How to be a Content Writer

 

How to be a Content Writer

 

Trying to become a content writer when you’re just starting out can feel daunting.

While establishing yourself as a writer will take a boat load of hard work, there’s absolutely no reason you can’t become a successful content writer.

Let’s break it down.

1. Write. Write. Write.

It’s no secret that in order to become a successful writer you need to be a talented wordsmith.

The best way to get there is to just keep writing.

2. Create a professional bio

Creating a professional profile is one of the first steps to getting started. Some of the main things to make sure your profile includes are:

·         Elevator pitch about yourself

·         A high-quality image

·         Credibility boosters

·         A personal touch

Next, you’re going to want to put together a portfolio of work. Most clients will ask for writing samples before hiring a writer, so make sure you have some great samples in your portfolio to share.

3. Build a writing portfolio

There is a number of different ways to start building a portfolio without any writing experience so let’s break a few down (starting with the easiest and finish with the hardest but most rewarding):

1. Medium

Medium a website that lets you create a profile and publish articles under your name. It’s free so anyone can create an account and start publishing articles with a byline. The biggest benefit to Medium is that it’s a professional-looking and well-known website.

2. Content Platform

A second way that will require slightly more effort but is more effective, is to create a portfolio on a content platform. Content platforms are all about connecting writers with companies that need content, so it’s a great place to start building a portfolio while also looking for prospective clients.

3. Publications

Finally, one of the best but most challenging ways to build your portfolio is to publish articles on marquee publications in your niche - Ex. Forbes for business - TechCrunch for tech. To do this, you’ll need to write some high quality, original articles and then submit them to the website editors. Doing this takes more time and effort but when done well can really give your portfolio some extra credibility.

4. Pick a niche

Another big part of getting started as a freelance writer is finding a niche (or multiple niches).

This can be challenging especially early on because you want to accept literally any job that comes your way. I encourage you to move beyond this stage as fast as possible and find a niche(s) that you:

1.     Enjoy writing about

2.     Have an above average understand of

Establishing yourself as an expert in a particular field or niche will help you landing clients, and charge more for your services.

5. Finding Writing Jobs

So, you’re ready to tackle your first freelance writing job. Only problem is, you have no idea where to land a writing job…

There a few different places to start your job search:

1.     Social Media

2.     Job Sites

3.     Freelance Writing Sites

 

6. Land your first client

Approaching potential clients is exciting, yet nerve-wracking.

My advice for writers here is to develop a system or template that can evolve with you as a writer.

Here is an example of a system:

1. Start by researching the potential client. Check out their website, read a blog article or two, get a sense of what their business is all about.

2. Write a Proposal. This is your first step to building a relationship with that client so don’t be afraid to ask questions or show some personality.

3. Anticipate questions ahead of time. Anticipate the questions or concerns a client might have.

4. Follow up. If you don’t hear back right away, follow up. Most marketers and website owners are busy people so it’s not uncommon for an email to get missed or forgotten about.

Here is an example…

Hi (Client Name),

Last week I sent you a proposal for (the project) and just wanted to follow up to see if you’re interested.

When you’re available, please get in touch if you’d like to discuss the project in more detail or have any further questions.

(Your Name)

Once you’ve landed your first client, now is when the real work starts. You need to balance keeping clients happy, with landing new clients, and not going crazy ;)

It’s also important to keep developing your writing skills. For this, recommend checking out Freelance Writing Stack - it’s a curated directory of freelance writing resources and tools.

Being a paid content writer is not as hard as some people think. You don’t need any tools or expensive things to get started, you simply need to go out and market yourself and find a client (or four).

I’ve seen people upset about the lack of strong resources or how much tools can cost, and I’ve seen people put off starting to work simply because they felt overwhelmed with information.

Here are the truths I have discovered on my journey in writing and entrepreneurship:

·         You should not spend ANY money when you’re first starting. You can start a service-based (like writing) business for free.

·         You don’t need to know everything when you start. You can research and figure things out as you go along.

·         Even when you’re first looking for clients and feel so inexperienced, don’t ever work for free. Here’s how not to and why you shouldn’t.

·         Market yourself, especially using social media. Social media is free and, as a small business owner or freelancer, completely necessary. Here’s how I utilize social media.

·         Make sure to always be creating and maintaining your pipeline of future clients to fight the natural ebb and flow of sales and freelancing.

·         Figure out what you need to be making and use that for your pricing. Then stick to it. Pricing and sticking to it is so important as a freelancer. Clients want work for free, so never let them dictate what you’re worth.

·         Focus on your main objective or idea when starting your business. There is such a thing as too many ideas.

·         Network constantly. Whenever I go anywhere, I have my cards in my bag. When I meet new people, I give them my card, explain I’m a writer, and let them know I’d be happy to discuss any writing or editing needs they have.

·         Even when you’re first starting, you’re allowed to say “no” to work! So many freelancers feel they need to take on anyone who comes to them, to gain experience, build a portfolio, whatever. You do NOT. Saying “no” to some work has made me more successful and profitable.

·         Make sure you deeply understand blogging and article writing. Here are 10 tips I’ve learned!

·         When working from home (or for yourself), staying organized and not procrastinating is the only way you can succeed.

·         Freelancing can be lonely. Make sure to maintain friendships and hobbies outside the home to keep your sanity!

·         Have a contract in place. This is super important. Your contract should dictate payments, deadlines, deliverables, and anything else having to do with the client/freelancer relationship. Both of you should sign this and a deposit paid before ANY work is done. There are many free contract templates available online.

·         Keep an eye on the future. How will your business evolve and change?Think about what you enjoy doing most as you gain clients and learn new skills and see how you can incorporate more of it or move to different pricing models. Evolution is an important part of building and growing a business.

These is real information from a freelancer who has been where you are. You do not need to pay for any expensive courses or anything to get started. Just find one person willing to pay you fairly for your work and BAM! You’re a paid freelancer.

In terms of finding clients specifically:

I have gotten a couple clients from Reddit, answering ads from people looking for writers, and maybe 2–3 who found me through my website or from reading my book.

The majority of my clients came from social media. One of my main clients right now originally came through Instagram.

The easiest way to start using Twitter and Instagram more effectively is to start using relevant hashtags ASAP. They are searchable and followed by many people as a way to get exposed to new content. On Instagram, you can have up to 30 hashtags per picture, and on Twitter, your only limit is the 280 characters. You want to use relevant hashtags and not just popular ones if they don’t fit the content, as that is an easy way to get people to ignore you.

Use good pictures. It doesn’t matter if they are selfies from your phone, try to take a decent picture that isn’t blurry or too crowded or anything. Instagram in particular is a very visual platform.

Also, be yourself. I post everything from food I cooked, my cat being cute, blogs I wrote, and random things from throughout my day. I am not just looking for random followers, I am being myself and showing who I am.

So, now that you’re using the platform correctly and continuing to build your account, how do you find clients?

You can direct message anyone on Instagram and tweet at anyone on Twitter.

Every single time anyone liked or commented or followed my account, I checked their page. If they had CEO, founder, entrepreneur, public speaker, etc, any of those types of titles, I sent them a quick message:

“Hi! My name is Jyssica Schwartz and I am a writer and editor based in NYC. I do blogging, website and ad copy, ghostwriting, articles, and book editing. Did you know having an active blog raises your Google search ranking and keeps people on your site longer?”

I got a surprisingly high number of responses. Most of them were along the lines of “You’re a writer? That’s cool!” or “How much do you charge?”

For the first, I said thanks and we often had a conversation. That is one more follower on social media and potential reader of my books and blogs, or even possibly a client in the future. Be nice to everyone, you never know when they will pop back up.

For the second, I started asking questions and explained that prices depended on the work. I can do per-word, per-project or monthly pricing, and it includes different things and amounts of time. In fact, I’d love to talk to them about it. Do they have time to jump on a call around 3 pm?

Connecting with people over the phone is a strength of mine. I love that human connection and interaction, and I am able to more thoroughly understand what they need and how I can help them. It is far better to have a conversation than simply replying “I charge $0.15 per word.” and never hearing back from them.

So basically, I use social media, referrals, and connections to get clients.

 

If you are fresher and wish to get into content writing, I would suggest you do three things-

1.     Start a blog

2.     Write on platforms like Medium and Quora

3.     Have an Instagram handle and Facebook page

Show your expertise and pile up some views, likes, and comments. Learn the basics of three things.

1.     Google analytics

2.     Content marketing

3.     Inbound marketing

Read some good articles on writing hacks, social media hacks, and how you can improve your online presence. Apply them on your personal social media accounts, keep experimenting and trying. Have fun as you learn!

Stay longer on these two websites,

1.     Content marketing institute

2.     Copyblogger

Follow some good writers, consume good content, read good books, understand the language, and improve your vocabulary.

Once you do all of the above for a month, check LinkedIn, and other job searching sites for some good job offers, and apply.

Also, research, and check out the startups in your city, see if they are into marketing and need a writer to create content for them. If they do, meet them and say, you would be glad to join their team.

 

Content writing is not much hard when you have good command over a languge. You can easily become a content writer. I am sharing my own experiance reading which you can have an idea to get into content writing:

·         Be fluent with a language to get success in this field. I have good command over English Language so I chose it as my content weapon.

·         Reading as much as you can, will help you to get the innovative ideas of writing.

·         Before starting to write, select a topic and research on that. Make a structure and keep you content simple, it imcreases the readability and approachability to your targeted audience. The main thing, create a interesting content else it will become boring and tedious.. So while writing, keep interest of users in mind…

·         Frame content using the attractive and sapid headlines, to make interest of users…

·         In the next, you should choose a platform for writing such as: publication, blogging(travel, food, nature, photography, life style etc. These are the options to start with easily as in these all you just need to write your experiance as a story which is not much difficult task for a fresher.) I started with food and its machines. Now, I am writing in an education field.

·         You should also keep writing on social media platform(Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter etc) to get more productivity. Remember to be famous on social media, you just need to write creative content and post consistently…

·         Now, the next step is to start freelancing, you can start your own blog on any topic. You can easily find clients for your freelancing career on the leading job platforms.