Are you new to blogging? Do you know how much writers typically get paid per blog post? Back before blogging existed, most writers would get paid by the word. The higher the word count, the better pay a writer might receive, the more prestigious the publication. For example, publications with national distribution models might offer $1.00 a word on up. Fiction, on the other hand, ranges from free to 5 cents a word on up. You can see a huge disparity in how fiction is paid even through the two, free fiction directory websites that I had listed earlier.

Taken from the perspective that writers should “charge by the word,” I’ve run into the challenge of explaining not only “what” blogging is to some of my fellow writers, but how much they can expect to get paid. One example of this, is that I forwarded a job listing for freelancing to a writer who was looking for work. The job was pretty decent: $10-15 per 300-500 word post on a regular basis. The writer responded by telling me that the company obviously couldn’t afford them, even though they had never blogged before.

This isn’t the first time I’ve run into this scenario. However, I’ve also run into the situation where some writers fundamentally disagree with me when it comes to blogging. It is my belief that blogging is a different form of writing, therefore — the pay scale would be different. I do believe that bloggers are writers, even if they do not have a traditional background in publishing. Not every writer shares my thoughts on the subject. But if a writer does embrace blogging, how much is too much to charge? What do bloggers typically get paid?

To answer this question, I turned first to Michael Martine who is a blog consultant and the author of WordPress SEO Secrets. Michael confirmed that $15 to $20 per post is about right, especially at 300 words. However, he had also shared with me that there is a difference between a “proven” and an “unproven” blogger which factors into the rates that you may charge for blogging.

If a blogger is doing a good job, she can charge more and expect to get it. Doing a good job doesn’t mean the writing is “good.” It means the post gets comments, gets traffic, gets backlinks, gets social media attention. In other words, the blogger has to be able to deliver traffic.

A blogger who can deliver the goods can charge more, and the blogger has to be able to show she can get results, which means that this information needs to appear on the “services” or “hire me” page of a blog.

Bloggers new to paid blogging can expect to spend a little time “in the trenches” at first.

Once a pro blogger has proven she’s no longer a commodity, then there is no standard. You charge whatever you can get away with, whatever your clients will pay. The better gigs are the more permanent ones for bigger blogs. If you’re going to get into pro blogging, be prepared to treat it as a business and modify your blog accordingly so you’re easy to hire. –Quote from Michael Martine, blog consultant

From Michael’s perspective, the rates that you should charge depend upon what your post effectively delivers. This is an important distinction for writers to consider, because in my experience not all blog assignments are the same. Some blog assignments may come your way because a company is looking to establish their brand; others may be necessary for search engine optimization purposes as a fast way of getting content on a client’s website. Charging based on what you can deliver is important, but it also comes down to knowing what you can deliver based on your expertise and experience. If you’re looking to establish yourself as a premiere blogger, Michael Martine’s role is to help you get there. On the other hand, if you’re looking for blogging as a freelancer, you might want to hear what fellow copywriter maven Meryl Evans has to say.

She mentioned that thinking of blogging in terms of a “per word” rate is off-target, and that $10 to $25 per post was more reasonable. Meryl writes that:

Blogging is not lucrative in terms of posting blog entries. Only owners of very
popular blogs get good money — mostly from sponsors. Sometimes you can get paid per hour depending on the client. I work with a client and do more than just blog for them, so I get paid per hour.

To make the most of the “low” pay — write fast. Just throw up content and then iron it out. It takes practice. If you don’t know the subject well — then you’re more likely not to do it fast. –Quote from Meryl Evans, Copywriter

You can see here that getting paid to blog can often range from lucrative, premier blogging positions to getting paid per post. Since your experiences are unique to you, you might want to consider finding like-minded bloggers and asking what they charge. Regardless, charging by word is not common and may alienate you from getting a position.

The key take-a-way here? Like any other field in writing, there are commonalities within any segment of the market for pay and for level of service. Besides doing your own research, ask yourself not only what you want to write right now, but where you want to go in the future. I’ve found that that helps a lot when you’re looking for work and negotiating pay.

You might want to check out different blogging services like Associated Content or Demand Studios. I’d also like to add a few blog posts that cover a lot more resources for you to check out. When you are checking out blogging networks, don’t be afraid to do a little homework and find out more about their reputation, too.

• 26 Sites that Pay You to Blog
• How Blog Networks Pay Bloggers (Be sure to read the comments, too!)
• How to Get Paid to Blog — Paid Blogging Networks

Agree? Disagree? Love to hear your thoughts? 😀