question about "approx. price"

grouchy · Post by **grouchy** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 4:12 pm

On the requested content page, what does the range in the "approx. price" column mean, e.g. $50-100?

Thanks.

Celeste Stewart · Post by **Celeste Stewart** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 4:17 pm

This is the range the customer is willing to pay for the article. Sometimes the customer will specify and say, "I will pay $XX for this." Othertimes, they'll leave it vague and see what happens.

If I see a range of $50 to $100, I usually price the usage at $50, unique at $75, and full rights at $100. Not always though as other factors play in including time spent, complexity of the topic, word count, and what others are charging.

grouchy · Post by **grouchy** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 4:24 pm

Thanks, Celeste. I linked a requester to a 1100-word article I wrote in response to his request. The range is 50-100; he wants full rights. So I put 100 as my full rights price - I worked hard and think I did a good job. So he came back (in Q&A) and said 50. I'm not that excited. Yes, I'm new here but don't think that should determine the value of my writing. What would you do?

Celeste Stewart · Post by **Celeste Stewart** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 4:54 pm

It's hard to say as it's really up to you. Can you sell it elsewhere for more? How long did it take to write? If it only took one hour to write, $50 per hour isn't bad. On the other hand, if it took ten hours to write, $5 per hour is lousy --- but it beats $0.

grouchy · Post by **grouchy** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 5:05 pm

OK, thanks. But why would a requester put $100 there? I worked very hard (and for several hours) striving for better than bottom dollar. Don't misunderstand - I'm not looking down my nose at 50. I'm only concerned so that I don't misunderstand in the future. Is the top of the range for dreamers only? Should the writer always assume they're shooting for the bottom of the range? Is that more realistic? Not that I still wouldn't turn in top quality work, but I also wouldn't have bigger dollar signs dancing in my head, hoping & wishing.

Thanks for listening, Celeste.

Ed · Post by Ed » Sun Oct 21, 2007 5:10 pm

Grouchy,

Maybe you won't get $100 from this requester, but I think you can get $100 for an article of a similar length because, from what I've seen, your articles offer complexity that indicates to buyers the quality of your work. You might work on a couple of articles that you make available only on CC, price them accordingly, then check "best offer" and see if you get any takers.

Alternatively, you could submit some shorter articles and put lower price tags on them. Think about topics that are popular, but that you can add unique information or twists to.

Ed

grouchy · Post by **grouchy** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 5:20 pm

Thanks for the suggestions, Ed. I need these kinds of tips.

Ed · Post by Ed » Sun Oct 21, 2007 5:28 pm

And BTW - I would take the sale, if you can stomach it. You've already done the work. If you can't negotiate up, you might as well get something for the work you've done. Of course you should value your work, but time is money, and you can't get that time back.

Ed

Celeste Stewart · Post by **Celeste Stewart** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 6:06 pm

Also, the way the ranges are set up makes it hard for both writers and customers. He may have only been willing to go for $50 from the get go but I don't believe there's a range for $40-$50... Who knows?

Plus, sometimes customers just accept the default ($10-$20) when they are willing to go higher. I see that all the time with private requests where we have a pre-existing per word charge and occasionally with public requests. I like it best when the customer states their price range in the text because then there's no mistaking what they have in mind.

Good luck!

grouchy · Post by **grouchy** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 6:16 pm

Sincere thanks to both of you. You're very helpful. I appreciate your time.