Whereas people always think about writing stories when it comes to writing, there are actually various ways to make money online by writing. In the event you like writing so much, the options are basically various. Not only it can help you get some extra earnings, but you can also hone your skills while doing it. What makes it interesting is that writing can give you flexible career options. Whether you want to do it full-time or you want to do it part-time, it’s all up to you!
Now, it comes down to your area of expertise and also interest. If you are a student or if you already have a job, writing can be a recreational, but profitable, activity that you can do in your spare time. Stay productive, and you should be able to enjoy the handsome rewards. If you can get more fame, more followers, and more exposure, it’s definitely a worthy bonus that can help you with your personal and professional growth, right?
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7 Best Ways to Make Money Online by Writing
Starting a Blog
If you want to start getting extra cash on the side or you want to channel out your thoughts or opinions, starting a blog can be a good starting point. It’s true that there are many blogs of them – if not thousands of them. Can you make money despite your ‘status’ as a new blogger? Yes, you can. The key is about consistency and dedication. Not to mention that you can’t expect express result where money starts pouring your way. But if you are persistent and you have the consistency to provide your blog with insightful and informative contents, your hard work will pay off.
Blogging is definitely one of the ways to make money online by writing, but you need to plan it out. The first thing that you want to do is to pick your niche. Will it be a regular blog where you basically write about anything (your hobby, your interest, the things you have done, etc) or will the blog be specific? If it is going to be specific, what is it going to be? Will it be about affiliate marketing, artists, certain niches (gardening only, craft only, etc).
Even after you have picked the type of blog to manage, your job hasn’t completed just yet. You still need to choose the domain, design the blog, and then set everything up. You need to choose whether you are going to use the free (blog) hosting services or the paid ones. In the event you choose the latter, you need to decide how much you can afford.
Is it done yet? Of course not! When the blog has been established, you still need to post regularly. You also need to engage with the readers and also promote the posts on your social media. As it was mentioned before, blog is not a way to make instant cash or overnight success. However, if you do it right, you can make good (and continuous) money from this activity.
(Self) Publishing Your Book
Do you like writing stories? Do you love sharing your thoughts or your experience through writing? Whatever types of books you are writing, there is self publishing option for it. Whether you are interested into nonfiction types, romance novels, or motivations, rest assured that you can do it. This is one of the alternative ways to make money online by writing, especially if you are making your own portfolios. Can you imagine how cool it is to have your own collections of books right there in your personal library?
Publishing your own piece of writing can be a rewarding experience because you have complete control of each step within the process. A word of advice, though: Many people realize that they do love writing so much. But they don’t really love the details, such as margin options or getting obsessed with the right font. They don’t really like the idea to negotiate with the cover artists.
What about using the free service? Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) can help the starter or beginner writers to launch their work, but still…you still spend money on ads, marketing, cover design, and editing. It’s every writer’s dream to make money from their book sales, but don’t get your hopes high. Not only this experience can teach you a lot, but you can actually make a profit from publishing your own book – provided that you do it right. This can be a potential channel if you love writing so much.
Becoming Affiliate Content Creators
Have you ever noticed how your favorite Instagram influencer mentions the brand she/he likes and then provide a link to it? Or when you read food websites, most of them would include links to their favorable cookware and ingredients? When you read a Pinterest article about outdoor enthusiasts, there are also links to the camping gear or essential stuff needed when doing activities outdoor.
These kinds of contents are called affiliate contents. It’s the ‘partnership’ between a company or business and the affiliate (that’s you) to drive and direct traffic to their websites. Any resulting sales would generate commissions for the affiliate. In case you don’t know this, affiliate content is one of the most effective marketing methods that can be quite excellent to get you passive income, especially on your website or blog.
It can be one of the most profitable ways to make money online by writing, especially if you want to get passive income. It’s basically a win-win outcome for both parties; for both the companies and the affiliate. However, such marketing strategy needs planning. You need to know the right strategy and approach. Once you figure it out, you should be able to develop a solid plan and then implement the affiliate content. If you can do it right, don’t be surprised if businesses would wait in line to work with you.
Making Contents for Local Establishment
Small businesses often need as much help as they can, especially if they can improve their business and there is a chance to get more exposure – without having to spend a fortune. One of the most effective and also positive ways to make money online by writing is to make contents for the local businesses. Not only you can talk and discuss with them about the social media content, but you can also offer your service.
It’s possible that these local businesses need help when it comes to managing informational materials (such as pamphlets or brochures). They can also make use of (occasional) blog post, a link to their site, and such thing alike. Don’t think about the profits or money first. Think of it as a networking opportunity. Even if the pay isn’t big (especially for a start), making connections and networking is precious. Not to mention if they can put in some good words about you and your service. Trust me, there’s never anything wrong about helping others. Good karma is always good for everyone!
Creating Social Media Contents
Social media plays a significant role in today’s business. Many of business exposures are done through social media. Not to mention that it allows businesses to get connected to their customers. That’s why big companies usually have their own team that is dedicated to manage the business’ social media. Smaller businesses, however, don’t have that much money. Often times, they can’t afford full time employee, and that’s the reason why they turn to freelancers. After all, it offers profitable results for both sides.
You can start small. Start from around you. Do you have any favorite espresso stand, gift shop, craft shop, or pizza parlor? Dig about them and locate their social media. If they rarely post anything, or if the contents aren’t really engaging or high in quality, or if they haven’t posted a single content in weeks (or event months), then you have just found your way in. This is the time where you can offer them your service.
Don’t come directly and dish them about their mistakes on social media. That’s basically a social attack and no one appreciates being ‘attacked’ like that. Start with friendly and polite conversation. There is always a room for improvement. You can start offering your service and the benefits they can get from working with you. A word of advice: Be sure to get prepared. You need to know the fair and standard pricing and what kinds of service you can offer them. Not only it is one of the best ways to make money online by writing, but it helps you stay connected with others and expands your circles.
Creating Information Product
Do you know that monetizing your knowledge is one of the greatest ways to make money online by writing? This may be easier if you are an expert, but even if you aren’t, you can always start and gain knowledge along the way. How would you monetize your knowledge? You can create information products (such as PDFs, electronic format, ebook, videos, etc) and then sell it. The sky is the limit to your creativity.
The (online) info products are basically a great way to earn revenue because it doesn’t need any overhead costs. As long as you are able to provide detailed information (it helps if it can be presented in a fun and easy-to-understand way), you should be fine. Adding tricks and tips would help. Plus, your customers would be able to find such valuable info elsewhere. If the customers love the products from you, especially the info they can get from you, they will likely come back for more. It’s possible that they may be interested in buying other products you offer. What’s even better if they would recommend you to their friends or their network.
Transcribing Documents
It’s one of the best ways to make money online by writing if you enjoy typing so much. There are many perks offered by this job. Although it is typically a part-time job that you can do as a side-work, some people dedicate their time as full transcription professional. It is also a flexible work that you can manage in your free time. A lot of people often underestimate this work, but it can pay quite well if you have a solid portfolio. There are transcription jobs (the high paying ones) that regularly need special equipment, specialized knowledge (such as legal or medical), and also experience.
If you are new to this, focus on simple work. The pay may not be much, but you can build your portfolio from there. Once you have created a good reputation, professionalism, and portfolio, you can find the higher pay projects. If you want to, you can join some websites. But feel free to start your own independent business, if you prefer it this way.
There are still more writing work out there. Writing scripts, making podcast’s show notes, writing game guidebooks, and even doing business in personal essays are some examples of writing gigs that you can do. As long as you are creative, you shouldn’t worry about anything. Hopefully, the information about various ways to make money online by writing can spark up some ideas.
