Content writing jobs can help you start getting money flowing for your hard work as a writer, and here’s how you can find them.
Today, the World Wide Web makes written content highly valuable. Content writing jobs can provide great writers with income as they put their craft to work. If you’re interested in earning money in a convenient and flexible way, and if you can hone your writing skills, then content writing jobs could be a good fit.
But how do you find them, especially as a beginner?
If you are looking to get started with content writing and build a full-time career with online writing jobs, start by making sure your writing skills are up-to-par. Then, dig in to find opportunities to help companies boost their SEO and digital marketing efforts through quality web content writing.
Contents
Before You Start
Before you start, there are a few tips that can make the process easier.
The Importance of Web Content
First, make sure you understand why your efforts as a freelance writer are needed.
Web content is vital to the success of online marketers. Search engine optimization, or SEO, relies on many factors, but the content on a website is one of those. If you can craft quality content that pleases Google through SEO best practices and fits well in WordPress templates, you can help online marketers.
The Role of the Content Strategist
So many companies rely heavily on online content marketing that many employ content strategists. A content strategist plans a company’s online content, ecommerce posts, social media posts and guest posts.
These intricate content plans involve many channels and types of writing, including copywriting, social media posting, white papers, video scripts, technical writing, creative writing and press releases.
Experience and Degree Requirements
Finally, consider what you need as far as experience and degree. While a freelancer could benefit from a bachelor’s degree, it is not a requirement. Often, years of experience writing help but again is not a requirement.
What you do need is a portfolio of web content and writing samples. If you are a first-time freelance writer, you can build one and post it on a blog to direct people to. As you gain content writing jobs, you can use those jobs to round out your portfolio of digital content.
A robust portfolio of well-written English posts that show your skill as a content writing specialist will do more to help you land content writer jobs than an impressive degree.
10 Places to Find Content Writing Jobs
Now you’re ready to start advertising yourself as a content creator. You’ve proven you can create compelling content and have it posted online for people to see. But where do you start looking for your first freelance job?
Here are 10 places you can begin to look for content writing jobs.
1. Investigate Writer Job Boards
Companies that need the services of a freelancer often post to writer job boards. Some examples of these boards include:
Spend some time browsing these postings and apply to any that might fit your skills well. Keep in mind that rejection is common, especially in a crowded marketplace, but eventually, you will land your next new gig.
2. Follow the Right Social Media Pages
Following social media pages for writing jobs can help you see opportunities when they come available. Twitter has several accounts designed specifically to advertise content writing jobs. Find and follow these accounts, and you’ll be ready when a new job pops up that fits your skillset.
3. Guest Post
Most of the time, freelance writers will say never to write for free, but when you’re in the portfolio building stage, it can help. During your portfolio building stage, you’ll be writing for free anyway, and when you guest post on a website with a lot of traffic, you can get more eyes on your writing.
One of the benefits of guest posting on a blog that covers a topic of interest to you is the fact that it not only builds your credibility as a writer, but it also gives you something to add to your online portfolio.
So how can you find these opportunities? Decide what niche you want to be known for, then simply Google, “real estate blog + write for us.” You’ll see a wealth of opportunities.
4. Send a Pitch
Contacting a company, blogger, small business or other entity and telling them that you are a freelance writer interested in helping them grow their ensues is called pitching. To do this, find a company that doesn’t have a blog or doesn’t seem to have an active writing plan on their blog. Then, send them a pitch!
In your pitch, tell how you found the company, who you are and how your writing skills can help them. You may have to send many pitches before you get a bite, but it costs nothing to send and can reap big rewards when you land a private client gig.
5. Get to Know Web Design Companies
Web design companies are a prime location for landing freelance writing jobs. If you have local companies, visit them and start networking. When they land a new client who needs a massive amount of content, you’ll be the first name they think of for a local writer.
6. Explore Content Agencies
Content agencies, like WriterAccess and Upwork are large websites that manage content for clients. They often have teams of writers to pull from to meet the content demands of their customers. Having an account on several of these can help you fill in the gaps when you start getting successful as a freelancer.
When applying to a content agency, always read the terms of service carefully. Make sure you adhere so you don’t lose this gig. Check out this list of 21 content agencies.
7. Build a Writing Network
As you enter the online writing world, start networking. Make friends with other writers. When they have an overflow, they may pass some work on to you to help you build your client base and portfolio.
8. Ask for Referrals
Once you have a client or two, let them know you have openings for more work. If they are quality clients, they likely know other quality clients. These referrals from first-hand experience with your freelancing skills are some of the most valuable.
9. Advertise Your Availability
Set up an email signature that indicates you are available for hire as a freelancer. When interacting online, make sure it’s clear you want more work. In guest post bios, use words like “for hire” to indicate your availability.
In addition, set up a profile on LinkedIn, Twitter and other social media sites that you can use to advertise your desire to work. Letting people know that you want work may open the door to greater opportunities.
10. Impress Your Clients
When you do land a client, give them your all. Impress them with your industry knowledge, communication skills, SEO optimizing, timeliness, proofreading and writing skills, and they will pass your name along to their contacts who also need a writer.
The Final Word on Content Writing Jobs
Content writing jobs are prevalent in today’s online world. With a strong portfolio, you can build a successful business as a content writer, or add some fun money to your budget by using it as a part-time side gig. Either way, the only thing holding you back is a failure to start, so take some time to explore your options and start writing.
Join over 15,000 writers today
Get a FREE book of writing prompts and learn how to make more money from your writing.
