Want to know how to earn money as a new freelance writer? Let me guess. You like to write. You’ve been told the sky is the limit. You know writing is a marketable skill. You’ve read the books or you see people all over the internet talk about how they earn a full-time income online freelance writing— some even getting paid six or seven figures as a writer. Meanwhile, you’re still trying to figure out how to land your first three or even four figures as a new writer… consistently. You see people everywhere making it look so easy. Yet you’re stuck wondering how to get started making even just a little bit.
How to get started freelance writing
That was me about 10 years ago. I was coming from the professional writing world, supplementing my income on the side, and flirting with the idea of making the transition to going full-time as my own boss and as a freelance writer.
Maybe you just want to supplement your income. Or maybe you just want to figure out how to make this freelance writing thing work so you can feel more secure as a stay-at-home mom.
Whatever the case may be, I’m going to keep it real with you and be completely transparent about some exact ways you can put yourself out there to earn money as a new freelance writer.
(Psst. You may want to bookmark this page so you can come back and reference these steps when you’re ready to start making money now.)
Ways to market yourself to earn money as a new freelance writer
Create a personal website or digital portfolio
Look. First thing’s first. If anyone has told you that you don’t need to have a website in today’s society, they’re wrong. That’s absolutely just the wrong advice to give someone in this industry. People want to see you write. They want to see samples of your work. That’s how they trust you and decide if they want to give you money before ever having to speak to you personally.
Sure you can market yourself without having a website, but you’re only making things waaaaay harder on yourself and it’ll cost you even more time spent than necessary. Without a website, you’ll be doing a lot of the heavy lifting anytime someone is curious or interested in working with you. Prime example: Without a website, you’re going to go back and forth with them over DM or email instead of just sending them through a prequalification process. You’re going to have multiple phone calls answering the same frequently asked questions that could’ve been answered. And you’re going to waste additional time chatting about how that person’s weekend went or what family life is like for them at home. Also, you’re going to spend hours finding, writing, or compiling specific samples of work that potential client requests to get a feel for your writing style because you don’t have anything pre-made in digital form and they aren’t sure if they can trust you yet. All of this is on spec before anyone ever becomes a client.
What you’ll need:
Make your life easier. Just send them to your digital portfolio like this one or even a relevant personal blog site if you have one up. If you’re not tech-savvy, you can create a simple and easy site on Wix.
Tap into Grassroots Marketing
If you want to play the long game and continue seeing the fruit of your labor produce even long after you’ve planted the original seeds, then you’ll want to do a bit of grassroots marketing in your local area. Grassroots marketing is when you target a specific group of people in a very niche way. You can hit the town and leave your business card at establishments where your ideal customers typically meet or you can get a booth and represent your business at community events. A big part of staying in business is keeping your pipeline full. One way to see clients consistently is by continuing to plant the seed for word-of-mouth referrals.
What you’ll need:
You’ll need business cards, flyers, or other creative marketing materials to begin branding yourself and letting local businesses know you exist and can help.
Stand out at Networking events
Part of grassroots marketing can be attending networking events. This is another great way to instantly build real relationships, establish trust, and stand out as an “industry expert” within your community. When people know you exist, they think of you when the need comes up or if an opportunity might be a good fit. This is what you want in order to help you build traction and momentum so you can earn money as a new freelance writer! You can start putting yourself out there by searching places like Eventbrite for upcoming networking events near you or checking the calendar on the website of your local small business association. Making real connections is a surefire way to get real results.
What you’ll need:
Put on your big boy (or girl) pants because you’re going to need courage, professionalism, tough skin, and a professional way potential clients can reach out to you should they be curious or interested in working together.
Bonus points if you have an elevator pitch or a quick and memorable story you can tell that will light up their eyes and ears about what you do and help you stand out.
I usually wear this t-shirt.
Go Prospecting
I’m sure you’ve heard of cold calls or sending cold emails to pitch your services. It’s a tedious process that works for some, but that’s not what I mean when I say go prospecting. And no, I also don’t mean finding people on social media, adding them as a “friend” and then instantly sending them a direct message about doing business with you either. *Gags*. Don’t be that guy. No one likes that.
When I say go prospecting, I mean you’ll want to find those “warm leads” who are already looking for freelance writers to support them with a specific project or for an ongoing assignment. You’ll know they’re warm because they’ve publicly posted on the internet (or wherever they are) that they are in the market for freelance writers. People post opportunities for writers all over, in groups on social media, and on certain websites with job boards, to name a few. My favorite sites for prospecting are LinkedIn, Indeed, and certain business-related Facebook groups. You’ll want to check these regularly and make sure you stand out.
What you’ll need:
A professional social media profile (or resume) that clearly shows you as a freelance writer.
How to earn money as a new freelance writer
As you can see, the sky really is the limit when it comes to all the different types of creative ways you can put yourself out there, If you want to earn money as a new freelance writer, you have to think of putting yourself out there like going fishing. If you want more fish, you need more bait, and good quality content is your bait.
There are so many different things you can do to start finding or attracting clients to you. You can opt for more traditional forms of marketing yourself or get pretty innovative on the internet. Give these ideas a try. Mix and match or try them all! The point is to give people opportunities to pay you. That all starts with your marketing efforts.
Do you have any ways to put yourself out there that I missed or that are one of your favorites? Share it or your questions in the comments below.
P.S. If you’re ready to stop spinning your wheels not knowing where to start or where to focus, download this Daily Revenue Generating Activities Checklist so you can start attracting clients online and get your freelance writing business set up for success starting today.
P.P.S. If you’d rather have additional and more personalized support so you can help collapse time, then we can have a chat about your unique situation to help you get started. Here’s the link to book that type of call. Wishing you the absolute best.