In this day and age, professionals are starting to value the importance of a work-from-home lifestyle that revolves around technology and it’s capacity to stay connected from anywhere at any time. Having the opportunity to avoid time-wasters such as rush hour traffic or long commute hours gives individuals the freedom to use their newly gained time not only for doing the activities they enjoy but also for picking up an extra source of income. [Read more…]
What is This Patch Thing?
If you’ve been searching for freelance writing or editing jobs online lately, then you’ve undoubtedly come across job postings for Patch.com. I did some digging to get the details about Patch.com, so Freelance Writing Gigs readers would know what it’s all about before you decide to apply (or decide to ignore those jobs). Following is what I’ve been able to learn from my research.
Patch.com is owned by AOL and was launched in February 2009 as a way to deliver local news. AOL hopes to build the site to 500 local news sites, but currently, there are only about 50 local sites. Each site is targeted at a town with fewer than 70,000 people. A separate site, Patch.org, was created to cater to under-served, smaller towns. AOL makes money by selling ad space on each local site and a team of advertising sales representatives helps to sell that ad space to local and national advertisers.
Each local site is run by an editor (these are the jobs you’ve been seeing listed online lately). That editor is paid approximately $35,000-$40,000 per year to work full-time (although the hours are undoubtedly far more than 40-per week) and manage all aspects of their local site. The site editor also gets a budget of about $35,000-$40,000 to hire local freelancers to supplement the content on the local site. Typically, a local site employs 6-10 freelance contributors.
Local sites are grouped together in groups of 12 called clusters, which are led by a regional editor (you may have seen some of those jobs online, too) and a regional advertising manager. Usually 12-24 advertising salespeople are assigned to a cluster.
Two clusters grouped together are called a block and all blocks are led by one of four editorial directors and four sales directors. Those directors report to the Patch executives in the headquarters office.
Content is entered into the local Patch sites using a single content management system. Recently, Patch entered into an agreement with 13 journalism schools to form Patch U which will enable students to work with local Patch editors (sometimes more than one student will be assigned to a single local Patch site) to create more content. Patch.com claims that it’s looking for young, enthusiastic local editors such as professionals who have only been out of journalism school for a short time but have the skills and desire to be successful in online publishing and local news.
According to Patch.com editor job postings, the company is looking for the following skills:
- Local Editors: 2+ years of local journalism experience as well as a degree in journalism
- Regional Editors: 4-5 years of management experience and several years of journalism experience
So if the above findings are all accurate, it would seem that the Patch editor job is a legitimate opportunity that will enable you to make more guaranteed money than content sites like Examiner.com might provide. However, it’s a big commitment. On the flip side, you can put “AOL” on your list of clients and in your portfolio, and undoubtedly, Patch.com content will be well-SEO’d to drive traffic and potential links from bigger-named sites.
A full list of open jobs can be found here. If you apply, just be sure to get all the details about requirements and payment before you accept a position. This is still fairly uncharted territory for freelance writers, so proceed with caution. If you do take an editor position with Patch, leave a comment and share your experience!
Image: stock.xchng
Work from Home for Yahoo! as Local Chicago Editor
Earlier this week, I asked Freelance Writing Jobs readers if they want to see some editing job listings on the site, and the answer was yes, yes, yes! Therefore, I’m sharing what looks like a good one. It’s a work from home position as a local Chicago editor for Yahoo!. I do think it’s a full-time position rather than freelance, but since it’s a telecommuting job, I thought many readers here at Freelance Writing Jobs might be interested. Feel free to skip it if it’s not for you.
The main job description says:
“Yahoo! is looking for an expert online editor to raise the level of our content served to the citizens of Chicago. The ideal candidate will be a seasoned editor with a passion for news, new media, and their local market. He or she will synthesize content from a number of sources and publishers into a relevant, addictive offering for residents. You should be flexible, quick-thinking, energetic, efficient, and able to work independently under pressure while maintaining attention to detail. Real-world journalistic experience managing digital news on deadline is a must.”
You can get all the details, skills requirements, and application instructions on the Yahoo! Careers site.
Good luck!