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How to Start Freelance Writing
Well, to help ease my transition off of Clickbank, I'm going to have to get back into doing a little freelance writing on the side. I thought I might as well show you guys how to start freelance writing. I think this is a really good skill to develop because it's like one of the only things online that you can get paid for labor when times are tight. The work you do for affiliate marketing might make returns tomorrow or 6 months from now. That doesn't help you when you have bills due next week. This is a great way to make some cash on a schedule. So here is my post on how to start freelance writing.
Step 1: Write No one is going to hire you unless you have writing material they can look at. Anyone that would take a gamble on a person they haven't seen the writing of is probably not a worth wild client. You can save your writing examples as pdf files to send to potential clients. You can put them up on a website. I usually forward people to this webpage because I'm always talking about shit. This gives them a very open view of my writing style and there's plenty for them to go through. Step 2: Strategies For Finding A Client There are a number of ways of doing this and what you do is really dependent on your skills plus your reputation of past work. You don't want to write for someone and get paid. You want to be able to write for someone, get paid and write for them again. You build up a client list that you can call on to do work for.
I've seen this done on the Warrior Forum. Someone will make a post about writing one free article for the first 10 people. The idea here is to showcase your writing skills to those that buy it. If your writing is good and up to the standards of the people you give it to, you'll probably have a return customer.
This is probably a more effective strategy. It's almost like list building with people that have bought a product. You do this because you know they'll buy again. The idea is to write cheaply, impress them and charge a more realistic rate in the future.
Testimonials work on product pages, so they definitely work when you're selling the service of writing. Using the above two methods, you can get a testimonial of some highly respectable webmasters in the community. When people see a testimonial like this they'll say, "oh look. Big shot *so and so* buys articles from this guy." Step 3: Where to find a client There are a number of places where you can go to advertise you're available for writing. There are other places you can go to answer the ads of people looking for writers. Digital Point Services Forum - Here's a tip, have a post count. If you're new, no one is going to hire you. I'm not even sure if you'll be able to post in the forum either. You need a post count and to show that you've been around the forum. Make sure you put testimonials in the post you make. Make sure you mention that they can pm you for quotes and article examples. Or you can post flat rates and a link to your articles. Warrior Forum - You will also need a good post count on this site. People need to trust you before they're going to send you money. Same rules apply for the digitalpoint forum. If you're offering free articles, I think (check the rules) that you can post it in the main forum. If you're advertising your services, that counts as a WSO and you have to pay ($20 if I'm not mistaken). Just be aware of that. The exposure of a WSO will get you enough writing for the next few months, so it's definitely a good investment. I'm sure the same things apply on other Webmaster Forums. Elance - This is an outsourcing site. People that need work will post that and you get to bid on it. The selected bid wins the contract. I've bought articles on Elance, but I haven't bid on contracts there. There are some loops you have to jump through, but there's lots of stuff to bid on. Also when you're new, you'll have to bid cheap to get clients and experience listed on your account. Here are some other outsourcing sites that you can use...
Get a Freelancer Lastly, you can find local gigs. I've never done them, but you'll find on Craigslist and other places that writers are needed. This maybe a little more time consuming since this stuff could be published in a magazine. You'll probably get paid more too though. Step 4: Learning Etiquette The moral delima comes up on when money changes hands. Do you get it before hand? Or do you get it after you send them the articles? It's really up to you to decide, but if you put being ripped off on your shoulders you'll more easily get work. People don't feel good about sending money to someone they never met. It's completely understandable. I suggest starting a relationship slowly. I suggest starting off with two or three articles. This is a good thing because it allows them to see what they'll be paying for. You don't want to write 20 articles for them and finding out that they hate the writing style and refuse to pay for it. Also when you send them a few articles, they'll pay you. It shows you that there is a little trust between you guys. I wouldn't write anymore than 10 or 15 articles at a time without sending or receiving payment. After you build up a relationship with a client, you can arrange different exchanges with money. You could get paid up front because you're trusted, or you could wait a few days until your client gets their next check. Step 5: Understanding Intellectual Property Despite what torrent downloaders think, intellectual property exists and it is real. You have to understand that what you're writing is property and it is YOUR PROPERTY. When you sell it to your client it becomes there property. If you send them the articles and they don't pay, you own the property. If you send them, they pay for it and later refund/chargeback, you own the property. If you find your content on their site, file a DMCA request against their hosting company. Take the content and put it up on your site because you own it. If they publish it at ezinearticles.com, send another DMCA request with them. Take your content and sell it over and over again as PLR content. Don't let people fuck with you. Basically that is all the steps that you need to know on how to start freelance writing. At first it is a little slow, but once you build up a client list you'll be rolling in the work and make some decent cash at it too. If you're interested in my writing services you can Click Here. The rates listed there are old. I can negotiate articles being written, so contact me if you need any done. March 20 2009
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Affiliate Marketing Xpert was created for people that want to live the Four Hour Workweek lifestyle.
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