In this article, we’re reviewing another content writing service for you to consider – Compose.ly. Compose.ly boasts high-quality written content for your business, written by experienced writers, along with comprehensive SEO optimization. But can they back up these claims? Let’s check it out.

What is Compose.ly?

First thing’s first, what does Compose.ly offer? Compose.ly doesn’t have a service offering that is all that different from most freelance writing services. Their product description is what you’d expect from a custom writing service. Essentially, they work with a vast network of experienced writers to provide all sorts of writing services depending on your business’s needs. Everything from copywriting, to ghostwriting, to blogging, to eBooks, Content.ly can handle it. They offer competitive subscription rates, with the option to be as hands-on or hands-off as you want. They also offer dedicated SEO services, although these services cost extra.

Compose.ly Review

Now that we’ve run through the basics of Compose.ly’s platform, let’s get to the real deal. What do we think of Compose.ly?

Pros

The Writing Team: As you can imagine, the quality of the writing you’ll receive from a content writing service is dependent on the quality of the writers, or content specialists. Compose.ly offers fair rates to its writers when stacked against its competition, which helps them attract quality writers. In fact, Compose.ly boasts that they accept less than 1% of the writers who apply for their service.

They also employ writers with a wide range of specializations. They have writers who have experience in just about any topic, from sports to tech to finance and more.

SEO Focus: Unlike many competing content specialists, Compose.ly has a designated focus on delivering SEO friendly content. This was refreshing to see, as many competing content services have a noticeable lack of emphasis on the essential marketing tool. Compose.ly is vague about their SEO techniques, but they claim all their content is SEO edited, with an emphasis on keyword research and optimization. It’s not what you’d expect from a dedicated SEO agency, but it’s pretty good for the price point.

Competitive Pricing: Compared to competing content writing services, Compose.ly’s pricing is competitive. It’s not the cheapest service out there, but it’s not the most expensive either. Regardless, it’s a fair price for what you get from the service. In-House Team of Managers: Unlike many other content services which are fully remote or fully automated, Compose.ly actually has an in-house team of project managers to handle the day-to-day operations of the business. Their in-house team of “content marketing pros” are responsible for working with businesses to establish a content plan, to match projects to writers, customer service, and more. This team ensures that the workflow is smooth and consistent, so you can expect your projects to be completed on-time and up-to-standard.

Cons

SEO is Lacking Compared to An Agency: On its home page, Compose.ly brags they are 5 times cheaper than an SEO agency. We think this is an unfair comparison, because an SEO agency offers SEO services which are much more in-depth than what you can expect from Compose.ly. While Compose.ly does produce reliable, high-quality content, their SEO practices pale in comparison to an in-depth agency service.

We think Compose.ly would be better to have not made this comparison in the first place, because they are setting unrealistic expectations for what they actually offer. They do offer basic SEO optimization and keyword research for their content, but it’s not what you’d find at an agency. Writer Quality Varies:  As with any content writing service, some writers are better than others. It’s a simple fact of the industry. While Compose.ly does vet their writers extensively, you can still expect quality to vary from project to project. Luckily, Compose.ly offers free edits and re-writes for all of their content.

What Did We Think of Compose.ly?

Overall, we liked Compose.ly. It’s a pretty standard service offering in this competitive industry, but it’s definitely one of the “higher tier” content writing services. Their SEO focus, combined with their intensive vetting process for their writers, means you can expect consistent, high-quality content from each order. On top of this, their in-house team keeps everything running smoothly, and works with you to make a clear, actionable content marketing plan. Turnaround is quick and prices are competitive.

We do think that Compose.ly overplays their SEO techniques a bit, and the choice to compare themselves with SEO agencies seems extreme. Regardless, they do perform simple SEO optimizations on any piece of content they put out, which is more than you can say about a lot of competing content services. Overall, we liked Compose.ly. They’re a standardized content writing service. They didn’t necessarily blow us away in any area, but what they do, they do well, and the emphasis on quality is real.

In this article, we’re looking at two popular content writing services – TextBroker and Verblio (previously known as BlogMutt). They both offer their own team of freelance content writers that provide you with written content for blog writing, social media, article writing, and other services – and both promise high quality content. These two services are direct competitors, both firmly planted in the content marketing space, but which is best for your business? We’ll examine both services, give you the pros and cons of each, and help you decide which is best.

Verblio

Verblio is a content writing service with a good reputation. Verblio offers services similar to most content writing services, with a few tweaks to the business model.

With Verblio, clients purchase content by length, with varying “tiers” for the complexity of the content. You can find the whole details here, but the prices are quite reasonable for a writing company.

Once a client has purchased content, they work with Verblio to outline their content goals. This includes providing details on brand voice, target audience, content goals, and more. From there, clients provide details on the type of content they require – including length, type, CTAs, keywords, etc. If clients are too busy for this, they can opt for Verblio Complete, and their content briefs will be created for them. Once the briefs are ready, they are uploaded to a portal where they can be accessed by Verblio’s writers, who have their own specific online writing skills and experience. The main difference with Verblio, as opposed to other content writing services, is that multiple writers can accept writing work simultaneously. Writers are essentially “competing” for the clients’ business. Once the writers submit their work, clients can review all pieces, and accept the one they like best. From there, they can leave reviews, and “bookmark” certain writers to work with in the future. Clients can find a group of writers they prefer, and (ideally) their work becomes more personalized as time goes on.

The Writers

A content writing service is only as good as the quality of its writers. Often, this is the “make or break” factor which determines whether a platform is recommendable. Verblio has an impressively extensive vetting process for its writers. Only 4% of applicants are accepted to become Verblio writers, which indicates a rigorous quality standard. The herd is further thinned as clients leave reviews on each writers’ submissions. Basically, the best writers naturally rise to the top, and those are the ones who will likely be tasked with the work.

Pros

• Intuitive, streamlined platform.
• Competitive prices.
• Only 4% of applicants become writers. 
• “Competitive” submissions process gives clients several options to choose from.

Cons

• SEO tools are minimal.
• Quality can be variable.

TextBroker

Next up, we have another content writing service that has gained some notoriety – TextBroker. TextBroker offers a service very similar in appearance to that offered by Verblio, but there are some very apparent differences that may affect your decision.

TextBroker, like Verblio, offers content of many types. You can order blog content, web content, newsletters, eBooks, and so on. Once a client has ordered content, they use TextBroker’s streamlined platform to create their content brief, and to let writers know what they are looking for. Clients can also note any keywords they want included. Once the brief is ready, TextBroker assigns it to a writer who has the expertise to match. It’s all quite straightforward, and TextBroker’s platform is quite intuitive. Ordering content and creating briefs is streamlined, and we’ve been impressed with the simplicity. Of course, before you consider any content writing service, you should have an idea of your content goals. If you can’t provide the service with an idea of what you want, then you’re bound to be disappointed regardless.

The Difference

The main difference with TextBroker is that it is much cheaper than Verblio. TextBroker’s content plans start at just 1.5 cents/word. For reference, that comes to $4.50 for 300 words of content, while Verblio charges $35. Pretty massive difference.

And while prices this low may sound appealing, it also leads us to that old saying – “if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” Because, if you thought TextBroker’s prices were low, consider that their writers are getting paid significantly less than that! And if you think it sounds difficult to attract and retain quality writing talent while paying rock bottom rates – that’s because it is.

Simply put, you can’t pay the bare minimum and expect quality work. And this isn’t to say that all of TextBroker’s writers are poor, because that’s certainly not the case, but it is to say that a business can’t expect a motivated workforce while not paying them even close to a market rate.

Herein lies the fundamental problem with services like TextBroker, and is also why they are so difficult to recommend.

Pros

• Rock bottom prices.
• Intuitive, streamlined process.
• Content is delivered in a timely fashion.

Cons

Rock bottom prices – difficult to expect quality work.

Which Should You Choose?

Based on the above information, our choice should be pretty obvious. One content writing service delivers consistent, quality content that you can depend on. With the other, the quality of content is, well, what you paid for. Of the two, our recommendation goes to Verblio. 

We will say that we were impressed with both service’s platforms. They both provide an easy, intuitive method of signing up & creating a content brief. And as far as we can tell, the work is delivered in a timely, orderly fashion.

Sure, you can roll the dice and order content from TextBroker. There is certainly the chance that you will receive content from a motivated, talented writer. But it’s simply too difficult to depend on quality work when you aren’t paying the going rate. If you don’t feel like risking it, order from Verblio or from a vast selection of quality content writing services. Content marketing shouldn’t be a race to the bottom, and we’re glad that services like Verblio are committed to upholding the integrity of the industry. 

In this article, we’re checking out a content writing service that has gained traction in recent years – WordAgents. WordAgents claims to offer speedy, well-written website content from native English speakers at affordable prices. We’ll be seeing whether these claims hold water, and we’ll also help you understand WordAgents somewhat complicated pricing model.

What is WordAgents?

Starting with the basics, WordAgents is a content writing service which operates on a typical content marketing business model. Clients submit briefs, WordAgents assigns the job to a freelance writer, the content is delivered. Of course, it’s somewhat more complicated, but that’s the jist. WordAgents offers many types of content services, including blogs, eCommerce, SEO writing, and more – whatever fits the niche of your business.  WordAgents only works with North American writers who are native-English speakers, and have a decently extensive vetting process for all writers. They offer competitive pricing, with a pricing model that is somewhat convoluted at first glance, which we’ll talk about next.

WordAgents Pricing Structure

Subscription Tiers

As per the title of this article, we’re here to help you understand WordAgents pricing structure. Eventually, we’ll get to the all-important questions – is WordAgents worth it?

Basically, the WordAgents team operates on a tiered subscription-model, which you will see outlined here. You pay per amount of written content, with tiers being categorized as Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Each tier nets you more content at a cheaper rate/word. Bronze offers 1000 words for $0.12/word, Silver gets you 5000 words for $0.10 per word, Gold gets you 10,000 words for $0.08 per word, and Platinum gets you 20,000 words for $0.06 per word. The more you buy, the cheaper it gets. Once you’ve selected a plan, WordAgents gives you “credits”, which are redeemable for content. Each “credit” is essentially a word of content, and you can divide it up as you please. You can create multiple articles of different lengths, or a select few longform articles. You can work with WordAgents’ customer service team to pin down the exact content type, topic, and tone you are going for.

Is There A Contract?

No, you do not sign a contract with WordAgents, but you do have to pay for your credits up-front. That being said, you can stop redeeming your credits at any time, and cancel your entire subscription (getting your money back).

Do Credits Expire?

No, WordAgents credits do not expire. You can take as long as you want, and schedule website content for whenever you please. WordAgents pairs you with a project manager who will be your direct line of communication with the company.

Are There Hidden Costs?

No, each subscription cost represents the entire amount owed. Once again, you do have to pay this amount up-front to purchase the credits. But once you own the credits, you can take as long as you want to redeem them.

Is WordAgents Worth It?

The big question, is WordAgents worth it? As mentioned, WordAgents sports a very competitive rate when stacked against other top content writing services. It’s not the cheapest service, but when it comes to getting quality content, it’s far from the most expensive.

Unfortunately, their somewhat low rates are also indicative of an underlying problem – low pay for writers. Because WordAgents offers less-than-competitive pay for writers, they have difficulty attracting top writing talent. When compared to other services such as Content.ly, the level of quality is noticeably lower. We still found the quality acceptable, but it’s not going to win your site any writing prizes. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for, and WordAgents offers an acceptable level of quality for the price level. That being said, WordAgents runs a tight ship. From the outset, clients are matched with a responsive project manager, who works with the client to craft content briefs to help meet your goals. From there, the work is assigned and completed in a timely fashion. In fact, WordAgents guarantees a turn-around time of no more than 7 business days for content packages up to 10,000 words. For smaller orders, they tend to turn it around much faster.

The Bottom Line

Overall, for what you are paying, WordAgents is a solid choice. The quality of the writing can be a bit shaky, but it’s acceptable for the price. Some writers are better than others, but that’s a risk you take with most content writing services. WordAgents is an affordable way to order mass-content for your business. They have an intuitive platform, dependable turn-around teams, and a process that is smooth and efficient from beginning to end.

In this article, we’re taking a look at a popular new(ish) content writing service – Content Fly. Content Fly boasts on-brand, high quality content writing for your business needs. In this article, we’re examining whether the content creation service lives up to these claims.

What is Content Fly?

Content Fly is a content creation service that specializes in various types of content for businesses. They have a large network of writers with various disciplines and expertise, which allows Content Fly to create content for just about anyone. Compared to other content services on the market, Content Fly aims to separate themselves through a streamlined process and top-quality writers.

Content Fly Review

Let’s get right into – what do we think of Content Fly? For our review, we’ll examine the pros & cons of the service, and then give you our overall thoughts.

Pros

Writers Are Well Paid: It’s difficult to expect quality content without a satisfied freelance writer base. If a company doesn’t pay their writers well, it becomes difficult for them to attract quality writers, and the end work suffers. Fair wages are essentially a requirement for any professional writer delivering quality content orders. Luckily, Content Fly gives a large share of their profits to their writer base, ensuring consistent, quality work that isn’t exorbitantly priced on your end!

Content Fly claims that they vet their writers extremely diligently, and that less than 1% of writers are accepted onto the platform. We can’t verify these details, but they’re impressive if true.

Simple, Streamlined Platform: Requesting and receiving work with Content Fly is easy. As a customer, you can sign up for the platform in roughly 5 minutes. From there, they have a convenient dashboard for requesting content. You can be as detailed as you want. We recommend getting as specific as possible so the content you receive matches your requirements. Once you’ve submitted a request, Content Fly matches the request with one of their writers. In a few days, you’ll receive your content.

Up-Front Pricing Model: While Content Fly isn’t necessarily the “cheapest” content service around, we do appreciate their up-front pricing. Simply use their pricing slider to determine how much your content will cost. There are no contracts or commitments, and you can cancel your order at any time. We really appreciated the lack of hidden costs, fees, or sneaky commitments. 

Varied Content Possibilities: Due to their wide writer base, Content Fly is able to handle a large amount of business content types. Their primary focuses are blog articles, landing page copy, newsletters & emails, and social media posts. These pieces can all cover a large range of focus topics, and Content Fly assigns the work based on the expertise of the writer.

Cons

Writer Quality Varies: Although Content Fly’s writers tend to be pretty reliable, there’s really no escaping this factor with any content service. Some writers are better than others, it’s just a fact. Luckily, Content Fly does offer free revisions or touch-ups if you aren’t happy with your article. SEO is Lacking: Content Fly’s SEO appears to be pretty minimal compared to other content services. Their SEO strategy is barely touched on in their website, aside from certain buzzwords like “high-converting” and “ROI”. As far as we can tell, they don’t have a specific process to optimize an article for keywords, link-building, and other relevant SEO tactics.

What Do We Think of Content Fly?

Overall, we were pretty impressed with Content Fly. Finding a content service with reliable writers and consistent content is difficult in the age of “content mills” and Internet scams. Content Fly is a breath of fresh air in this regard, offering reliable content from a highly-vetted writer base. Their writers are well-paid, and have a diverse breadth of expertise, which ensures that Content Fly has a writer up to the task. And while we did find their SEO practices a little bit lacking, there are plenty of other options if this is your primary goal. Remember, as with any of these content services, you need to be sure to clearly outline your content goals from the outset. Work with Content Fly to clearly indicate your business goals, and what you hope to achieve with the content. The more direction, the better, because it increases the chance you’ll receive something satisfactory.

The Bottom Line

All that being said, we would recommend Content Fly if you are looking for high-quality, reliable content written for your business. The platform is simple & easy, and the prices are transparent. If you don’t want to overthink it, Content Fly is a great choice.

As it is rightly said, content is king, and this has never been more relatable than today. Every business and website needs content to tell users what they offer, enhance customer engagement, and take advantage of SEO strategies to drive traffic.

Writing business content or blogs for your website can be a tedious job. It requires a certain level of expertise and isn’t nearly as easy as you might think, which is why hiring a competent writer is so important.

What Should You Look for in a Writer?

Content for your business and website needs to be informative and free of fluff. It acts as the primary source of marketing for your company.

Visitors read your website content and immediately make an impression about the brand. That is why it is necessary to have relevant content for your business done in a sophisticated style. When hiring writers, ask yourself:

• Do they understand your brand?
• Do they have writing experience?
• How knowledgeable are they in your niche?
• Can they write original content? (You’ll be surprised how many cannot.)

You can hire a full-time or freelance writer with the required skills and good knowledge of your industry. Now, the question is, where to find these content developers? We understand that it is not easy for you to develop high-quality content for your business – but which content platform should you go to?

Several content writing service platforms are out there where you can find thousands of skilled writers and editors. This article compares two popular content writing services to give you better insight into these platforms and help you find the perfect candidate.

iWriter

iWriter.com is one of the best TextBroker alternatives. This unique content developing solution was designed by a former affiliate marketer and online business owner. 

It may not be as sophisticated as other content sites, but they offer a handful of management services for your project.

iWriter offers a simple system to find suitable writers for your projects and requires you to pay in advance to its registered bank or Paypal account.

As per many clients and writers associated with this site, some of iWriter’s web pages have technical glitches. However, it constantly updates the website to fix them.

If you are looking for regular content for your business, iWritter can serve you with decent content at an affordable price. But, when you need good quality content, this platform is not the best choice.

It’s a hit-and-miss here – you may not find unique content even from the high-end writers on this site.

Pros

• iWritter has a lower commission rate than TextBroker, which allows you to save some money.

• You can quickly submit your projects with detailed descriptions.

Cons

• Writers have reported that sometimes articles disappear when they try to fetch them.

• You need to pay a portion of the project fee in advance to prove your authenticity.

• It takes extra time for writers to claim your project.

• The rejection rate by clients is relatively high.

• There is a limited description space for the writer’s profile.

Upwork

Upwork is a massive worldwide platform for all types of freelancers, not just writers.

You may find a skilled writer if you are lucky; however, the sheer number of freelancers registered on this site makes the good ones harder to find.

As this is not a dedicated content writing platform, it does not help you with anything except connecting to a freelance writer. 

You may hire a writer on Upwork and pay them at hourly or per-project rates. Upwork will charge you 2.5% on each transaction. 

As a client, you need to be practical about the pricing. You cannot expect high-quality content paying $2 to $5 per hour. If you offer too little for a project, it attracts only low-end writers and even spambots.

Pros

• Compared to the exclusive content services, the processing fee is low.

• You can hire a good writer at an affordable rate, but it can take weeks to find one.

• You can contact the writers directly. 

Cons

• Finding a suitable candidate on this site may be a tedious job.

• Even if you hire the highest bidder, you cannot be sure the candidate is competent.

• You have to monitor and manage the project yourself or hire another freelancer.

Summary

We have compared two leading content writing services to help you evaluate the better option. 

Remember that there are many more content-developing platforms out there, and these are not the best options to choose from.

You may try them out to see if these two sites can meet the quality standards that you need for your business. If you are not satisfied, you are free to switch to a better alternative. If you want well-constructed content with excellent SEO, Content Refined might be the best option for you.