5 Steps To Becoming A Great Paid Online Writer

So, if you're looking at everything that's happening in the world and thinking it's time for a change in your own life. The time to make your move is now! But if you're not sure where to start, or you tend to hesitate. Let me simplify it all with a quick guide to getting your start as a paid writer. Really, all it takes is five steps:

Step 1: Pick an area of interest and research it.

It can be something you enjoy doing like a hobby, something you're learning about, or something you have experience in from your current or past career. Don't overthink it … you can always change your mind!

Join communities in that niche and immerse yourself in the content and conversations. Observe, participate, and get curious.

You can also sign up for e-letters. Read through websites. And gather any free content you can find.

Looking to go big? Buy something! You'll get loads more pieces of copy and content to study aimed at a different audience (i.e. buyers!).

Step 2: Next, choose a writing specialty.

The fastest way to make money as a writer is to choose something you already consume on a regular basis AND something that's easy to learn. So, you can start offering your services fast. Projects like blogs, emails, and newsletters are good examples.

Step 3: Start learning. And writing!

As legendary copywriter Bob Bly would say, for the pro, school is never out. Commit to learning, every single day. This blog is jam packed with articles on how to write almost anything. You can continue to read for free. 

Read what others in your space are writing. Look at copy that interests you … try to figure out why you like it, and copy it. Literally! Write it down, word-for-word. Not to pass off as your own, of course, but as a simple and powerful learning exercise. And then write something new yourself, each and every day. Don't know what to write?

Start a blog on a topic you're passionate about and make it part of your daily routine.

Do the assignments given in each AWAI program, and keep reworking them.

Compare what you write to what's out there and see how you can make it better.

If you're in Circle of Success or taking a Certification, participate in the bonus labs and work on creating strong samples for your portfolio.

Remember, your writing WILL get better — and you will get faster! You just have to keep flexing and fine tuning.

Step 4: Invest in yourself.

No professional ever made it anywhere without investing in an education. Accountants, lawyers, doctors — they spend hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Fortunately, you don't have to invest that much (and you can get paid while you learn!).

This self-study blog where others start at a few hundred dollars, and give you skills, experience, confidence, and help getting clients.

Step 5: Reach out to clients.

This is the final step, When you feel ready, approach one of the companies or clients you started following in step one.

Use the "I have an idea/suggestion" strategy "Company, I love how your (blog/newsletter/email/etc.) does A, B, and C. But I have three ideas that I think would improve the response."

This site has free articles, training programs, and challenges like Ilise Benun's Guaranteed LinkedIn System that will make this often-feared step painless … and, dare I say it, FUN!

We show you what clients expect, the right ways to make contact, how to deal with them, what to charge for your work — even how to get your first client with zero experience.

That's pretty much it! You have everything you need at your fingertips to have a full-fledged, six- or even seven-figure writing business. Our resources, our experts, our access — it's all you need.

How To Write An Online Advert That Sells Part 2

Read Part 1 Here.

 Mentally picture your prospect -determine his wants and emotional needs -put yourself in his shoes, and ask yourself: If I were reading this ad, what are the things that would appeal to me?

Write your copy to appeal to your reader's wants, emotional needs and ego cravings!

Remember, it's not the "safety features" that have sold fine cars for the past 50 years -nor has it been the need of transportation.

 It has been, and almost certainly always will be the advertising writer's recognition of people's wants and emotional/ego needs/cravings.

Visualize your prospect, recognize his wants and satisfy them. Then Stand and Deliver on your promise, with a sweet, unadvertised bonus bundle!

Writing good advertising copy is nothing more or less than knowing "who" your buyers are; recognizing what he wants; and then telling him how your product will fulfill each of those wants.

“I can define copy writing in two words: applied psychology.”- Alex Mandossian

The "desire" portions of your ad is where you present the facts of your product; create and justify your prospect’s conviction, and cause her to demand "a piece of the action" for herself.

It's vitally necessary that you present "proven facts" about your product because survey results show that at least 80% of the people reading your ad -especially those reading it for the first time -will tend to question its authenticity.

 

So, the more facts you can present in the ad, the more credible your offer.

People want “logical facts” to justify emotional surges of instant gratification- as reasons/excuses for buying a product.

It's like the girl who wants to marry the guy her father calls a "no good bum."

Her heart -her emotions- tell her yes, but she needs to nullify the seed of doubt lingering in her mind- to rationalize her decision to go on with the wedding.

In other words, the "desire" portion of your ad has to build belief and credibility in the mind of your prospect.

It has to assure him of his good judgment in the final decision to buy- furnish evidence of the benefits you have promised and afford him a "safety net" in case anyone should question his decision to buy.

People tend to believe the things that appeal to their ego, individual desires, fears and other emotions. 

Once you have established a belief in this manner, logic and reasoning are used to support it.

Your reader "wants" to believe your ad if she has read it through this far-It is up to you to support her initial desire.

Study your product and everything about it- visualize the wants of your prospective buyers- dig up the facts, and you'll almost always find plenty of facts to support the buyer's reasons for buying.

 

Here is where you use results of tests conducted, growing sales figures to prove increasing popularity, and "user" testimonials or endorsements.

“Just exactly what is it for me?!?”

Draw a mental picture for your potential buyer. Let her imagine owning the product.

Induce her to visualize all of the benefits you have promised.

Give her the keys to seeing herself richer, enjoying luxury, having time to do whatever she would like to do, and with all of her dreams fulfilled.

This can be handled in one or two sentences, or spelled out in a paragraph or more,

 but it is the absolute ingredient you must include prior to closing the sale. 

Study all the enticing sales presentations you have ever heard; look at every winning ad; these are the elements that actually make the sales for you.

Remember them, use them, and don't try to sell anything without them.

Lots of ads are beautiful, almost perfectly written, and quite convincing- yet they fail to command action form the reader. 

If you want the reader to have your product, then tell her so and command that she send her money now.

Unless you enjoy spending money on eBay listings, mildly entertaining your prospects with your beautiful writing skills; always command that she complete the sale now, by taking action now- by ordering, visiting your eBay store or Website, etc.

Once you have got her on the hook- land her! Don't let her get away!

Probably, one of the most common and best methods of moving the reader to act now, is written in some form of the following:

­ All of this can be yours!

­ You can start enjoying this new way of life immediately, simply by sending a check for $XX!

­ Don't put it off, then later wish you had gotten in on the ground floor!

­ Make out that check now, and "be IN on the ground floor!"

­ Act now, and as an "early-bird" buyer, we'll include a big bonus package -absolutely free, simply for acting immediately!

­ You win all the way!

­ We take all the risk!

­ If you are not satisfied, simply return the product and we will quickly refund your money!

­ Do it now!

­ Get that check on its way to us today, and receive the big bonus package!

 

­ After next week, we won't be able to include the bonus as a part of this fantastic deal, so act now!

 The sooner you act, The more you win!

All The Best!

3 Traffic Systems, Introduction To Building Traffic Online

When you developed a thumbnail profile for your target market(s)? Picture that person sitting at home... ...relaxing in her easy chair. From here on in, whatever she does, there are only two possibilities...

 
1) She is not looking for your product.

2) She is looking for your product.

Brilliant, eh? Wait, don’t leave me... this obvious split is critical for building
traffic. Let’s assume she’s not looking for what you offer, but that she does need your
product -- that’s why you’ve included her in your thumbnail sketch in the first place!

Maybe she knows she needs it, maybe she doesn’t. That’s not important. Here’s what is important... How do you get your product in front of her eyeballs? Whether you use online or offline methods, you have to ask and answer these kinds of questions...

• Where does she work?

• What does she do for fun?

• What does she read?

• Where and how does she travel?

• From the time she wakes up to the time she goes to bed, whatever she does,

what does she see and hear?

As you develop this “activity log,” you’ll learn that she reads specialized-niche
magazines in the offline world, subscribes to e-zines and visits Websites when
online. 

She travels. Certain radio and TV shows reach her. You have to find those places she visits, the journals she reads, the mailing lists to which she contributes, and then figure out how to get your message in front of her...  in an ethical manner. 

You need to discover the most cost-effective way to get your message in front of the “not-actively-looking-but-receptive” target market.

 
Now let’s assume that she is hunting for exactly what your Widg-O-Matic delivers.
When she looks, she must find you, right? Right!

This volume focuses primarily on “hunting these hunters.” After all, someone who is actively looking for something is going to buy it when she finds it... and we want it to be from you! The non-hunters, even if they could use a

Widg-O-Matic, do not yet have the motivation to look. And if motivation is low, it’s
going to take more time and money to get the sale.

After all, how many times have you seen or heard an ad for a...
... superduper “read faster in 90 days” learn-at-home course? Didn’t
you think, “Boy, that would be great if I could read and retain five times faster?” Did
you do anything about it, though?

Nope!

Today, however, you are looking for a “speed reading” course on the Web. You
enter “speed reading” into browser, and up pops that same company that wasted its
money on the radio ad.

Since you did the looking, you are obviously a motivated, targeted customer. And
“Speed-Reading Is Us, Inc.” has a much better chance to sell you!

Moral of the story? It’s much more cost-effective if you concentrate first on the
“hunters.” Make sure they find you.

Remember these two very different ways that you and your prospect will meet...

1) ...You find her.

2) ... She finds you.

Whoops! This only makes sense if you, the reader, are male. After all, if you’re a
guy reading this, doesn’t the second scenario (above) look like a much easier
“sell” to you?

If you’re a woman...

1) ...You find him.

2) ... He finds you.

From the female point of view, doesn’t # 2 look like the better process?

No matter which traffic-building technique you choose, balance the required time,
work and expense against the number and motivation of the visitors you attract.

1. Two-Way E-media
Two-way e-media (unmoderated mailing lists, newsgroups and forums) suffer from
“damned if you do, and damned if you don’t” syndrome...

• If the members are loosely regulated (ex., the biz and miscellaneous
newsgroups), anything goes. Sure you can post your message. But everyone
else can, too -- so it’s flooded. No one pays any attention!

• If the group is serious, it will have strict, self-enforced rules. Post anything
that smells commercial, and you’ll be...... flamed! It takes a long time to build up a relationship with a
group like this, to the point where you can gently pitch them. Why bother trying to
fool people, anyway?

Forget about coddling to these groups. If you have a genuine interest and want
to participate for non-commercial reasons, great! But don’t try to cultivate them
for your own business purposes.

Besides, the number of people you reach just isn’t worth the time involved. You
have to contribute regularly to have any chance of even a small response. Which
means you have to read everyone’s postings every day.

And the spam that you’ll get from all the e-mail collectors puts the final nail in the
coffin. Bottom line?... Great... if you have a natural passion and want to contribute out of sheer interest.

Bad... if you view this as a marketing tool -- unless there is an extremely good fit
between your business goals and the interests of a group.

For most businesses, it is generally not worth the effort. Some people still swear by posting to these groups. Just in case you have a special reason to believe that this could be an efficient way for you to build traffic, I have included a more detailed “how to” discussion in the glossary.

2. Classified Ad Services
Thousands of classified ad services have sprouted lately. They range from those offered by established newspapers on the Web to pure classified ads sites like...

Excite Classifieds

http://classifieds.excite.com/

And...

Yahoo! Classifieds

http://classifieds.yahoo.com/

For a comprehensive list of Classified Web sites, see...

Yahoo! Listings of Classified Sites

http://dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Classifieds/

Like a bad infestation, “free-for-all” classified ad sites have popped-up across the

Net in big numbers. They are nothing more than a evolution of the free-for-all-links
page scam.

Basically, the service works like this... First, you sign up, and receive your own free
classified ad site. Then you allow visitors to post their ads for free. In exchange,
you get to send them your spam.

Automated services can post classified ads to thousands of such services, bringing a barrage of spam into mailboxes worldwide.

And traffic? Nope. Nary a one. The only people who visit these pages are those
posting their own messages. How interested are they in your pitch?

The moral of the story is a simple one...

Don’t bother submitting, or implementing a “free-for-all-classified” site.

For the most part, even the more reputable classified ad services are inappropriate for business purposes. Here are the problems...

 
1) They are more oriented for consumer-to-consumer “one off” sales -- useful for
buying and selling a used car, but not much use for selling software.

2) There are too many get-rich-quick schemes, which cheapen your image.

 
3) Get ready to receive a lot of spam and scam!

 
4) You’ll receive very few serious responses. I never look at these ads. Do you?

3. Sweepstakes and Promotions

 
Sweepstakes and promotions must help attain your MWR. If they don’t achieve this goal, forget about them. The two can create a lot of work for a one-shot deal. And potential legal headaches, too. Unless you can think of a strong synergy for your business, they not worth the trouble.

Think about it... If you offer to give away money, you might end up with the cash-hounds, and little
else. They are not potential customers. Total value to you? Nil.

So plan your strategy well, if you want to try this route. Know clearly “what’s in it”
for your visitor. And then execute your sweepstakes/promotion carefully.
Everything you do on the Net can make or break your reputation.

The following companies will be happy to co-promote, partner, or even build your
sweepstakes from the ground up...

Winning Ways Online Sweepstakes

http://www.onlinesweeps.com/

SweepstakesBuilder

http://www.sweepstakesbuilder.com/


Sweepstakes Online

http://www.sweepstakesonline.com/

My first sweepstakes experiment had as its prize an in-depth review and analysis of
the winning contestant’s Web site (by yours truly -- blush!).

The prize was supposed to attract the type of customer that we wanted. But in the
end, the sweepstakes contest was merely a distraction. It might have even hurt
sales.

Of course, I don’t give up easily. I decided to try the sweepstakes again. This time,
the prize offers two free years of Site Build It! -- approximately US$800 in value.

We use it as a powerful traffic-building tool for 5 Pillar Affiliates. You can’t find the
sweepstakes by linking to it from anywhere within the site -- it can only be accessed
through an affiliate’s promotion.

Try it now. Visit...

Site Build It! Sweepstakes

http://sweeps.sitesell.com/

See how this sweepstake multiplies the affiliate’s traffic? It’s fascinating to watch.
When people visit through an affiliate’s link, they send a referral e-mail to a few
friends (to enter the Sweeps), who do the same, and so on... and so on.

Guess what? Every single visitor will visit through the original affiliate’s coded
link!

The results? Much, much, better...

• No distractions from the site.
• SiteSell.com gets visitors that it would not receive otherwise.
• And since the prize is the product, those who enter are targeted potential
customers.
We receive 300-500 visitors to the Contest Page daily. And when a visitor reaches
that page, we use a “javascript pop-under” to place our www page underneath.
(Click on the link above to see this in action.) This introduces the visitor to all of our
products.

The viral “refer-a-friend” aspect, combined with the affiliates’ gain in their own visitor
rates, has converted the SBI! sweepstakes into a nice traffic-builder for us.

We have plans to add an extra twist to this -- it may even be in place by the time
your read this.


Want to see how another contest qualifies its visitors? Visit...

Lobster Direct

http://www.lobsterdirect.com/home.html

Use your free draw or sweepstakes to help attain your Backup Response.

Here’s how...

Offer a prize of significant perceived value that will both interest and qualify your
visitor. In exchange for a chance at winning the prize, your visitor must enter her
e-mail address and agree to receive your newsletter.

Your newsletter, by the way, is the same vessel in which you announce the winners
-- so your customer will actually have to read it to see if she’s won!

This gives you the opportunity to provide her with compelling content, and most
importantly, your gentle sales pitch. Best of all, she won’t opt-out, because if she
does, she’ll never know if she’s the lucky winner!


You may wish to expand the refer-a-friend viral marketing technique as we did with
the SBI! sweeps. Allow your visitor one contest entry for each friend she
recommends to your site. However, do not automatically sign up these new
referrals to your newsletter, or you’re going to be in trouble.

That’s spamming -- since they did not specifically agree to receive it. Let them
decide for themselves if they’d like to be on your mailing list!