When considering future careers, many people are thinking about freelancing.
After all, freelance copywriting and content writing can be extremely lucrative. In addition, freelancers get to set their own schedules, be their own bosses, and find the best projects and clients for their needs.
With so many different benefits, it’s no wonder that there are so many people trying out freelancing for themselves.
However, increasing competition means that you need to find a way to differentiate your skills and create better content while growing your own professional career.
In this article, we’ll give you some freelance writing tips that are guaranteed to help you improve the content you create and stand out from the competition.
1. Perfect Your Portfolio
Getting found by clients is a big part of being successful as a freelancer.
Having a portfolio allows you to showcase your strongest writing and put your best foot forward.
Your portfolio should have clear examples of your writing style and the types of industries and writing formats you excel in. That allows you to find the best client matches for your content.
2. Find a Niche
While it’s great that you have the flexibility to write in a number of industries, you’ll want to find a niche that you can excel in.
When you have a niche, you can hyperfocus on your writing and become exceptional in a specific area. That allows you to create more informative, in-depth content for your clients.
3. Ask for Feedback
Getting feedback from your clients is essential to improving your content writing.
Feedback doesn’t have to be a list of criticisms, but helpful tips for improvement and areas you can work in will help you grow as a freelancer.
Sending a message or survey to your clients can help you gather feedback in a professional manner.
4. Nurture Existing Relationships with Clients
Speaking of clients, they are the most important asset you have as a freelancer.
Having clients that give you regular business allows you to work on perfecting your writing, developing your niche, and getting enough revenue to support your growth goals.
Keeping your client relationships strong can go a long way in creating a better working environment.
5. Create a Blog
As a freelance writer, you understand the value of having a blog. Most of what you write is likely blog posts.
Having a blog for yourself brings all of those benefits home and gives you a chance to flex your writing muscles on topics that interest you and help you grow your business.
Regular posting also helps you gather an audience for your writing.
6. Improve Your Writing
Even the most successful freelance writers can improve their writing skills.
Taking courses, attending free lessons, and subscribing to different writing publications can help you improve your writing and become a stronger freelancer.
Focusing on your grammar and taking your time as you write can also help you improve your writing skills.
7. Network, Network, Network
Finding new clients allows you to write more and improve your craft.
However, finding those new clients might take some time, especially if you are just starting out and have a small client list.
Learning how to network, either virtually or in person is an important skill that can help you meet new people and create new connections that will help you succeed.
8. Make Your Own Marketing Plan
As a freelancer, you spend a lot of time working with different clients and trying to improve their businesses.
But it’s also important to remember that you are also running your own business.
It’s not enough to just work on marketing plans for your clients, you also need to create a clear growth plan for your freelancing and implement it.
9. Always Do Your Research
As you develop your niche, you might think that you don’t need to do as much research as you did when you started.
But research is an essential step in writing strong copy and delighting your clients.
While it’s true that you might be more knowledgeable, there are new developments and changes that you might not be aware of.
Doing your research ensures you don’t have major errors in your copy.
10. Use Social Media
Utilizing social media is another way that you can network your skills and find more clients.
Social media also allows you to showcase your personality and create posts that help you get discovered.
You can also use it as an opportunity to improve your social media copywriting skills and become more well-rounded in the types of formats that you specialize in.
11. Join Writing Communities
Meeting and working with other writers is a great way for you to improve your content and meet others in your industry.
When you connect with other freelancers or writers, you can become part of a community that offers resources and advice on how to improve your business and your skill sets.
12. Draft and Outline Your Writing
Some freelancers find it easy to just start writing without an outline or plan for the project.
However, creating a draft or outline for your writing helps keep your copy organized.
It also makes it easier for you to adapt your plan and edit your work as you go, which improves the overall quality of the content that you create.
13. Keep an Eye Out for New Jobs
Once you have a strong list of consistent clients, you might think that you can stop searching for new work and just use your current relationships.
Actually, you always want to keep an eye out for new jobs that might come up.
Whether it leads to a long-term opportunity or just allows you to practice writing in a different area, it’s a good idea to practice.
WriterAccess can help you find clients, negotiate projects and write for different industries.
14. Learn SEO Skills
SEO is a huge part of digital copywriting. As a freelancer, you need to be able to help your clients get their content found online.
Keeping up with the best practices for SEO and applying those to all of your projects is a great way to improve your content and keep your clients happy.
15. Don’t Let Mistakes Stop You
When you have a project that isn’t well-received, you miss a deadline or lose a client, it can be easy to let these mistakes slow you down and even stop your trajectory.
So it’s important to remember that mistakes happen to everyone.
Use what your mistake was as a learning opportunity and find a way to move forward and focus on the other positives in your life.
16. Work on Time Management
Time management is one of the best skills that a freelancer can have.
When you are frantically trying to meet your deadlines, you can miss out on writing mistakes or just not put your best work forward.
Managing your time correctly allows you to focus on writing and improving your content.
17. Practice Organization Skills
Having strong organizational skills is another important skill for freelancers to learn.
Without organization in your freelancing work, you can end up missing projects or falling behind.
Organizing your days and having plenty of time to do your work allows you to do your work without the unnecessary stress that affects your writing.
18. Communicate Clearly
Communication is important as a freelancer.
Rather than having a manager or customer service team to do customer communication for you, you have to take it on yourself.
Make sure that you are transparent and honest in the communications you have with your clients and keep them up to-date and informed on your progress.
19. Become a Master Editor
Editing is a skill that is different from writing.
Practicing your editing skills and working on becoming a master editor allows you to examine your own work critically and find areas of improvement in your writing.
This makes you a more well-rounded freelancer who can create better content.
20. Collect Testimonials
Word of mouth is one of the most powerful marketing tools out there.
When you write a great article or have a successful campaign with a client, there’s nothing wrong with asking them for a review or testimonial that you can use to find more business.
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Becoming a freelance writer is an exciting journey.
However, you need the right freelance writing tips to stand out from the crowd and create content that resonates with your clients and brings them back for more.
These freelance writing tips can help you improve your writing skills, find your niche, and increase your earnings.
One type of freelance writing that you might not know about is SEO writing. It utilizes writing skills and SEO best practices to create copy that ranks high and brings in organic traffic.
To learn more about it, check out our blog on SEO writing! There you’ll learn the basics of SEO writing and some of the must-follow rules you need to know.
