Now, among those numbers, you can bet that freelancers exist. A freelancer owns a business of their own, but they are not actually considered as business owners per se. A freelancer contracts their skills and services out to those who need them. The product that they sell is themselves — their skills or knowledge. While this operates on the same principle as owning a business and selling a product such as books, it is quite different. A freelancer does not work to find customers. Instead, they work to find clients.

Freelancers can either work from their home, or from a client’s office or home, depending on the job that they are doing. For example, a freelance writer typically works from his/her own home. A freelance consultant may, on the other hand, do the contracted job at the client’s place of business.

There are numerous skills that can be turned into a freelancing career. Writing seems to be the most popular, but freelancing can also include photography, web development, graphical design, proofreading, translating, tutoring, or any other number of careers. The only requirement for freelancing is to have a marketable skill; but of course, it takes more than that to actually become a successful freelancer.

A freelancer must also know how to market their skills and services and how to work with clients, and they must be disciplined. A freelancer doesn’t have a boss, and they rarely punch a time clock. The freelancer typically sets their own hours, and this really does require a certain amount of drive and discipline.

Freelancing — any kind of freelancing — is quickly becoming one of the hottest career paths in the world today. People simply want the freedom to choose their own work hours, and to choose their own income level as well.

The freedom of freelancing is absolutely wonderful. Unfortunately, few beginning freelancers consider the legal aspects of freelancing. Here is some information to get you started in the right direction.

First, you need to determine what, if anything, you may be held liable for while doing your work for a client. This is dependant on the type of work that you do, and for some freelancing careers, there won’t be any legal liability involved at any time. If there is, however, it is a good idea to contact a lawyer to discuss potential liability, and how to avoid it. It is also wise to seek insurance that would cover any of that liability.

Other than this, you need to protect yourself in the legal sense. You will need contracts for your clients. A contract should state what work is being done, how much that work costs, and how that work will be paid for. This way, the client has legal recourse if you do not complete the work as specified, and you have legal recourse if the client doesn’t pay you, as agreed. Having a contract in place is vital. You can download sample contracts that can be changed to suit you and your clients from numerous legal websites on the Internet.

Based on the nature of your work, your clients may also request a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and/or a Non-Compete Agreement (NCA). The NDA essentially states that you will not share your client’s information with anybody, including information concerning their business, or the work that you do for them. The NCA states that you will not use the client’s ideas to compete with them in the marketplace. Both of these documents are fairly standard, and you can find examples in numerous places on the Internet.

In most cases, these are the only legal considerations that you will have for your freelancing career, but it is important not to overlook them. This is the first step to protecting yourself, your freelancing business, and of course, your future success as a freelancer.

Financial Information for Freelancers

If you have broken into freelancing, or you are considering it, the chances are very good that you are seeing dollar signs. Unfortunately, those dollar signs don’t always pan out for freelancers, and it is important that you consider numerous financial concerns in advance.

The first concern is that you will not have a steady paycheck each week, in most cases. When you are asked to estimate your monthly income, you will find yourself blankly staring at the person who has asked for that information — such as a loan officer — because you really won’t have any clue — from one month to the next — what your monthly income will actually be. In some freelance professions, where you have steady clients, you may be able to guess very closely at the amount, but not in most cases, where there are not steady clients.

Because you will not have a steady paycheck, a personal savings account is absolutely vital to your financial survival. In this account, you should accumulate approximately three to six months of your living expenses. This account is not to be touched for any reason, except when you do not have enough work to pay your bills. This is to cover your living expenses when your current work is not. It is extremely important to remember that, and ideally, you will have this account established before you leave your steady paycheck job to start freelancing.

You need a business account as well. This account is separate from your emergency living expenses account. There will be costs involved with your freelancing business, no matter what it is. You may need to purchase materials or supplies, but even if you don’t, you will more than likely have to spend money on advertising and promotional materials for your freelancing business. The amount of money needed is dependent on what freelancing business you are in, and how you intend to advertise your business.

These financial concerns are why most beginning freelancers start out freelancing on nights and weekends, while holding down their steady jobs. Make sure that you are financially ready to quit that job before you do so! Also consider other aspects of freelancing, such as insurance coverage and retirement funds.

Freelancers and Taxes

Taxes are one of the constants in our lives. You’ve heard it before, and you will hear it many more times throughout your life — the only two things that you can be certain of in life is death and taxes. You are going to die at some point, and the IRS wants the tax money that you owe, and they will go to great lengths to get it.

As constant as taxes are in our lives, those who are just breaking into freelancing often don’t consider the tax dilemma. They have been working at a 40-hour-per-week job, where they are given a paycheck at the end of the week, which has already had taxes and Social Security payments deducted from it. If you freelance, this isn’t the case. You are responsible for paying your own taxes.

In most cases, when you gain a client, you will need to supply that client with your legal name and your Social Security number. You may be asked to fill out a W-9, which is similar to a W-4, but designed for contract laborers, who are not regular employees. In January, you will receive a 1099-MISC form from every client for whom you have worked throughout the year. This 1099-MISC will show how much was paid to you for the work that you did.

So, with the 1099s that you will receive, you will know how much you earned. The problem is that you have not paid taxes on that money throughout the year. On top of this, no Social Security has been paid in, either. You will be required to pay in self-employment taxes, which is actually Social Security. What this amounts to is a huge tax bill for you in April — unless you have planned well.

If you want to keep your taxes manageable, and keep the IRS off your back, the easiest way to do this is to contact the IRS. That’s right — don’t wait for them to come to you. Instead, you go to them. The IRS is surprisingly helpful, and they will help you to start paying your taxes in quarterly, based on what you expect to earn. This is much easier, and keeps you in the good graces of the IRS.

If you are a freelancer, it is vital that you visit the IRS’s website today, at http://www.irs.gov, and find out how to contact them for help and instructions! When April rolls around, you will be very happy that you’ve done this.

Benefits of Freelancing

If there were not benefits to freelancing, there wouldn’t be approximately 10 million people in the United States alone doing it. There are downsides to freelancing, but the upside of freelancing is far more enticing. Freelancers benefit in a wide variety of ways.

The first benefit is not punching a time clock. What you must realize, however, is that if you are paid by the hour, you actually do have to punch a time clock, in the form of timekeeping software — but at least it is your own time clock, and not that of an employer.

Most freelancers have the option of setting their own work hours and days. In a traditional job, you have to either work when the office is open, or work during a particular time of the day or night, if you do shift work. This isn’t the case with freelancing. If you have children in school, you can opt to work on their school days, during their school hours, and not work when they are home. If you are a night owl, you can opt to sleep all day, and work all night. The only thing that you must remember is that your clients most likely will keep regular work hours, and you will need to be available during those hours for contact.

Freelancers don’t have to worry about vacation days, sick days, or personal days. If they are sick, they can opt to work or not work — and they don’t need to clear that with anybody. If they plan a vacation, they don’t have to wait until their vacation days have accumulated, or ask anyone if the days that they have chosen are okay. If they need to run personal errands, they do so, without asking anyone’s permission. Freelancers are truly free in this sense.

Freelancers have numerous other benefits as well, such as the opportunity to choose their own workspace. Most freelancers have home offices, but may take a laptop to the porch or to the park to enjoy a beautiful spring day while working. They are not tied to a cubicle in most cases. Yes, there are definitely benefits of freelancing.

The Downside of Freelancing

Freelancing is a wonderful career path if you have a marketable skill or service. Unfortunately, there is a downside that you won’t hear much about — and possibly not even know about — until you are actually freelancing.

Freelancing can be lonely — especially if you are used to having others to talk with throughout your workday. When you are freelancing, the chances are good that you won’t talk to anyone during the day, other than clients, potential clients, and any vendors that you may work with. In many cases, you won’t even be talking, but will be emailing instead.

The wonderful world of freelancing can be very isolating, which can lead to social withdrawal and depression. As a freelancer, you must be very aware of the potential for these things, and work to ensure that you are not captured by either.

The downside of freelancing can also go to the other extreme. You may be inundated with conversation — to the point where you can’t get anything done. In offices, there are secretaries to field calls, and rules in place to ensure that socializing doesn’t prevent work from being done. If you work from home, there is no secretary, and the chances are good that friends and family will view you as being home and available, instead of accurately viewing you as at home, but working.

The only other downside of freelancing is not having enough work at all times — or having too much work at any given time. When a freelancer doesn’t have work coming in, they can easily start to panic. At the same time, when they have too much work coming in, they have to learn to say no. Unfortunately, the typical freelancer remembers those times when there is no work, and they have a hard time saying no to incoming work, even if they are overloaded.

So, yes, there is a downside to freelancing, but in most cases, there are more ups than downs. If you are considering freelancing, you should consider these potential downs carefully, to determine whether or not you will be able to deal with them as they come up, effectively.

To get started as a virtual assistant you merely have to offer your service to the online community. There is no formal credential process but there are several companies who offer training and their own credentialing. Although such training is not a particular necessity, they can help you obtain assignments when you’re first starting out. Before you sign up for any program or course, do your due diligence and investigate the company. Get recommendations from other successful virtual assistants and consider finding a mentor who can help you get started. A great alternative is to create your own administrative assistant jobs and become a virtual assistant.

Once you’ve set up your home office, you’ll need to establish your virtual office. On the Internet, you’ll use a website to advertise your services. Having a website is essential to establishing your presence. Shop wisely when it comes to finding the best web hosting for you and your business.

If web design is not in your skill set, find someone who can make a website for you. Try to contact other virtual assistants and see if you can barter for the design if it’s something that you cannot afford to begin with.

On your website you should, at minimum, list your services and who you are. You can also include an hourly rate, although many virtual assistants like to charge by the project instead of by the hour. As far as services go, don’t offer services that you don’t like to do. If you can make spreadsheets but don’t like to do it, then don’t offer that service. If you have background in a specific field, for example law, then list this as a specialty. You can also specialize in the type of work that you offer. Many virtual assistants limit their business to writing and editing, web design, data management or planning, but some offer a mixture of all types of services. Remember, this is your business and you can choose what tasks that you want to perform.

Legally, you’ll need a business license in order to become an independent contractor. By obtaining a business license you’ll be able to open up a business bank account and keep your business and personal finances separately. This is important as you can declare many of your business expenses as tax write offs.

The best way to get virtual assistant jobs to begin with is to start networking. Your best leads will come through people that you already know, whether they are online or in your hometown. Let people know what you are offering and promote your website address so people can see who you are and what you are doing. Make sure to include up to date contact information on your web page, including a phone number.

When you get your first client, its important to have a contract set in place before you start working on a project. You can get many sample contracts online that you can adapt for your needs. Make sure you and the client are both on the same page about the type of work that you will be doing. That way there are no surprises when you deliver the project and your bill.

After you have a few projects under your belt, you’ll begin to build a reputation. Then your virtual assistant business will grow naturally to include repeat clients and new projects. When you consistently do good work, your reputation will precede you and you may have more projects that you know what to do with in a short period of time. Make sure not to overbook yourself, and collect a network of other virtual assistants who are willing to take overflows for you if the need arises.

• Website or free site through one of the listed companies.
• Setup as a sub-domain or get your own domain from Godaddy.com
• Start a blog and setup your writing samples, pricing and bulk discounts so that when people come to your site, you can present a buyer’s package.
• Promote your site through various paid and unpaid sites as well as forums.
• Continue to build a writing portfolio and learn more about the higher paying web content jobs like press releases and sales pages.
• Find online jobs through various sites including auction/bidding sites, job boards and other places where writers work.
• Keep accurate notes on where you go, and where you’ve been so that you can find your way back to good resources that you find online.
• Set a pricing structure for your articles and web content.
• Avoid freelance scams and scammers who will try to undercut you at every turn.
• Build a client list, but keep it simple. You don’t need 100 clients to have a freelance career. 10 good clients may be enough.
• Stick to the basics and avoid being distracted.
• Get a blog. With your blog/website, you’re the boss. You can build up quite a following with your blog/website as you update it with helpful information that will build your credibility.
• Build a portfolio on paying sites like Associated Content so that you can earn while you learn.
• Network with other writers as you work, including signing up for as many newsletters and e-zines as you can around the subject of freelance writing.

• Schedule your time even though you are working at home. This is a real job, so treat it like one.
• Write a paragraph or two about yourself and the work you are best at. Paste it as needed on websites you visit.
• Familiarize yourself with search engine optimization and use it. Get subscriptions to several ezines and forums. Get involved with a writing club or online community. All of this networking should be able to be accomplished at no cost to you. Newsletters are a good source of information.
• Go through the market listings and submit articles to them.
• Keep track of your work and your interests and expand on them whenever possible.
• Keep careful records of your articles, income, and expenses. You will be totally responsible for your own taxes at year’s end.
• Your portfolio should have a copy of every piece you publish online, including the URL and the date.
• Do research before you quote a price on a job. Take into consideration the time, length, and difficulty of the project, as well as the client you are doing it for. Always arrange for method of payment in advance.
• Before you get into a bidding war, familiarize yourself with the site, the process, as well as the client and job you are bidding on. Complete projects exactly as requested and in a timely manner.
• Don’t be afraid to contact the Better Business Bureau to check out a questionable job offer.
• When using sites like Craigslist for locating jobs, remember that they have no good filtering system. Many of their job listings are scams.
• Learn how to recognize and avoid the scams. Never put out money to get a small article assignment or some such project. And don’t be willing to work for free unless it is for a charity.

There are jobs everywhere, if you know where to look.

All of these factors need to be considered when you are setting out to price jobs. In addition, you will want to do some market testing to see which price structure brings you the best results.

Bidding On Freelance Writing Assignments

When you look for work on the freelance auction sites, you need to know how to win the bidding war without bidding so low that you get the job but lose money on the production of the job.

This takes finesse and know how, but mostly it takes self-confidence in your writing ability and the willingness to stick to your guns. Rest assured that SEO article and copywriters are in high demand and it looks like it will remain that way for years to come.

Just Remember This…

The need for online freelance writers is growing greater every day. If you enjoy research, love to write, and think you are good at it; you’ve got the makings of a successful freelance writer.

Working at home means your overhead will be low, your schedule will be yours to determine, and you will be your own boss. The opportunities for writing online are there; you just need to learn how to find them, snag them, and make your living from them.

Decide first whether you are going to ease into this as a part-time venture or if you can afford to give up your day job and go after this as full-time employment. It is very rare to start off making a bundle from the very first article you write.

Most freelancers start at the bottom and, with diligence, work their way up and establish sound businesses.

As a new writer, you are going to run into plenty of frustration, because there are a lot of you out there, and the competition is tough. This will still be true when you have gained experience and are making money with your writing.

Even if you are totally sure that you want to become a freelancer in your chosen field, is it something that is financially possible for you?

Can you support your family on the salary you make from a freelancer?

What about healthcare, are you prepared to give that up too in pursuit of a future as a freelancer?

Can you handle the stress that comes from working with tight, often ridiculous deadlines on your projects?

Do you work well by yourself and can you speak well when talking with a potential client who may want to hire you for his next project?

Finally, do you have what it takes to constantly advertise yourself and your services to anyone who may be interested?

Far too often, people think that they want to be freelancers simply because it sounds cool.

After all, many people get it into their heads that there is no more relaxing work atmosphere than being able to wake up late, work on your computer while you are wearing your pajamas, and take off whatever days you want as your vacation.

Sure, those are all perks of being a freelancer, but let’s be honest here – there are quite a few trials and tribulations that you will have to go through as a freelancer before you can reach the point where you do not have to worry about your finances anymore.

Yes, that is something that so many people fail to realize – you cannot expect to simply quit your current job for life as a freelancer and suddenly have hundreds of potential clients knocking at your door in hope that you will do a project for them.

There is much more to freelancing than that, so let’s find out if you have what it takes to make it in the cutthroat world of the freelancer.

The first thing that you have to realize about being a freelancer is that you may not be able to make ends meet on freelancing alone for quite some time.

So, if you are thinking about quitting your current job – don’t do it just yet. Instead, test the waters and be sure that you like freelancing first, and find out how much money you can make as a freelancer before you even begin to work on your resignation papers.

As a fledgling freelancer, your best bet is to start off with clients that may not pay as much but will be able to get you in the door.

Sure, you will have to take jobs that you may think are below you – but in the end it will pay off.

Maybe not financially at first, but by way of getting your name out there and adding employment opportunities to your ever expanding list of satisfied customers.

Therefore, if you want to freelance professionally, you have to be willing to take a pay cut at first in order to be successful later.

Secondly, you have to figure out whether or not you can support your family on the salary you will make as a freelancer.

Remember that you will have to take a pay cut from your current job when you first start out as a freelancer, and when you finally quit your current job for good, will you be able to bring in enough work to keep your family’s lifestyle at the same level it currently is?

These are important questions that you have to ask yourself before you make that big leap into the world of freelancing.

While it is not very important if you decide to keep doing freelance work as a supplement to your current income – it will become extremely important if you decide to make your freelance salary your sole income.

Next, you have to think about what you will do for healthcare as a freelancer. Without the support of an already established business behind you, you will have to pay for your own (and your family’s) health insurance out of pocket.

This is not a big deal if you have a spouse that gets health insurance from his or her workplace, but if your spouse is a stay at home parent or is involved in their own freelance business, this becomes a major expense to think about.

So be sure that you will be able to afford health insurance for all of your loved ones when you become a freelancer.

Stress management is a key factor of working for you as a freelancer. You will be faced with projects that may require you to work long and hard before you can finish them.

Often, these projects will be extremely difficult and be under some ludicrous deadline – making them that much more intense. So, are you good at handling stressful situations such as these?

After all, if you are not able to get the project back to your client on time and in working order, you may be discredited and have a much more difficult time finding work for many months to come.

Are you a team player or do you work better as an individual? While this question may seem insignificant, remember that as a freelancer you really have no team to rely on should you not know how to do something.

Sure, you could scour the internet for answers to your questions – but that will take away valuable time from your project.

So, if you are the type of person who can accomplish tasks more efficiently in a group, then you may want to rethink the idea of going freelance, because the individualize work environment of a freelancer is certainly not for you.

Finally, can you handle the fact that you must constantly advertise your services to just about anyone who may need you to do some work for them?

Do you have enough self esteem that you can promote yourself as if you are the best freelancer out there?

Being able to constantly advertise your services is a major benefit for anyone looking to become a freelancer.

While it is possible to by shy or withdrawn and be successful at freelancing, you will have a much easier time if you are more vocal about promoting your services to prospective customers.

Web writing can break down into several different categories. Before you begin looking for work, you’ll have to decide whether or not you want to get credit for your writing. If you insist on byline, you may have difficulty finding a lot of paying jobs. Byline jobs are out there if you look. However, the most money to be made is from working as a web ghostwriter.

Many freelancers find success with ghostwriting. When you work as a freelance ghostwriter you provide writing services for clients who will then use the work as their own. Ghostwriting as a freelance is a lucrative opportunity, especially when you focus on web writing. For the most part, the Internet is a text and image based platform. Companies and individuals who run websites constantly need text to make their websites attractive to visitors. Since writing is something that a lot of people would rather not do, this leaves plenty of opportunities for people who love to write.

Web writing freelancers need only an Internet connection, e-mail address and word processing program to get started. Your own website is not necessary, but it adds a touch of professionalism to your writing business. However, when you are first starting out you can get plenty of work without having a website.

There are several different categories of web writing. When you see the term “content writing” you will normally be providing text for an existing or new website. Your writing will have to be engaging and clear for website visitors. Article writers concentrate on providing articles for websites, newsletters and blogs. Generally, articles for the web are between 400 and 800 words each. Any more than that is difficult for readers to sit through while looking at a computer screen. Copywriters are challenged with putting readers in the mood to buy. They write copy for Internet sales letters and marketing sites. Ebook ghostwriters provide clients with full-length books on a variety of topics.

Freelancers who write need to be professional in their online presence. This means spell-checking all writing, including e-mails to clients. It is also a good idea to get an e-mail address that is specifically used for your writing. A personal e-mail address with a goofy handle will make you appear unprofessional. Your first and last name or a combination thereof is a good choice for your web writing e-mail address.

Writing for the Internet has a few differences from writing essays in school or writing for print magazines. Readers online have short attention spans, and you’ll need to keep your sentences short and your paragraphs clear.

The other difference is the use of “keywords” in certain writing assignments. Keywords are words that have been selected by your client to be used in the article. These words have been selected because they are Internet search terms and your client wants their website to show up for those search terms. Keyword articles will require you to use the word or phrase a certain number of times in the article. Sometimes it can be difficult to use the words without making it sound forced. Experienced web writers have developed ways to make the keywords flow naturally into their articles.

Once you’ve gotten a few web writing assignments under your belt, you can decide what type of web writing suits you best. You can find work on writing message boards, freelance writing job sites and classified ad sites like craigslist. Whenever you apply for a job, make sure to include your contact information and a few well-selected writing samples.

That is primarily because for centuries, the only real job you could have as a freelancer had to do with your mastery of the written word.

But we are not still stuck back in the early nineteen hundreds – no we are in the twenty first century, a time that appreciates freelancers in hundreds of different jobs.

Sure, you have probably heard of freelance photographers too, you may have even met one or two in your life, but what about freelance software designers, freelance medical billing specialists, or even freelance scientific researchers?

There are all jobs that have recently begun to see massive growth in their respective fields because more and more people are realizing that they can make far more money working for themselves as freelancers than they ever could solely from working under the wing of their previous employer.

So it sounds pretty good doesn’t it? You work in some field for quite a few years, get a lot of practical experience in your chosen area of employment and then gradually make the switch from working the nine to five to becoming your own boss as a freelancer.

But is it really as easy as it sounds to become a freelancer and actually make a living doing work on a freelance basis?

We have to keep in mind that there are quite a few freelancers out there who are only doing work part time.

Not because they make a ton of money and only have to work a couple of days per week but because they actually have had some trouble finding work in the past and need a much more solid career option in order to make sure that they do not find themselves facing bankruptcy.

However, such a scenario does not have to happen to you if you are willing to do whatever it takes to become a freelancer. Your career switch may not happen overnight – but eventually you will become highly successful at what you do.

However, having a blog does not mean that you will instantly start receiving requests for freelance opportunities or that you’ll ever make money from your blog. Your blog could simply be a marketing piece – an online list of your abilities with samples of your work.

Starting a blog for the purpose of freelancing is an activity that will take time to build up to a profit level where clients seek you out for assignments. It’s good to start and maintain your blog while you are working on other freelancer opportunities and let it build to a well-visited, visible resource for others in your industry. With time and attention, your blog could grow into a business in its own right!

When blogging as a professional freelancer, you’ll want to pay close attention to how you present yourself in your blog. There are literally hundreds of thousands of blogs out there, and there may be several hundred blogs that are related to your topic. If your readers can’t understand your content and make sense of it, they’ll just move on to the next website.

The following tips can make your freelance website more user-friendly and help you gain consistent readers and clients.

First, pay close attention to the format. Readers want to understand how your freelancing website works right from their initial visit. Most blogging platforms have similar formats, with links and tags on the left or right margin, and the most recent post on top. Make sure to use the links wisely. Only put links up for information that is truly related to your primary topic to avoid confusion. The point is to give your readers additional information about you and your services. Keep the list short and sweet.

Next, consider readability when choosing your freelance website’s background and font color. Although there are a lot of color choices available, its best to stick with a light background and dark text.

Studies have shown that the human brain can process this type of format better than light text on a dark background. Think about this before you commit to a black background and white text. It might look striking, but readers might not want to stay there for long – too hard on the eyes.

Also, solid or faded backgrounds are better than a distracting pattern or design.

Proofread every entry before you post them to your freelance website.

There is nothing that reduces your authority in the eyes of your readers’ more than bad spelling and grammar – especially so if you are seeking freelance writing assignments. The online world is a world of text, so take some time to learn commonly misspelled words and avoid grammatical errors at all costs.

Keep your freelance blog content fresh and interesting by posting at 2-4 times per week. With so much information available on the Internet, your readers may go elsewhere if you aren’t supplying regularly updated content. If you aren’t sure what to write about, try posting a poll, a link to another blog, comment on a related news story or post a list of helpful tips. Not every post has to be long and complicated, but you do need to post often.

These tips will help keep your freelancing website readable and interesting to your visitors. The more visitors you get, the more your blog will grow in profitability and importance. Just make sure to present yourself in a professional way and keep your readers coming back for more new content every week. In no time, you’ll have a profitable blog and then you can branch out to create more.

Fortunately, when you search for freelance jobs as a writer online there will be no shortage to choose from. It all depends on where you look, how much research you are willing to do, and specifying and obtaining your rates.

Before you begin your search for work, first decide whether or not you want to get credit for your writing vs. ghost writing. If you insist on a byline, the paying job market decreases. Byline writing assignments are out there, but as long as making money is your foremost goal you’ll find the most money to be made is from freelancing as a ghostwriter.

Many freelancers find success with ghostwriting. When you take on these projects you provide writing services for clients who will then use the work as their own. Ghostwriting is a lucrative opportunity, moreso should you focus on writing for the web.

Why is there such a large call for web ghostwriters and why does it pay so well? For the most part, the Internet is a text and image based platform. Companies and individuals who run websites are consistently in need of text to make their websites attractive to visitors and keep the search engines interested in indexing their website. Since writing is something that a lot of people would rather not do, this leaves plenty of opportunities for a freelancer like you.

What You Need to Get Started

Freelance writing for the web has a few differences from writing essays in school or writing for print magazines. Readers online have short attention spans, and you’ll need to keep your sentences short and your paragraphs clear.

Web writing freelancers need only an Internet connection, an e-mail address and a word processing program (some jobs don’t even require the software) to get started. Your own website is not necessary, but it adds a touch of professionalism to your freelance writing business. However, when you are first starting out you can get plenty of work without having your own website with samples of your work and accredited resources.

Here’s something else you need to know; there are several different categories of freelance ghost writing for the internet. When you see the term “content writing” you will normally be providing text for an existing or new website. Your writing will have to be engaging and clear for website visitors.

Another term is “article writing” – where you would be providing articles for websites, newsletters and blogs. Generally, articles for the web are between 400 and 800 words each. Any more than that is difficult for readers to sit through while looking at a computer screen.

Another term to become familiar with in writing for the web is “keywords”. Keywords are words that have been selected by your client to be used in the article. These words have been selected because they are Internet search terms and your client wants their website to show up for those search terms. Writing keyword rich articles will require you to use the word or phrase a certain number of times in the article. Sometimes it can be difficult to use the words without making it sound forced. Experienced web writers have developed ways to make the keywords flow naturally into their articles.

Copywriters are another term for content creators with a specialized skill. These freelancers are challenged with the task of putting readers in the mood to buy. They write copy for Internet sales letters and marketing sites.

And finally we have “ebook authors”. These ghostwriters provide clients with 20+ page books on just about any topic you can imagine or research.

Getting That First Freelance Gig

Freelancers who write need to be professional in their online presence. This means spell-checking all writing, including emails to clients. It is also a good idea to obtain an email address that is specifically used for your freelance writing. A personal email address with a goofy handle will make you appear unprofessional. Your first and last name or a combination thereof is a good choice for your web writing email address.

Once you’ve landed a few writing assignments you can decide what type of web writing suits you best and focus on that as your forte. You can find work available right now at the links below:

These jobs are classified as marketing, but there are listings for ebook authors, translators, blog article posts and ghostwriters.

These jobs are classified as marketing, but there are listings for ebook authors, translators, blog article posts and ghostwriters.

Freelance writing jobs – piles of new listings every day – brocures, ebooks, copywriters and more.