On The Road With Philip Gegan: Web Content Writing Gigs

Sell Your Writing Online NOW (SYWON) member Philip Gegan continues his On the Road series, and discusses Web content writing gigs.

In earlier articles in this series we’ve discussed several ways of obtaining work, both by going out physically to look for it and by searching online for writing gigs and clients.

But once you’ve done that, and you’re contracted to supply written content, what then? How do you actually produce the material you need? This is a genuine concern for many aspiring writers.

The nature of your client’s business will determine this to a certain extent, but additionally there is an easy way of finding everything you need in order to write as many blog posts as you want. As you’d expect, we start with keyword research.

You really don’t need to spend any money on keyword research tools because Google’s free keyword tool gives you nearly enough information, and many successful writers and marketers use it and nothing else.

Whether you’re writing an article or a blog post, I believe it’s best to focus on just one keyword phrase at a time. Enter this phrase “in quotes” into Google or any other search engine and see what comes up. You have to select each listing in turn that you think will give you information, rather than just a sales page. Do this until you have at least three pages with useful content. Be prepared to check forty or fifty listings if necessary.

You can also use Article Directories such as EzineArticles.com to find information, but be careful not to copy anyone else’s work. I find the most effective way is to read all the useful information I can find relating to the subject I’m writing about, two or three times if necessary, decide what angle I’m going to approach it from and then open up my text program and just type away. Just make sure you have the keyword phrase early in the title and first sentence, and once or twice in the rest of the body.

Often with blog entries you need to write about recent news or developments, so what better way of finding what you want than by searching Google News? If you have to make regular blog posts on the subject then set up a Google Alert and have all the links you need sent to your email box every day. Your client will be amazed at how you keep abreast with what’s going on in his particular market, and the blog will quickly acquire regular readers seeking one place that has the latest information.

Another way of keeping on top of developments in any market is to search on Twitter and Facebook, and see what people are talking about. This can be better than search engine results because it’s literally up to the minute and you can actually find out more, or ask for clarification if necessary, by entering into a conversation with people. This is especially useful if you have a long-term contract with a client to write about a particular topic that you’re not familiar with, because you can quickly and at no cost become very knowledgeable.

As well as using the News feature of Google search, you can try the Blog feature to see what people are blogging about. I’ve done this for a while now, and it is a good way of getting backlinks to your own, or a client’s, blog, as long as you leave useful information or constructive comments, and don’t just spam with “Nice post” type remarks.

One thing I did find, though, with searching blogs, is that there is an awful lot of gibberish posted on blogs by people using “Article Spinners” and not bothering to proof read the output. It hits you unexpectedly. You start reading what looks at first glance like a useful post, and the words themselves make sense, but you then suddenly realize the article is complete nonsense.

It’s easy then to waste time by deciphering what the original, unspun, content was. For example, in the “get your ex back” niche recently, I found “Display him that you can be in his presence without starting drama”, which probably originally read, “Show him that you can be with him without causing trouble”.

And how about “Considering that the complete lot is already presupposed to be good is greater than likely going to contribute to the destruction of your marriage” for “Assuming that everything is bound to be good is more than likely going to contribute to the breakdown of your marriage”?

And so on. The lesson is to keep away from Article Spinners. Personally I consider them to be a serious threat to the integrity of the English language because most people who use them aren’t prepared to spend any time proof-reading and correcting the output.

So there you are. Once you have a few clients you shouldn’t be short of an idea or two in producing articles and blog posts to keep them well pleased with your services.

Now for a bit of cold calling. I feel like getting a couple of new clients out of the blue, preferably from productive industry, and helping them, as well as myself, to a more prosperous 2011. Here’s hoping I have something worthwhile to report about it next time. I wish a prosperous and productive new year to all readers.