Twenty bucks for a 500-word product description, back in 2016. @kellyallen, I get why that ten dollar blog post felt okay at the time. It's easy to think any money is better than no money, especially when you're starting out. But looking back, I don't think low rates are always the problem - it's more about the client than the price. I've had ten dollar jobs that were a breeze with one edit and a quick turnaround, and fifty dollar jobs that turned into a nightmare of back-and-forth. Some folks just want a fair deal no matter what they're paying, and others will run you ragged for any amount.

Store brand pasta sauce nearly ruined a Sunday dinner at my house a few years back. My wife picked up a big jar of the cheap stuff because it was on sale, and I swear that sauce had more sugar than a candy bar. The whole pot had this weird sweet and sour thing going on, like someone mixed ketchup with tomato soup and called it authentic Italian. We ended up ordering pizza because nobody could choke down that mess. So now I'm with you, I stick to the mid tier for anything in a jar. Those store brands for pasta sauce are a gamble I'm not willing to take again.