Member-only story
Killing the Golden Geese
How content-marketing startups squeeze their freelancer ecosystems.
The past decade has seen the rise of a number of “content marketing” firms. The business model for these startups is pretty simple: Connect clients with a need for customized content (such as Microsoft or Walmart) with freelance writers and other content creators who will do the actual work. In exchange for facilitating this relationship, the companies generally take a cut of the freelancer’s earnings, and/or charge the clients an additional fee of some sort.
For freelance writers, these startups promise a ready-made marketplace of hungry clients; for the clients, the allure is an easily accessible pool of talent (and the ability to scale up as much content as they need, provided they have the budget). Which brings us to Contently, a content-marketing platform that has traditionally taken 15 percent of its freelancers’ earnings. Those freelancers received an email this week that sent many into a froth of pure rage:
“Contently has always been a place for freelancers to connect with the world’s best brands and find opportunities for high-value work. Now, after nearly nine years delivering products and services to the freelancer community at no charge, starting April 2nd, Contently will institute a 4.75% fee on all cash outs.”
