12 replies to this topic

[Limin]

Hello folks,

I am in the process of building a company and its associatied web presence. One of the components that I am trying to get my arms around is the estimated cost of producing the copy for a key aspect of the site.

It is planned to have approximately 200 items that need copy produced. Each item would need maybe a page of copy totaling 250 to 400 words. The items are not "products". Each item would involve a small amount of internet research to be performed in order to write the copy.

Do copy writers typically charge by the word, by the hour, total project? I need just a ball park idea, so as to prepare my estimates.

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

Thanks....

[Jill]

Most copywriters I work with would charge per page, based on your estimate of 250 - 400 words for each of them. You certainly might get a discount for 200 pages, but it would really depend on what sort of writing you're talking about and how much research is involved.

The cost of copywriting is often more in the research than the actual writing.

[Limin]

Basically the items are complete descriptions about restaurants and lodging properties. All of this information is generally available and easily found. The writer needs to gather the information and generate original, quality copy from it.

I have done this myself to get a feel for it. It takes maybe 10 minutes to locate the information for each item. I have spent about 1 hour on each item.

The problem, obvious to me, is that I am a bad copy writer and my time is better spent doing other functions.

From my experience, most of the information researched has not been presented in a descriptive, SEO manner. My guess is that the most time would be spent actually "visualizing" the copy and then writing.

I have considered posting in the RFP section, but don't want to do that until I am actually ready to accept a proposal and have a better ball park estimate.

Any copy writers out there care to add your 2 cents?

[lyn]

I generally prefer to quote on the basis of a briefing for the whole project and a look at the kind of reference material I'm working from. Then I'll quote on first draft and first revisions for the whole thing. If a "per page" cost works better for you, I'd basically want to go through the same process, then divvy up the quote over the prescribed number of pages, with the total number of pages specified in the final quote.

If the actual number of pages varied much less from the original quote, I would want to re-visit the quote, or add a contingency to the per-page amount.

For a sizeable project like this, or one that's ongoing, it could be worth tackling an initial bundle of pages at a fixed rate, then go to a per-page price once the everyone knows what to expect.

L.

[Limin]

lyn;

Thanks for your input. I don't really think I am looking for a quote. Just a ball park. I really don't have any idea what good copy writers charge.

My wife is a writer, but not seo copy. She is a book writer. That is a much different thing. So I am just looking for an idea of what it might cost.

I hate to ask people for RFP's or quotes when I am not ready to hire. I have provided proposals myself all of my adult life and i hate to waste time when the buyer isn't really ready to have the work done.

I am pretty sure I will proceed and have the work done in the next few months. The estimate of a couple hundred pages is good. But it would be preferable to have them done in stages, if for no other reason than to spread the cost over time. Maybe fifty at a time. But contract would have to be for the total. I sure wouldn't want to not finish the project once started.

[Jill]

If you're looking for numbers as opposed to wondering how people charge, you should probably post in the contracting/subcontracting forum.

[Limin]

Sorry Jill, I was thinking that forum was only for RFP's.

[lyn]

'k - for the sake of a ballpark, when I was still freelancing a few years ago, my day rate for regular clients was $600. The rate for one-offs was quoted at $90/hr.

I have no idea at all what the other writers here charge.

[Jill]

Sorry Jill, I was thinking that forum was only for RFP's.

Well are you looking for prices or not?

I'm not really keen on people posting their actual prices here.

You originally asked for "how" people price, which is fine. But people can provide you with their actual numbers by pm if you're interested in that, and they're interested in providing it.

[prawin]

The problem, obvious to me, is that I am a bad copy writer and my time is better spent doing other functions.

I appreciate your honesty Limin
and wonder how many of us dare to share our weakness in public?


Prawin

[Econman]

We do a fair amount of this sort of research/writing internally. We've found the amount of time required varies mostly with the amount of research required. Assuming the underlying research has already been completed, a rough estimate would be perhaps 1 hour to write 300 words, for writing of decent (but not outstanding) quality. Poor quality writing, of course, can be produced more quickly.

[Jill]

Poor quality writing, of course, can be produced more quickly.

Why would you (or anyone) produce poor quality writing for any job?

[jdrits]

Well, the bottom line is that you get what you pay for. A "C" list copywriter can get you copy on the cheap, but what is the goal of your copy?

Put it this way, if you are looking to make a sale or commission, you have to think about your potential sales, and the investment you have up front to make it happen. If you want articles and the like, yes, it is cheaper than a sales letter, but if you want people to click through and order or sign-up for services, then you need persuasion. And the best persuasion will cost you a bit more (because of the research and writing involved), but you will make more, generally.

So it really comes down to what you need and what your budget is.

Hope that helps,

John