As the way people do business changes, working remotely has become more and more popular for businesses. Along with that shift to online work, there has been a rise in hiring third-party individuals to do jobs like SEO marketing and content marketing rather than hiring a full-time, in-person employee.
Many people are deciding to go an independent route. For those people, freelance writing is a popular job to take on. But what exactly is freelance writing?
And what are the steps to learning how to become a freelance writer? In this article, we’ll answer those questions and also give you some examples of platforms on which you can start a freelancing career.
What is a Freelance Writer?
A freelancer is someone who works for themselves rather than for a company. They will contract out their services to others instead of being a full-time employee in a single place.
A freelance writer is someone who will do writing work often on a project-by-project basis for different clients. That could include blogging, copywriting, email writing, or other types of B2B writing.
Freelance writers will work for individual clients, which could be other businesses, individuals, agencies, or publications. They often work from home and communicate with clients digitally rather than in person.
Oftentimes, a freelance writer works alone rather than as part of a team and isn’t involved in the workings of the client businesses they work for.
Why Become a Freelance Writer?
There are many different reasons why people want to start a career in freelance writing. The first and foremost reason is the amount of control that you have over your work schedule and experience.
You get to choose how often you work during the week and when those hours are distributed.
Many people want to avoid the drone of the 9 – 5 workday that can burn you out and leave you feeling sleep-deprived, grumpy, and just unhappy with working.
Having control of your own schedule means that you don’t have to answer to a company’s schedule and can work during your most productive hours.
Another great benefit of being a freelance writer is the ability to be your own boss. Rather than answering to a manager, you get to have more independence about the direction of your business, the clients you work with, and the expectations you set.
Finally, freelancers get to set their own pay rates and income level. As your experience and client list grow, you have total control over what you charge for your services.
That means that many freelancers start out part-time and eventually rise up to a full-time career. There’s no limit or cap to what you can earn, and you get to control the workload you have to meet your income goals.
Best Practices on How to Become a Freelance Writer
Learning how to become a freelance writer might seem overwhelming at first. However, it can soon become an extremely lucrative career if the right steps are taken.
In order to become a freelance writer, you first need to work on developing different skills, habits, and best practices that can take you to the next level and build up your confidence and experience as a freelance writer.
Develop Organizational Skills
Knowing how to organize is a key skill for freelance writers. You need to be able to manage different jobs, clients, and deadlines without the support of a company or team to back you up.
Learning how to set up your day for success is a great skill to hone.
Ensure You Have the Right Tools
Even if you work through a platform, you need to have the right tools yourself to do your work correctly. That might mean proofreading software, organizing software, invoicing software, or time-tracking software.
Be an SEO Specialist
SEO is an essential part of online writing, so you’ll want to explore and improve your SEO skills as you work as a freelance writer.
By having your SEO skills perfected, you can appeal more to clients and deliver better work for them.
Work on Improving Your Writing Skills
Naturally, you need to be a strong writer in order to be a successful freelance writer. Working on improving your writing skills and constantly striving for higher levels of writing is a great way to get more work and delight your clients.
Decide on a Writing Niche
Having a writing niche is a big help for writers who want to specialize. When you specialize in a few industries, you can write more detailed, accurate copy for clients within those industries and get more return and higher-paying work.
Create a Portfolio, Website, or Blog
Clients will want to look and see what your abilities are before hiring you. Having a portfolio, blog, or website that showcases your work and explains your capabilities can go a long way in convincing clients to give your services a try.
Collect Testimonials from Clients
Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool. Having client testimonials about how well you worked for them is a great tool for getting more business and showing off your skills.
8 Best Freelancer Writer Platforms to Start a Career in 2022
Now that you know more about how to become a freelance writer, let’s take a look at different platforms that can help to start your career.
These platforms help to connect freelancers with customers and clients while helping them promote their skills and find regular work.
1. WriterAcess
WriterAcess is a freelancing platform that connects businesses to freelancers for a wide variety of jobs including writing, strategizing, and translating.
WriterAcess has a wide range of businesses looking for work, meaning that, no matter what your niche is, you can find the clients you need.
There are also many opportunities to build relationships with clients to get ongoing work at a pay rate that you can control.
2. Contently
Contently is one of the biggest platforms out there for freelance writers and offers high-paying work from a wide roster of potential clients.
However, because the platform is so full of writers, it may take some time to find regular clients and get ongoing work. You’ll need to work on building your profile to get noticed by clients.
3. Skyword
If you want to work with high-profile clients, then look no further than Skyword. This platform also gives you the opportunity to find long-term, repeat work with the clients that you connect with, rather than going from job to job.
However, you do need to wait for work to come to you as there is no way to search for jobs yourself.
4. Constant Contact
Constant Contact is a popular platform that pairs freelancers with companies that could use their services. You can even submit previously written work for pay and respond directly to customers and clients on jobs to make sure they are the right fit.
You do need to submit a writing test to get on the platform, but once a member, you can receive quite a few special opportunities and benefits.
5. The Writer Finder
This free and easy-to-use platform is a big hit among freelancers and is open to any number of industries and jobs, meaning that there is a wide variety of work you can find to suit your needs.
The site will reach out to you for any work that they have that fits your niche and profile, making it easy to find the right opportunities.
6. Online Writing Jobs
This platform is used for specific industries like automotive, medical, travel, science, tech, and education, so if those areas are within your niche, you’ll have great luck.
You’ll need to apply to join, but once you are a part of the platform, you can easily get paid and find the right clients to fill up your hours while getting support and resources from the platform.
7. ProBlogger
ProBlogger is a job listing board that posts countless gigs from a wide variety of industries. You can upload your resume and portfolio to find more potential clients interested in your workload while searching through different types of jobs that will best suit your needs.
8. BloggingPro
Blogging Pro is a free job board that you can use to search for the right jobs for your needs.
You can search for different job types, like copywriting, blogging, or proofreading, or search for job keywords and locations. There you can find a wide variety of jobs that could work for your needs.
Wrap Up
Freelance writing is a lucrative career that allows individuals to make their own hours and set their own pay rates.
If you know how to become a freelance writer, you can find yourself really enjoying the benefits and finding the best platforms on which to showcase your skills while staying in control of your schedule, clients, and hours.
As a freelancer, having some templates on hand to help support the work you do without needing to start from scratch is important. If you are looking for some strategy templates, then look no further than our content marketing report templates.
These templates will help you keep track of your plans, strategies, and results as you work on content marketing initiatives. Click on the link above to learn more now!
