Freelance writing and editing is becoming a more popular career choice for skilled professionals who want the freedom of working from home versus having to go into the office for somebody else. A freelancer could take on as many or as few projects and make a decent living doing so. Even for those people who don’t have experience, with the right information to start this could be a very profitable career move. Here’s what someone new to this field needs to know:
Start by joining a freelancing site and creating a profile. You should provide all information that will help you land the best jobs. Give details about your skills and experience, the kind of work you are looking for, and your price rate. Additionally, you may want to create a professional webpage to attract potential clients who are simply searching the web. Your professional page should be similar to the freelancing one.
Even without experience you will want to create a portfolio that demonstrates your writing and editing abilities. Look for past samples from previous jobs or create samples from scratch. You want to show your entire range, but you only want to upload material that represents your absolute best work. Be sure to update your portfolio often, preferably every two or three months.
A lot of success comes in writing excellent bids. You should create a good template that you can customize to address the specific needs of each project. Make sure you provide a brief overview of your skills and experience followed by a clear approach to the project for which you are applying. Potential clients should feel compelled to contacting you before others service providers.
Now that you’ve set up your profile and professional page, it’s important that you let everyone you know that you have become a freelancer and are looking for writing and editing jobs. The easiest way is to provide links in all of your communications, such as emails and social networking posts. You don’t have to be a salesperson in doing this, a simple link underneath your signature should suffice.
Lastly, be sure you keep a positive relationship with former and current clients. It’s a good idea to submit a follow up email a few weeks after completing a job. Sometimes you can find out about new job opportunities through a network of satisfied customers. They can leave feedback on your page and help you land your next project.