Although there are many different "recipes" for gaining search engine rankings, most experts in the search engine optimization (SEO) field will recommend that website content should be a priority. Without discounting the value of links and traffic, content is most likely the key element of a website's charisma. Good content will lead to links and traffic. So for those website owners that have to start from scratch and add large amounts of content, how much should they expect to pay for this service?
A member of High Rankings Forum asked yesterday
the estimated cost of producing the copy for a key aspect of the site. They have lots of products/services pages that need content, and want between 250 and 400 words of content for each page. The project will require limited research, and the poster is curious as to how copywriters charge. By the word? By the Page?
I encounter this question fairly often. When clients didn't have someone in house that could produce enough content for me to optimize, I have worked with a copywriter who interviews the client and creates the necessary number of pages matched up to the topics we would like to focus on. Generally this works out to a per-page basis and is fairly reasonable in comparison to "average" copywriting charges. Only one poster so far at High Rankings has given a range: about $90/page. Of course, there are copywriters out there that specialize in SE-friendly creative, and these would probably charge more. My thought is that if you are paying for optimization, you will probably do better by saving on the copywriting, since the SEO will be done by the organization responsible.
Hopefully some copywriters will see this and choose to add to the discussion at High Rankings Forum.
