Do you want to learn how to make money by freelance writing? Here are a few tips on how I got started and what worked for me. In this post, I will be going over the fundamentals of starting a foundation in your freelancing career.
When I initially started to pursue my freelancing business, I worked a fulltime job. Now let me tell you it was not fun since I had to dedicate all of my weekends to writing and marketing. So if you are looking to scale this into a full-time career part of that process is dedicating enough time.
In this post, I want to share with you my freelancing journey as well as the steps I took to convert this into a full-time job.
Create a website for your freelancing business
An online presence is going to extend your reach to scale a much larger audience. I am a freelance Technical Builder. I help small businesses and individuals carry out a professional online or offline presence. This is dedicated to resume writing, creating Linkedin portfolios, web and content creation, etc.
In my spare time, I love to create websites and do affiliate marketing which also earns me money. However, most of my focus is on resume writing and creating professional documents since that is where I make most of my money.
I created a resume based focus site, so it saved me from having to higher a web designer. I even added a payment gateway into the site. Occasionally I may have someone hire me to do some cosmetic changes to their website. But to be quite honest I love them both!
Create an online Social presence
Creating a social presence is going to extend your freelancing business to others. Start with a Facebook and a Linkedin profile. These two platforms are going to allow others to leave a recommendation based on your work which can be more valuable than just word of mouth since we highly depend on reviews.
I created a Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Google My Business and Tweeter account. This is because not everyone only lives on Facebook or Insta or Linkedin etc. People have a preferred social channel that they like to engage in. For instance, I prefer to socialize on Instagram, but I do all of my posts and find most of my clients on Facebook, Linkedin, and Craigslist. YES! Craigslist you pay $5 for an ad that will last you 30 days, I find clients looking for writers on there all the time.
Most of my clients are from word of mouth and organic reach. I say if you have some money to invest in ads then go for it. This will help you also gain exposure.
Share your journey with your friends and family
Yes, I know at times friends and family can be extremely critical especially if you flip flop a lot on your ideas or they see you downing a few margaritas from time to time. Consider having a cleaner appearance on your personal channel.
This helps friends and family take you more serious so they can help by sharing your content to their families or friends. When I started posting on the different types of services that I offered it took a while for people to respond to it.
For all, they knew I was in school for IT, and I made sales. But for the most part, I supported careers in just about anything that I had a passion for.
I did recruiting, retail management, field technician, resume writing, web designing yes I was a job whore and a jack of all trades. My passion for writing came from me being in school for eight years and having a high academic background. I was a nerd, and I wrote so many papers; it was kind of ridiculous but extremely helpful.
Some of my friends started coming to me for resume advice and help with entry papers for colleges etc. I was the Master of words. I was pretty much the go-to person that everyone went to when they needed a job done.
Attend some networking events
So here is the thing not everyone lives on the internet. Networking events are a great way to extend your reach with real professionals that are wanting to sell their products or services. Some people prefer to meet others that way.
My first networking event was at a local place in Tampa nothing special. I ended up going with someone I met on Linkedin actually. I had the opportunity to chat with Life Coaches, Lawyers, Content Writers, etc. But the best part was that we were bouncing ideas off of each other. I loved that. There are so many events you can attend in your local area I recommend you give it a shot.
Monitor your site’s performance and followers
Monitoring your site’s performance is crucial because you can be writing all this content and its falling onto death ears. I like to track my followings every three months. I recommend you do it for more than three months, but since I manage my own social channels, it’s easier for me to handle it this way.
When it comes to my site’s performance, I manage that a little more since my content and links are shared across several social media platforms.
Wealthy Affiliate has an excellent way to help you keep track of your website’s performance. As you can see, I need to pay extra attention to certain metrics on my website. When having an online business or blogging the results that you receive is as much as you put in. Treat it like a full-time job. When it’s related to something you love then, it doesn’t feel like work.
Do what you love don’t just market yourself
So what I mean by this is that if you are in the business for writing then write. Build up your Linkedin profile with articles and engaging post for others to read. Don’t just sit there and post every 5 minutes on social media that you are a writer. People want to see some of your work.
They want to see that you are a writer and what your interest are and see if they share any similarities. I am always creating content on all of my social media platforms as well as my websites.
Look for your ideal clients
Ok, so what is your ideal client? My ideal client is someone that isn’t going to give me push back on my prices. If I have to go back and forth with someone about price then, I am not interested in working with you. I mean sounds cruel but you have to be like that otherwise people will walk all over you.
If you don’t see the value of the time I put into writing a resume for you lets say, then you don’t value my time at all. Also if I give you a lower price or a price of what I think people want to pay, then I am only stealing from myself. If it takes me 5 hours to write you a good document, then I want to get paid for my 5 hours how I see fit. If I charge according to what others wish, then I wouldn’t be too enthused on writing for 5 hours.
How I made $1084 from a $20 investment
There are times where a little investment goes a long way. I love the idea of organic free traffic. But how ideal is that when you are just starting your freelancing career or you are on a budget? The best ad investment, in my opinion, is Facebook. I will tell you why! Facebook sends you notifications on how many people you can reach while giving you an amount to invest in.
Another good way that I like to market myself is through Craigslist. Craigslist platform is a $5 charge to post an ad for 30 days, but it’s worth it. I always get a client from a CL ad pretty much all the time I post.
The platform has been up for a while, and it’s well known in most cities and states.
Final thoughts so how to make money by freelance writing?
So the key here is to be consistent. No matter what approach you decide to take its always good to do it every day so you can master it. Also, don’t be afraid to try different methods so you can see what might or might not work for you.
Nevertheless, I am more than confident that if you follow these approaches, you will be on your way to making money writing in no time. So the next time you think about how to make money by freelance writing? Think about this. The longer you wait to start somewhere the longer it will take you to get there.
