Different Ways to Create Content

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It doesn’t take rocket science to realize content is what blogs need to survive, succeed and even profit. In most circumstances blogs require a constant flow of quality content.

There have been many would-be-bloggers who’ve thrown up a website with a handful of pages filled with pillar content and leave it at that. Then they move on to the next blog. That kind of blog model can work if you stay within micro niche topics where there is very little competition.

However, if you prefer to build a blog and keep adding content – you will want to consider your options for gathering and creating that content. I’m going to list several ways for you to consider. This isn’t a comprehensive list by any means – and is purely off the top of my head.

Write It Yourself

This is the hardest and most time consuming way to create content – but it is the way that is most rewarding. If you know your topic well, you should be able to write about it with authority and ease. The advantage of writing the article yourself is the article is unique and you control the quality. The disadvantage is it can be time consuming.

Hire Someone

If you can’t write yourself or you don’t have the time, you can always hire someone. How you pay them is up to you. Some sites hire full time salary writers while some pay per article. There are many sites that don’t pay at all but the writer gets name notoriety, a place to write without the technical backend concerns and sometimes they get perks and product for their writing. However you do it, make sure there is a contract between you and your writers stating whom the articles belong to should they leave. This can help avoid sticky situations later on.

Recruit Guest Writers

A good source of content can come directly from your readers. Everyone wants their 15 minutes of frame and having an article on their favorite site is one way of doing it. The main problem with reader submitted articles is quality. If you accept guest articles you will want to make sure to specify ownership in your terms of service and in some sort of mutual agreement. It’s not always a good idea to “cross that bridge when you come to it.”

Trade Posts

I have been known to trade an article with another writer. We select older posts from each other’s collection. To our readers, the old article is new. The advantage of this option versus using free article services is you won’t likely encounter the issue of duplication penalty. Because the article is older, you can do a little minor tweaking to bring the article up-to-date, but that requires much less work.

Republish Old Articles

Republishing of older articles is a nice and easy way to create new content. Again, you may want to do some minor rewrites to bring the articles up-to-date.

Use RSS

There are tons of blogs that are developed using nothing but RSS feeds. This is the lazy way out and one method I would not personally recommend if you plan to make a valued name for yourself. Using RSS as filler content is not so bad if used minimally – but you certainly won’t want it being your main content.

Private Label Articles

Known as Private Label Rights, PLR articles are a new twist on content building. PLR articles allow users a quick way to get up a content site really quick and cheap. Private label articles are special type of right or license which you purchase where you are legally allowed to edit and publish the article as your own. In some cases you can even include your own name as the author and your own resource box at the end of each article. You can purchase these articles for pennies.

The real issue with PLR is quality. Most of the articles are garbage that will require a great deal of editing. Another problem is duplication, which I mentioned above. You aren’t the only person to use those articles. The more these articles are used, the more diluted they become. If you choose to use PLR, you really should rewrite them considerably to avoid this problem. However, if you’re going to invest that much time in editing, you might as well create your own to begin with.

Free Article Services

As you may have guessed, free articles are an option. However, when using these articles, you will most likely be required to keep the authors credentials in place and won’t be allowed to do any edits. This in essence will create an overused, highly diluted content system.

If you can avoid free articles, I would. NOT recommended at all.

What are some methods you use or recommend when creating content?

Multiple Niche Sites versus One Large Site

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I’ve seen it happen numerous times – in fact, I’m guilty of catching blogging fever myself. When someone catches the fever, they are faced with the urge to setup multiple blogs covering a variety of niche topics that are of interest to them. Early in my blogging career I had and was attempting to maintain 13 blogs. That’s right THIRTEEN!

Let me just say it didn’t take long for me to find that was Impossible!

Recently I had a discussion with a friend of mine who would like to begin earning money blogging and would like to start off earning with Google Adsense then expand from there into the more niche affiliates.

My friend asked me how I am personally able to begin a new site and have it make money from the first day when so many other bloggers have set up 10, 20 or more blogs and make peanuts at best.

Where these folks are going wrong is they are spreading their writing much too thin!

Here are a few thoughts you can chew on while pondering those many topics you’d like to begin writing on.

Just because you create a blog does NOT mean readers will come!

The key to earning with Google Adsense is to not have a collection of blogs. The key to earning is all about getting traffic. Without traffic, a blog makes nothing. Over time, you can get a general idea of how much you can earn per 1,000 readers or so. You can have 1 to 50 blogs, but if you don’t have readers and if no one visits you’re not going to make money.

How To Build Traffic

It seems fairly common sense for some, but the best way to get traffic to a new blog is to have other blogs within your niche write about your blog and link back to you.

Make a plan and devote a few days to emailing as many niche based sites as you can find – ask them if they would share a news plug with their readers. You’ll find many bloggers are very willing to share news with their readers. It creates good blog karma!

Regardless of your niche, there are blogs that offer news coverage on that topic. It’s YOUR job to find them and add them to your reader list.

Once you have compiled your list, you will have a valuable tool to assist in directing traffic your direction.

NOTE: Not everyone you email will be overly friendly and willing to share, so don’t get discouraged – just move on to plan B – Content!

Unique Content Is a Must

As tempting as it might be, don’t give in to the urge to use “free article services”.  These articles are available for anyone and everyone to use. The chances of getting a free article mentioned by a fellow blogger are slim to none. Most articles on the free services aren’t of much value anyway. Many successful writers are committed to supplying their readers’ valuable, up-to-date information. Before you ask them to plug you, make sure your content is if equal quality.

Having sites linking to you is paramount in getting Google’s attention. While no one really knows the precise formula for higher Google Page Ranks, it is know that “page rank” is primarily determined by how many sites in your field are linking to you. Get enough inbound links and Google will index your entire site which is a very good thing to have happen.

You Must, I Repeat, MUST Like Your Topic

Creating a money making site takes a lot of work and dedication.

There is no real easy way around it! In order to get your news posted by news sites, you simply cannot use free, overused articles. Because you will have to generate your own unique content, you will want to write about something you’re passionate about.  Many successful bloggers have said that even if they didn’t make money with their topic, they’d still write about it simply because it’s a genuine hobby to them.

Take Away Message:

Explore your passions, start a blog and write about it.

Find the similar blogs that cover your niche, build an email list and send out the news release. That will help build traffic and traffic IS what will make you money.

Create Content With Timeless Appeal

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If you’ve continued reading to this point, you’ve likely taken the time to evaluate the “standard guidelines” and feel you have what it takes to blog.

While you take some time to develop your blog for appearance sake, you’ll want to begin thinking about your initial content. I personally recommend you put some thought into creating timeless content that will serve as your pillar posts.

Even if you select news-related topics, you can create timeless pieces that means the content you create will be useful today, tomorrow, a year from now and quite possibly 5 years from now.

Blogs that are focused on news or current events tend to die as soon as the articles stop coming on a consistent basis – so keep that in mind when selecting your topic. However, if you somehow create timeless content, people will be reading your blog for months and even years after you stop writing as long as the content has some value.

For the sake of conversation – what are some ways you might get ideas for creating that timeless content?

Three Bags of Gold

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Three Bags of Gold

Some of us played a game on long bus rides.  We called it “Three Bags of Gold”.  It wasn’t much of a game.  It was primarily an opportunity to concoct horrific, stomach-churning, soulless scenarios and to half-heartedly consider them in the context of our greed and morality.  It was like a hypothetical version of Fear Factor with ethical elements.

Someone would yell out a test.  “Would you cut off your little finger, grill it and eat it for three bags of gold?”  We’d iron out the details.  How would the amputation occur?  Would there be immediate medical treatment for the lost finger prior to the barbecue?  Could we season our severed digit when it was time to dine?  Right hand or left?  We discussed the current market price of gold and the size of the bags at great length again and again.

The scenarios weren’t always gross-out exercises.  “Would you frame a friend for a crime that would result in his imprisonment for three bags of gold?”  “Would you ‘pull the plug’ on a stranger who had requested to stay on life support for three bags of gold?”  Under what situations would our morality bend in the face of three bags of gold?  When would we finally lie, cheat or steal?  Why?

We’d respond to the scenarios with a collective, reactive “no”.  As the conversation progressed, someone might admit a willingness to engage in whatever twisted behavior under consideration.

It was all a silly diversion designed to kill time on empty stretches of interstate with open conversation and jokes.  We didn’t take it very seriously, though we sometimes learned a bit about one another.  Sometimes those lessons made folks a little less attractive.

Going Pro

I hadn’t thought about Three Bags of Gold for nearly twenty years.  Yesterday, I realized that I was playing the game professionally now.

The email included a job offer.  The client needed a variety of materials to assist in the marketing of Product X.  He was willing to pay a fair rate.

The problem?  I don’t like Product X.  I don’t particularly like it in principle and I certainly don’t like it in practice.  Product X isn’t dangerous and it isn’t obviously immoral.  I just happen to believe that the world would be marginally better off if it and its competitors didn’t exist.

“Would you write copy for Product X for three bags of gold?”

I said it aloud as I considered the offer.

Then, I found myself thinking about the size of the bags and just how much that gold was worth to me right now.

Would I compromise my personal integrity for a check?  Would the number of zeroes on the check influence my thinking?  How should I weigh the value of that gold to my cash-strapped family against contributing to the potential success of something I dislike and wish would disappear?  Would I be able to create compelling words in favor of Product X, considering my disposition toward it?

When you’re in your early twenties cruising down an empty highway late at night, Three Bags of Gold is all theoretical.  No one has a knife and a portable barbecue grill waiting for your left pinky.  No one has three bags of gold.

Now, the gold is real.  It pays for electricity, cars, daycare, shoes for the kids, food for the fridge and laundry soap.  The gold even makes payments on the student loans that financed Three Bags of Gold in the old days.

And the decisions are real.  We all face them.  We all make them.

Responsibilities

“Would you write an anti-Semitic screed for three bags of gold?”
“Would you write copy for a crappy product for three bags of gold?”
“Would you write a political essay contrary to your personal beliefs for three bags of gold?”

Would your current bank account balance guide your decision?  Would necessity force compromise?  Would greed flex your morality?

These questions matter.

I believe that we are responsible for our words.  Even if the contractual terms of a ghostwriting project relieve us of legal liability for our efforts, we are creating something that has the potential for impact and we carry with us some level of responsibility for any outcomes it generates.  We’re also responsible to our clients.  And to our readers.  And to ourselves.  And to the profession.  I tend to believe that writers have a somewhat elevated responsibilities to use their gifts for the betterment of the world.  Maybe that sounds hokey to you, but I believe it.

That’s a heap of responsibilities and they don’t always match up nicely.  When they compete and cause dissonance, either we walk away or we compromise in some way.  Compromise is all but inevitable in so many cases.

Sometimes, we just say, “screw it”.  We take the three bags of gold.

Are Your Hands Clean?

My hands aren’t clean.  I’ve written half-assed pieces of web content in order score a quick buck even though I don’t embrace the idea of filling the world with half-assed web content.  I’ve written sales copy for things that probably didn’t impress too many buyers, if you know what I mean.  I’ve made furniture sales seem like the second coming of Christ.

I can rationalize those transgressions.  We needed the money.  I’m not responsible for what people do, I’m just imparting information.  If I didn’t do it, someone else would.  Who am I to decide what’s valuable and what’s useless or to draw lines separating good from bad?  This is how the world works.  No one can advance through life in a market-based economy without compromise.  Etc.

In the end, those rationalizations don’t really mitigate my irresponsibility.

I’ve chopped off my finger.  I’ve betrayed my friend.  I’ve pulled the plug.  I took the gold and ran.

I bet you’ve done it, too.  Maybe you’ve stayed pure in ways that I haven’t, but you’ve compromised your responsibilities.  You’ve done something short of your best work.  You’ve pandered to an audience, to a client, or to your own writing vanity.  You’ve made your deals with devils, even if your devils are incredibly cute and small.

If you haven’t, I bet you will.  Someday.

You’ll get that call about a project you don’t really love.  It will come shortly after the water heater goes bad or on the heels of a medical bill.  It will come a week before your daughter’s sixteenth birthday or right when your son’s tuition payment is due.  The three bags of gold will be large enough to break a mule’s back and you’ll find yourself accepting the offer.

You’ll hold your breath while you peddle the snake oil or while you make the not-so-bright subject of a press release into an eminent expert in her field.  You’ll crank through an article at Mach III, knowing that you’re not providing readers with enough meat for their information sandwich or you’ll realize that the client for whom you’re working doesn’t have the world’s best interests at heart.

Rationalization, Blissful Ignorance or Discomfort?  Choose.

Three Bags of Gold isn’t funny when it’s real.  The easiest way to handle the game is to pretend as if you’re not playing.  Don’t think too hard.  Keep yourself on the right side of the “morally reprehensible” line and don’t sweat the stuff that isn’t really obnoxious.  Just keep on truckin’ and try to make up for the sell-outs with acts of kindness, confession and penance.  Whatever gets you through the night, right?

The alternative is scary.

And that’s where I am right now.  I’m tired of playing and I’m looking for a way out that can serve all of my responsibilities and that can be consistent with my worldview without all of that uncomfortable compromise.  When I take the three bags of gold, I want to do it with plenty of pride and without even the slightest shred of regret.

This is all proof that ignorance is bliss, of course.  Life is easier when you don’t realize the back stories of those with whom you’re working or the repercussions of your actions.  Three Bags of Gold is an easy game when you don’t have a conscience, but it’s almost as easy if you’ve found a way to keep your head in the sand.

Writers, however, tend to be aware.  We see through things.  We dig, research and think.  That’s what allows us to do remarkable things.  Ignorance isn’t an option.

We play Three Bags of Gold and eventually we realize it.

Wanna Play?

Let’s play a round right here, right now.

What would you do for three bags of gold?
What would you refuse to do for three bags of gold?

And let’s create a little opportunity to come clean, while we’re at it.

What compromises have you made?  What responsibilities have you ducked?  How did you justify it at the time and how do you feel about it now?

I’d love to see some answers.

Should You Become a Blogger?

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I know FWJ has covered a great deal of ground since it began, but for the sake of not missing a step, I’d like to start at the beginning for those who may be new and perhaps bring something new to the table for those who have been around for a while.

As I stated in my initial introduction post, this blog is all about you! If there’s something in particular you’d like us to focus on, please don’t hesitate to drop me an email or leave a suggestion in the comments section.

Thanks to the advancements of social media – most people know what a “blog” is. For the sake of discussion we’ll jump back to the very definition and move forward.

How does that sound?

What is a Blog?

Blog a slang term derived from the words web log. Blogs quickly became one of the most widespread, quick growing, trends on the internet. More and more websites are starting their own blogs or even converting their existing websites to blogs. Blogs are often used to deliver fresh content, promote products, or just about anything you can think of.

Since blogging began, there have been a handful of types that have emerged:

  • Personal bloggers – Without doubt, personal blogs are the most popular. The writer posts journal-like entries on a variety of topics. Many cover politics, daily-life, sports, fashion, news events, etc. These blogs have no point really other than being a form of entertainment for the writer. This seems to be a great medium for “Mommy Bloggers” to feel as though they have a social life too!
  • Business bloggers – With the explosion of social media, businesses have begun using blogs to promote their products or services. Businesses have learned to use blogs as informational resources that add value for their readers rather than using a blog to post in-your-face advertising. Overtly promotional blogs are of little interest to those reading. Strategic uses of a blog in your business can definitely increase sales and enhance the experience of your customers.
  • Organizational bloggers – These bloggers use blogs to communicate with groups of people. Whether the group is a church, school, employees or charitable organization, this can be an excellent way to communicate.

Communication is the key to all human relations and a blog provides an excellent means to do just that. Whether it has to do with the latest news or trends, or just talking about the latest happenings of Hollywood celebrities, a blog is an excellent way to bring communication and information to everyone. And if you can educate and entertain, you’ll likely develop quite a following.

Now you want to know…

Should you blog?

Anyone can blog, but not everyone has what it takes to make it worth your time.

Standard guidelines that may help in determining whether have what it takes to blog:

  • You have a strong interest in a particular topic and could easily speak on the topic regularly and with the public.
  • You have the time and drive to update your blog regularly. Nobody wants to read a blog that is updated once a month.
  • You run a site which promotes your business and desire a means to communicate with your clients.
  • You can handle feedback – the good, the bad and the ugly. Rest assured, at some point, someone will disagree with you.

One of the biggest mistakes a blogger can make is not posting enough. This is something I’ve personally struggled with at times. It’s easy to fall in the trap. However, if you begin a blog I highly recommend you don’t begin posting 2 posts a day if you ultimately wish to post once a week. Whatever you begin with, stick to it.

I won’t lie — a truly successful blog takes a lot of work – and by a lot, I can honestly say there were days I’d invest as much as 10 – 12 hours into my blogging.

Enough preaching – just take special care to post well and post often. You want your readers to return, subscribe, and become engaged – posting regularly will help accomplish that.

5 Rocking Good Business Practices for Freelance Writers

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Being a success as a freelance writer isn’t only about being a good writer. It’s about rocking the customer service and being a good communicator.  When your clients are happy, they’re less likely to argue over pay increases and more likely to refer you to other potential clients.  Here are some tips to help:

5 Rocking Good Business Practices for Freelance Writers

1. Be Flexible:

Good clients are hard to find. I mean, we’ve all had annoying clients and we’ve all had ok clients but model clients are few and far between. Why clients act the way they do is another post for another time, however, it should go without saying that we want our clients to be happy. We especially want our model clients to be happy. This means we have to be a bit flexible.

Being flexible can mean several different things. For instance, we can be flexible with our rates. We don’t want to sell ourselves short but there’s nothing wrong with adjusting our rates to land a desired project or giving a discount on a large project to our good clients.

We can also be flexible with our time now and then by staying up later to talk to an overseas client or meeting a tough deadline.  This isn’t to say we should always give in to difficult clients, but being flexible for our good clients is never a bad thing.

2. Say Thank You:

Do you send thank you notes after job interviews?  I do. Even if I don’t get the gig I think it’s a good practice. It keeps me on the potential client’s radar as being someone who goes the extra mile.Clients and employers are impressed by good manners and may tuck that thank you away for future reference.

Do you send thank you notes to clients after projects are completed? I do. I thank clients for the opportunity. Again, the good manners stand out. I’m not just someone who takes the money and runs. I thank clients for opportunities and I thank potential clients for their consideration. This is the difference between “save” and “delete”.

3. Follow Up:

Ok. So you finished a project. Now what? Send it in and wait for your check? Well, you could do that. Wouldn’t it be a better practice to send a note to your client to follow up? How did he like the project? Was it to his expectations? Were there any issues? Any tweaks?

Chances are, if there were any changes to be your client would have contacted you, but your following up will win points in your favor. Points that can add up to referrals, recommendations and raises.

4. Don’t Ignore Your Email:

If not tended to regularly email can pile up to become the bane of a writers existence. This can be a mistake if a client or potential client’s email is lost in the shuffle. No one likes to feel ignored. If you’re swamped for time, at least send a “I have received your email. I am not able to respond at the moment, but I will look it over in a couple of hours when I have more time to give it the response it deserves.” This lets the client know you did see his email and will respond, even if it’s not right away.

5. Communicate:

Clients like freelancers who can work independently, but they also like to feel as if they’re in control – or at least that they know what’s going on. Many freelancers have successful relationships with their clients because they send them a daily or weekly status report. This lets the client know where the freelancer is with the project, if there have been any problems, and if the client needs to send the freelancer more information or tools.

Your client may not respond at all, but receiving periodic updates will offer reassurance that he has selected a mature, responsible freelancer for his task.

It’s all about respect

These things aren’t rocket science, in most cases they’re good manners and good business. It used to be second nature to treat our clients with respect, and make them feel important. Somehow though, we’re losing a little of this.

It’s not enough to land the client, what will you do to keep your client?

What's Your Specialty?

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If you’re a writer, you have a lot of competition out there, especially if you sell your services on the web. There are thousands upon thousands of writers clamoring for clients, and buyers have a vast choice of which person to choose.

That’s why specialization is important. You can’t just be a writer these days. You have to figure out what type of writing you do best and promote that specialty heavily.

Most buyers aren’t looking for a great writer. They assume that if you market yourself as a writer, that you write well already. Buyers look for writers who perfectly to their needs: the specialist.

Start With the Basics

You’ll need to decide which type of writing you like to do best before determining your specialty. What type of writing do you like to do best? Is it articles for magazines or writing ebooks? Do you itch to improve someone’s website copy, or do you love writing on current events? There are all sorts of areas to choose from, so pick your niche.

What’s Your Expertise?

So you’ve decided that you’re not just a writer, you’re an article writer, or a journalist, or a website content writer. Good job. You’re on your way to specialization – but that isn’t enough to make you stand out just yet.

Narrow it down further. If you’re a magazine writer, which topics are you best at? Do you love travel and tourism or parenting? If you’re an article writer, what type of articles do you write? Are you great with real estate topics or best with gardening subjects? Figure out the expertise you have that makes you the pro in the area of writing you’ve chosen.

Be the Go-To Person

You have your area, you have a niche, now you need to become the go-to specialist for a very specific type of work.

Let’s say you’ve decided that you’re a travel mag article writer. Perfect. But travel is a vague term. What kind of travel and tourism do you specialize in? Is it outdoor adventures? Are you the expert on all things Japanese?

The more you establish exactly what your specialty is and market that to prospective buyers, the better your career will solidify. You’ll become the pro in the know, the writer every thinks of first when they want exactly what you do.

For great info from pro in the know on how to build the best writing business you can have, check out James’ book, the Unlimited Freelancer. You won’t regret it.

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