The document discusses 5 reasons why blogging is an effective way for freelance writers to grow their business. It outlines 4 specific ways to use blogging: 1) fine-tuning the "hire me" page with a disclaimer about client quality; 2) focusing on search engine exposure through specific, multimedia-rich content; 3) creating case studies that highlight problems, solutions, and results; and 4) writing in-depth "ultimate guides" to generate links, shares, and traffic over time. The strategies aim to attract high-quality, high-paying clients through targeted, practical content that demonstrates expertise.

1. How to Use Blogging
to Fuel Your Freelance
Writing Business
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2. 2
Why Blogging?
As a freelance writer, this is probably the least of all methods you want to hear about?
Why keep on pouring free content into your blog when you can easily charge for it?
Well, don’t be surprised because you’re not alone!
Blogging is Underestimated!
When it comes to getting clients,
blogging is literally nonexistent in the
marketing dictionary of most
freelance professionals.
Or at least, according to the 2011
Freelance Industry Report.
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3. 3
Blogging is Underestimated!
More than 1,200 freelancers were surveyed, and
marketing techniques ranged from Word of Mouth
(at 23%) to Advertising (at 0.8%), but blogging was
nowhere to be found.
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4. 4
Blogging Really Works!
BLOGGING really
works!
*In fact, it has been proven to
be more effective than
traditional advertising!
*According to data from Hubspot (Feb. 12, 2012), it has been observed that blogging is more effective than
Superbowl ads
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5. 5
Blogging Really Works!
This was proven when a company recently invested
In Superbowl ads; ads were purchased in
excess of $54k, and were seen by 2.8 million
viewers.
That exposure only led to an increase in traffic of
11% the day it aired, and no leads at all.
Read that again; NO LEADS!
This is with a company that has grown by 583% in
less than a year, thanks to blogging and other
inbound marketing tactics.
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6. 6
Why Blogging Works
I’ll soon be going into ways to use blogging to grow your freelance writing business,
but I think it’s important to know why it works first.
Here are a few reasons why blogging works
TARGETED PRACTICAL FLEXIBLE SEO-FRIENDLY
Unlike the Superbowl, or How do clients know It could be that Search engines crave
that popular TV you’re to be trusted comprehensive case your blog like a baby
program, not everybody from a one-line ad? study, or the short craves its mother’s milk.
reads your blog. opinion post.
By seeing you in action You write, it is indexed
But the few that do are on your blog, they’ll be No matter what you and ranked.
those who really want able to see, feel, and have in mind, a blog can
what you have to offer. smell what you’re made accommodate it. Of course, you won’t get
of. a million visitors from
It’s better to have 100 the search engines, but
targeted readers than a Deciding to hire you drops of water makes
million irrelevant ones. becomes as easy as it an ocean full.
can be!
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7. 7
Some Noteworthy Examples
As proof that blogging works, I’ll be sharing some real life examples from
freelance writers benefiting from the power of blogging.
“It all happened because I blogged”
Those were the words of veteran freelance writer,
Michelle Rafter, whose work has appeared on Inc.com, Reuters,
CBSMoneyWatch and a lot of other major publications
According to Michelle, publishing her 500th post was the turning
point.
In her own words:
“Sometime in June 2010, I pushed the “Publish” button on the 500th
post on my blog.
“Those 500 blog posts changed my life – by helping me reinvent my
career. In two and a half years, I went from stay at home mom to
full-time journalist and blogger making a lot more money than I
ever did as a staff writer at a major daily newspaper.”
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8. 8
Some Noteworthy Examples
Writing made her more “marketable”
Also on how blogging helped her land freelance writing gigs, here’s what Michelle Rafter
has to say:
“By teaching myself to blog, I made myself more marketable by showing perspective
clients that in addition to writing news, features and columns, I was proficient in another
writing form, no small matter as more publications add contributor-written blogs.
“By using the blog to showcase my resume, bio and clips, I landed one of the biggest
freelance gig of my career, a contract to edit a corporate finance website for American
Express that launched in spring 2010. I later learned that prior to contacting me, the
website’s project managers vetted me by reviewing my work experience on my blog and
in my LinkedIn profile.”
Michelle is one of the very few freelance writers making a big impact thanks to blogging,
and you can check out her blog at MichelleRafter.com to learn how she does
it!
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9. 9
Some Noteworthy Examples
Mid 5-Figures in 2011
The next example is my own, Bamidele Onibalusi,
personal example .
In 2011 alone I was able to make mid 5-figures in
overall freelance writing income thanks to blogging.
To be more specific, that is a little over $50,000. Just
a year after starting as a freelance writer, and with
my only source of clients being my blog.
I didn’t send a single pitch, I made no cold calls, and
I worked at my own terms.
That’s just how powerful blogging is!
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10. 10
The Reality
The reality is that less than 10% of the
entire freelance writing population
makes 90% of the income.
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11. 11
The Reality
Being a Great Writer Isn’t Enough
In fact, getting clients isn’t enough; you have to
know how to get clients to come to you.
The difference between a successful freelance
writer and a struggling one is that the successful
freelance writer gets client requests even when
he sleeps, thanks to the work he already has in
place, while a struggling one hardly gets by
bidding for the same job as dozens of others on
freelancing portals.
The difference is control; and blogging brings that
control.
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12. 12
Grow Your Freelance Income by Blogging
Here are 4 main ways I use blogging to generate clients for my freelance writing business, that you can also start
using today!
Creating the Perfect Hire Me Page
1 I’ll be sharing a few tips on how to create the perfect hire me page, that
not only sends the right clients your way, but actually scares the peanut spenders.
Maximize your blog’s search engine exposure
2 According to Nielson Net Ratings, around 90% of overall web traffic is
from search engines. Learn how to use this to your advantage!
How to Use Case Studies to Drive More Clients
3 Case studies never fail to deliver, and I’ll explain how to leverage them
to grow your client database.
Another kind of post that always works
4 Aside from case studies, I’ll be sharing another kind of post can you write on
your blog that will bring in clients years after you wrote it.
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13. 13
Creating the Perfect Hire Me Page
Have a Simple “Disclaimer”
The simple tip that can help you get more
High quality clients is to have a disclaimer.
I actually experimented with this and the
result was phenomenal.
The hire me page I just put up was resulting
in around 20 clients requests every month,
but I wasn’t able to work with any of them.
MOST were crappy offers!
I decided to take action by putting a little
disclaimer below my hire me page, and the
results has since then been stunning.
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14. 14
My Hire Me Page in Action
How My Hire Me Page is Converting Since Making this Change
Ever since putting up the disclaimer on my hire me page, conversions reduced to around
1%, but I’ve ended up working with almost every client that contacted me since then.
In fact, the majority of my clients pay half of my fees before I start, and I even got a client
pay in whole before I started; and these aren’t just any clients, they are clients paying
more than the market rate for my work.
That’s pretty impressive for someone contacting me for the first time, and it goes to prove
the power of simple changes.
Here’s the disclaimer exactly as it is on my hire me page:
“I’m pretty selective about who I work with, so only contact me if you want results from
your business. If you’re on a very low budget, or are looking for ways to manage your
budget, I’m probably not the best fit for you.”
You can see my hire me page in action at http://www.youngprepro.com/services
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15. 15
Search Engines
According to Nielson Net Ratings, around
90% of overall internet traffic is generated
by search engines.
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16. 16
Maximize Your Blog’s Search Engine Exposure
In other words, the best way to be found online is by positioning
your blog to be better ranked in the search engines.
Also, on a personal level, traffic from search engines contribute to around 60% of my
freelance writing income, and that’s several tens of thousands of dollars yearly.
In a nutshell; if you really want to take your freelance writing to the next level, don’t
underestimate the power of optimizing your blog for the search engines.
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17. 17
SEO Tips for Freelance Writers
Here are a few ways to supercharge your SEO; these tips work irrespective of how big or
small your blog is.
01. Be Specific 02. Headlines...
Be specific. ...are important.
You’ll be ranked higher if your blog Let your headline contain your
focuses on just one topic, than if main keyword, and make it as
you try to write on all. appealing as possible.
03. Use Multimedia 04. Guest Blog...
You’re a writer, but a picture ...for authority blogs in relevant
speaks a thousand words. niches.
Occasionally use *pictures and You won’t only get traffic, but
videos to convey your message. also links that help your rankings
*Tag pictures you use on your blog with keywords you plan to rank for; aside from this increasing your chances of
ranking higher, you’ll also get traffic from image search engines.
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18. 18
Use Case Studies
Case studies can be very effective in getting
clients. Good case studies are not only shared
and linked to, but actually demonstrate your
expertise to potential clients; increasing your
chances of getting hired on the spot.
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19. 19
Use Case Studies
What a powerful case study is made up of:
Problem
What common problem were
you or a client facing?
Approach/Solution
How did you approach solving
this problem, and how is your
approach unique from that of
others?
Results
What are your results? And
why should people pay
attention to them
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20. 20
Use Case Studies
Once your case study has been published, make sure
you include a small note below it telling potential
clients that you are available to help them transform
their business in the same way.
Also, make sure you leave subtle hints in the case
study article telling people to hire you.
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21. 21
Another Kind of Blog Post that Works
Here’s another kind of article that works for getting clients
The “Ultimate Guide”
The idea is to write the ultimate guide on a
subject you’re qualified to teach, and that
you want clients to hire you on.
I’m not talking about 900 words articles,
but extensive 3,000 – 4,000 words articles
with videos, graphs, and examples on a
subject.
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22. 22
Another Kind of Blog Post that Works
Writing the ultimate guide on a subject you’re qualified to
talk about will get you links, traffic, and social media shares.
These will lead to better search engine rankings, and
eventually more traffic.
Clients will then come as a result of these.
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23. 23
Another Kind of Blog Post that Works
EXAMPLES
To get a better idea of what an “ultimate guide” entails, here
are links to two powerful representations of a good “ultimate
guide”.
http://www.youngprepro.com/guest-blogging-guide/
http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/the-backlinking-
strategy-that-works/
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24. 24
Getting Results
Here are a few ways to get results from your “ultimate guide”
Link liberally: To top bloggers, and notify them to spread the word when
1 your post is live.
Mention your services: Hint it a few times in the post without diluting it’s
2 value, and dedicate a paragraph to it below the post.
Build links: Go out there, get some quality backlinks, and wait to reap the
3 reward in time.
Don’t stop: Test your content, make a few changes and observe how traffic
4 grows, and how many more clients contact you.
Keep making changes till you’re satisfied with your results.
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25. SUMMARY
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26. 26
Presentation Summary
5 Reasons to Start Blogging to Grow Your
Freelancing Business
1. It has been proven to be effective
2. It is highly targeted, and as a result increases your
chances of getting hired
3. It is practical, and shows clients exactly what
you’re capable of
4. It is flexible; you have as much space to determine
your content and emphasize your message
5. It is search-engine friendly
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27. 27
Presentation Summary
4 Ways to Use Blogging to Grow Your Freelance
Writing Business
1. Fine tune your “hire me” page
Introduce a disclaimer stating you only want high-quality, high-budget clients
Stop trying to get every client; only focus on getting the few that matter
2. Focus on Increasing Search Engine Exposure
Be specific
Use multimedia
Write compelling, keyword-rich headlines
Write guest posts to build overall blog authority, and quality links
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28. 28
Presentation Summary
4 Ways to Use Blogging to Grow Your Freelance
Writing Business
3. Create great case studies and pitch your service
Highlight a common problem in the industry you’re targeting (yours or your client’s)
Explain your approach towards solving that problem
Show the results you got
Pitch your services and encourage people to hire you for similar results
4. Write “Ultimate Guides” that get shared and linked to
Link liberally to top bloggers and ask them to spread the word
Promote your services; subtly in the article, and directly below the article
Build backlinks to your “ultimate guide” via guest blogging and other means
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29. 29
Take A Step Further
A Slide Can Only Take so Much
There’s only so much this slide can take, and as a
result I’ve prepared a special report for you
explaining my process towards using my blog to
fuel my freelance writing business.
In a short report titled “How to Build a Solid
Freelance Writing Business with Just a Blog”, I’ll
be going into more details on how to leverage
your blog to grow your freelance writing
business.
You will also get access to my special newsletter
for freelance writers.
DOWNLOAD NOW AT:
HTTP://WWW.YOUNGPREPRO.COM/BLOGGING-FREELANCE
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