Hiring a writer , how much and what is the range ??

I say depending on the budget...if you can and willing to spend money to get great writing than hire a pro like Kraven2 there. But if you are tight on budget than maybe...just maybe you could hire some low-cost writer out there in a range around $10 to $50 per article....remember it's your site and name that is on stake here

 

If SEO is not the main objective $25 to $50 per article, should get you a well written one.

So the first question should be what is the main purpose of the article? Keep readers interested or attract new ones? The first only requires decent writing, the second would be a SEO piece.

Once you have answered that question you can proceed from there.

 

Like many have already stated, it depends what you are looking for. As you run a very specialized niche website, I guess that only an informed writer (some who understands and is involved in 'mixed martial arts'), would be able to supply a wholly original content news article about your chosen field. Therefore, you will probably end up with someone who will be re-writing existing news content. There is nothing wrong with this, as long as it is not plagiarized word or word, phrase for phrase. Many pro news writers around the world re-write breaking news stories, in their own words.

Therefore, it is possible to find a competent English speaker in a developing country, who will re-write (not spin) a 200 word news article for $2 USD. For them, $2 is an average day's pay in their country. We know this pi**es off native English speaking writers in the western world, as we can't even but a decent cup of coffee for $2, so we have to charge more.

My 2c worth...

 

Hiring someone to write for pennies will get you "crap". Using the following scenario to help you decide on what you should pay for your article.

After a few minutes of research I see that you are into Mixed Martial Arts. Now that is a very popular search term with some tough competition. Getting your site ranked for that alone will take some work, but it is not impossible as some may leave you to believe. By choosing some popular search terms with less competition you will be getting visitors who are looking to buy. That is the key to making your site profitable.

Writing articles the following terms will be a bit easier to get listed

1. MMA School
2. Martial Arts Training
3. MMA Schools
4. brazilian jiu jitsu schools

Each of the above search terms have low competition and a good amount of daily searches. After reviewing your site, I see that you still have not even started putting in content. I would recommend getting some articles that rank on the front page of Google for the above search terms and start putting content on your site.

 

I run a site with over 20 writers in various subjects and I pay them through advertising rev share through google adsense. I also let them sale ad space to businesses where they keep 80% commission and the other 20% goes to me. I plan to do this for now until my site's traffic picks up to the point where I can put them on salary. I look for writers who are looking to market and brand themselves on the internet and therefore aren't too concerned over pay. They do this moreso as a hobby that benefits them with their career paths.

 

You can also try creating an internship program for your site. If your site looks well established, you may be able to submit your site to various schools and they may accredit their students hours towards their grade. I personally know a few that have gone this route. It's a win-win for everyone involved. you hire free labor. The student doesn't mind because it goes on their resume and possibly helps them get better grade in school. If site grows, it could lead to student becoming part of your staff on a full or part-time basis.