Requested Content

[mattjbiggin]

Hi all,

On the topic of Requested Content, I am wary of trying to write any due to the issue of slaving away for hours over articles, only to find that another writer has already beaten me to it, and i've wasted time I could have spent writing articles for public interest. Furthermore I would then be stuck with articles so specific it is unlikely that I could sell them publicly. Is there any way around this?

I mean short of messaging the potential client to check if they have chosen work already (which seems highly intrusive) I can't really think of a way round this issue. As I understand it's not like a bidding war, where the client chooses a writer (beforehand) who will then write the article. It's more of a first come first serve basis - creating a sort of unintentional race between writers. Does anyone have any tips to get around this and avoid wasting time? I would really like to utilize the Requested Content option.

TTFN,

Matt

[Celeste Stewart]

Hi Matt,
I know it sounds counterintuitive, but I find it's less risky to write to public requests compared to just submitting to the general pool of articles. For one, there's a customer right now with a real need. While some requesters indicate that they only want one article, it's not unusual for several articles to be purchased. Also, if the topic is popular enough enough, articles have a good chance of selling to someone else if the original requester doesn't want it.

Of course some articles will have greater general appeal to the CC customer base than others. For example, I wouldn't hesitate to write for the SEO/PPC request knowing what I know about the popularity of these topics on CC. Even the cupcake request could be good due to the amazing comeback of cupcakes (they're trendy right now - big time).

I'd probably pass on the fatherhood poetry request unless I was interested in the topic and would have fun writing it. Why? Two reasons, I'm not a poetry fan so there's no appeal to me and if it doesn't sell to the requester, there's not a big market on CC for poetry. However, with its nice price tag and a likelihood that many writers will shy away from it because of reason number two (nearly non-existent CC market for poetry), this same request represents a nice opportunity for those writers interested in it. Nice price tag and low competition

Another way to hedge your bets is to have a Plan B. For example, if an article doesn't do well here, you might post it on Associated Content or Bukisa where you can at least earn some money based on page views.

Hope this helps and welcome to CC!

[Amy W]

And don't forget that it's not necessarily a first come, first serve basis. In many cases, a customer will wait to purchase until they have a whole bunch of articles to choose from. Say I'm a customer here who's posted a public request, and both you and Celeste write articles for the request. Celeste's article is approved first, but that doesn't mean I'm going to buy Celeste's article - I'm going to wait around and see if anyone else posts articles for my request. Once your article is approved, I can compare them and decide which one best suits my needs.

So don't feel like you have to rush an article for a public request - in fact, you should never rush an article, period, because mistakes are harder to find when you're in a rush. Take your time and write an article that will stand out from the others.

[Celeste Stewart]

And if we both write interesting articles with unique angles, the customer might buy both articles. For example, if I write about the cupcake renaissance and you write about the latest innovations in cupcake frostings and sprinkles, the customer would have two relevant, but different articles. He might find them both irresistable

[mattjbiggin]

Okay thanks guys.