Start a Business Making Money Writing SEO Content

Dennis Francis
12 min readFeb 22, 2022

--

image courtesy of freepik.com

So you want to become a content writer and make money selling top ranking articles? If you’ve ever wanted to make money writing for SEO companies, then you’re reading the right article. There’s a strong demand for SEO writing talent in every subject.

SEO Content Writing Skills Can Make You Money

That’s because the Internet has become a dominant environment for people to find and use information. Professional content writing is necessary to ensure that the information that is found is not only accurate but also easy to digest. Small businesses need blog content that speaks to their target market. Whether you choose to work for an agency or freelance for local small businesses, there is enough work to keep you busy.

Content marketing is a strategy for connecting with a target audience using various media; for example, videos, social media posts, images, blogs and even infographics. The specific strategy involves communicating with a predetermined market with information that pertains to their interests. The primary aim is to get them to take action. Content writing professionals supply various industries with high-quality content to meet the demand.

Is SEO Content Writing A Good Career Choice?

How much time do you have to spare for your new freelance career? This is an important question. If you’re looking to work as a freelancer, you’re going to have to find the time to generate production. Unfortunately, content writing for SEO is not the same as firing off a post on Twitter. You may be asked to create a long form article containing 2500 words. Then, ensure that it is optimized with a predetermined number of keywords and phrases. This process can take hours!

What kind of experience do you have as a writer? If you know your way around written language, you’ve got a head start. Have you used Microsoft Word or Google Docs? Now there are tools like Grammarly and ProWritingAid to help you craft your material as you produce it. These tools don’t replace the human editor, they just help you write more efficiently.

Is there a specific market that you are interested in writing for? When searching for work on the job boards, you may find that there are hundreds of positions open for content writers. Some job openings may explicitly display their preference while others don’t. Is it better to specialize in a particular niche at this point? There is no way to tell. It will all depend on your abilities as a writer.

For example, if you specialize in the fitness industry and it shows on your resume or in your samples online, this may attract a particular clientele. Your experience in writing for the fitness industry may be a bonus to you as well. Since you have experience in that market and are familiar with the industry, you may produce more material in less time for your clients.

Do you have marketing experience? Like artists, many writers may not have a lot of experience in marketing and advertising. If you plan on being a freelancer, these are very important skills to develop. One of the most effective ways to generate work is through Facebook advertising. With a bit of marketing experience, you’ll be able to use this platform to identify a very specific audience for your service.

How much do you need to make each month to support your lifestyle? According to ZipRecruiter, top earning writers can make an annual salary of $104,000. The average writer can take home $63,213 a year. If this kind of income can satisfy your lifestyle needs, you will need to decide where to set your income goal in your first year. Obviously, getting started in your first year will be a challenge.

What Qualifications Do I Need As An SEO Copywriter?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the qualifications required to become an SEO copywriter will vary depending on the specific industry or niche in which you wish to work. However, some of the key skills and knowledge that are typically required include strong writing and editing skills, knowledge of search engine optimization techniques, and a good understanding of online marketing principles. You’re going to need to learn about keyword research and search engine marketing to get started.

The most important skills to have in your SEO copywriting career will be:

  • A basic understanding of Google search results.
  • How search engine optimization works.
  • The essential goals of organic traffic generation.
  • How to balance the needs of SERPS with writing content for humans.
  • How to create high-quality content for maximum user experience.
  • How to follow a content strategy.

In order to be a successful SEO writer, you will need to have strong writing skills and knowledge of search engine optimization. You will need to be familiar with the different search engine algorithms and how to optimize your content for each one.

Do You Know SEO? What You Need to Know as a Freelance Writer

This may sound like heresy, but to be a freelance SEO content writer, you don’t need to be a SEO expert. Your job as a freelance SEO writer is to create great content that satisfies the market your client is looking to influence. Although you will need to have a competent knowledge of search engine marketing tactics, your job is not to develop an SEO strategy.

Website search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of improving the visibility and ranking of a website on search engine results pages (SERPs).

There are many factors that can affect a website’s SEO, including the content on the website, the design and layout of the website, the use of keywords and other relevant phrases in the content, and the links to other websites from the website.

The goal of SEO is to make sure that as much relevant information as possible is found by potential customers when they search for information about a specific topic or product on Google, Yahoo!, or other search engines.

To achieve optimal SEO results, it is important to have a comprehensive understanding of both online marketing and web development principles. It is also necessary to employ professional services from an experienced SEO company who will help you identify and implement effective strategies.

What Are the Different Roles of a SEO Content Writer?

Essentially, your job is to take the list of keywords, the goal of your content, and produce above average work in a writing style that is attractive to the target audience. Your value is in your ability to work as directed by project managers. You’re going to be implementing various elements of a client’s content marketing strategy.

For example, you might optimize the existing copy on a client’s website (updating page titles, meta descriptions, H1s, alts, anchor text) as well as create fresh SEO-friendly copy for those pages on the website. You may never be called upon to write a blog post or upload a photo. The one thing you should never be asked to do is keyword stuffing. If you are ever instructed to do so, politely decline and find another client.

What Skills Should I Focus On As a New Content Writer?

To get started, my recommendation is to learn all you can about writing in the language you are going to be using for work. This is important even in an age where AI has become sophisticated enough to mimic human syntax. Humans are still needed who understand the value of conversion rate, organic search results and search engine results from the point of view of a reader.

It’s unnecessary for you to understand how to build landing pages or code in HTML. You’re not even required at this point to prove your ability to master search engine rankings. Learn how to write well for humans, then focus on optimizing website content for search engine algorithms. Understanding how title tags work doesn’t require much effort. Creating them is also easy with online plugins. You should be able to understand the basics of webpage composition, from H1 to H4 tags, meta descriptions and schema.

There are tools to help you generate meta descriptions for a web page. There is no need to geek out on arcane SEO tactics at this point. You will need to understand the difference between head keywords and long-tail keywords. Before you promote yourself, you should have enough practice taking a piece of content on a website and rewriting it for search engine optimization.

You will want to identify the niche and the search terms that a piece of content can rank for against its competition. Later on, as you grow in your specialty, it will be a bonus if you can track performance metrics that boost organic traffic for your clients. When you can work with Google Analytics to create reports on KPIs for their SEO campaigns your can start your own SEO agency.

For now, focused on content writing best practices. Your goal is to impress them with your ability to incorporate their keywords skillfully into webpages and online brochures. They will handle the distribution on social media platforms and consider the best way to gain visibility for the work.

How Do I Start My Content Writing Career as a Newbie?

How Do I Set Prices in this field? Content marketing has dominated the Internet marketing world at this point. Google has made it known that good content gets first paid ranking positions. More consumers are conducting research online to find what they want before they buy.

If you are freelancing, you are going to be working with your clients’ rates. If you go to Upwork and accept jobs for $20 or $30 per article, you’re essentially working at those rates. Sometimes you are going to be working with a client who wants 100 or more articles every month! Just be aware of the time you invest in each project to ensure that your rates are profitable.

A client may give you the keywords, a template, style guide, and research information for a project. All you have to do is produce the copy in a way that is optimized for the audience in the search engines. You may not even be required to do final edits. All these things have to be taken into consideration in your pricing structure.

Head over to Facebook or Reddit. Search their copywriting boards or groups. You should be able to find more information on pricing. These are also excellent places to meet like-minded professionals who help each other.

Setting Up a Freelancer Portfolio

If you plan on making this your business, you will need to set up a portfolio on your own website. There is no need to create a multitude of pages; just the basics. You’ll need:

  • Homepage.
  • About page.
  • Rates page.
  • Contact page.
  • Samples page.

Add your social media links to encourage people to share your pages. Have an attractive offer that people can click on to get them to your sales and marketing funnel.

Design Your Site And Get It Ready For Presentation

The simplest way to do this is with WordPress. If you are not familiar with website production, you can even start with WIX.com or WordPress.com. There are plenty of online tutorials that will walk you through the process. Go to name cheap.com or Godaddy.com and establish your domain name. Use a server of your own or from the company where you purchased your domain. Select a template that works for your needs. Establish your pages. Stick with the basics to get started.

Set Up Your Writing Samples

Your writing portfolio should showcase your skills and abilities as a content writer. It should include examples of your work in various formats, such as articles, blog posts, or case studies. You should also include links to any online resources that you used to research and write your pieces.

Although there are many ways to display your portfolio online, if you are looking for work in SEO writing, there are a few specific details to include in your samples. Here are six steps to follow:

  1. Keep the number of samples low (10 or less is fine).
  2. Organize them by niche or subject.
  3. Include your list of keywords (the more, the better).
  4. Highlight your keywords in the sample.
  5. Include tags and meta descriptions at the end of your sample.
  6. The type of work you display should reflect the type of work you are looking for.

Since you’re starting out, be a generalist. My recommendation is to pick a field that you have confidence in and write forward from the start. If you have 10 articles in the health and wellness industry, it shows your expertise. You’re far more likely to get work in that industry. This also cuts down on your marketing and promotional expenses. Later on, as you become more familiar with the process, you can add more niche is to your list of markets.

Establish Your Rates

Rates depend on a few factors. If you have a specific niche that you are targeting, you can get a better idea of the prevailing rates through your investigations into the marketplace. Don’t forget to consider that, as a freelancer, you’re running your own business and handling your own monthly expenses. You’re also trying to subsidize your lifestyle. Your rates need to balance your personal bills and other expenses, along with your operating costs.

Create Two Ways For People To Contact You

Since you have your own domain, you will establish your email using that domain for client contact. You can also include a chat bot on your website that allows prospects and clients to contact you for live communication. Skype is still a good way to work with clients, and let’s not forget Zoom.

Create Your Marketing Campaign

Set up a simple sales and marketing funnel. This would include a landing page for prospects to come to learn about your service and its value. Include an offer to exchange for their contact information. For example, an invitation to our free training video or a discount on their first order. You can follow up with an email campaign or contact them directly to set up an appointment.

Your Sales Are In The Follow-Up

One reason to use this system for your marketing is to capitalize on statistics. Most people who come to your landing page will not purchase from you on the first visit. Statistics have shown that it takes an average of seven touches with the prospect to get a commitment. Email marketing is an excellent tool for following up with prospects.

Establish Templates For Your Workflow

Among professional copywriters, there is a saying; “Only rank beginner copywriters start from scratch.” Establish a production routine with content marketing templates. These not only speed up your performance but also keep you on track and consistent. Content writing templates and not new. They have been used by the pros all the way back to the halcyon days of advertising.

Use A Marketing And Production Calendar

As a business owner, you will need to keep a project and marketing calendar to ensure that you stay on track with your goals as a business. Your process may be as simple as a Google calendar to keep track or a complex enterprise-level project management tool that coordinates production and fulfillment of orders. My best advice is to start simple and upgrade as you go.

Tool Suggestions To Get You Rolling.

If you plan on making this your career, there are a few pieces of equipment that I would recommend. None of these are necessary to get started and to grow your business. However, you are competing with others who know how to use technology profitably. Below are my recommendations for a SEO content writing start-up.

Should You Use AI Writing Tools?

They’re unnecessary, however they are great tools for production. It’s too easy to get bogged down by shiny objects on the Internet. Note, tool, is sacred or indispensable. They are only there to help you get the job done. New AI software still can’t compete with human writers on every level. They are great for enhancing your existing production.

Conclusion

SEO copywriting is one of the most lucrative careers in content marketing. It’s also a profession that requires an in-depth knowledge of search engine optimization, which can be difficult to master. However, it doesn’t have to be.

We’ve compiled some tips and tricks for making sure you don’t waste your time or money on mediocre work that won’t earn you any money. Is SEO content writing a good career choice? The only way to find out is to take action. If you’re interested in learning more about this field, check out my other blog posts. https://contentmarketingmagic.co/blog

--

--

Dennis Francis
Dennis Francis

Written by Dennis Francis

Retired content marketing consultant. Author, artist, husband, father and owner of ContentMarketingMagic.co. Still helping small business owners daily.

No responses yet