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. Â
I don’t think that I am a stupid person, but I do call myself dumb when it comes to technology, the internet, and things of that sort. The fact of the matter is that I have no idea how to code websites, design pages, or anything else along those lines. I can set up a WordPress blog, make some very basic changes, and a little bit more. But even with that being said, I still have no problems making a full-time living online.
So many people think that they do not stand a chance online because they are not internet savvy. But I am here to show you that this is definitely not the case.
The great thing about the internet is that you can learn about anything if you are willing to take the time to read. Since I have always loved reading, this is fun for me. So when I first decided that blogging was a great way to make money, what do you think I did? That is right; I began to read as much as I could about this way of earning cash. As I found information I printed it out, saved it, and marked websites as favorites. The bottom line is that if you are willing to learn, you can make money online.
Additionally, once you have a blog set up, you will be able to experiment with different ideas. When I was choosing the theme for my first WordPress blog I almost drove myself insane. It took days for me to find the one that I would finally settle on. But today, I do not put nearly as much time into this process. Instead, I find a good theme and then start to experiment. Things are easier on me now, but early on I was in the same shoes as many beginners. I had no idea how to add Google Adsense, or change the names of pages. But over time, I experimented and now this is all second nature.
Remember, you are not going to break anything that you cannot fix. This is not to say that you should go nuts, but do not be afraid to attempt to make changes. After all, experimentation is the only way that you are going to learn.
I might not be stupid when it comes to overall learning ability and knowledge, but as far as the internet is concerned I am not the brightest bulb on the tree. But so what? Sometimes I think that it is better off this way. Since I do not know a lot I never end up over thinking things. And all in all, my basic knowledge has done me good so far!
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.
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.Â
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