When it comes to the Internet: Content is King. To put it another way: the websites that deliver the up-to-date and relevant content to their visitors also tend to be the most popular. If those same websites have a commercial aspect to them – which is most of them; then the popularity of the site goes on to equate with increased income for the website owner. This has created a fantastic opportunity for anyone looking to do freelance writing online, as it affords them the opportunity to set up their own online writing business.
The explosive growth of the Internet and the subsequent growth of Internet related commerce has created an unprecedented demand for written content. Now the fact of the matter is that is rare for webmasters to go about each day and create this content themselves as they simply don’t have the time. What you will find is that they tend to outsource the creation of this content to others and are more than happy to pay for it.
Can you see where this is going? If Webmasters are happy to pay for outsourced content then there is an obvious opportunity for freelance writers to create that content and get paid for it. Not only is there a demand for freelance writing online but some specific online markets have sprung up that allow freelance writers to present their wares. Webmasters know to go to these markets to secure outsourced content – so it really streamlines the process of selling your writing skills.
In addition to this, the constantly evolving nature of the Internet means that new avenues are continually springing up – all of which have a need for new content. If it’s not website owners that need sales copy, then it’ll be bloggers who need fresh content for their blog readers. And if it’s not blog owners that need content, then it’ll be article directories looking for more content so that webmasters keep coming back to them. And on and on it goes. If there’s one thing the Internet is not: it is static. Opportunities abound wherever you look and freelance content creation is one of the biggest of them.
Two of the biggest and most popular online auction sites are Elance.com and Guru.com. Webmasters know that they can go to these central resources, create a job description, and then have freelance writers bid to do that work. It works like a dutch auction with the lowest bidder usually, though not always, winning the bid and securing the work. Of course once you’ve done good work for someone once, they may opt to bypass the bidding process the next time around and work with you directly.
The beauty about selling your freelance writing skills to these agencies is that not only do they provide an efficient marketplace for you to sell your skills but they also act as a governing body to ensure that your invoice is paid within 30 days or sooner. People that do pay you late on these sites tend to get kicked off. In that respect it is very similar to the eBay auction system except that you are dealing with writing services instead of “shipped goods.”
If you’re a writer looking to make an income by writing online then it behoves you to make yourself visible where the buyers of content all go to shop. Elance.com and Guru.com are the best places to start.
