I work with around a dozen freelance writers regularly. I usually aim to set the pay so they'll earn a minimum of $25 an hour. Although, they're freelancers, so

I work with around a dozen freelance writers regularly. I usually aim to set the pay so they'll earn a minimum of $25 an hour. Although, they're freelancers, so that really isn't up to me. I just accepted a piece for publication -- and I'm fairly certain the writer spent no more than 30 minutes on it. The call for submissions went out, and 30 minutes later I got the piece. I'm paying $65 for it. In general, I'm always looking for ways to justify spending more money on producing better content. I work hard to build the trust of my audience and to provide ever increasing value to them. Fortunately, as my business grows, this becomes easier in some ways, due to economy of scale. A bigger audience generates more revenue, which means I can spend more on content. Better content means more readership, which in turn increases revenue. It's a gratifying business. :)