How To Start Writing Articles — Pros and Cons
By: James J. Davis
Tags: Article Writing, Content Writing, Writing Service, Writing Tips, Lifestyle

Often, the time you save is worth far more than the fee you’ll pay the writer.

It’s a good idea to weigh the cost of custom articles against the time it would take you to write them yourself. You can get a high quality 500-word custom article written for $10 to $25, and turnaround time for a single article for most professional writers is usually a few days. Compare that to the time it may take you to generate a good article: hours, or even weeks of research and writing, depending on your own experience. Would your time be better spent developing your business? If the answer is yes, you should seriously consider outsourcing.

Another time benefit to hiring a professional is the ability to order articles in bulk. Writing services will generally offer a discount if you order a number of articles, and you’ll usually get them within a few weeks. Ordering bulk custom articles is a great way to jumpstart your visibility and get the marketing ball rolling.

The Credit Goes to You

When you purchase professional custom-written content, you are buying all rights to that particular piece (or pieces). This means you own the content. You don’t have to list someone else’s name in the author bio — you get to add your own bio and signature file, and help to position yourself as an expert.

Giving yourself credit for work you’ve paid for (but not done yourself) is not deceitful or unethical. In fact, it is common practice in both business and publishing. However, some people are uncomfortable with this custom. If this is you, consider listing the writer as a co-author: “By John C. Business, with Ima Writer.” This way the writer is credited, and you can still list your own bio at the end of the article.

The Cons

Of course, there are a few downsides to paying for professional content. Fortunately, most of them can be avoided with due diligence on your part. Keep yourself informed about buying articles and you can ensure your investment will pay off.

Additional Charges Apply

This is the one unavoidable drawback: you must pay for professional writing services. If you’re not paying for the content, you’re not getting the rights to the work. This means you don’t get credit, and all those visitors who read that brilliant article will be impressed enough to click the link to the author’s website — and may not come back to yours.

Stiffing the writer you hired is a bad idea. Though some people do manage to get free writing by asserting the final project is “unacceptable” or “not what I envisioned,” this practice will put you on writers’ bad books. Word gets around in the writing community, and you may find that no one is willing to work with you. Plus, it’s just plain mean — writers need to earn a living, too.

Remember to weigh the money you’ll spend against the time you’ll save. Most of the time, you’ll end up at an advantage in the end.

Knowing Your Business

No one knows your business, your website and your products better than you — and this includes professional writers. Ultimately, you are the most qualified person to write about your topic. However, there are ways to ensure the articles you outsource are written to reflect your knowledge.

Writers are adaptable. The more information they have about a subject, the better the finished pieces they will be able to produce. When you pay for professional content, consider providing the writer with a copy of your book, e-book, special reports, or product. This will help them write the best possible articles for you.

Also, consider providing the writer or writing service with a rough template you would like them to follow. This way, you can be sure the ideas you want to promote are included in the final piece.

Scam Alert: Not all “writers” are professionals

Every industry has its scam artists, and writing is no different. There are a number of “writing services” out there promising fast, cheap content for your website. Unfortunately, the content these scammers offer is not original — it’s often a series of template articles with keywords plugged in.

You can avoid hiring scam writers by knowing what to look for in a writing service. Often, the price itself is a giveaway: “Articles for just $1 apiece!” With a price that low, it’s most likely a scam. Few writers will work for so little; if they are, it usually means they’re not working…just filling in a template.

Another tip-off is turnaround time. If the writing service promises dozens of articles in twenty-four hours, it’s unlikely that they could generate that much original content in such a short time frame.

“Article Forge” Service for Article Writing

I use different services of different authors from different article writing projects.

Watch this video to see one of the services for automatic writing articles (software). I want to tell you right away that this service is not suitable for those who want to write articles for newspapers, magazines, etc.