Results of Subcontracting Survey: Show Me the Money!

One of the most frequently asked questions I get from resume writers who are considering subcontracting for other firms is: How much does it pay?

The second Subcontracting Survey was completed by 33 respondents. Ninety percent of those currently work as subcontract writers, either for an individual or a firm.

Results are pretty evenly split between writers who only work for one individual/firm and those who write for multiple individuals and firms.

The average pay for a subcontract project is below rates that individual resume writers could earn on a project they marketed and managed themselves, but that’s part of the trade-off. In exchange for having someone else handle more of the client management tasks, contract writers can focus on content development.

Average pay per project:

$50 or less -- 0%

$51-$100 -- 27%

$101-$150 -- 18%

$151-$200 --  33%

$201-$250 -- 6.5%

$251-$300 -- 9%

$301-$400 -- 6.5%

$401-$500+ -- 0%

Most resume writers are paid a flat fee per completed project (82 percent of those responding), versus a percentage of the client fee. None of the writers who responded are paid by the hour, although these arrangements do exist. For those who are paid a percentage of the project, the usual portion for the resume writer is 21-35% of the project fee.

You can read the full survey results in the "Making Money as a Resume Subcontractor" Special Report, published by Resume Writers' Digest. The cost is just $20 for the 40+ page report. (It also includes qualifications required for contractors and listings for a couple dozen firms seeking subcontractors, including type of work performed/specialties, turnaround times, and -- in many cases, what they pay.)










You can also read the complete results of the 2008 Resume Writers' Digest Subcontracting Survey in our three-post series from September 2009.