In no time in
history has there ever been a greater demand for writers—especially web
writers! The Internet is generating
millions of new pages of original content each and every day. The search engines hate plagiarized material
and absolutely love original content.
Because 9 out of every 10 Internet surfers finds what they are looking
for by using a search engine, this means that original content is absolutely
vital to the long term success of any e-business or online presence. Hence, the greatest need for quality writing
and the writers to compile it that the world has ever known.
Let’s answer the
big question first: Is it possible to
make $700 in 7 days or less with freelance writing? YES!! Of course, the only real catch is that
you actually have to be able to write for hours on end—each and every day. But, by branding your name and creating your
own website, the price you command will continue to rise so long as you
continue to consistently deliver quality, well-researched, informative, and
readable content in the timeframe agreed upon.
Indeed, even starting from scratch and only having a computer, Internet
connection, credit card, and checking account—you can literally start freelance
writing projects and earn $700 or more in less than a week.
Getting Started
·
Computer with Word, Excel, Outlook
·
High-speed Internet connection preferred due to high amount of
online research
·
Credit Card
·
Checking Account
·
Portfolio items
·
Sign-up with Freelance service
Portfolio
Assuming you have
the computer and other basics, the big thing you will need to have a legitimate
chance of earning $700 or more in a week or less by freelancing is to create an
electronic portfolio of your writing.
Now before you start attaching short stories and chapters from your
great “unfinished novel”…remember, this is a business. In truth, the demand for short stories and
the like is nothing compared to the commercial needs for original web
content—keyword optimized content.
Most website
content articles are between 350-500 words each and require a keyword density
of 1-2% for search engines like Yahoo and MSN.
Google, however, has more recently began adding ranking weight to
articles written using latent semantic text, or LSI. These latent terms are related to the keyword
and sprinkled throughout the article while the keyword itself is only repeated
2-3 times in the entire article. If the
keyword were golf, for instance, latent semantic terms might include:
- Tee
- Club
- Clubhouse
- Tiger
- Woods
- Green
Your portfolio
must demonstrate to a perspective buyer that you are familiar with web content
and are able to generate it—and fast!
Indeed, you can easily exceed your $700 goal with freelance writing
because website owners can never seem to get their hands on quality content
fast enough! However, be careful not to
over commit yourself because if there is one thing that will cut your freelance
writing career short—its missed deadlines!
Again, this is a
business and the website owners need to keep adding content to their site
daily. Most have programs that
automatically “drip” content in but they need to keep their reserves built up
and if you miss a deadline—then they might drop in the rankings or have
committed people to posting content with nothing to do. Indeed, the consequences of missed deadlines
are very real so be careful and learn to be more conservative in your time
estimates in the beginning until you gain more experience. Articles in your portfolio should be on
topics popular to the Internet, like:
·
Health and beauty topics
·
Insurance articles
·
Home Décor
·
Investment
·
Pet
·
Childcare
Indeed, web
content articles are the mainstay of a freelance writer’s career in the early
going. However, articles command anywhere
from $4-$25 for quality content. But be
careful, website owners often need batches of articles all on the same theme—so
don’t be surprised to find yourself bidding on a group of 25 articles relating
to constipation! The first few articles
may go fairly quickly but you may find your time estimate start to differ from
the actual writing time as you get deeper into the topic—so again, be
conservative when first estimating time requirement to complete project.
To get your feet
wet and to have the best chance of making that $700 in a week or less—it is
best to concentrate on building your portfolio with web articles featuring both
LSI and standard keyword density. Four
or five articles should be sufficient at first to land you a project or
two—just make sure they are on different topics and highlight your ability to
cover a broad range of topics. However,
if you want to really take your freelance writing career to new heights and
more money, you will eventually need to add other items to your portfolio and master
different types of content, including:
·
Sales pages
·
Autoresponders
·
White Pages
·
E-Books
·
Copy Writing
·
Resumes
·
Press Releases/Kits
Indeed, the
opportunity for writers to make great money while working from the privacy of
their own home has never been greater than right now. The insatiable need for original content and
the dominance of the search engines on the Internet ensures that there will be
ample opportunity for the foreseeable future.
Websites like Elance.com and Guru.com offer writers and buyers the
opportunity to post and bid on projects while ensuring a stable platform by
which to conduct business. These sites
use ratings based off of variables like:
Adherence to schedule; Adherence
to Cost; Quality; Communication; Professionalism, etc. The higher your ranking, the more you tend to
command and the more trusted you are by potential clients. Thus, be sure to conduct yourself in a
professional manner when accepting and completing projects and you will have no
trouble meeting and exceeding your goal of $700 in a week or less!