Comments on: Why Content Mills Have That Reputation

By: Lori

Lori — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:14:20 +0000

Oh my lord. Jen, that's ridiculous! They really don't get it, do they?

By: Jennifer Williamson

Jennifer Williamson — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:54:05 +0000

Being a copywriter and not a content writer doesn't always save you from these issues. I had a client once that I was contracted to do a big website copy overhaul for ask me why I couldn't just use the same writing that was on one of his competitors' websites. I said "because that would be plagiarism." He asked why I couldn't just rewrite it a little so it was "original content." Ugh.

By: Lori

Lori — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:10:09 +0000

Wendy, I bet one mistake would have them running in the other direction! It's good that they vet, but it makes it tough for the writers who put the additional time and effort into producing the best product. We're all lumped into the same mold until we prove ourselves.

Exactly, Paula. I don't trust anyone's copy - especially press releases!

Gabriella, these are the same people who don't think writing takes all that much time or talent. I don't care how high up the corporate food chain they are - if they aren't writers by trade, they're not going to fully understand our ethical codes, our business practices, or our boundaries. Good for you for educating him!

Krista, I write three blog posts a week. It takes me more than an hour for them because I make sure I have multiple news sources on which to base my ORIGINAL content. I can't understand how anyone can churn out a number of articles an hour while delivering original content. It's impossible.

By: Krista

Krista — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:15:12 +0000

I will never, ever believe that someone can consistently write original 500-word articles in 10 to 15 minutes. Those who say they can simply don't understand what an original article is, IMO. They change the Wikipedia text enough to pass copyscape...that's about it.

I don't recall ever using just one source, but I concentrate mainly on copywriting, not general articles, so the process is a lot different than Google and rewrite.

By: Gabriella F.

Gabriella F. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:55:37 +0000

Never. It's just wrong. But some clients don't get it. I think I mentioned before that one client didn't understand why I had to interview sources to get the information needed. He asked (twice!) why I couldn't just pull information off the Internet. I had to explain to him why that wasn't possible. And he was a lawyer! Needless to say, that project went in the dumper because the dude just didn't understand how material gets created. I politely warned him, though, that if he restarted the project with another writer, he'd need to be careful about how that new writer compiled the info. Like he cared!

By: Paula

Paula — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:40:43 +0000

I don't even re-write copy from press releases. I may use it as a jumping off point, but I like to do a little research to confirm what's stated in a press release is actually true.

By: Wendy J.

Wendy J. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:46:44 +0000

I have a couple of clients that are more than willing to pay higher rates for the material I write for them, but they are very, very strict about what they receive. Frankly, I can’t blame them. If you’re going to pay good money for something, it better be good.

One of them reported to me that he was burned in the past by writers who wrote material too fast. I have no problem working with him as none of his projects is done in less than an hour-that includes one blog post. I don’t do things that way, but if I did- he would ream me.

The other client is adamant that you don’t use anything on eHow or AC as sources. He has also, reportedly, been burned by other writers. Neither one has stated whether the writers worked for content mills or not, or if anything was plagiarized, but it doesn’t matter. Once you’re burned, it’s hard to trust again.

These two can be difficult, but they’re my absolute best clients; believe it or not. It took some time to build some trust with them though.

I don’t use one source if I can help it. I only use sources for facts to use and ideas on which direction to take a topic for an article. I don’t rewrite anything. If I use something within a source then credit is given to that source.