The Dollar Stretcher Writing Assignment Review: Pass!

Editors note: This is a slightly incomplete review because it became clear that this was not a consistent writing job as previously thought. I'll leave it up, as-is, because I'm sure some of you out there followed the same blogs and links I did, and may be considering trying to get paid by The Dollar Stretcher. Nothing against their website at all – it's the fault of the writers that wrote a misleading article about them!

GENERAL LOOK OF WEBSITE

Sign Up Here: http://stretcher.com/menu/writers.cfm

It was pretty clear from the beginning that this was not a website where you can find writing jobs, even though it was presented as such in these damn listicles I read while collecting ideas for writing assignments. The spirit of these blog posts is to actually help writers find good jobs online, but as it's turning out, most of the “resources” available are just trashy listicles that list anything with mention of pay for writing. Rant over!

In a nutshell, you can get paid to write an article or two, maybe. This is not a way to make consistent income online.

Were you successful landing a job?

No

How was the user experience?

Basic but pretty clear.

How is the mobile platform?
None.

What type of verifications are needed to get started?
None.

How long did it take to set up a profile?

You cannot set up a profile. You can submit a query for their print version

What types of jobs were there available?   (paid, 0$0.10/word; guest post or sponsored post)

Article Length: Up to 800 words in length. The majority of articles that will be used will be in the 500 to 700 word range.

Type of Material Used:

• how to articles
• time and space saving techniques
• creative ways to save on food, housing, auto and clothing
• stage-of-life material for babies, children, teens, college students, singles, couples, the divorced, single parents, empty nesters and retirees.
• Material on dealing with non-frugal partner, children or significant others

 

Was there competition? Was there regular work? (not all sites are bidding websites)

This seems to be a pretty popular website, so there's probably lots of competition to submit articles. As they mention, they've been around for many years, and have many writers, so your idea has probably only been covered. Only if it's a super-unique idea or story will you have a chance of getting paid to write an article. But if your idea is so unique, why not publish it on your own website?

What was the range of job prices available?

Unpaid or $0.10 per word for their print version. This type of job is mostly for exposure to your online brand.

 

Payment options (PayPal, bank, check, etc)

USD cheque or Paypal

Could you make a full-time income with this website?
No.

Would this be good for part time work?

Only if it was very part time and you had a serious interest in saving money.

PROS, CONS, + UNIQUE ASPECTS OF [WEBSITE NAME]

What made this website unique?

It does not offer jobs, only the opportunity to write articles for their platform. Most likely to be unpaid.

What were the good and bad points about this platform?

Minimal opportunity. Might be fun for someone who is enthusiastic about the subject. The paid version only publishes 1/7 of their content.

WOULD I RECOMMEND THIS WEBSITE FOR FREELANCE WRITERS?

Why you would or wouldn’t recommend it

There is a very limited scope and it’s not practical to make an ongoing living.

What type of writer is this best for?

A hobbyist who is interested in saving money could benefit from the exposure to their blog or social media accounts could benefit from landing an article on this very popular money-related website.