When you look for IAPWE on Google, this name often comes with the word "scam". What is this organization? Why is it assigned a lousy reputation?
Keep reading my experience to understand why you should avoid IAPWE or any similar organization.
What is IAPWE?
IAPWE shorts for International Association of Professional Writers & Editors.
In the About section, IAPWE introduced itself as an organization that provides helpful resources to writers and editors. It aims at providing members with the most updated and legitimate job opportunities.
Well, this description is true somehow. But it’s unclear enough for other people to understand what the company works in.
So what is this organization exactly in reality?
It's a job networking site for writers and editors, like Content Writing Jobs, Upwork, or Working Nomads. But it appears in a paid version, unlike other free counterparts.
The company also offers writing services through which it hires freelancers to write for clients.
My Unhappy Experiences With IAPWE
On July 7th, 2022, I found a recruitment post of IAPWE on RemoteOK.
After reading the job description, I felt it would match my skills and qualifications. I then applied for a content writing position directly through RemoteOK.
But until August 24th, 2022, I received an email back from Amy Wilkerson (she didn't mention her role at IAPWE). She said IAPWE accepted my application.
She then told me to "accept an invitation" to their freelancer portal, where they assign writing and editing tasks. Further, she also introduced the company's membership options and told me to register if I had an interest (As far as I understand, this is optional).
But she attached no link for that invitation. Meanwhile, she attached a link for membership registration (!?).
Next, when I clicked the registration link, it led me to a form for filling in my details. After that, it continued leading me to four membership options.
I chose the Basic option which is free for members. But when I checked my member profile, this is what appeared.
This shocked me, to be honest. IAPWE changed my choice of Basic to Professional without my permission. The payment is made through Paypal. So I decided to cancel my subscription directly in Paypal.
Until the afternoon of August 24th, another email came to me. This time, it included "an invitation to a freelancer portal" I mentioned before. But this is another ridiculous announcement when I accessed the link.
What does this mean?
It means I had to register to become a member first. Otherwise, IAPWE wouldn't process my freelancer request.
Coming to this stage, I understood that membership wasn't OPTIONAL, but rather COMPULSORY if I wanted to work freelance for them.
One final thing making me annoyed was the way it worked with freelancers. It listed a wealth of jobs with detailed guidelines. But there were no interactions or communications with the editorial or relevant staff.
IAPWE: a Wring Scam or Not?
To be honest, IAPWE is not a writing scam at all. But the way it works and manages freelance activities is too confusing. And this makes IAPWE look nothing short of a scam. Below are other reasons why it isn't a good choice for any content writer.
Frequent recruitment: When I accessed RemoteOK, I saw a recruitment post for the freelance writer position at IAPWE three days ago (let's say August 22nd). Previously, I saw IAPWE posted the job description several times. There is an average of 20,000 applicants for it. But hasn't the company hired enough candidates? Its frequent recruitment left me with a big question.
Register as a member before going to a freelancer portal: I came to the organization through a hiring post for a freelance writer. But it required me to complete the registration process before going to the freelancer portal. It sounds weird!
No connection with the editorial staff: IAPWE required candidates to have good communication skills and work well with editorial staff. But the company seems uncommunicative to freelance writers. IAPWE just posts a job list in a freelancer dashboard. And there's no connection with the editorial staff or other members.
Grant premium membership while I chose a free one: The company automatically changed my membership option without asking me.
The badly structured website with confusing information: As I said, IAPWE serves as a job-finding medium and also provides writing services. But it doesn't clarify what it offers or how it works on the website. UX design looks too unprofessional and unreliable. This makes me feel it's not a good working environment to work for.
Too Late Response for Recruitment: I had to wait nearly two months to receive IAPWE's email. Perhaps the HR staff was busy with their work. But it proves they're not professional and well-organized in work.
No Email Reply for Help: In the email on August 24th, Amy Wilkerson said, "Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions about anything." But when I emailed to ask further about the job, she returned no reply.
Unworthy tools and resources: According to IAPWE, all members, except for Basic ones, can access tools to check grammar, plagiarism, and more. But when I looked through those tools, they looked too unprofessional. Compared with other famous tools like Grammarly or Small SEO Tools, those tools looked much inferior.
Paid job-finding medium: There is a wealth of free websites like Fiverr or Upwork where you can find writing jobs. They are more reputable and reliable than IAPWE.
I'm not the only person who finds IAPWE annoying to work with. Chelseanrey from Reddit shared her insane experience with this organization four years ago. Also, Mykki talked about her application story in 2020.
Concluding Comments
In some aspects, IAPWE is not a writing scam. But I don't encourage you to work with this organization as it seemingly lacks a professional working process and essential interactions in work.
Even when you work as a freelancer, it still needs interactions to produce the best outcomes.