Eight ways you can make money by writing online
With the rising popularity of freelance work and the rapid spreading of digital jobs, more people are looking for an opportunity to work from home.
Besides the obvious benefits like the ability to avoid going to the office and saving money on fuel or public transport, home working allows us to spend more time with our family, and control when and where we actually work.
To help you assess your potential options, here’s a quick round up of eight ways you can make money as a writer online – from suggestions that are quick and easy to get gong with, to ideas that will require more time and effort to get started.
1) Write an e-book
If you are already a professional in a particular field, you can boost your income and attract more people to your business through writing an electronic book, also known as an e-book.
It shouldn’t be a complex, in depth scientific piece, unless you are aiming it at your colleagues and peers, and want to showcase your breakthrough in the research. Instead, think of who your expertise can help – and how. The larger the potential audience, and the greater their pain point, the more your e-book will appeal (and sell).
2) Become an academic writer
Did you particularly enjoy writing essays and research papers when you were at university? And did you get good marks for your writing?
If so, you could consider using your skill to make money. You can start working as an academic freelance writer even if you are a student at the moment. Just sign up for the cheapest essay writing service and you can start making money.
3) Work as a freelance journalist
If you didn’t enjoy academic writing, and requests like “Help me write my essay” is your idea of hell, you could instead write about current world events for a local news website or a woman’s magazine platform.
The pros of this kind of writing are multiple. You can write about topics you are interested in, from home, in your own time. It could even be a launchpad for a career in journalism.
The downside is that the freelance journalism world is competitive. So you’ll need to consider your angle carefully: what kind of stories can you pitch? Who would be interested in reading them? Why are YOU the perfect person to write them? And which publications would be most interested?
3) Launch an online course
If you are an expert in something, an increasingly popular money-making option is to write a course on it and sell it online.
Most courses use a mix of video and text, so you’ll need to be able to convey your expertise (and passion) in words. You’ll also need to put together a compelling sales page, and marketing materials to sell it.
Many course creators offer a free lesson or two to attract their audience, and let interested people try it before they buy the whole course.
4) Start a blog
Blogging can be a profitable way to make money online. But you’ll need to come up with a unique concept, and create content that people can’t easily find elsewhere. So you’ll need to invest time in research – your subject, your audience and the competition.
Like online courses, your blog could share your professional expertise, or a hobby you are passionate about, and have some knowledge and skills that people would be interested in.
In order to monetise your blog you’d need a substantial, loyal and engaged audience. So you’ll need to find ways to grow your traffic and reach your ideal readers.
5) Work for a social media management agency
Social media marketing has become very popular over the past 10 years, and many people are retraining to give them the skills to help businesses and organisations.
Some social media managers work as freelancers, but others join an agency and find work through them. If you have a way with words, this could be a potential home working opportunity for you.
6) Become a professional blog writer
Websites today need regular fresh content to help them rank on search engines. But not all businesses have the time or expertise to write their own blogs. So instead they turn to professional blog writers.
Blog writers can either work as freelancers – you just need to build a portfolio of businesses who need your help regularly. Or they are hired by blog writing agencies. You don’t need any specific qualifications to become a blog writer – just a passion for writing and an ability to learn about different topics.
7) Write product descriptions
Many companies now have online stores – and these need unique descriptions of their goods in order to rank on search engines for the right requests. So writing plagiarism-free, accurate and easy-to-understand product specifications is an in-demand skill today.
One way to start finding work in this field is to look for orders in your field of expertise on freelance platforms. Then bid for orders, and once you’re assigned with the order, start working. As you complete orders, your rating on the platform will grow and you will be able to get more tasks and earn money.
8) Write tutorials
Many people enjoy reading ‘how to’ guides and DIY instructions. Just consider the thousands of people every day googling tutorials, searching for things like, ‘best risotto recipes’, ‘how to dye your hair yourself’ and ‘write my essay tips’.
So if you have specialism in a particular area, you can search for freelance projects writing tutorials and guides for businesses, to help them rank for their desired SEO keywords.
What can you write?
If you want or need to work at home, and you have a passion or skill for writing, there are a wide range of options to make money.
Some will be quicker to find and set up, thanks to freelancing sites, whereas others will take more time and effort to get going. But if you’re determined and prepared to work hard, there’s no reason why you can’t earn money by writing from home.
Photo by Arnel Hasanovic
