Freelance Writing

Over the past couple of days, I have been asked by a few readers if I am still using Associated Content. The answer to this question at this time is simple: no. Simply put, I have not had the time to write for them over the past couple of months. Even though I believe that this is a great way to supplement my freelance writing income, I have too many other projects lined up at this time.

The bad thing about Associated Content is that you have to write blocks of articles for it to be worth your time. And of course, writing a block of articles can take an hour or so. With my current workload, taking an hour out of my day to write these articles is not worth my time. Could I make time for this? More than likely. But as of lately, I have wanted to spend more of my day on developing projects outside of my freelance writing career.

For those of you who have not read my Associated Content posts in the past, check them out for detailed statistics. You may be surprised to find out just how much you can make with this service.

To answer the question of how much you can earn with Associated Content, you will have to try out the service for yourself. With that being said, through some estimates and simple stats, I can show you how much I would make if I were to devote more time to the service.

Through past experience, I get offered just around $5/article; sometimes more, sometimes less, but this is average for the most part. Additionally, writing five articles per day would not take me more than an hour most of the time. As you can see, this would work out to $25/day from Associated Content. Over the course of a week this equals $125, or approximately $500/month.

Sometime in the near future when things settle down, I hope to get started with Associated Content once again. It would be really nice to add an extra $500 to my monthly total.

By this time of the month I have usually updated my readers on how my Associated Content earnings are going. But as of late I have not had anytime to devote to this type of writing. Even though I strongly believe in Associated Content’s income earning power, there are months when I have too much work to write for them.

If you are new to freelance writing, or simply want to make some extra money this month, definitely give Associated Content a look. Here are three tips which will help you to effectively use Associated Content to your advantage.

1. Write articles that people want to read, but also ones that are not overdone. In other words, you need to provide unique and interesting content on topics that have not been submitted time and time again. If you are writing on an overdone topic, your best bet is to put your own unique spin on the article. This is the best way to ensure acceptance as well as the highest offer.

2. If you have the time, write articles for Associated Content in blocks of five. This is the method I use, and it seems to help with time management. Additionally, writing articles in blocks of five will also help to increase the amount of money that you earn. Once you get in a writing groove, you can crank out five articles for Associated Content in an hour or so.

3. Set goals for yourself. If you want to make $500 per month with Associated Content, find out how many articles that works out to. From there, divide that number by the days you work and you will know how many articles to produce on a daily basis. As you become more comfortable with Associated Content make sure that you tweak your goals. After all, you might as well set the bar high.

Overall, these three tips should help you to effectively submit articles to Associated Content. 

Once again, it is time to check out my Associated Content stats for the past month. Last period I only managed to earn a total of $93.61. And while I thought that was bad at the time, this past month has been even worse.

Luckily, the reason for the bad stats this time around has nothing to do with AC. Instead, it is in direct relation to the lack of time that I have put into submitting. Not only have other freelance writing projects taken up tons of time, but growing this blog is obviously a lot of work as well.

Since I have not submitted any new work lately, I figured I would post my numbers a day or so early. Here are my AC statistics from July 15 to August 13

Articles submitted: 4
Article accepted for payment: 4
Waiting for acceptance: 0
Total acceptance rate: 100%
Total payment received: $19.35
Highest offer: $5.90
Lowest offer: $3.25
Average offer: $4.83
Performance Bonus: $23.15 (3 months)

The best lesson you can learn from these numbers is that AC is a nice side income, but as far as doing it full-time, you need to have complete devotion. I love submitting to AC to make a few hundred extra bucks each month, but my current workload has not allowed for it.

Use AC however you see fit. If you do not have any time (like me this month) it is alright to slow down. But of course, if you are lacking work, you should ramp up your submissions!

Like I do once every 30 days or so, this post is to show you my Associated Content stats for the last month. You can check out the last period from May 15 to June 15 at http://www.chrisblogging.com/associated-content-recent-results/.

I must warn you before moving on; I did not submit nearly as many articles this past month. The main reason for this was that I picked up three new blogging jobs that have turned into big money makers. And of course, I wanted to make sure that I devoted enough time to them so they would get off to a good start.

Here are the statistics from June 15 to July 14:

Articles submitted: 20
Article accepted for payment: 17
Waiting for acceptance: 1
Total acceptance rate: 85%
Total payment received: $93.61
Highest offer: $7
Lowest offer: $4.25
Average offer: $5.50

As you can see, the articles submitted category was not the only one that suffered this month. Whereas last month my acceptance rate was 100%, I had three articles denied for payment this last time around. This does not bother me too bad because the topics were quite general, and I probably should have known better than to write about them.

My highest offer was down by $1.50, and my lowest offer was up by $.25. But the thing I am a bit perplexed about is the average offer. It is down $.97 this month. There could be many reasons for this, but I figured that the average would begin to increase as I continued to submit. After all, this helps to raise my page views which will in turn affect my clout. The average offer statistic is the one that I will be keeping the closest eye on during the next month.

So there you have it! Another month’s worth of Associated Content stats. It will be interesting to see if the downward trend continues, or if I simply had an off month.

Over the past couple of months I have put a lot of time into submitting content to Associated Content. And for all the hard work, I have been rewarded with a high acceptance rate, decent pay per article, and much more. Check out my post at http://www.chrisblogging.com/associated-content-recent-results/ for a good idea of my past results. Although this post covers the time from May 15 to June 15, it still shows just how much Associated Content has to offer.

I have slowed down my submissions over the past month due in large part to the amount of other work that I have had. And coincidentally enough, it seems that Associated Content has slowed their roll quite a bit as well. What do I mean by this? Simply put, they are not approving articles as fast as they were a month or so ago.

For instance, some of my articles in late June took 10 days to garner a response. This is compared to no more than five days in early June. While this may not be anything much, it makes me wonder what the problem is. Does Associated Content need to hire more editors? Or are they simply receiving more content now than they have in the past?

Personally, it does not bother me if they take a bit longer to respond. After all, I do not rely on Associated Content to pay my bills; I simply use it to add a few hundred bucks to my monthly total. But for those people who only write for Associated Content, this could be a huge problem.

Right now, I have quite a few articles waiting for a response that I submitted four to five days ago. It will be interesting to see if a response comes soon, or if 10 days or more go by this time.

Let me know if anybody else is having this problem, or if it is just me!

My Associated Content posts have been getting a lot of hits, so I wanted to add another quick one. I have talked a lot about what Associated Content has to offer, how much I earn, etc. But for some reason, I have yet to say why you should sign up.

Here are three reasons that all freelance writers should consider becoming a content producer for Associated Content.

1. You can make a name for yourself. Believe it or not, some Associated Content articles get tens of thousands of page views. As you can imagine, if your articles become popular, you are going to get exposure. In turn, this could lead to other freelance writing jobs in the future.

2. There are no other services similar to Associated Content. You can write about whatever you want, and if it suits their criteria, you are more than likely going to make money. No, you do not get paid the best rates, but any money is better than no money.

3. Associated Content is perfect for everybody. No matter if you are a part-time freelance writer, full-time freelance writer, or just dabbling for fun, Associated Content will suit all of your needs. There are no requirements on quantity or deadlines to adhere to. Write when you want, take time off when you want.

Hopefully, these three reasons will show you why every freelance writer should give Associated Content a try. Remember, until you submit a few articles and experience the community togetherness, you will not totally understand what Associated Content has to offer. 

As mentioned in a few posts back, I am really starting to ramp up my production at Associated Content. And despite a lot of people saying that they have gotten tougher, I have actually found the exact opposite to be true. Over the past month, dating from May 15 to June 15, I have had quite the run of success.

Here are some of my statistics for the past month:

Articles submitted: 57
Articles accepted for payment: 47
Waiting for acceptance: 10
Total acceptance rate: 100%
Total payment received: $304.14
Highest offer: $8.50
Lowest offer: $4
Average offer: $6.47

Take a few minutes to compare these stats to the ones that I posted at http://www.chrisblogging.com/associated-content-review/. These stats were from 72 articles that I submitted several months ago.

If you do not have the time to compare, here are a few of the main differences:

1. My acceptance rate went from 78 percent to 100 percent. In my opinion, the reason for this is better keyword research, longer articles, and topics that are not mainstream.

2. With the most recent 47 articles I was paid a total of $304.14. In my last update, I showed 56 articles earning $310. Of course, this means that my average offer increased from $5.54 to $6.47.

3. The only negative when comparing stats is that my highest offer was $8.50 this past month. In the last update, my highest was $10. This is something that I am still trying to figure out.

As I continue to submit articles to Associated Content I will keep you updated on my progress. My overall goal is to increase my average offer each month. Check back regularly to get updates on Associated Content news as well as my personal stats. 

As you probably know by now, I am intrigued by the way that Associated Content does business. When you think about it, AC is nothing more than one giant blog that allows anybody who is a member to contribute content. For this reason, I began to think about the possibilities of ReviewMe and AC working together. More specifically, would ReviewMe allow me to use my AC page for paid reviews?

Personally, I am still not sure if ReviewMe fits this blog. For now, I would rather leave this monetization method out of the equation. I definitely want to try it out in the future, but until then, Chrisblogging.com is going to be ReviewMe free.

In the meantime, I am going to check with both ReviewMe and AC to see what they think about my idea. I am sure somebody else has already asked about this, and maybe it is okay, but I want to find out for myself.

As soon as they get back to me with an answer, I will get back to you!

A few days ago I wrote a review on Associated Content. At that time I gave information on how many articles they have accepted, the average pay out, etc. I also mentioned that I would be starting to write some articles for them again if I could find the time.

Well, I submitted five articles, and the results are in. They are as follows.

Sticky Notes: Three Ways to Use them in the Office

This may sound like a silly topic, but as I was thinking of ideas I was writing a note to myself. So I said, “What the heck?” It took me about 10 minutes to write this article, and within one day AC had offered me $5.54. This is not my highest offer ever, but not bad for a few minutes worth of work.

What to Consider when Buying Custom Sticky Notes

I have to admit that I use my fair of sticky notes on a regular basis. So I figured since I already wrote one basic article on this topic, I might as well dive in with some more detail. Again, AC offered me $5.54. I have no clue why they offered a number that is not rounded off, but who cares? My guess is that the same editor reviewed both pieces.

Going to a Game at PNC Park

Since I live in Pittsburgh, I figured an article about PNC Park would be a great topic. I’ve seen a couple of Pirates games this year, so my knowledge of the park was fresh when writing the article. Ten minutes to write, and $6.02 was headed to my PayPal account.

Order Sporting Event Tickets Online

I love sports, and have found that ordering event tickets online is a great idea. I actually did this for the first game that I attended this year at PNC Park, so again, I decided to take one topic and break it into two. This article only fetched me $4. My guess is that other content producers have covered this in depth. But hey, it is better than nothing.

Working from Home: How not to concentrate

Working from home is great; the distractions are not. That is why I put this article together. Even though this is a saturated topic, a lot of people are interested in working from home. That is probably why I received an offer of $7.50, which was the highest offer of the bunch.

Although I did not keep track of every last minute, I estimate that it took me approximately 40 to 45 minutes to write and submit these five articles. My income for that time: $28.60 or $5.72 per article.

These numbers were quite encouraging; especially because a lot of people have been complaining about AC as of late. If I had the time to churn out five articles per hour, that would work out to approximately $229/day based on eight hours. Some articles would surely get rejected, but it is nice to think that a few bucks can be made here and there.

For me, the key to writing articles for AC that get accepted is two fold. First off, I like to write in groups of five. This keeps me on track, and allows me to get the articles done in a timely manner. Secondly, try to break topics into smaller articles. This way, you only have to research once; if even that. For instance, since I bought tickets to a PNC Park event, I wrote one article about the park and the other about buying the tickets. Easy enough, right?

I have 10 more articles submitted at this time. My plan is to write five a day for them so that my long term study has solid backing. Within a month or so I will have a much better idea if making a full-time income from AC is possible as well as how well their payment and acceptance system works.  

Associated Content (AC) can be a great income stream for both full-time and part-time freelance writers. But if you think that you are going to get rich from AC, you are most definitely in the wrong place. Although you can pick up a few dollars here and there, you will be hard pressed to make a decent living submitting content exclusively to AC.

AC refers to themselves as the “The People’s Media Company.” I suppose the reason for this is that all the content is created and submitted by the people. Another one of their taglines is simply enough: “Submit Content and Earn Cash.” And when it comes down to it, making money with AC really is that easy.

The Process

Before you can do anything, you need to sign up as a member. This is done by providing your contact information, PayPal address, etc. Just your basic information. You will also have to agree to AC’s Terms of Use and Private Policy; there is nothing here that should alarm you.

Once you are a member of AC, the real fun starts. If you need to sign up, here is the link: https://publish.associatedcontent.com/signup.shtml.

First Time Signing In

The first time that you sign into your AC account you will want to navigate every page. They did a great job with the design of the account area, so you should never get lost. Make sure that before you move on you fill out the biography section, and of course, do not forget to your site’s URL. This way, visitors can find you!

Submitting Content

Now that you are through the preliminary details you are ready to start making money. The process of submitting content for consideration is easier than you may think. In fact, I was very surprised at how simple the entire process was my first couple times around.

1. You must first write an article that you feel is worthy of submission. Remember, AC does not accept everything that is submitted. So if you want to give yourself the best possible chance your content should be original, longer than 400 words, and of high quality

2. When your article is ready to go, click the submit content button. This will lead you to a page full of submission options. Choose the category that fits your article the best. For instance I wrote an article on traveling to Chicago a few months ago. This was submitted under the “Travel Guide” category.

3. Once you choose the category, you will be taken to the next page where you have two more options. First off, you need to check either exclusive or non exclusive. Exclusive content is anything that you have not submitted anywhere else. This is where the majority of your articles will fit in.

You will also need to check whether or not you want your article to be considered for payment. Obviously, if you are trying to make money you will want to check yes.

4. The next step is to copy and paste your article from your word processing program to the AC page. You will also want to include a headline as well as a brief abstract.

If these four steps sound difficult, trust me, they are not. Once you go through them once it will be a breeze from there on out.

How much will you make?

Ahh…the most important question. You want to know how much money you will earn through AC. Unfortunately, there is no way of saying for sure what you will get paid for each article.

When you submit an article it will go to the editor of that particular category. They will then review the article, usually within two days or less, and let you know how much they think it is worth. Keep in mind that you do NOT have to accept their offer. If you feel that you are not getting what your article is worth, you may want to revise it and try again.

Payment for submissions range from $3 to $20 and is based largely on your “Clout Index.” Generally speaking, your clout ranks the number of total page views that your content has collected. The lowest clout range is 0-100 page views, and when you hit 1 million page views you have reached the top. As you can imagine, to reach the highest level you need to write a lot of content, and then market the heck out of it. While this may take some time, once you reach a higher level you will notice it in the offers that you receive.

Payments are processed three times per week so you should not have to wait too long to see the funds in your PayPal account.

My Experience

To be honest, my first article was published on AC in March of 2006 and my last a couple of months later. My short time with AC had nothing to do with the quality of the service, but more so my lack of time.

Here are some of my stats over the two months that I submitted content on a regular basis.

Articles submitted: 72
Articles accepted for payment: 56
Total acceptance rate: 78%
Total payment received: $310
Highest offer: $10
Lowest offer: $3
Average offer: $5.54

As you can see, you can make a good side income if you are devoted to submitting content to AC on a regular basis.

Right now, my Clout Index is 7 of 10. That means that my content has between 50,001 and 100,000 page views. While this is far from the top level, I hope that when I start to submit again that my offers are closer to a $10 average.

I have kept a close eye on AC since their introduction, so expect more posts in the future. They have rolled out a new bonus performance program as well as some other great features. But for now, you should have a good idea of how to get started submitting content. And by taking a look at my stats, you should have a better idea of what to expect.