Jury's Out On Today.com
Hi all. I got a couple emails this morning about the Today.com blogging gig that was posted at Performancing.com , Freelance Writing Gigs and Problogger. Althouth all of these are top notch sites, I'm not sure that they screen their job postings. There seems to be a question as to whether this is a legit opportunity.
So I asked around a bit and did some research:
Possible Positives:- The post that they put up at Problogger does specify that the guaranteed amount is only for the first month.
- I have ran into two online people who have said they got paid. One has said she blogged for them for 2 months, another didn't say how long. At least one blog has been up and active since March 4. This is also one of the writers who has been paid.
- The contract (which you "agree to" when you first apply) looks to be legitimate.
My main issue is that they don't seem to be upfront about who they are or what they're doing. Trying to track down the owner of Today.com was like a wild goose chase. For example, their Wiki says its contact is Cat Internet Services. Wow. Google that name! However DomainTools says that Today.com is by the Amosely Corp of Canada, who owns over 12,000 other domain names. My IPNeighbor says that some of those other IPs include blogscam.com and boylove.info. Despite the multiple other locations that Domain Info et. al. revealed, I did notice that the contract cites Pennsylvania as it's governing region.
Maybe content or ownership isn't really your issue. Maybe you just want to make sure you're paid. I can understand that. Throughout the internet today, I've found ~35 people who were accepted within the past week and a half. Given the fact that they obviously hold many website domains, perhaps that's not "too many" as I originally thought.
In the course of my poking around today I have happened upon many other well-reputed web writers who have some of the same question marks as I do. Please feel free to leave comments if you can direct us to a real human to speak with and/or have been paid.
Meanwhile, I have left several phone calls and emails with a couple different offices/addresses that I've located, and am trying to get into contact with another writer that may have been paid by now. I'll let you know when I get these leads followed!
Comments
Hmmm, I am giving them a no.
Amy
you and a couple others, Amy, but for writer’s sakes I hope you’re wrong!
I do have a good sign. Before all the doubts, I also signed up and then sent a question via the contact form about the blog I was “assigned” to. Well, that question was answered late this evening, so I am thinking that perhaps they are just backed up.
THat bodes well.
Hello Allena,
I’m sorry that we didn’t get this email until after your post on About.com. It would have been nice to have received a chance to answer your questions beforehand. However, we do appreciate your concern for fellow writers and hope this email answers your questions.
In short, Today.com is “for real”, as you ask.
Here is a little background on Today.com. We started as small blog directory a few years ago. We eventually added free blog hosting in 2006. More recently we have temporarily closed free hosting to new registrations as we focus on our newer freelance blog program. I believe you’ve already spoken to a few of our new freelance bloggers in different online forums and some have confirmed that we have faithfully sent payments.
We have since ramped things up and have added many new bloggers. Most have not been around long enough to have received payment, but I’m sure in the coming weeks you’ll hear about more receiving checks. Our next payout is May 10th.
Today.com is owned and run from Canada. The same company owns other sites and domains, as you discovered, but Today.com is run independently with an independent team. We do have a small office in Pennsylvania, which is probably why you saw a PA address in your research. However, being a Canadian company we are not required to collect w-9’s or issues US 1099 forms. We have bloggers from around the world and each is responsible for following his or her country’s rules regarding reporting income. We would recommend concerned bloggers contact a tax professional for specific advice.
As for the contract, you noted in your post that bloggers must accept it online.
Anyone who wishes to be considered can fill out our form online at http://www.today.com/apply - of course if someone is uncomfortable they don’t have to apply. We receive hundreds of applications a week. Many are accepted and many are not. We are growing fast at the moment, but expect growth to slow in the coming weeks as we reach our hiring goals. We give many people a chance, not just professionals with experience. Everyone is reviewed at least monthly and we do reserve the right to end an agreement or alter payments UP or down with notice at anytime.
I hope this answers your questions!
Best Rega
grr should say writers’ sakes.
Commentors:
I’m “just sharing” with you the fact that these comments are immediately connected to my Blackberry phone. I don’t even have to leave my couch to delete them. Therefore the following kinds of comments will get NO audience nor airtime, so don’t bother!
-those with nothing constructive to say
-those that insult me or my readers
-those that are spammy
-those that promise untold writing riches
Sorry- just sharing!
Ps- Thanks, Nichole, for speaking to me on email and here today, and clearing up the questions that circulated today!