there phone number within their profile, and had ended up calling them.

Anyway good luck in finding your writer. I know that can be frustrating when they don't reply.

David

speedguide · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2005 1:48 pm Post subject:

primenet,

Thank you for the compliments on the eBooks. When I write them I write them as MY manual and I use the steps everyday.

As for eLance... the key isn't eLance or rentacoder - the key is using those 2 sites (or others) to locate a writer you can build a long term relationship with. Start small and then growth the writer and the relationship.

Play hardball. If a writer sends "copied" information let them know and give them an opportunity to fix it. If not FIRE THEM.

Make sure you were VERY CLEAR on the content you want.

The end result is not content you want but QUALITY content. Give the writer everything they need to create great content.

Don't confuse the process as I said in the eBook. There is no difference in you writing the articles or hiring it out. The prep work is the same.

I hope that helps...

All the Best,
_________________
Gary
- ONE is to small of a number to be a success!
Learn HOW TO create targeted, focused Content for your website!--> http://webcontenttips.com - Join Our Weekly Newsletter

swahyudi · Joined: 10 Feb 2005 Posts: 2

Sorry if I'm a little out of topic here;

Gary,

I want to buy your book; however, I'm not sure which one to buy as there're two of them.

I'm a newbie in internet marketing and I know writing is the greatest asset you have to have. And after reading this forum, I got to know that I can outsource writing. Thus, I'd like to buy your book.

Which one to start with? Are they different?

Warm Regards,
Stefanus

speedguide · Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2005 2:22 am Post subject:

swahyudi,

I wouldn't reply to the message publically since I don't believe this is the right place for my response.

I've sent you a private message.

All the Best,
_________________
Gary
- ONE is to small of a number to be a success!
Learn HOW TO create targeted, focused Content for your website!--> http://webcontenttips.com - Join Our Weekly Newsletter

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