Ceros Studio vs. Contently

Ceros is fantastic for companies who can afford it. It's not ideal for startups who don't have the budget for it. If your company or agency is interested in creating interactive content, but you don't have the skill sets in-house to develop or code them properly, Ceros is for you

Incentivized

It's helpful for top of marketing funnel writing that we can sometimes lose sight of because we are so ingrained in the product day to day. Contently is also helpful for long written pieces and ebooks that will take a significant amount of employee time to put together. I avoid using Contently for mid to bottom funnel marketing writing because my team will often have greater insight into the product function or use-case or product release, making them more adroit to the tone of the written piece and able to produce the content quickly.

Incentivized

• Easy to use and adopt user interface. If you know basic Photoshop, you can use this.
• Encouraging roadmap - the product has gotten better every year. The company obviously listens to client feedback.
• Smart, dedicated client team - always checking in, comes with new ideas, generally nice people. We always love our meetings with them!

Incentivized

• Consolidating my work in one place to make my work life easier
• Contently is unique from other content marketing organizational tools in one key way. It hands you a network of freelance professionals eager for delegated work.
• You can search through a database of professionals to find the perfect person for your given project. Find individuals in your budget offering the exact skills and experience you need.

Incentivized

• A direct to consumer model
• Price point is high, but understandably

Incentivized

• I have been using it for 3.5 years, and have had no response from potential clients.
• The portfolio section is pretty easy to use, but I don't love the format.
• Since I'm not a client, I don't know just how easy it is for them to find new freelancers or how often it is actually used.
• Probably more suited for some types/concentrations of freelance writers, like finance, tech, or healthcare.

Incentivized

Our CSMs have always been 100% and their support team typically responds within an hour or two. Their design/build team also worked with us on perfecting several experiences and are always mindful of how a project is going. One of their designers didn't really understand one of our requests and the project took more rounds of revisions than in previous projects, but they rectified the issue and the project came out well in the end. That outcome probably only happened in the time it did due to our CSM consistently checking in and getting feedback throughout the project - unfortunately, not something that happens enough with all our partners.

Incentivized

I'm giving them a 10, but honestly, I've never reached out to them. I do see them putting out regular content on social media, so they might be responsive to questions there as well as regular customer support. In their posts and communication, they do seem to value their community, so hopefully, they have good customer support. And I've seen them asking for pitches from their community to publish well-paid articles during this stressful coronavirus time, and I really appreciate that.

Incentivized

Ceros takes what would be difficult to accomplish in the Adobe suite of products and makes it easy. When it comes to user experience, user interface and customization options, Ceros is a much better alternative than Adobe. However, Adobe is the trusted name and some may be more comfortable with Adobe products

Incentivized

I also opened an account with Skyword in 2019, which is a similar service. The person that recommended it was a travel writer, and since I've done that as well, I thought it might be a better fit. To this point, I've received no work from it either, and don't hold out a lot of hope. As previously mentioned, where I think Contently does well is by giving you an online portfolio, additional resources like a blog for learning, and a rates database for publications.

Incentivized

• Increased win rate during presentations.
• Elevated content appearance.
• Engaged audience more.

Incentivized

• Contently contributors have produced some great inbound marking posts and creative materials saving our marketing team significant time allowing them to focus on more strategic plans for the business.
• The amount of time Contently has saved our internal creative writing staff has more than paid for itself!

Incentivized