I am getting really disgusted by whiny people who complain that the system is so unfair. AC is a business. They don't exist just to make you rich. They have a business model that is based on advertising revenue. Like all businesses, they buy their product as inexpensively as possible in order to generate as much revenue as possible. You think they pay people money just cause they're generous? Get real.
And ... they have every right to determine who can write for them. The are a business in the U.S. They have tax laws and accounting practices that they have to abide by. They have every right to limit who they "hire" or where they get their product from. For all of you who live outside the U.S., if you don't like it, set up your own version and allow anyone to contribute.
I've been writing for AC for about two years now. I'm not hugely prolific but I have written about 80 articles. I've reached a clout level 8. I
average about $8.00 an article. In addition, each month I'm paid about $10.00 based on performance. (And I don't really promote the articles on AC by themselves. When I do heavily promote an article, my performance amounts increase dramatically.) I've been paid as low as $3.00 but most of my articles are in the $7 - $11 range.
All of my articles are unique and well-written. I write what I want to write and only seldom do I worry about creating keyword-rich content. In this respect, AC is unique. Most other publishers tell you what to write. You don't have the luxury of writing about what interests you.
So, am I making a living off AC? No. I've only mase a couple hundred dollars a year. BUT ... that's money that I wouldn't normally have made if I didn't submit them at all. Is it my main source of revenue? No. In fact, as a percentage of my total revenue, it's very small.
Here's my take on AC.
I don't write articles simply to submit them to AC. I use my articles in a lot of different places. I submit to article directories. I use articles as components of larger ebooks and publications. I do a lot of writing for a lot of different reasons. If anything I've written can be chunked down and will make sense as an article of 300 - 700 words, then I will submit it to AC. Once it's accepted for payment, then I roll it out to other places where it will benefit me in other ways.
If you're looking for AC to make you rich, forget it. But for me it generates extra income without much additional work. I write these articles anyway. I am glad there's a place that will pay me a little for them. Since I can usually write an article in about 15 - 30 minutes, getting $10 for an article puts my hourly rate at about $20 - $40. Not bad, especially since I'll gain other benefits from the same article by using it in different places.
I own all my own work and I don't submit exclusive, so I can't see how submitting to AC is a bad decision at all. I am certainly not gullible and I'm pretty good about not letting people take advantage of me. Last time I checked, I could still decline any offer they make.
So, stop bitching about how unfair life is. If it makes sense to use AC, then use it. If you can't use it, stop whining and look for some other way to make money.
Oh yeah, I have a problem with this mentality, too ....
I know what you're saying. I'm quite disappointed too because the highest pay I got from them is $ 3.42. That's low considering I got my articles from reputable magazines.
Maybe the reason why you are not getting paid decent money is because you are stealing the work of other people and trying to pass it off as your own. Instead of trying to cheat the system, try putting your energy and time toward writing original articles. Create keyword-rich content that will work well with AdSense. Then promote the hell out of your articles to get performance payments. There's a way to make it work, but if you're stealing your articles from someone else - even a "reputable" magazine, then you are getting what you deserve ... nothing.
In fact, I would prefer that you stay away from AC all together. Maybe if you stop submitting your crap, there would be more money for those of us who are writing original content.
