Freelance writing online is the best way to start making money in the digital age.
Period.
It’s the reason why I call it the perfect ‘bridge business’ — you can keep freelancing and niche into bigger and better topics or use those writing skills to start a niche site, create info products, or dig into content marketing.
When it comes to learning to become a freelance writer, you don’t need a ton of tools, special skills, or experience.
So if you’ve been thinking about getting started with a lifestyle business and freelance writing sounds like it might be a good fit. This is the post for you.
We’re going to highlight some of the reasons why freelance writing is the best lifestyle business for beginners.
Why You Should Start Freelance Writing TODAY
1. Writing Skills are Essential (for Any Business)
Regardless of what kind of business you want to run in life, from social media management to bookkeeping and even web design, you need to be a good writer too.
Why?
Well, writing is a key component of two essential parts of business:
Marketing and communication.
You need to be able to write to sell yourself — even if you’re not a writer. Web designers still need to create sales pages or newsletters, social media updates, and blog posts to help them attract potential customers.
And, once you get a customer, you need writing skills to keep them happy. Good communication really matters.
As a freelance writer, being able to write seems obvious, but it’s also something to keep in mind even if that isn’t your end career goal.
2. It’s a Great Jump Off Point
Lots of people are solely freelance writers, and that’s great. It’s a solid career choice.
But lots of people also start with freelance writing and then move on to other paths or options. And it’s really common that one of the reasons why they are able to do it is because of freelance writing.
Once you’ve built up your writing skills, you have the perfect foundation to level up to new things.
That’s why we like to call freelancing a bridge business.
You can turn your great email skills into an email copywriting career. Or your success with blogging on your freelancing site can end up translating into what you need to build an awesome affiliate marketing business.
So don’t think that dabbling in freelance writing is the end of the road. Now you have an awesome skill that can take you places. It could be the perfect opportunity for your next leap.
3. Freelance Writing Online is Easy to Start
When it comes to getting a business up and running from scratch, freelance writing can be a lot easier than many other types.
In fact, you don’t need much of anything to get started.
Ideally, you want to get a freelance portfolio website up and running. That can cost you less than $100 bucks, but if you’re trying to save funds, you can showcase your writing on sites like LinkedIn and Medium at no cost to you.
With freelance writing, you don’t need a ton of training or time. You can decide right now to start writing and just do it.
The two most important things?
And taking a lot of consistent action marketing yourself.
If you can spare a couple of hours of dedicated time each week, it doesn’t take very long to get up and running. As with anything, the more you write, the better a writer you’ll be, which can be a huge boost to your career.
4. You Don’t Need Technical Skills to Start Writing
A really common concern we hear from potential new members is they don’t know how to code, so how can they start an online business?
Here’s the truth, most people have no idea how to code.
Lucky for us, freelance writing requires zero coding knowledge, especially at the start. Even if you’re trying to get your website up and running, the vast majority of WordPress themes are just going to be plug-and-play. That means you don’t have to do anything to get started.
Plus, we show you how to decide which host is the best for you and step by step how to set up a site right here.
With freelance writing, there isn’t the steep learning curve that you’ll find with a lot of other businesses like web design or vlogging.
Pretty much all you need to do is start typing!
5. Freelance Writing is the Remote Business
Take a two-month sabbatical?
Pretty hard to do this with your typical 9-5 job.
But as a freelance writer, you can.
And now that remote work is way more common; it’s even easier to start.
As long as you have a laptop or even a tablet or smartphone, you can write. Which means you can write from anywhere at any time — just make sure you’ve got some good WiFi.
For many, who dream of the idea of living anywhere they want or working while traveling the world, freelance writing presents the perfect opportunity to finally start checking off some of the items on your bucket list.
And, if you just want to work from home, be around your kids more, and take a couple more vacations a year? Well, freelance writing can help you do that too.
6. You Can Make a Real Living
All those stories on the news about the gig economy always seem to focus on the people making pennies to write for content mills.
Ignore that.
The truth is, with consistent effort, working smart, and a little bit of luck, you can make a real living being a freelance writer. We’re talking $4-5k a month, and even more, without having to spend 50 hours a week slogging away trying to churn out content.
One way to do it?
Let me tell you. There’s a lot of money sitting out there in boring industries waiting for writers to grab it.
Copywriting is another great path towards making real money as a freelance writer.
And check out our posts from LRA members who are making good money in cool niches. Austin is a medical writer, and Jamie is a technical writer.
On top of that, freelance writing is a popular choice because you start bringing in money relatively quickly. In the LR forums, we’ve had tons of members land their first client within a month of joining.
Don’t think it’s possible? Take a look at our favorite job boards and over 100 other places to find online writing jobs.
7. You Can Control Your Life
For many, one of the biggest knocks against an office job is the lack of control. You have to sit at your desk all day, take a vacation on a set schedule, and work on the projects assigned to you.
If you crave a bit more freedom, freelance writing might be the answer. With this type of career, you can control how you want to work when you work and the type of work you want to do.
You’re not as dependent on as many outside forces, like website traffic, to ensure your business keeps rolling. If you need more work, then you can ramp up your marketing and try to find new clients, and if you want to slow down, you can schedule time off too.
Having that little bit of extra wiggle room in life can mean a lot to people, which is a big reason why freelancing, in general, is becoming increasingly popular.
Want More Benefits to Freelance Writing?
Watch the video at the top of the post for even more benefits to building a freelance writing business.
Thinking about freelance writing online? Check out our free starter guide.
Sean Ogle
Sean Ogle is the Founder of Location Rebel where he has spent the last 12+ years teaching people how to build online businesses that give them the freedom to do more of the things they like to do in life. When he's not in the coffee shops of Portland, or the beaches of Bali, he's probably sneaking into some other high-class establishment where he most certainly doesn't belong.Join over 40,000 people who have taken our 6 part freelance writing course. Sign up below and let’s do this together.
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