There is money to be made online as a freelance writer. Every day companies are looking for someone to write for them. Full time, part time or one-off projects.
If you enjoy writing and you want a job where you can work from home, then read on to find out what your options are and how to get started.
If you want to work from home, online writing is still one of the best options. Starting up your own freelancing business, with or without a website can give you a steady income and allow you to work from home writing about things you love.
Article writers and Content Writing Services are highly sought as part of a companies content marketing strategy.
As content and inbound marketing continue to dominate the marketing landscape, the demand for great freelance writers only increases.
Current Pay Scale – an Average
| Experience | Rate per 500 words | Rate per Word | ||
| Generalist | Specialist | Generalist | Specialist | |
| Inexperienced | $50.00 | $100.00 | 10 cents | 20 cents |
| Some Experience | $100.00 | $200.00 | 20 cents | 40 cents |
| Experienced | $150.00 | $300.00 | 30 cents | 60 cents |
(data thanks to the Lizard Queen over at http://beafreelanceblogger.com/about/)
There is a High Demand for Content Writing
Quick Statistics1 – How Article writing is handled by online Business
62% of business online are outsourcing their content to freelancers.
What this tells us is that online business’ is looking for you!
They want writers and they are looking for them every day.
86% are looking to use your work in their content marketing campaigns.
What this tells us is that most of these companies and online businesses are looking for writers to create content in order to drive traffic and leads for their online business.
And these online business websites
are willing to pay writers
for their effort.
97% is the increase in leads through content marketing and article writing or blogging.
What this tells us is that business’ are getting amazing results – a 97% increase in traffic or leads through the writing efforts of people just like you.
That is, people who are are wanting a job where they can work from home as a freelance writer, creating fantastic content that turns visitors in to customer for online business.
The web is made up of content. Anyone who wants to do well online needs to produce it. You can get paid for satisfying that demand. If you want to dig deeper and set up a writing career online we have included some useful writing for business ideas for you to think about.
What Kinds of Work can you Do?
Social Media Content Editor. If you have experience with social media and diary management, and enjoy writing for particular audiences, small businesses often hire part-time and freelance writers to assist with social media management.
You need to have a knack with words. You want to be able to say what needs to be said, and say it quick.
People who do well in Social media are people who can write in a way that grabs you by the balls and gets your attention!
Writing and communication skills are absolutely necessary in this role, which is responsible for interacting with current and potential customers through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other platforms.
Content Curator. Like reading others’ stories as much as writing your own? Blogs, websites, and organisations hire content curators to research the latest content in their particular subject area, then compile the content into one place for easy reading.
This is a growing area of research marketing and can pay good money
The work includes writing headlines, synopses, and copy. If you’re a subject matter expert who enjoys research, this part-time job would make a great side gig.
Blog Posting. Many Companies are looking for regular writers for their niche markets. If you have a talent in something, perhaps you could write about it.
Blog posting, whether for large or small blogs, is a great way to get your feet wet. But be careful. A lot of Webmasters are after good content for next to nothing. Learn how to cost your content.
Got experience in Design and Illustration? Try this site: Psdtuts+
Psdtuts+ are open to submissions on any Photoshop-related topic from photo manipulation to web design to
illustration.
Written tutorials must be submitted in HTML format and have an image for each step.
- Blog Homepage: http://psd.tutsplus.com
- Information: http://psd.tutsplus.com/about/write-a-tutorial/
- Minimum Pay: $50 for a short tutorial or video
- Highest Pay: “Make an offer” for longer tutorials or videos
Income for writing a blog post can earn you between 5 cents and 50 cents a word. A beginner whose experience and skill is yet to be proven might start at 10 cents per word. Whoever you are, don’t accept less that 5 cents.
Editorial Assistant. If you love writing, but also like the administrative side of publishing, a part-time job as an editorial assistant might be a good option. Of course, this is going to require a lot more experience and dedication that simply being a freelancer.
EARN MONEY WRITING
GET INSTANT ACCESS TO 200 SITES THAT WILL PAY YOU TO WRITE.
Plus: 10 Free Premium Tools to Help You Write and Get Published!
Depending on the publication, you’ll help with page layout, article editing, and editorial calendar management.
I want to Work from Home, Where can I find Writing Jobs?
A good place to start would be Hubstaff Talent or any number of Fiverr alternatives. Hubstaff Talent is a free website where freelancers and businesses can connect. Once you create your profile that showcases your skills and experience, businesses will be able to search for you when they go to the website looking for writers.
If a potential employer thinks you’d be a good match for their gig, they will reach out to you directly – no middlemen involved.
You can also apply for writing jobs through the Hubstaff Talent Remote Job Board where there are hundreds of awesome companies looking for great writers.
There are several good places to begin finding the right kind of writing job that will allow you to work from home and earn good money. As long as you can write, you can earn.
Freelance Writing.com
Freelance Writing run a tidy ship and publish a weekly newsletter that gives a summary of freelance writing and editing jobs on a good variety of writing jobs.
Since 1997, FreelanceWriting.com has delivered daily and real-time freelance writing jobs for freelance writers. They source freelance writing jobs from all over the internet.
The pay is good and the bonus is that they deliver the job offers right into your inbox.
Blogging Pro
Blogging Pro Job Board lists a healthy dose of copywriting jobs (you can search postings by category), this board is, as the name suggests, right up a blogger’s alley.
Whether you’re into health and fitness, pets, writing code or what have you, you’ll find a steady stream of employers looking for blog writers versed in these and many other subjects.
Also popular are Green, Eco-friendly, Environmental, Finance, Legal and Business writing opportunities.
Media Bistro
Media Bistro offers a wide range of jobs from industries like TV, PR/marketing, magazine and book publishing and social media–a little something for everyone.
Employers include marquee media names, start-ups with buzz, and specialized firms across industry sectors including social media, online media & apps, PR, sales and advertising, journalism, publishing, design, and TV/radio.
You can also set yourself up in the Freelance Marketplace. The Freelance Marketplace is a forum for talented freelancers to showcase their work and for media managers to find quality talent like you.
FWJ. Freelance Writing Gigs
FWJ has been around for a few years and has typically scraped its list of writing job opportunities from other sites. Craiglist is one of them.
While anything on Craigslist should be taken with a grain of salt, this site does increase your chances of finding a decent gig.
FWJ consolidate writing job posts from Craigslist boards all across the country, allowing you to locate writing gigs you might never see if you were only browsing your local board. Definitely worth a look.
Pro Blogger
Pro Blogger has a reputation for serious freelancers and good paying work. It brings bloggers and those looking to hire writers together.
Tips on How to Approach a Prospective Client
The Founder, Darren Rowse has been doing his thing on Pro Blogger for a good while and the site is well worth investigation. Pro Blogger has helped many young writers get their online writing career underway.
If you are going to apply for jobs on these sites, here are some tips from Darren Rowse on how you should approach a Publisher or online business.
1. Act Quickly
Jobs are going quickly. 24 hours is a long time in blogging. Take any longer than that to express your interest in a job and you might miss out on it.
2. Follow the Instructions
Many applicants fail to apply in a way that is consistent with the instructions. Failing to show that you can follow steps outlined in a job advertisement isn’t a good first impression to a prospective employer.
3. Sell Yourself
Talk about your experience, your knowledge of the topic, your passion for communication, the way you work with others etc. As you write ask yourself whether what you’re adding to your application would make someone more or less likely to hire you.
4. Write Well
See your application as an audition in and of itself and put together a well written, well spelled, well-structured application that demonstrates your grasp of grammar and the written language and you’ll be a step closer to securing the position.
Different jobs require different levels of experience in different fields but it would usually be an advantage to show your understanding of the medium.
You can do this by showing your own blog (with a link) if you have one and ensuring that when your potential employer goes to look at it that it’s updated, professional and working. Give examples of how you’ve built your blog over time.
6. Demonstrate a Knowledge of the Topic
This is vital in most cases. People don’t generally employ or contract people to write a blog for them on a topic that they have no knowledge in or passion for.
Show that you have a good grasp of the topic by talking a little about it and how you’d tackle the blog. The examples of your writing can be a great place to do this.
I seriously like it that is wonderful .
Seriously? Thanks Eben.
hi david! this is the first time i visited this site. I just want to commend you for helping a lot of people out there. God bless you! you will here from me again soon.
Hi David very helpful post. By this post I know how many different types of jobs are available in online writing. And thanks for the tips you provided, This will be very helpful.
Thanks again!!
Hi,
I like to write. It would be great if I can earn money as well
you can contact me.
Thanks
Rohit koul
Thanks David, I have been looking for something like this, are these companies open to Australians as well?
Hi Carol. Occasionally some sites will have a localised goal in mind, but most are niche specific. If you’re an Aussie, then you probably have a brilliant grasp of the English language – a huge plus since many of these sites are bombarded by people from non English speaking backgrounds. An Aussie tone is often a breath of fresh air!
Hi David this blog is really useful. I want to know how can I start with freelancing writing? Kindly let me know.
Hi Pritha, you could take a look at these ten sites that will pay you to write for them online.
Hi,
I enjoy writing. Especially about travel , food and also short stories.
I need some help in getting started and earn money too!
Hi, I enjoy writing and also I need some help in getting started and earn money too…..
Thanks for the information. I really love the reasons you shared. I’m especially interested by the idea about how convenient it is to get paid for writing online material. That seems like a really good thing, and I think I’d be an awesome candidate for it. Plus I’d be able to work from home!
Hi David.
I am an aspiring writer,have 3 written ,but unpublished Children’s books. I don’t have the money/means to get them finished. I have done some amateur things such as writing and submitting editorials for the local newspaper when I worked in Activities in a Long term care facility. I have also done a couple blogs on a friend’s website. I adore writing and am extremely passionate about it. How do I get jobs to make money working from home without having to pay up front when I have no income? Thank you.
Karen, Thanks for your comment. It costs you nothing to write an article and submit it to one of the many sites that pay you for your work. I have listed 10 good places to start here. https://www.malleeblue.com/best-article-writing-sites-for-earning-money-online/
Hi David
I love to string words together in an effort to describe facts, experiences and opinions. There is nothing more satisfying than conveying a message that can make a difference, I have not undertaken any formal study in writing and fear that without formal qualifications, my job prospects would be limited. Can you recommend a writing course? Otherwise – what advice do you have for me to get started as a professional writer?
Angela,
To get started as a writer online I would suggest that you first choose your niche. Decide what you love to write about. Then you have to find your target audience and the blogs or news sites that relate to them. Then it is a matter of pitching your article to those sites. The process is quite simple, what is needed is endurance in order to build up a reputation. Start networking and contributing on those sites. You could always start your own blog as well. This allows you to build up a portfolio of published work.
Would you recommend I simply start writing a couple of articles per week on topics that I love and enjoy adding them to my blog and then pitching them to other sites in that niche? Have noticed that can bring the amount of what you may get paid down by as much as half.
Thanks for this article. I’m also in Australia, and definitely can add a refreshing voice to the chorus. I’ve written a few articles and blog posts already and am keen to get started writing for others online.
Am currently writing a non-fiction book on Peak Performance and Flow States, choosing to jump in the deep end and write it in the style of one of my favorite authors Douglas Hofstadter. Which is proving to be much more difficult than I first anticipated. Wish me luck 🙂
Yes, I would start by writing for my own blog, but I would not then offer the same material to another site unless I added some value to it, re-designed it or made it a new piece of content in some way.
Great! So create brand new original pieces of content for offering others for freelance work. Thanks for that.
Hi David.
In the last section you have no number 5. 🙂
Amy
Thanks Amy. Do it once, do it right, that’s my motto…. you’d think!
Hi David. I’m from Namibia in Africa. Due to tha fact that I’m from here, do you think I will find an appropriate site that I can write for and get paid? This will be my first time, but to assure you my english is excellent and I always had a passion for creative writing. Could you possibly provide me with some tips to start of with?
Hi David, I am just starting out in the writing field and found your article above to be extremely informative with a lot of food for thought. I am very interested in the content marketing side of things, but am not brilliant with social media and the like. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions you have for me to further my learning in the content marketing area. I feel I should just get in there and give it a go – but that my technical skills hold me back somewhat.
Hi David, Thanks for the great work you are doing here. I think if you cant write article you can contact people to do that for you. it cost as low as $5. For the past one week I have been using a gig on fiverr with great results.
I am lecturer in management and quite interested in writing work. Please let me know if u have online work for me?.
Hi David,
Thanks for a great article! You make a compelling case for why we write the way we do, and I’m especially excited about your emphasis on content marketing, because it’s a great place to be when writing copy for world-wide consumption.
Do you ever find you have trouble with working out where to start though? When planning your content? I mean, it’s a little easier if you’re already skilled in writing, but if you’re just starting out, it can be a little tricky.
Just recently, I wrote an article that covered a few different types of article that the fledgling content writer can try if they need somewhere to start, and the curatorial blog post (which you mentioned earlier) was one of them. Dod you want to have a look at the post? Are there other content types you can think of that I’ve missed? I’m hoping to collect more over time.
Kind regards,
Brooke
Hi,
are these companies open to Filipinos as well?
Yes, they are. Provided you have some good English language skills. Go for it!
If you own your own website, you know that good writing means more search-engine traffic, more social shares, and ultimately more customers. Bad writing means being ignored.
“When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing.” Enrique Jardiel Poncela
Hi Dave,
Thanks for sharing this insight article.
My impression is that there is a lot of work out there for freelance writers. You just have to go out there and get it. But the stuff that pays well isn’t just going to fall into your lap. You have to go out and get it.
Frankly, the rates for “paid content,” the kind of things you see on the web, is piece work, a sweatshop for writers. It’s not worth my time and effort. Pennies a word, if that. But virtually every business out there needs help with writing. There are web sites to be built, brochures to be filled, speeches that someone has to create, even blogs that corporate executives don’t have time to write.
Here’s a tip: marketing agencies are the gatekeepers for this kind of work and they’re always desperate for good writers. Find the best agencies in your area and get connected.
Equally important: build up a portfolio and stake your claim as a writer. Publishing your own blog, one business people would be interested in, is a great way to do that. My blog (kareerjobs.com) brings me business, so I know it works.
If you want to write for a living, find out what pays and study it, then write about it. I’m not worried about competition. I’m worried that I’ll be able to find other terrific writers to send the overflow too!
wow… I really really liked your post…very informative. keep up with the good work?
Your posting is very nice. i am liked your content.
Writing jobs online at home
• Work at home, make money no matter where you are in the world!
• Get paid to write articles, blog posts, ebooks and many more!
• Choose from 1,000’s of jobs daily from different subjects
• Flexible work hours, work when you want to
• Highest-paying writing jobs – guaranteed!
• Fast payments via paypal, checks or wire transfer
• Live support available.
I love it.
Hello, all is going sound here and ofcourse every one is sharing
facts, that’s in fact excellent, keep up writing.
I have actually read this report and have found it to be a good report and it is very informative.
Great list David. I was recently researching the best places to find freelance writing work myself.
I think since SEO is on the decline, content writing is really picking up the pace. So we are seeing SEO budgets moved over into content creation. I think overall it is better for the industry(and for me!).
I am a 75 year old pensioner – fit and healthy. My age and knowledge of modern technology are against me, but I can write (and about almost anything because of my advanced years). I am living in South Africa on the boundary of the Kruger National Park..
Would my age and/or my location be a drawback?
Very good quality, timely, informative article and useful insights!, very easy to understand. Thank you for your great & outstanding article.
How’s things?, sometimes I get a 400 server error when I browse your webpage. I thought you may wish to know, best wishes