Whether you’re doing it part-time or full-time, freelance writing can be a terrific way to supplement your income.
While freelance writing is nothing new, it may now be more appealing than it has ever been. With millions of Americans being furloughed or laid off from their jobs, and health worries about going to work, working from home has never been more enticing.
This is a highly adaptable opportunity that can be anything you want. If you’re searching for a weekend job or a method to supplement your income, freelance writing is one of the greatest options. It may also be scaled up to provide a full-time income.
If you’re thinking about becoming a freelance writer, here are some steps you can take to get your first customer and start expanding your career.
Step 1: Choose Your Area of Specialization
Although you have the freedom to work on a number of projects and write on a variety of topics, the best-paid freelance writers tend to specialise in one area. Travel, family and parenting, health and fitness, business, marketing, finance, fashion, or any number of other topics could be your area of expertise.
You should ideally have some prior experience in your field of expertise, so consider your talents and background to see what would be a suitable fit.
Step 2: Set Up Your Own Blog
Having your own blog can aid in the acquisition of clients. When applying for jobs, you may need to use writing examples from your blog when you’re initially getting started. Potential clients may find you and contact you through your blog even after you’ve established yourself.
You may build a free blog with WordPress.com or Wix if you want to keep your expenditures down. You can get a domain name and web hosting for a more professional appearance if you have some money to spend (less than $100 to get started).
Step 3: Gather Your Writing Samples
Before you can start applying for jobs, you’ll need writing samples to show that you’re capable of producing high-quality work. If you already have writing examples, that’s fantastic, but if not, you should produce a few articles and post them on your site.
Your writing examples will have a significant impact on whether or not you get hired, so make sure you take the time to do your best work.
Step 4: Determine Your Rates
Some writing jobs have established charges, but you’ll almost always be asked about your rates, so prepare an answer.
As a new freelancer, determining your prices might be one of the most difficult tasks. Because freelance writer rates might vary greatly, you’ll have to do your best to figure out what a reasonable pay is for your work. Keep in mind that this is likely to be a work in progress, and you may need to alter (up or down) depending on your job search success.
Because prices vary so much from sector to industry and job to gig, it’s difficult to tell what rate you should strive for as a beginning freelancer.
Projects can be priced in a variety of ways as well. It’s common to be paid per word, but you may also be paid a flat rate for an article.
In general, someone who charges $0.10 per word could be a reasonable place to start. Some of the lower-paying jobs may pay as little as $0.03 per word, while some of the higher-paying jobs may pay as much as $1 per word or more.
Calculate your hourly rate by estimating how long it will take you to complete an article. For example, if a 1,000-word piece takes you two hours to finish and you charge $0.10 per word, you’ll be paid $100 for the post and $50 per hour.
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Step 5: Search Jobs Boards for Opportunities
When looking for freelance writing jobs, there are a variety of job boards to choose from. Some employment boards are solely dedicated to freelance writing, while others may have a wide range of freelance gigs and remote positions.
The following are some of the job boards that you can use:
2.Remote.co
3.ProBlogger
4.Blogging Pro
5.Writing Jobs as a Freelancer
There are other employment boards as well, but this is a wonderful place to start. Because job postings attract a large number of applications, be sure to take your time and put your best foot forward.
Make sure to follow the job posting’s directions and give all of the needed information. If you don’t, you’re unlikely to be considered. Make sure you’re delivering writing samples that aren’t just good, but also related to the subject. If you’re looking to write for a finance site, for example, you don’t want to send writing examples of pieces on pool cleaning.
Step 6: Apply to Entry-Level Jobs (if Needed)
It’s fantastic if you can locate some clients through job boards. However, there are a number of freelance writing tasks for beginners that are likely to be more accessible at initially. Although the money will be lower, you will get valuable experience (and writing examples) that will help you land higher-paying positions in the near future.
The purpose of these entry-level jobs is to simply get experience and assist you in your career advancement. Because these jobs do not pay much, you will not want to stay with them for a long time.
Step 7: Identify Potential Opportunities On Your Own
While job boards might be helpful in locating jobs, you do have other options. Scouting blogs in your area of interest is one of the best things you can do. If you’re a travel writer, look through a variety of travel blogs to see which ones feature content from a variety of authors. The writers are most likely independent contractors.
You can contact the blogs that appear to be hiring freelance writers and inquire about their hiring policies. Make a pitch for your services and let them know you’d like to write for them.
This method may take some time, but it is a terrific way to find work, and it can lead to some of the best chances.
Step 8: Prioritize Ongoing Work
Clients who give you with regular work will be quite important, since you may not need to spend time looking for work once you have a few of them. This means you’ll be able to devote 100% of your time to writing and earning money.
Because they tend to supply continual work, bloggers and blog editors can be wonderful clients. You can be given a certain number of articles to write each week or month.
Step 9:
Building your professional network will be a top priority as you go. Other freelance writers in your niche, blog owners, blog editors, and other professionals should all be part of your network. You never know what chances will present themselves as a result of your connections.
Growing your network will take time, but the payback can be significant if you take a long-term strategy to your business. Prioritize the quality of your relationships over the quantity.
