If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a thousand times, “No, we can’t actually pay you, but you’ll be driving traffic to your site and gaining exposure.” If only that were true. In reality, though, you’re spending time writing content for someone else and they aren’t paying you for your time.
When I started blogging, I did it because I wanted to write for myself. I had no plans for making money–any money I earned before 2008 was a happy accident. Anything I earned during 2008 and beyond has been mostly calculated. I made a concerted effort to make blogging my career. It’s not quite a career yet, but I’m making enough to be encouraged. How did I get here?
I made mistakes and learned from them.
The number one mistake I made was agreeing to write for other blogs for free. I agreed to these jobs for several reasons: 1) I liked the blogger(s) who owned the site, 2) I thought I really would get click-through traffic from my articles, 3) I thought any exposure was good exposure–at least people would know who I am.
Sadly, none of these reasons are good enough to spend my time writing good content for absolutely nothing in return. Because that’s what I got: nothing. I found out the sites I was blogging for were making money, but not paying me; the click-through traffic was nominal; and I don’t think people noticed me from those blogs, but they knew me from my own blogs.
As bloggers–whether pro or hobby–we bring talent to the table (assuming you write great content), usually in a specific niche. I spend time crafting a post. It may be 30 minutes one day or several hours another day. I research answers for Blogging Basics 101 and distill information into easy-to-use instructions. That’s a talent. Why on earth would I agree to give away that time, content, and knowledge for free?
In fact, every time you give away your content for free, you’re hurting those who come after you. It’s been difficult to explain to mainstream media why blogging is an important medium. It’s been difficult to show advertisers how important bloggers can be for word-of-mouth buying decisions. Bloggers aren’t always taken seriously in all circles and are dismissed as cheap labor. And we perpetuate that by not demanding to be paid what we are worth.
In order to change that perception, bloggers must demand to be paid. I’m not entirely sure, but I think in the Mommy Blogging community this may be one of the biggest hurdles to being professional blogger. Mommy bloggers can’t believe their good fortune to be offered a free product to review! Free product? Just for writing a review? Sure!
Not so fast. I, too, fell into this trap. Consider how long it takes to write a review post that is useful to your audience (whether positive or negative). Is that time worth the $2.98 widget you received for free? I doubt it.
What about writing for community-based sites like 918moms.com or Mile High Mamas? Neither of these sites pays their contributors, but they are either plastered with corporate sponsorship or owned by a major media outlet in their area. If the writers aren’t collecting the money, who is?
Then there are the submission sites that will pay you to post. The one I despise the most is Today.com. Why do I despise them? Because they will pay you $1 per post and they are unapologetic. In fact, when I asked them why they thought that was reasonable, they responded that Today.com helps bloggers have their voices heard. For $1 a post, you can hear me at my own blog. What kind of quality do you get for $1? If I write 20 posts for $1 each, I’ll have my $20, but what sort of quality am I providing to my readers if I’m churning out posts without substance? And if I’m actually writing with substance, how can I justify to myself the $1 payout? For me, I can’t.
I’ll admit that I have been lucky. I write weekly posts for two blogs that value bloggers and pay them well. Even if I didn’t have these gigs, though, I still wouldn’t be giving my writing away for free. If you write well, engage in community, and chase the blogging jobs, you’ll be paid.
Related posts at BloggingTips.com:
- Freelance Writers: Why You Should Never Give Away All Rights to Your Content
- SEO Copywriting Rates: How to Get $100/Article or More
- The Hidden Costs Of Freelancing
- How to set your blogging rates
Related posts on the web:
Trent Brownrigg | October 17th, 2008 at 2:33 pm #
I think one exception is that if you are guest posting on a popular and/or high ranking blog. This can bring good exposure for your own site and give you some very good link juice to help increase your own rankings. I have had some good success as a guest poster on some blogs.
Melanie Nelson (Post Author) | October 17th, 2008 at 3:22 pm #
I agree completely, Trent. Guest posting is an entirely different animal. But if you’re writing articles for a site/blog on a regular basis, they should probably pay you if they can. There are times when I’d write for free, but not many. I’d write for free if I thought it was a great cause and really wanted to be part of it. I’d write for free if I really wanted something to succeed and knew the revenue would come later (but not too much later). Or to occasionally help a friend out. But to write and be paid $1 or $5 is ludicrous to me.
Deb - Mom of 3 Girls | October 17th, 2008 at 11:37 pm #
This is a very timely post for me, as I look at where I want my blogs to go in the future, and what direction I want to take career-wise. You make a lot of great points that I’m going to have to strongly consider. Thank you!
Autopilot Blueprint | October 18th, 2008 at 4:46 am #
Bottom line. If we have “quality” why we should give it as “free” for others.
Christine | October 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm #
As someone who writes free for one of the sites you mentioned, I feel like I need to respond. I understand all that you wrote: we are writers and writing is work and we should not work for free. However, I took the gig at 918moms.com for different reasons. My blog is little known and I thought just maybe I might get a little traffic thrown my way. Now I’m not hangin’ my hat on that, and for that reason, I committed to write for them only once weekly. And I can post anything I want, which means I get to decide how in-depth I want my posts to be. So guess what: I’m not going to spend three hours on any post I write until they start paying me (which they never will). But I’m willing to spend 30-45 minutes in exchange for a little exposure. So a little time equals a little exposure…which is all I’m after right now.
The other reason I took the job is that it is local. I sometimes miss being a part of a working group since I’m staying at home, and this was a way to meet in person some entrepreneurial moms in my city…whose relationships, if I can put it bluntly, may be beneficial to me when I do want to get back into the workforce someday.
The bottomline is that I chose to do it for free, and I can choose to quit anytime. I can write one or two posts a week without too much headache, and I believe I can make them engaging enough to keep readers checking their site.
(Okay…now all that said, I do believe if they paid their bloggers, the content of the posts would get richer and they would be able to regulate more what goes into the posts, both of which would make the whole blogging area on the site more valuable to readers. They are just starting out, so we’ll see if they see the light. But as long as they can get the job done, they seem to be willing to sacrifice quality for quantity. Except for my posts…they are quality.
)
Melanie Nelson (Post Author) | October 21st, 2008 at 12:39 pm #
You make excellent points, of course, Christine.
It’s been a very frustrating few years trying to be paid for something I think I do pretty well. Unfortunately, most community sites don’t/won’t pay for the content they are contracting. I’ve been contacted by several to write for them in return for traffic that never materializes. They are making money and the writers aren’t. I think that’s flawed.
You’re writing for the right reasons: it’s getting you out there and you’re making contacts. I’m excited that you’re writing for them. I just wish you were being compensated.
jacquelne church | October 28th, 2008 at 9:03 am #
No one can disrespect you without your permission. (Bad paraphrasing of Eleanor Roosevelt..) I have been doing the research and often it’s women who “write for exposure” while men get compensated. I have yet to find a utility who will provide their service to me “for exposure.”
You can build your own exposure ladies, it is the power of the Internet. No one else owns it. As long as you can pay your utilties you can use it for your own benefit.
My two cents.
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Just found this blog. Good resource - thanks to those who publish and contribute! I’ll be back!
I’m a freelance writer, columnist and publish my blogs for various reasons. Have now built enough value that I can ask for sponsors. And, I’ve now been approached for other ventures. Looking around to see what people charge. Launching a new website in about 2 weeks and going the “me.com” route - professional design and all. Yay!
(I will never -ever - have random soulja dancing re-fi ads. Nor crappy Kraft food ads. Small ad for products I believe in, maybe.)
I welcome feedback and thank you in advance for it. Looking forward to what I’ll learn here! Any rx on sponsor ad rates welcome!
Cheers,
Jacqueline Church
The Leather District Gourmet