About the Author

Felicia A. Williams is a freelance writer and blogger. She spends her time raising her family and writing. In addition to being the Insurance Feature Writer at Suite 101 and freelancing wherever she can, Felicia spends her time tinkering around with her sites, Tidbits and Stuff (a site full of useless and useful information), BLULOW, (all about living green) and Visit Hudson Valley.

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QualityGal Updates Payment Structure

October 28th, 2009 • Related • Filed Under

Earlier on, I had written a post on the writing site QualityGal. It has received a thumbs up from several of my readers.

Recently I received an email from Ashley from QualityGal. She wanted to let me know that QualityGal has revised their payment structure, and that effective November 1, their pay scale will be based on the number of links an article has as follows (taken from Ashley’s email):

up to 29 links: $12
30-39 links: $15
40-49 links: $18
50-59 links: $21
60+ links: $25

Currently, there are no positions available for anything other than writers. When other positions become available, they will be announced via the QualityGal blog and/or Twitter.

If someone is interested in applying, they need to submit copies of the following paperwork:
-A signed copy of the Content Release form
-A signed copy of the Style Guide
-A signed copy of SEO Writing for Dummies
-A signed copy of the Non-Compete form
-A FULLY FILLED OUT (SIGNATURE INCLUDED!) W9 form (even if they are not a US citizen!)

They also need to register on our Writer Panel. mAll this paperwork can be found on the right-hand sidebar of qualitygal.com, and can be sent via fax, email, or snail mail.

I’m not very familiar with how QualityGal works so I asked Ashley if she could further explain the payment structure. I was confused because I’m used to earning money based on word count and not link count.

Ashley was patient and sent me the following info:

“…Unless otherwise stated, our articles are all roughly 500 words. We call all our assignments “articles”, but some might not fit the classic article mold you are probably thinking of – some of our assignments take the form of links lists, glossaries, and other similar formats.

The big variable from article to article are the number of links requested – we like our articles to be resourceful, and ask our writers to include links to outside (mostly) authoritative sources (such as .edu/.gov pages). An article might require 40 links, but only end up being 200 words. Finding authoritative links can be a challenge, thus our structure for payment based on number of links rather than per word…”

That made more sense to me and probably is a welcome change for those currently writing for QualityGal.

There Are 18 Responses So Far. »

Comment by QualityGal (5 comments.) on 28 October 2009:

Thank you so much for the followup Felicia!
QualityGal´s last blog ..We want your suggestions!!
Comment by Deanna (6 comments.) on 28 October 2009:

Hi Felicia,
I’ve never heard of QualityGal before. Thanks for the update.
Deanna´s last blog ..eHow Update: My Top 6 Articles
Comment by Deborah (15 comments.) on 28 October 2009:

Hi Felicia,

I’ve just signed up for them but there’s no claimable projects
Deborah´s last blog ..Behind the Blog
Comment by Heidi (11 comments.) on 29 October 2009:

I’ve done several assignments for Quality Gal and they are great to work with — reliable payment and excellent support.

I’m picky, so sometimes it takes me too long to find the links, but if you’re quick with that and/or are very familiar with the topic, then you’re golden.

They also have a very different mix of subjects than most writing sites, which is a welcome change of pace for writers.
Comment by Marilynne (5 comments.) on 29 October 2009:

Thanks for the information. I’m still trying to figure out how this works. It seems like you can write not much and still get paid if you put in lots of links to information.

How does Quality Gal get her profits?

Marilynne
Marilynne´s last blog ..Red Rock Country – Sedona
Comment by Felicia on 29 October 2009:

Marilynne, I think that’s a question for Quality Gal. That’s info I’m not privy to.
Comment by QualityGal (5 comments.) on 29 October 2009:

Marilynne, we make money because of our stellar writing staff.
If you have questions about our processes, please feel free to email me at qualitygal@webuildpages.com.
Heidi – We love having you as a member of our above-mentioned stellar writing staff.
QualityGal´s last blog ..UPDATE: Wanna know when new assignments come in?
Comment by Felicia on 29 October 2009:

I LOVE it when we get answers directly from the source!

Thank you QualityGal.
Comment by Pashon on 29 October 2009:

Felicia, as always you keep us informed. Thank you. I’m trying to sign-up on the site, http://writing.qualitygal.com/index.php?action=account&op=signup, but I keep getting an error message asking me to ‘make sure that this is my full legal name’. So, this is a tad frustrating. I will keep trying. If there is something else I need to do, can you please let me know. Thanks again. Your site is the best.
Comment by prerna (47 comments.) on 30 October 2009:

Hmm.. This looks interesting and since they require a signed W-9 form (even from non U.S citizens) I guess “we” are welcome to apply.. Thanks for the update, Felicia!
prerna´s last blog ..Being a Writer : Awards and Appreciation.. And an Interview!
Comment by Felicia on 30 October 2009:

Pashon, try this link: http://qualitygal.com/writer-application/
Comment by Deborah (15 comments.) on 2 November 2009:

Thank you for mentioning this, Felicia. I submitted my test article for Quality Gal and am waiting to see the results. Ashley is really helpful and friendly. It seems that she has quite a bit of work to choose from as well. I’m impressed
Deborah´s last blog ..A New Design is on the Way
Comment by Trent on 17 November 2009:

Dear Felicia — I have found your site an amazing resource in my quest to turn to full-time freelancing.

I’m wondering if you can help me understand this. I was nearly finished with my multi-form application for Qualitygal when I encountered this:

<>

I have never heard of anyone barring a freelancer from writing for other companies!
No writing or blogging for any site QG considers any kind of competitor — there’s a concept. By its nature freelancing involves providing services to multiple clients. Is there something I am not understanding here, or do I just trust my gut that this requirement is so far beyond unreasonable that there is no point in applying to what otherwise seems a good quality site run by a reasonable person?

Are other content sites doing this? I would really appreciate some thoughts on this.

Thanks!
Comment by Trent on 17 November 2009:

Felicia –

I just found a note of clarification on QG regarding the non-compete agreement, stating that outside writing is fine, as long as it isn’t for QG clients which have been disclosed to the writer.

Thanks again for providing this informative site.

Trent
Comment by jen (3 comments.) on 5 December 2009:

Felicia- you are incredible! How do you find the time to do all of this? Especially taking the much appreciated time to help people! Thank you!!! Santa will be good to you! lol Merry Christmas!! PS, my blog is really called Aspiringfreelancewriterblogspot.com, but who cares? lol I need a new name anyway!!
jen´s last blog ..Puppy Mill Tipline Fights Cruelty
Comment by prerna (47 comments.) on 13 December 2009:

Hi Felicia,
Just an update- I applied to QG, was accpeted and did 4 articles for them last week.. I LOVE them.. really.. Professional yet immensely helpful and the articles are easy to write and the links easy to find once you get into the groove.. Since there are hardly any ypfront paying sites for non U.S. writers, this one is a big blessing.. Thank you, thank you, thank you for pointing this out!! **virtual hugs**
As always, many blessings
prerna´s last blog ..Being a Writer: How to Find Ideas for Articles
Comment by Felicia on 14 December 2009:

Prerna, I’m happy to hear that Quality Gal is working out so well for you.
Comment by QualityGal (5 comments.) on 14 December 2009:

Thank you Felicia, we are receiving some wonderful feedback and some amazing writers! Thank you Prerna, you are a wonderful addition to the team–Welcome Aboard!