The Rates of Other Writers

So right now you should be honestly assessing your skill compared to other freelance writers in your niche, and assessing the quirks you bring to the table—your voice, experience, knowledge, etc. All of this will help you get a feel for where you fit in the scheme of things compared to providers of a similar service. You might think the next step is to look at other freelance writer’s rates and determine your own based on your unique cornucopia of skills, voice and experience compared to theirs. But you shouldn’t.

Basing your rates on another writer’s rates is exactly what you should NOT do. Why? Well, how much self-worth does the other writer have? You can’t know. You can’t know how accurate their rates are for their value and that really has no bearing on your worth anyway.

I’m sure there are some out there who would disagree with me, but my opinion is this: Creating rates is not about pricing yourself against competitors. It is not about finding out what your market can bear and it is not about being above a certain threshold. It’s about working for a price that fills your financial need AND is commensurate with your worth and then finding the market that will happily pay that rate.

I don’t have any clue what other finance writers charge, nor do I care. I do know what experience they have and don’t have, I know how they write and how they don’t write and I know where they have strengths that I don’t and where I have strengths that they don’t. That is all I need to know. Based on that information I’ve decided how valuable I am to the marketplace and how to sell myself to it. I have set rates that pay my bills and make me feel good about what I do and what I provide. I’m not just scraping by but I’m also not charging so much that my abilities and skill don’t match my product.

I know some of you won’t believe this but if you honestly assess yourself and find that your worth correlates to a rate that is far above your competitor’s, you won’t be pricing yourself out of your market. Why? Because once you understand your worth you will have a better idea of where and how to find the right clients for you and how to sell yourself. You will be rightfully confident and you will know your product—YOU—inside and out (literally ;)… ewww).

Did this blog post help you set a rate? I hope not because that wasn’t the goal. The goal of this post was to help you understand self-worth as it relates to rates which will lay the foundation to creating the rate that you deserve.

In the New York Times article, she said something that stunned me. Here is an excerpt from the article. When the article starts with “She” they are referring to Suze:

She has been reluctant to work on school curricula on personal finance, because she says students can’t learn empowerment from people who aren’t empowered, and teachers, she says, are too underpaid ever to have any real self-worth. She told me: “When you are somebody scared to death of your own life, how can you teach kids to be powerful? It’s not something in a book — it ain’t going to happen that way.” She once delivered pretty much the same message at an anniversary celebration of a private school — she seems to recall calling the school a “travesty” — and was all but escorted to the door when she was done.

Teachers Lack Self-Worth?

I don’t agree with Suze’s point of view here. I am friends with many teachers and yeah, they are underpaid, but they are not short on self-worth. When you choose to teach you are answering a calling that goes well beyond money. You want to play a part in the future of our world. You want to be a positive influence in a child’s life. In other words, you are getting something more than money out of your career.

But with freelance writing, it’s different.  I do believe that freelance writers who allow themselves to be underpaid are probably lacking in self-worth. I say probably because, well, what am I—Carnac? I don’t know anyone’s mind but my own, but I do know this—there is no reason to be underpaid other than being too scared to go after the pay you deserve unless your writing is altruistic in some way. Maybe you write for non-profits and like to bask in the glow of charity more than greenbacks—that’s cool. But if you are writing cheap for a company that is going to profit off of your writing then that’s not altruistic. I can think of a lot of things it is (all of them negative), but altruistic it is not.

Learning to Value YOU

Now, when I talk about going after the pay you deserve, I’m not talking about the pay you want or the pay you’d like—but the pay you deserve. Sure I’d like to get paid a million dollars every time I deign to sit at a computer, but my work is not worth that much. It is worth what I bring to it through my experience, my voice, my knowledge, my education, my talent, my notoriety, my innate me-ness.

So how do you put a value on your worth? Is there some sort of algorithm you can plug facts about yourself into and a sample of your writing in order to get the number that fairly and accurately represents the value that you provide to a client?

Well, unless Google is currently working on that, no… no there isn’t. So you have to get your hands dirty. You need to seek out other writers in your field, compare their writing style, accuracy and their experience in your niche. You have to figure out where you fit within the scheme of talent, knowledge, voice and expertise. You have to take your ego out of the equation and objectively weigh your strengths and weaknesses against other writers in your niche (Dare I say—your competition?). You can’t allow yourself to feel threatened or bad by this process.

Let me explain to you why it’s so important to take your ego out of the equation. My husband thinks that Kim Kardashian is hot. I do too—but that doesn’t threaten my husband like his acknowledgment of her hotness threatens me. For some irrational reason, I am threatened by Kim Kardashian’s hotness. So when I found out that she had gotten Botox, I ran to my husband, tugged on his shirt and gleefully told him that. It was as though I thought that my Botox-free face was somehow hotter than hers now. I thought this because my ego desperately wanted that to be true and because I am a sad, sad old woman. If I actually look at the situation objectively, I can see that I am in no way as hot as Kim—Botox or no Botox—and likely never will be. I can also appreciate that she is totally hot—but doesn’t have many of the personality quirks that I have, and these are the things that make my husband love me and not simply find me “hot.” So yes I objectively think that she is hotter, but I am actually valuable to hubby as a person, so HA! SUCK IT! I WIN! Oh… wait… no… that wasn’t the point. Okay, my point is my self-worth is now increased because I realize my true value while acknowledging hers as well.

Now, let’s talk about that other freelance writer’s rates… next week!

Today I want to take a look at some criticisms of Demand Studios / Demand Media other than the low rate argument. And I’m going to give you facts — lots of them — so you can make your own decisions about some of these issues. After all, if your opinions aren’t based on facts they’re not opinions at all — they’re delusions.

So today I want to follow up on Carson Brackney’s recent post on Demand Studios where he mentioned that he’s giving them a go for himself so he can form firsthand opinions (which is something I respect by the way). I did have a wee issue with one thing though — his mention of the DS debate, and the focus on criticism revolving around rates they pay writers.

Rates are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Yes, it’s true that many people have criticized the $15 rates for much of their content and even some of their higher rates. On one level I agree with those people. On another level I really don’t give a damn. Why? Because I know the writers who want more, who are worth more, and who are willing to work for more will get much more in their freelance writing careers.

As for those who are happy with Demand? Good for them — I’m genuinely glad they’re happy, and as I (and other writers) have said repeatedly there’s a place for content mills for some writers. And those who want more but who don’t want to work for it or who are too busy making excuses to try? Well, then they’re probably right where they deserve to be right now in their careers, and hopefully they’ll take steps to improve their situation in the future.

But here’s the thing. You can’t really have an honest conversation about the Demand Studios / Demand Media supporters and opposition unless you go beyond the rates. That’s far from the only criticism out there, and I think many are valid. Personally, my biggest issues with DS include the occasional misleading marketing they engage in to try to solicit writers, the frequency at which they contradict themselves, and what appears to be special treatment from Google (although that’s an issue we’ll discuss far more thoroughly at a later time, and it’s more an issue with Google than Demand itself). For now let’s get back to the issue of “bias.”

More About Bias (Mine and Theirs)

(Note: I really can’t stand the whole “martyr” card some bloggers like to play with their readers. So let me apologize up front, because I know this next segment might sound that way.)

As much as (coming from a PR background) I hate the buzzword, I still am a big supporter of transparency. So I think it’s only fair that I explain my background in this topic area so you know where I’m coming from, where my insight is based, and why this issue is something I’m so passionate about. And even though my past with these sites is already publicly well-documented, I’d rather refresh you on that than have someone come crying later saying “how can you speak out against mills when you write / wrote for them?” I don’t write for them. So let’s be clear on that up front (since someone asked me that on Twitter the other day). But I used to.

I have a lot of experience with content mills, content farms, content networks, or whatever you’d like to call them. There were positive elements. There were plenty of negative ones.

I’ve worked for these sites as a writer. I’ve worked as an editor. I used to be one of the most outspoken supporters of one in particular — Suite101. I’ve tested others for the benefit of my readers here, including Associated Content and the article marketing site EzineArticles.com. I’ve been around. And since then, Yo has picked up on that testing with other mills and networks here on the blog. But back to our flashback….

Not long after leaving About.com, I was hired by Suite101′s new management team / owners as their Technology Editor. Around the same time I was also writing for a network (now gone I believe) called All Info About — their model was a bit different (they put an ad on your site in their network, but you could also place your own to directly earn income, so there really wasn’t any guesswork involved).

I try not to judge single sites based on the whole lot. That would be silly. My opinions were, and are, formed individually. Had I judged them based on issues with others, I never would have given Suite101 a try after the editor overturn drama with About.com at the time. But Suite101′s editor-in-chief (no longer there from the last info I heard) convinced me that they were different; that they really cared about the writers. And even though there had been a bad history under the old owners before them, I think they really did have decent intentions in the beginning. They did actually listen to the editors and writers. Unfortunately things got to a point where I felt that changed.

So not only am I well aware of all of the arguments for content mill writing, but I used to wholeheartedly believe them. I know what it’s like to feel passionate about them, and to get really angry when people bash them. So as much as that can drive me crazy today when people take general comments personally, I do understand what they’re feeling. The difference is that I was there on the backend long enough that I finally woke up. In the end, it’s about money — the big content sites want to make it, and they make it by paying you far less than you could be earning by pursuing gigs elsewhere. They appeal to the lowest common denominator (which is reflected in every single one of us sometimes) — what’s “easy” starts to look like what’s best for us.

What really bothers me isn’t that I used to very aggressively support content mills and speak out in their defense. It’s that I convinced other writers like you to believe that. It was my job to tell you the regular gig made it worth it. It was my job to tell you residuals were better than a much higher up front payment (that could have paid down your high interest bills or gone into savings and investments to earn interest for you rather than for the content site). It was my job to tell you that working for a content site was an amazing thing you could do for exposure (with no regard for the fact that there were better things you could do for exposure while earning far better money, even as a beginner). And I did my job. And as I’ve said in posts here before, I’m still ashamed of that fact.

I’m ashamed because I’ve always cared about the writing community in general. And I should have known better. I should have crunched the numbers sooner. I should have stopped thinking of it in terms of what it could be, and instead seen it for what it really was. Even while recruiting writers (many of whom I’m happy to say left with me or shortly after me, and several of whom I’m still quite friendly with), I did what I could to help them earn more. I volunteered a lot of my own time to teach a select group of Suite101 writers about Internet marketing and SEO — things to help them promote their sites and increase their earnings. But it wasn’t enough.

And that’s why I’ll always try to do more here at All Freelance Writing to help writers realize their options before they end up in the mill rut. It’s why they’ll never be promoted here as a great option for writers, even though I (and other contributers) have tried to treat them fairly in that we’ve generally acknowledged their place for some. But we don’t write for hobbyists here. We write for freelancers who are looking to build professional careers.

That is the context in which you should take the rest of this post.

And keep something else in mind. There’s very little in it for me to write this post. We’ve seen tremendous traffic growth without it, and no amount of traffic or links will make giving up nearly all of my free time for two days, plus extra hours up late each of those days worth it — I value my time too much, and if you’ve been a regular reader here for a while, you already know that.

I get nothing out of telling other writers they can do better. If anything, I increase the competition within my own target market. In fact, I’ve recently been coaching a Demand writer, bringing her not only into my target market but right into my own personal client base. It’s not about me. It’s not about this site. I only get this worked up over an issue if I truly believe in it. And I believe Demand Studios is a bad thing for most freelance writers trying to build serious careers.

Now ask yourself — what’s in for them when they spin things, give multiple versions of a story, and post misleading marketing copy to add more writers to their ranks? How about those $200 million in sales (and more expected this year)? I don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting to earn money. That’s just business. But I don’t care about Demand’s business. I care about the writers who build the backbone of that business. You can believe what you want. You certainly don’t have to agree with me on every point. You don’t have to agree with me at all. At the end of the day, your decision to work for Demand doesn’t affect me.

When it comes to Demand, I’ve talked to a lot of their writers (I’ve even hired some). I’ve read and listened to the executive interviews. I’ve heard both sides of the debate. I’ve read as much of their guidelines and other documentation as I could before forming opinions (some of which is linked and cited here). I’ve done my research. And now I’ve gathered a large collection of sources for you, not necessarily to convince you to think just like I do, but to cut through some of the PR speak and show you not what the critics are saying, but what Demand representatives actually have to say when you take the time to really look.

Remember, bias isn’t just having an opinion and sharing it. Every time one of their reps gives an interview, it’s biased in their favor. Every time someone they sponsor endorses them or features them, it’s biased in their favor. Yet they criticize the critics, call us biased as though they’re not when they’re being employed by or otherwise paid by Demand, and treat us as though having an opinion means we’re not worth considering. Demand’s CEO has even said that people who criticize Demand just don’t understand them.

And to that I say, “Oh really?” Their model isn’t exactly rocket science. SEOs have been doing the same thing for years. The primary difference? They implemented algorithms to automate the keyword and ad spend research to make their process more efficient. They pay little per piece, so they can earn significant profits.

Look, it’s one thing to change your mind about an issue. I’ve certainly done it (as detailed above). I’m not one who tries to hide their past views by deleting blog posts or comments. That wouldn’t be fair to my readers, and it wouldn’t be fair to me. Everyone is allowed to learn and grow — two things I hope I never stop doing. But what you’ll see below doesn’t look to me like a case of someone changing their mind when you look at the dates and the actual information coming from these Demand reps.

Then again, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe we all are just ignorant when it comes to Demand Media. After all, their own people can’t seem to get their story straight, so who could blame the laymen like us for not understanding the full picture.

Let me give you a few examples — here are some of Demand Media’s / Demand Studio’s claims, with a few follow-up facts for good measure.

Claim: Demand Studios Isn’t Journalism (or Trying to be)

A big criticism of Demand Studios comes from those who worry the site and company will have a negative impact on journalism, on top of that industry’s existing problems. There have been multiple instances where Demand’s CEO Richard Rosenblatt has tried to say they’re not targeting journalism, aren’t participating in journalism, or are not creating news. At the same time, they’ve been seen advertising specifically targeting journalists. I think Rosenblatt sums it up nicely:

“Only the journalists call us journalists.”
- Richard Rosenblatt – CEO, Demand Media [WebProNews, March 18, 2010]

I beg to differ:

“We’re basically service journalism.”
- Steven Kydd, Executive Vice President [Keynote for International Symposium on Online Journalism - University of Texas at Austin, 2010]

“We knew the life of a piece of online content was indefinite, so we focused on creating evergreen, “news that you can use,” quality content”
- Jeremy Reed – Senior VP of Content and Editorial for Demand Media [TheWMFreelanceConnection.com Interview - February 2010]

“We are primarily looking for people with solid researching and reporting skills, and ideal candidates have had their work published in print or online.”
- Robyn Galbos – Director, Demand Studios [Interview with WOW! Women on Writing - April 8, 2010]

“What is wrong with coming up with a way for thousands of writers–who have been laid off, by the way, from news organizations–knowing exactly how much they make, selecting their own topics and publishing when they want?”
- Richard Rosenblatt, CEO of Demand Media [BusinessInsider.com - January 11, 2010]

“Service Journalism Openings”
- Job posting soliciting writers [ProBlogger.com]

“Minimum of 3 years as a Managing, Line, Features, Section or Associate Editor at a newspaper, magazine, book publisher or publication (Please do not apply if you have fewer than 3 years experience)”
- Required qualifications listed for DS Copy Editors in a job ad from the company [JournalismJobs.com - open job ad that expires June 28, 2010]

“Educational and/or professional background in writing, journalism, blogging, etc.” and “Familiarity of writing in AP style preferred.”
- Job ad from the company [JournalismJobs.com - open job ad that expires June 24, 2010]

“Experience writing about health-related topics in a medical or health magazine, newspaper, journal, blog or other health website”
- Job ad from the company, hiring medical / health writers [JournalismJobs.com - open job ad that expires June 21, 2010]

As you can see, not only have Demand Media / Demand Studios executives referred to DS as a form of journalism, contrary to Rosenblatt’s comments, but they’ve also quite actively recruited those with a journalism background. I consider that misleading at best, and a downright lie at worst. But it makes for great spin when you’re being interviewed and you want to discredit some of your naysayers.

Claim: Demand Studios Isn’t Meant to be a Full-time Job

Another criticism of the company has to do with the idea of the sustainability of using DS as a full-time job as opposed to a more limited and / or temporary freelance writing gig. That’s because of the potential to push writers and other producers to burn-out levels.

The point is this: when you pay people very little and you know they desperately need that money, you put them in a position where they have to work for you so often just to get by that there’s no time left for them to target better markets and grow their careers.

Executive VP, Steven Kydd doesn’t seem to agree with that concern, because he says Demand Studios isn’t about creating full-time jobs:

“We’re not trying to create full-time jobs.”
- Steven Kydd, Executive VP [Keynote for International Symposium on Online Journalism - University of Texas at Austin - 2010]

I guess their motives differ from their marketing…

“Work as much as you want, from wherever you want. Fill gaps between full-time jobs or work with us full-time – our freelance jobs are as flexible as you need them to be.”
- On DemandStudios.com [Homepage copy]

“Some filmmakers use Demand Studios to fill time between other gigs, while others focus on Demand Studios assignments as their full-time job. We welcome both types of filmmakers and everything in between.”
- On DemandStudios.com [Page recruiting filmmakers]

… and their executive pitches:

“First, take the application process as seriously as you would for a full-time position.”
- Robyn Galbos – Director, Demand Studios [Interview with WOW! Women on Writing - April 8, 2010]

“Many of our freelancers are happy making a full-time living off of Demand Media assignments – as we’ve removed the “hustle” from freelancing that allows them to focus on what they love to do and cut out all the hassle associated with pitching ideas, finding assignments, chasing down payments, lather, rinse and repeat.”
- Jeremy Reed – Senior Vice President of Content and Editorial for Demand Media [ TheWMFreelanceConnection.com - February 15, 2010]

Maybe they didn’t all get the memo.

Claim: “Group Health Insurance” (Various)

This was a prime example of Demand Media releasing misleading information to market their site to new writers. The basic claim? Eligible writers can get inexpensive group health insurance, just like a “real job.”

On the surface, I know that sounds great, especially to writers who are out of work and in serious need of new insurance coverage. But not all of the information they provided was 100% true. I mean, all you have to do to see that is read the actual insurance documents they eventually provided. If we were talking about a traditional comprehensive insurance plan here (you know… the things employers usually pay into partially), I’d think it was a great option for those who truly had no other option. But that’s not the case.

I’m not going to get into all of the specifics of why this is misleading, the issue of promoting it to sound like an actual insurance benefit versus what’s more of a discount plan (if they technically offer “benefits” they risk contractors being re-classified as employees by the IRS), and what freelancers need to know and discuss with an insurance professional before even considering moving to Demand’s health plan — our resident licensed insurance professional already did that. I want to focus on three of the most alluring aspects they promote to make it sound great to writers, and then I’ll share what the health plan documents actually say.

The health plans have been promoted at times in a way that could make them sound to an average reader like they’re a substitute for traditional health insurance or self-purchased individual plans. Considering how these plans sound could influence whether or not writers sign up and churn out 90 articles to become eligible, I think that’s a problem. Here are two examples:

“By offering guaranteed access to health care benefits as well as twice weekly payment, we are lightening the burden and removing more of the risk for those who want to follow their passion.”
- Steven Kydd, Executive Vice President of Demand Studios [Company-issued press release announcing health care benefits - October 21, 2009]

“You may be able to enroll in the plan after 90 days if a ‘qualifying event’ occurs (such as you or your spouse losing a job which provided health insurance).”
- Demand Studios Health Plan FAQs

And here’s what the actual insurance document says:

“Flex Shield pays indemnity-based benefits for a covered injury or sickness. Flex Shield is not traditional comprehensive health insurance and should not be considered a substitute for comprehensive health insurance or major medical coverage.”
- Demand Media’s Flex Shield Benefit Program Documentation [Page 2]

Here’s what the on-site marketing pitch says about both deductibles and co-pays:

“No deductibles or co-pays”
- DemandStudios.com [Plan Highlights]

Sounds simple enough to me! Until you read the fine print. From a promotional perspective, this works, because to an average reader when you say something like “you don’t have to pay any co-pays during your doctor visit, and you don’t have to pay a deductible,” it sounds like you’re saying their monthly premium is all they have to pay. However, the plan is actually so limited in the amount of benefits paid, as well as the frequency at which benefits can be paid for certain things, that the person with the health plan actually can pay a lot out of pocket. Go ahead. Take a look at the fine print and coverage limits to see for yourself:

- Demand Media’s Flex Shield Benefit Program Documentation [Page 7]

There’s one more big “selling point” for the health care plan from Demand Studios that I take some serious issue with. It has to do with coverage for those with pre-existing conditions. Here’s what they say in the marketing material on their website:

“Pre-existing conditions are covered. The only exception is if you know you are pregnant, you cannot join the plan for that purpose. (Other than in California where there is no such requirement).”
- DemandStudios.com [Plan Highlights]

Now if you read the documentation, you’ll find that’s just downright false. It’s not the “only exception.” There’s another limitation involved with significant wait time before you’ll get any kind of coverage for your condition. And if you have a serious health condition that’s driving your decision to join Demand Studios in order to get this health plan, you might be in for an unpleasant surprise if you believe what they say on their site. Here’s the actual exclusion language from the documentation itself:

Other Demand Studios Criticisms

I have page after page of additional research material here pointing to even more hypocrisy from Demand Media / Demand Studios. And they’re behind other valid criticism of the sites. But given the length of this post already, I’m just going to summarize, as I think we tackled some of the biggest.

1. Claims of an interest in quality content for readers and not just search engines – While on one hand Demand wants writers to put together authoritative pieces, did you know they also have a resource blacklist that lists sites writers aren’t allowed to use as sources? I’ll give them some credit for blacklisting user-submitted and user-edited content like that from Wikipedia. I’ll even give them credit for having a suggested reference list. But they also blacklist much more authoritative sites if they’re competition in the search engines — for example writers can’t cite WebMD as a source if they write for Demand’s Livestrong.com property. I don’t know about you, but I’d call that a pretty clear-cut case of writing for search engines before readers.
2. Claims that Demand content saves readers time — This was one of the more laughable things I saw from Rosenblatt. He claimed that Demand Studios helps readers save time (among other things). Really? How is putting more content with the same information into search results helping people save time? If the information isn’t there yet, then maybe. But that’s not the case for the vast majority of their content I’ve come across. In those cases, at best they’re taking the same amount of time to find the material. At worst they now have to sort through even more content to find the most reputable sources available. If you want to save me time with quality information (as opposed to just trying to rank in search engines for a variety of longtail search phrases for the same thing), then I shouldn’t need more than one article from you on how to train a dog to sit. Instead, buy one high quality article covering a few different methods — if quality and saving time are really your goals at least.
3. Claims that Demand is concerned with conflicts of interest — Apparently that’s only when it might be involved in their search engine rankings. On the other hand, they have no problem “sponsoring” others to write about them, as though that’s not a similar conflict of interest affecting Web readers. I guess it just depends which side of the table you’re on.
4. Claims that Demand improves people’s lives — Sure, I could see the occasional article “improving people’s lives in big and small ways” if they’re accurate, if there wasn’t already more reputable information out there on the topic, etc. But before making claims quite that lofty, I do have to point out some gems of examples from their “contributing writers” (which, if I understand correctly are the ones producing through Demand, and going through their editorial process — correct me if I’m wrong and I’ll sincerely apologize). Do you know what their writers can teach you to improve your life? Here are a few examples: How to make yourself fart (because, really, who doesn’t want to know how to do that?), How to have sex in order to get pregnant (apparently sexy lingerie will cure your baby-making woes — although I didn’t see their famous credible sources cited on that claim), and best of all How to pass a drug test for opiates. As for that last one, not only might they be helping people get away with breaking the law, but fact-check-fail: marijuana is not an opiate. I could have written a much better, much shorter article on that topic for them. Here it is: If you want to protect your “legal freedom and job eligibility,” don’t do illegal drugs, you f*ing dipsh*ts! See? Now that’s information designed to “improve people’s lives.”
5. Claims that Demand pays writers on par with an average journalist’s salary — This one turned out to be much more than a “summary,” but I think the numbers are important. While we won’t get into the “is $15 per article fair?” here, there is one other issue regarding rates that I think is worth mentioning. It has to go to Demand’s defenseof those rates.Not only did Rosenblatt claim people who criticized Demand just didn’t understand them, but he also demonstrated that he doesn’t understand the difference between independent contractors and salaried employees — at least as far as pay being comparable goes. How? Well, in his manifesto he claimed “… we generally target an hourly rate for writers that is comparable to the average salary of a journalist.”

   I wonder what journalists he’s talking about. I mean, if you look at their various interviews and job ads you’ll see quite a few average hourly pay estimates from folks at Demand — $15-25 per hour, $22-25 per hour, $15-30+ per hour. Okay, so let’s take that middle range and give them the benefit of the doubt and say the average pay is $25 per hour (remember — we’re talking about their typical writers, not an exception to the rule, no matter how happy you might be to be one).

   Now let’s take a look at what journalists typically make. I can’t even begin to guess where Rosenblatt got his average (even the government notes that salaries for these folks vary widely). Given that they produce such super-duper, source-cited, fact-checked content, let’s give them the benefit of the doubt again and go with the information provided by one of their writers — $22,000-50,000 per year (and here’s the updated info from their source).

   Yikes. That’s another big range, and that’s only supposed to account for starting salaries (and not including journalists with advanced degrees, which their author notes should add another $10-20,000 to that starting salary). So let’s pretend that Demand never looks for people with advanced degrees and doesn’t want any actual “journalism” experience since that would mean a higher comparable salary they’d have to meet — again, giving them the benefit of the doubt.

   Let’s assume not all DS writers are living in the lowest cost of living areas and go somewhere in the middle — $30,000. So, for your basic $15 DS article, how many do you have to write in a year to earn a comparable “salary?” That’s 2000 articles over the course of 52 weeks in a year; that comes to a requirement of writing 38.46 articles per week, or 7-8 articles every week day.

   Could you write that many articles every single work day with no vacation time, sick time, holidays, personal days, etc.? (Keep in mind the DS job ads estimate an average of 30-60 minutes per article). But let’s assume you can. Now let’s also assume you’re so good at what you do that you never get asked for an edit or a rewrite and you certainly never have an article rejected. You’re also lightning fast at finding and claiming articles, dealing with editor communication, etc.  to the point where we can pretend that time doesn’t even exist. Cool.

   You just might make Rosenblatt’s point look legitimate. After all, if you plug in those same numbers for working days, number of weeks, etc. you’ll find that poor little journalist only comes to around $14.42 per hour. Damn! Makes it look like DS writers live like kings, right? Well, yeah, when you twist stats to make it look that way, sure you can make it work. But here’s the problem.

   Freelance payments and the earnings of salaried employees are not directly comparable. For example, as a freelancer, you’ll pay twice the Social Security and Medicare taxes as an employee (where the employer pays half). That puts you at 15.3% just for those taxes. Big difference.

   You also technically do have business expenses, even if DS is your only paying client and you don’t do any marketing — at least a portion of your internet connection is a business expense, possibly a portion of rent and other utilities if you have a home office, etc. Now that might not sound like much to some, but there’s even more to expenses.

   To make freelance rates directly comparable to the earnings of an employee, you must compare those freelance earnings not to the employee’s salary, but closer to the employee’s total cost to their employer. In other words, all other things have to be equal. Unless Demand Studios is paying not just what that $30,000 per year journalist is earning as a salary, but also the value of any benefits (like health insurance, 401k contributions, sick time, vacation time, etc.) that the average employer is paying, the comparison is irrelevant because the salaried journalist is actually getting much more.

   Remember, as a freelance writer, you’re a business owner, and what you charge clients has to cover all of those things if you want to treat them as comparable.  Salary.com does some nice breakdowns of this for you. So let’s take a look at the difference in their base salary and actual cost when factoring in those benefits. Here’s what we find:

   Their U.S. national base pay is just over $31,000 (pretty close to what we estimated earlier). However, once you factor in average benefits, the journalist is actually getting the equivalent of a little over $47,000. Now what’s the percentage increase? 51.6% That’s pretty significant. That means you’d have to earn more than $45,000 per year working for Demand to really be paid on par with those salaried journalists with a $30,000 base salary (whose hourly “rate” now actually comes to around $21.63 per hour – again, big difference, but it falls within the general range Demand mentions). Okay. Let’s crunch the numbers and see how it adds up.

   To earn that $45,000 with Demand Studios, you have to write 3000 articles over the course of a year. That’s 57.69 articles per week, or 11.54 articles per day on average. Then again, we focused on the journalist’s real earnings specifically so you could account for things like time off (which you still pay for as a freelancer, just out of the rates you charge clients).

   So in reality, you’re probably not going to work 5 days a week, 52 weeks per year. Let’s assume pretty modest vacation time, plus sick time, plus personal days, plus vacation days at four weeks off per year (off 20 working days). Now that comes to 12.5 articles per day, every week day left during the year. Based on Demand’s estimates of 30-60 minutes per article for most of their writers (again, remember we’re not talking about the exceptions, but the typical case study), that means you would have to write 6.25 – 12.5 hours every week day to actually make money comparable to the earnings of a starting journalist.

   That still doesn’t even account for your added taxes, and any business expenses you have that the employee-journalist does not. Nor does it account for any other time involved in working for Demand — and let’s be honest here, you’re not perfect, and you’re not robots.  So sure, you could fudge the numbers to make them work by ignoring the business element of freelancing. And if you’re willing to ignore that and are willing to work an average of over 9 hours per day, you might be able to say Demand pays on par with an entry level journalism job.

   But then again, when Demand likes to tout their writers’ experience, why should those more experienced writers consider that a point for Demand Studios? There’s no logic to it. And keep in mind, that’s not even on the upper end of the starting salary range. Not only that, but since Demand’s CEO claims they’re not journalists to begin with, why choose a starting journalist’s salary as a base model, especially when journalists are commonly thought to be underpaid anyway? Again, there’s no logic to it — at least not if he’s trying to make a case FOR writing for Demand. And really, the math is moot anyway. Remember, Rosenblatt didn’t say they pay on par with the typical salary for a brand-spanking new journalist. Just the average salary of journalists in general.

And that’s all to say nothing of the general Google partner issues, the sleazy SEO keyword-stuffed links at the bottom of the DS site, the issues of “writers relying on a 3rd party that relies on another 3rd party” business concern, etc.

I think that’s enough for now. Clearly, the issues with Demand Media / Demand Studios aren’t all about the rate debate. Sometimes it’s just about the stupid sh*t those associated with them say and do.

While this story may not be relevant to writers already on the higher end of the spectrum, today I’d like to share a story from one freelance writer who went from accepting gigs at as low as half a cent per word to now having advertised rates as high as $.15 per word. I hope those struggling at rock-bottom rates can find a bit of inspiration here to make changes in their writing careers.

Here’s my interview with Writer’s Brew blogger and business and finance writer, LaToya Irby:

When did you begin freelance writing, and what type of writing do you take on?

When I first started freelance writing in early 2006, I took on a lot of keyword-spamming type of articles. You know, the writing equivalent of an offshore shoe manufacturer. It wasn’t what I was ultimately looking for, but those jobs were easy to find and paid quickly. At that point, I was just happy that I was getting paid to write.

What did your typical rate structure look like when you started? Why did you choose to start at those rates?

I was making anywhere between $.005 and $.02 per word. That’s what the jobs paid, so that’s what I took. It didn’t occur to me to ask for anything higher.

In hindsight, if you could go back and change anything about the way you started your freelance writing career, what would you do differently?

I would have spent more time learning the freelance writing business, making contact with other writers, and coming up with a clear plan about launching a freelance writing career. I would have chosen a niche and a target market and focused on building a reputation there.

What are your rates like now? How long did it take for you to make the transition from your previous rate structure to your current rates?

My rates are [at least] 4-5 times higher than what they were in the beginning. Of course, I don’t know if the increase [is] that dramatic considering I moved from $.02 per word to $.08 per word over three years. That’s about a 2 cent increase every year. I charge $35/hour for other types of business writing like copywriting, business letters and business proposals. I didn’t offer those services in the beginning.

Was it “easy” to raise rates? Did it pose any difficulties? What was the hardest part about it?

Sure, deciding to increase my rates was the easy part. The hard part was letting go of clients that didn’t want to pay the higher rate and putting in the work to find clients that would pay them. At the time, it was difficult moving out of my comfort zone, but all I really had to do was start looking for clients in other places. That work was vital to my freelance writing success.

What made you decide to increase your rates in the first place? Was it out of necessity (needed to earn more to get by), pride in your work (you knew your time was worth more than what you were charging), or something else?

It was a little of both. When I started freelance writing, I had a corporate job making close to $60,000 a year. There was no way I could match that salary at the writing rates I was accepting. I would have had to write thousands of articles per year. I realized I could write for more during an episode of Sex and the City. Carrie, the main character who writes a column for the New York Post, mentioned getting paid something like $1.25 a word to freelance for Vogue. I thought “She’s making more per a word than I make per article!” That’s a slight exaggeration, but you get it.

How did your then-clients take the news? Did you ease them into it? Did most stay with you? Did you end up targeting a completely different client base?

I let my clients know I would be increasing my rates and gave them a two-month grace period at the current rate. None of them stayed with me. I understood that their business models wouldn’t allow them to make a decent profit and pay me higher rates. So ultimately, I had to target a different type of client.

Many writers express a certain level of fear when it comes to raising rates–did you experience that kind of emotion? What was the scariest part of the process, and how did that fear either motivate you or hold you back in some way?

I was definitely shy about raising my rates. I was new to freelance writing, I didn’t have any writing credits, and I have a Business degree rather than an English or Journalism degree. I thought those things made me look less attractive to “real” clients. It kept me from hiking my rates up to where I really wanted and needed them to be. I thought it would be better to ease my rates up over time, so I started out with a low increase, like how McDonald’s does with their cheeseburger prices. Only, I’m not McDonald’s and I don’t sell cheeseburgers, so it might not have been the wisest plan. I could have set entirely new rates and reestablished myself in a different market. Which is what ultimately happened, it just took longer.

Has raising your rates made you look at the freelancing life any differently? Is it easier to view it as a career path rather than a way to make extra money for example? Or do you find yourself feeling differently about the actual projects you take on now versus those you started with?

Definitely. Last September, I left my corporate job and started freelancing full time. There was absolutely no way that would have happened if I hadn’t raise my rates. It would have happened sooner if I’d been more aggressive at rate increases. Now that I do this full time, I am a lot more selective about the jobs I take on. I have to be. I love writing and I don’t want to start resenting it, so I only take on projects that I like. I have no problem saying no to a job that pays well, but would make me hate myself in the morning.

If you could say one thing to freelance writers who feel they have to offer very low rates to compete and survive, what would you say to them?

You can’t compete and you won’t survive on low rates. There will always be someone out there who will charge less than you. And that market of clients is always trying to figure out how to pay lower rates for writing. So, figure out why you’re afraid to charge what you’re worth and work on solving that problem. If you feel that you need bylined clips, get some. A lot of writers will tell you not to write for free, but if you have to give away one bylined clip to a credible website or publication to increase your rates, I say it’s a worthwhile investment. That was more than one thing, wasn’t it?

I’d like to thank LaToya for taking the time to share her personal experiences with the very low Web content writing rates we often see advertised, and what she did to start breaking away from that market.

If anyone has anything they’d like to add from their own experiences–tips to help newer or underpaid writers take a step in the right direction–I hope you’ll share with us here in the comments.