Freelance writing for business blogs
October 2nd 2010 05:52
Blogging is amongst the fastest-growing areas of the interactive digital world, and the business world is embracing this powerful promotional tool quickly.
New corporate blogs are appearing every day, and as a result Craig's List and other web hangouts for freelance writers are teeming with opportunities.
It is leading to a lot of disappointment.
The aim of a corporate blog is clear — to promote a company's name and its products or services by means of the written word. What is not clear is how that is effectively achieved.
There are myriad advertisements on Craig's List and elsewhere seeking writers capable of producing fast, accurate, entertaining copy. Pay rates are minimal, but if you are fast enough and entertaining enough, you can earn a reasonable day's wage.
Caveat emptor.
The quickest way to be entertaining is the GCP method: Google, copy, paste. It is the only way for an uncredentialled writer to make reasonable money. Dumping press releases also makes for a quick post. With a little more experience, the finer points of plagiarism become a tool of the trade.
Both companies seeking to establish a blog and freelancers looking to write content for corporate blogs need to understand that the GCP method provides few benefits.
On the Bloggercises list of prerequisites for a successful corporate blog, entertainment does not feature highly, and speed doesn't feature at all. Our list is short. Posts must add value, inform or educate. Opinion, information, education.
The process of creating such posts involves planning, communication, and, above all, experience. It involves experience in research, interviewing and identifying what is of interest or value, and what is not.
It may take a little time, but the success of a corporate blog becomes very clear, measurable in terms of visitor numbers and identity, and the quality of the comments they leave.
Corporate blogging service providers come in two categories: the copy and paste fly-by-nighters, or those with the experience to be in it for the long term.
As a freelance writer, explain the above to your potential corporate blogging client. Don't tell it in a "this is how you should do it" kind of way. Rather, tell them this is the way you operate, a result of research and experience. It's the way to get results.
Some clients will already know it, which is fine because they will be glad to hear you confirm it. Many clients won't know it, and they will be even gladder to learn they have a writer who understands the market.
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Comment by Jeanne Dininni
Writer's Notes
I agree that some clients will be glad to hear it -- but only those who are willing to pay what all that research, experience, and thought leadership is worth. Unfortunately, many companies want to pay only $10 or $15 a post, not realizing that they'll never get the kind of quality their company needs for that price because no one can afford to put in the time and effort required to write a top-notch business post for so little money. Businesses owe it to themselves to offer compensation amounts commensurate with the quality of the posts they require for successfully promoting their brands.
Of course, there's never an excuse for copying and pasting text directly from another source and passing it off as one's own writing -- no matter how little one is paid. It would be better to turn down the job if that's the only technique that would make it worthwhile.
Comment by Chris Champion
Vyoos
Zoomies
Bloggercises
The Blog of Lists
Newly Old
Money Whither
I should make it clearer that I am not writing for the $10 per post market. It's a chicken and egg situation - I don't know which came first, corporates looking for cheap blog content, or content providers undercutting to win work.
The short answer is that cheap blogs must fail because they will never achieve the readership numbers - which translates here to target market reach - which make them viable long-term investments. Unique, well-written, industry-savvy, value-adding content takes time to prepare.
I think this deserves a blog post on its own ...