Hello everyone, I recently posted a similar thread in the "General Business" section, but I wanted to refine the question a little in here with you fellow writers... I'm an out-of-work journalism graduate (news-editorial). As I'm sure you all know, it's a struggling market, especially for print. I made the transition to online journalism a few years back, but was laid off recently. (And wow, was I in for a shock when I made that change to online; it's a whole different ballgame, driven so much by "immediate gratification" ad revenue and filled with competing writers who didn't waste thousands of dollars on a journalism degree... Sorry to get off-track; that's a post for another day... ) Anyway, I'm taking a step back and looking at website monetization, SEO, affiliate marketing, PPC advertising, etc... Beyond my experience as a successful and published journalist, I also have adequate experience in sales and marketing, as well as copywriting (including a bit of SEO copywriting). My question is this: Being brand-new to all of this, which market(s) should I jump into first? I don't have much start-up capital and I'm not sure which area I should "invest" in and commit to. The reason I'm posting here (and not some freelancing website) is because I'm looking for advice from people who have taken the initiative to form their own monetization strategies, as opposed to chasing scraps from someone else's table... What I mean by that is I'm not interested in writing content for $1 to $5 per article for someone else's site, especially after working in an industry that typically pays 10 to 20 times that for a 500-word, original article... If I'm going to be writing original content, I either want to be paid a respectable amount for it, or use it myself for generating more revenue... Any advice would really be appreciated... Since I already have the skill set of a writer, for example, would you guys recommend the content publisher route, with monetization of AdSense and other ad servers? From what I've read, blogging can be rewarding. And would you recommend supplementing that work with another strategy? Something that would work in synergy with it? Thanks for reading, if you've made it this far... (Sorry for the long post!) Cheers, Wax
Well, for me, I'm a copywriter. But since it is less stressful, I enjoy it more, and there are more opportunities out there, come this spring, I'm going to spend more of my time as an article writer for newspapers and magazines, both off and online...specifically as a syndicated writer. I can't tell you what you should do first, because, well, I don't know you. That is up to you. I can, however, suggest that you stay away from SEO, because there simply is not enough work out there for just that field. You could very well be spending more time than you would want to in JUST trying to find a job. I would suggest just telling potential customers, clients, that as an experienced online journalist (or copywriter), part of your skill is to create keyword enriched articles, sales copy, newsletters.... Like me, if you want to do both copywriting and being an article writer, I would also suggest to not tell companies that, especially to the ones looking for a copywriter. They want a copywriter who devotes all of his mental skill to that field. Advertising is expensive, so they want a writer who is 100% mentally there. Of course we can do both, but it is best to just keep our mouths shut in that regard. You are confusing me when you mentioned start-up capital. Why do you need that? Well, I guess you would, if you want to get into affiliate marketing. Since you can make so much more money as a writer right now, and with no start-up moolah, I would put affiliate marketing on the backburner. All you need is a profile ("about me") page, a phone to call these businesses, a go-getter personality, and a skill to sell yourself. Blogging takes A LOT of time, and A LOT of advertising money before you can start to make money off of it to where you can at least pay your rent with it, so.... Shoemoney and John Chow got to be as big as they are right now due to heavy advertising. You may find this article from Carol Tice very interesting, and inspiring: http://www.makealivingwriting.com/2010/11/05/how-i-make-5k-blogging/ She is an online writer (paid blogger). Read through her entire archive. She is the only one I actually read on a regular basis. Such sites as Copyblogger, Problogger...is filled with too much crap and fluff.
Thanks for the reply; it was pretty insightful. What I meant by "start-up capital" was money that I might need to buy things like domains, hosting packages, etc... But it sounds like there is money to be found in copywriting right now, from what you wrote... My previous experience with copywriting was working for a big online retail network, writing catalog copy and item descriptions (with an emphasis on SEO and keyword density). Even though that job was an independent contractor gig and I worked from home, the company was local and I worked with the editor a few years before. I did make quite a bit of cash from that job, although they eventually scaled back the pay rates and laid a bunch of us off, so I figured it was sort of like a "mini-bubble pop" and I never really pursued that line of work again. Just assumed I got lucky and was in the right place at the right time (this was back in 2004). So just to be clear, are you saying the market for producing original, sales-oriented copy is still pretty vital? I ask this because throughout the past few years, I've seen a lot of online "job opportunities" for writers that seem like a joke; stuff that only pays a small percentage of traffic revenue for original content (sometimes even relying on you to promote your links when you're not even the publisher), or the kind of work I mentioned earlier -- writing (or re-writing) SEO or other articles for measly amounts like $1 to $5 each. If I'm putting in the time and energy to write original content like that, I'd like to be able to profit from it myself... (And that's why I was asking about monetization strategies for writers who want to make a sustained income from their work, instead of those traffic/ad profits going to someone else.) Thanks again for the reply. Any other advice would really be appreciated. Cheers!
You'd spend more taking you and your wife or girlfriend out to eat than you would on setting up a simple website. I bought another domain (that had my first and last name in it), and got it hosted for under $30. Of course. Companies have to advertise, or they would go under. Monday I will be calling IGN.com to see if they need a freelance copywriter. Just by looking at their huge traffic to their other site, Askmen.com, and their other sites, I know they do some heavy advertising. If you can beat businesses' current controls, you can pretty much write your own ticket. They will want to book you months in advance. Like her: http://www.carlinecole.com/ Take a look at all of her controls. Damn impressive. With the exception of December, she is booked through the entire year. Even if you are not quite as good as she is (imaginative, innovative thinking), you can still get plenty of work. If you can raise their 1% response rate to 2%, you are their hero. When they mail out tens of thousands of sales pieces, well, that adds up! Because they are amateurs, small fry. They either do not know any better, or they are just plain stupid. Hell, being an article writer is good money, also. Here is a list of magazine publishers you could hit up: http://www.gebbieinc.com/magurl.htm Here is a list of newspapers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_newspapers_in_the_United_States In addition to that, you have a shitload of regional magazines you can also approach. The list goes on and on and on...
The idea that you can make more money writing copy than you can at affiliate marketing is pretty ridiculous. It really depends on what you're good at. If someone is good at copy writing and bad at affiliate marketing then you're right, but if they're good at affiliate marketing then they can have a massively larger income potential. Even if your good at writing copy you can still make more from affiliate marketing. In fact if you're a good copy writer that can increase you're odds of succeeding at affiliate marketing at a level unachievable by just selling your copy writing services. First you'll have to market you're copy writing service, although that's fairly easy to do. But even after you start finding the jobs, and better yet customers start finding you, you still have to provide the service yourself for each customer. Even if you're really good and build up a reputation as a high quality copy writer so you can demand premium prices, you'll still only be able to make as much as you're capable of writing. Unless you start outsourcing it yourself, then you reach a point at which you can't make anything more. With affiliate marketing on the other hand you can find a good niche, choose a good product, set up good promo pages, build backlinks and/or buy ppc traffic, and then start making money. Once you get everything set up you can be making passive income from a campaign running on autopilot. It will only take a small amount of time each week to keep the website running and increase the promotions. Then when that site is pretty much running on it's own you find another niche, choose another product, and repeat the process again until you have two sites bringing in a passive income on autopilot. Then do it again. It definitely isn't as easy as the ebook gurus like to say it is, but it's definitely possible and you're income isn't limited by how much writing you can produce in a day. Now if you need money right away, then marketing yourself as a copy writer is definitely a good idea. With your education and employment background it shouldn't take long to prove you're worth a premium price. You'll be competing with a lot of $5 article writers on Fiver, but there are people who know you get what you pay for. So look for freelance jobs writing copy because it's a sure way of making some money and it's harder to start affiliate marketing if your broke. But don't let that stop you from starting your own affiliate websites. You're copy writing skills can make you money faster and help fund you're websites and promotions. Do that while you establish an affiliate marketing business and continue doing both until you start making enough money from the affiliate marketing. Once you start making money with the affiliate marketing then you won't be dependent on how much work you can put out in a day. The long term potential for affiliate marketing is much greater than any service you have to provide yourself. Since you're a trained writer you can actually go one step further and write your own books. A lot of people are already doing tha without your training and experience. You could do some research to choose a good niche and keywords. Choose a topic that would be marketable to that niche, and then research that topic to write your own book. (I'm sure in the process of getting your journalism degree you had to write many research papers on topics you had no knowledge about before the assignment). Once you have the research done you can write a book that can provide the valuable information you just did the research for. Sign up as a vendor on a site like ClickBank and put your book on the marketplace to find some affiliates to sale it for you, or better yet search out successful affiliate marketers and try to recruit them. Then instead of writing new copy everyday to meet the deadlines of your copy writing customers, you can write the book once and have you're affiliates sell it thousands of times for you. So those are just a few ideas. As far as how much money you need to start your own marketing campaign? It depends on what you want to spend. You can actually star marketing by using free websites and services on the web and it won't cost you a dime, or you can buy your own domain and rent hosting which will cost between $1-$10 for a new domain for 1 year, and a shared hosting account can be found anywhere from a couple bucks a month to host a single domain up to 20 bucks or so to host as many as you want. The hosting prices will go up of course if you end up with an extremely high traffic website and need to use more resources. And then you can promote the site yourself for free, or pay for backlinking services to get more done than you can do yourself, or even pay for advertising if you don't want to depend on getting a good listing in the SERPs. So you can start with no investment at all and then build up to just a few bucks a month as you set up better sites for your promotions. Then if you want to invest more you can, typically once you know what you're doing then the more you can invest in promotions will mean larger amounts of income being generated. The key to that statement is the "once you know what you're doing" part. I'd suggest looking through the making money forums here at DP and on other marketing forums to learn more about affiliate marketing. Search for more information about how to market your copy writing services, and then get started working out a plan. Along with the writing skills you were developing to get your degree, I know that a journalism major is also required to develop a lot of researching skills. Put that degree to work for you by researching the subject so well that you can do it yourself. All the information you need to know on how to get started is already posted on this and many other marketing forums and blogs. Good luck to you.
I agree. But since I didn't say that... One can make a lot more money at affiliate marketing. But it is not as easy as you are making it out to be. Like, for example, going on ClickBank, and finding affiliates. Most are lazy and/or they are not smart enough to advertise (promote) the products they want to sell. Just about all of them soon quit. The owner of the product then has to find more affiliates. On and on and on... It's a vicious circle. The successful ones, the ones who make more than a copywriter and an article writer, which would be more than $2,000 a week on a continuous basis, are the ones who advertise. Then you have the product. If it is crap, it doesn't matter how many affiliates he has to sell it. the thing won't sell, period. So there is more to this than meets the eye. Very few can make the big bucks in that field on a continuous basis. And the ones who do, well, it took time. And if one has more of a passion to write than he does for affiliate marketing, he will make more money as a writer. And, of course, vice versa.
Again, thanks for the replies. Man, the landscape sure has changed in the last decade... I majored in journalism around 2000, a couple years after being undeclared. Back then, my university's School of Communication didn't include all the "new media" courses that are now required for a BA or BS in journalism; they started adding those courses around 2004, if I remember correctly. The print industry was still doing okay while I was in college, which (luckily) allowed me to work for a variety of newspapers and magazines. I later switched to online journalism out of necessity; but even then, it wasn't too difficult to find pay rates similar to the print industry. I won't get into a rant about pay rates because I see it's already been brought up multiple times in this forum, but sheesh... It's enough to make me want to throw my hands up the air and just go back to seeking out on-staff or editorial positions, instead of trying to cut it on my own. Still, after reading your posts and some other threads in this forum, I might give it a go... On an unrelated note, it's still tough for me to believe some of these prices that are being accepted for copywriting (as well as traditional news articles, reviews, etc.)... It wasn't that long ago that the absolute "bottom-of-the-barrel" price for newsweekly articles and online start-ups was at least 5 cents per word, and the industry standard for professional work was 25 cents per word. Like someone else pointed out in this forum, I really believe globalization and the Internet has played a big role in changing things. Really makes me reconsider going in it for myself as discussed earlier, as opposed to working for a traditional publication...
Sorry I didn't intend that to come across so harsh. LOL. It wasn't actually intended specifically toward your reply, even though that is what triggered my reply. The comment I made was more of a general reply to a lot of the naysayers that always say affiliate marketing is too much work. I know you didn't go so far as to say that, but it did sound like you were steering him away from getting started with affiliate marketing. I think for someone like the OP with a degree in journalism, affiliate marketing is actually one of the best fields to get into. Rather than writing copy for a fee, he can write copy for his own promotions. If he combines it with blogging then it'll be right up his alley as a journalist. As far as it not being as easy as I make it sound, well I didn't say it's easy I said it's achievable. I even pointed out that it's not as easy as the ebook gurus make it sound. I also mentioned that he'll have to read and do some research to learn what actually needs to be done. Affiliate marketing is definitely not a get rich quick scheme. It takes work and knowledge to do it right. That's why there's so many "lazy or not smart enough" affiliates out there. So many people thing they can just make money online without having to do any work. Just about every advertisement for an ebook on how to do it says you can make money on autopilot. They just skip telling them the part about how much work it takes to get it to that point. The OP doesn't seem to be someone with that mindset though. I don't think he's expecting to "Get Rich Quick" and he seems to understand that there's work involved. I just gave the Reader's Digest version of what affiliate marketing is because that's all that was necessary for this thread. There's a lot of other threads that go into a lot more detail about how to accomplish everything necessary. I do think that writing an ebook himself is still something that should be within the range of his skillset. You're right there absolutely are a ton of crappy books out there, (and more being written every day). But most of the people writing those are Average Joes with maybe a little bit of writing ability. The OP says he's a journalism major, I guarantee he had to take some classes that taught him to do the type of research he needs to write a decent ebook. Whether he's a good writer or not I can't say, but from what little he described he has the training and background to do it. Like I said, after he has an idea of what people really like and what really sells, then he should be able do the research and write his own book. For the average person that finds a "Making Money Online" book that says writing your own book is the best way to make money, I always feel bad for them because of course not everyone can do such a thing. But for someone that went to school and got a degree in journalism, I think it's not such bad advice. That's actually a good application of what he's been trained for. The main difference between what you were telling him and what I was telling him is that I don't think he should put the affiliate marketing idea on the back burner. I think you're right that he should try selling his copy writing services because that's some quick money, but he shouldn't focus on that to the extent that he doesn't start learning how to do marketing as well. While he's looking for writing gigs, he can also spend some time doing niche and keyword research. Once he has an idea how to find a decent niche, then he can search for a decent product. Once he has that then he can search for info on how start promoting the product he selected, Since he can write his own copy for the review/sales/promo pages he'll already have an advantage over many people just getting started. He should think about finding some writing gigs because you're right, he can make some quick money by doing that, but since there's a learning curve for the marketing he should get started on that as well. The sooner he starts trying to learn it, the sooner it'll be that he can figure things out.
When will people finally accept globalization? It's there. Deal with it. $5 per article is HUGE for someone from India or Pakistan, so why shouldn't they take on such a job? While they're working hard and making money, guess what, you're not. I hate to break it to you, but your "qualifications" mean NOTHING. So you have a journalism degree and experience as a journalist. OK, there are like a million other people that have the same skills. Add to that people who majored in something else, but worked on their writing skills, and now write well and also have a special field of expertise. So what is your edge? What do you do better than these people? Think about that. And always be suspicious of what other writers tell you; they may say they have your best interest at heart, but it's a competitive market, so obviously everyone wants fewer people in their own area. I am seeing the same general trend in translation services. People used to make $60, even $80-$100 per hour translating and were living the good life, and now suddenly they can't keep their rates above $30-40, so they cry about all those evil Pakistani who are taking away their privilege of having easy money. It's ridiculous how entitled some of these people think they are.
I agree. In my last post, I mentioned exactly the same thing; "I really believe globalization and the Internet has played a big role in changing things." Although I'd tend to agree with the fact that my degree means a lot less than it did 10 years ago (facetiously, that is), a degree isn't just a "piece of paper," like many people argue (and usually it's the people who don't have a degree that argue this). It represents a long period of intense, focused study in a particular industry; four to six years training from professionals in the field, with a lot of applied specific and technical work. What do I do better than "these people?" Well, by "these people" I'm assuming you mean the majority -- not all, but the majority -- of writers without formal training, a degree in the industry or the experience of being published in national newspapers and magazines... In all honesty, of course I have a substantial "edge" when it comes to my skill set. First of all, I have the degree, which in itself is something that many employers require as a prerequisite to a job. Why? Because they know that a degree isn't just a piece of paper; they know it also represents five years of professional training. I also have the experience of many internships and low-paying gigs that I took while in college (like writing for local newsweeklies and magazines, or working as an editor for the university's newspaper). I have the technical skills that supplement writing; years of learning the applicable grammar, syntax, spelling, copy editing and other necessities of the craft. There's so much more that's important, such as learning (and mastering) formats like the "AP" and "Chicago" styles of writing, knowing how to research a particular subject and even proper interviewing techniques. Finally, most journalism graduates have a particular field of study (or niche) that they've come to learn very well after college and from experience writing for various publications; in my case, it's entertainment and tech. We don't just wake up one day and decide we're experts in these fields; the knowledge comes from years of working in those industries. It comes from serious "shoe-leather" reporting; spending thousands of hours of researching and working "on-site," or in the field... So to answer your question (and because I see this issue raised quite a bit), these are the things that set me apart from the majority of writers who don't have a degree in the field, or have professional training. It's not about elitism, it's just the simple matter of "one plus one equals two," so to speak. However, I do recognize that a college degree isn't necessarily a prerequisite to being a good -- or even great -- writer; many people are simply born great writers, or have an inherent knack for the craft. And on the flip side, attending college and majoring in journalism or creative writing doesn't automatically "make" a good writer. But even those born with the gift still benefit from formal training, in order to learn many of the technical aspects of writing that I mentioned above. I merely broached the subject; I wasn't whining or making a big fuss. Although I could probably devote an entire essay to the subject, I don't believe it's worth pining away over something that can't be changed. I may not like it, but I have to agree that if someone else is willing to accept the same job as me for pennies on the dollar, they have every right to do so. While I don't necessarily agree with the idea that the result of that work will typically be of the same quality, I believe everyone is entitled to accept whatever work -- at whatever rate -- he or she sees fit. Sorry for such a long reply; you just pushed a button that's particularly close to my heart. - Wax
OK, I'll keep this as short as I can because I doubt I will be successful in trying to destroy your castle in the air. You're deluding yourself. First of all, you're creating a straw man in your essay by making a distinction between you and no-journalism/no-degree self-taught writers. Never once did I talk about that group. Of course, if you compare yourself with someone who doesn't have experience in journalism and who didn't go to college, then you will look pretty good. But that is a fake standard you created to make yourself believe that you have an edge. But compare yourself with the real standard in your case, and gone are all your advantages. I specifically mentioned people who have a degree that is not journalism and who then went into writing. You list as your advantages 1. the degree 2. knowledge of writing including grammar rules (I almost choked when I read that, now you're comparing yourself with illiterate people/morons?) 3. knowledge of citation standards 4. research skills 5. writing experience 6. your niche entertainment and tech. Now tell me, how does someone who has a college degree or even a graduate degree, but not in journalism, and who practiced writing ever since college NOT have all these skills? And please don't bring up someone who went to Tijuana Medical School and barely graduated. And I am not even talking about real journalists, i.e. people with the SAME degree as you and the SAME experience with newspaper internships and so on. And please, you are deluding yourself so badly with how much your degree is worth, it saddens me. I don't even care to explain why because it's not worth it. I don't mean to be so harsh, but I've just read so many people crying about this topic lately, and you were the one that was too much. edit: just saw that you said you graduated in 2000. You cannot be serious when you think that your degree matters after being in the industry for TEN YEARS. This is surreal.
momentio, have you been having a bad couple of days, or do you just have an unlikeable personality? You said: He said: And then your next brilliant remark: Okay, now that was just dumb. Are you putting words in his mouth, now? And the fact is, not many people can write as well as they should. Take message-board posters, as a good example. So, yes, I guess he would be comparing himself to that group. As he should. I know I sure as hell would. Too many people write like freakin' idiots. Talk about someone who is delusional. Uhhhh, to many book, magazine and newspaper publishers, THAT does mean something. Many times that alone can get his foot in the door. It increases his odds in getting more and higher-paying gigs, faster and easier. ... That is what it is about. Damn, son, what ARE you thinking? Um, I don't believe his is crying nor bitching about anything. I am afraid that you are the one who is too much. Go take a double dose of laxative. WaxPaper, if you need to know anything else, or you want to just talk about this subject, feel free to keep on posting.
If your research and writing skills are top quality then I would say your best opportunity to make real money, as opposed to a few cents per word, is to get in on the ground floor of a website project with an agreement to receive some percentage of the project profit. Entrepreneurs make real money if the project is successful, perhaps nothing if the project fails. Working as a "writer" has diminished in value so to enjoy substantial compensation from writing you need to become an entrepreneur and take on long term projects where the pay won't begin until the project is profitable. If you have an idea for an online business and have the capital to purchase a good domain and pay to have the website built, you can create your own project and take all the risk and profit yourself. If that is too aggressive you can participate in someone else's project. You just want to know up front what the potential profits could be if the project is successful, and then you can determine if that translates into what you consider fair payment for your work. I have offered such deals to writers with exceptional writing skills and knowledge of various fields. Send me a PM if you decide to look for a project, I can see what opportunities might be a match for your expertise and interests in our portfolio.
Sorry, I didn't know you were talking about the differences between journalism graduates and those with other degrees. But still, I'll tell you exactly how someone who didn't study writing or journalism in college differs from those who pursued other degrees... The "knowledge of writing including grammar rules" is far beyond that of having a competent understanding of grammar and spelling. Like I said in my previous post, it's about the mastery of these skills as they apply to writing; a trained application of grammar, spelling and syntax, specifically as they relate to crafting professionally-written articles, interviews, reviews and other pieces (as considered "professionally"-written by all true industry standards). Beyond this, it's tough for me to explain the other reasons why journalists are better writers because of the training they received, unless I write another essay-length post... That's because some of the things you mentioned like "knowledge of citation standards" isn't what I meant when I brought up AP style... In fact, that's a perfect example of why a journalism degree (or similar) is more beneficial to writers... I'm not trying to call you out specifically, but this proves at least some of my point. AP style is the industry standard when it comes to writing for the media, and only a small part of it has to do with citation; it's an entire style of writing, one with many specific rules concerning the proper use of everything from grammar and spelling to punctuation and attribution. It takes quite a bit of experience to learn and master, and it's now becoming the standard for online media as well as print. This is just one of they key differences. If you're talking about some cheap, rinky-dink Web start-up that doesn't care about how it's represented by its online copy, that's a different story... But for most professional publishers, these things matter when hiring a writer. If you don't know what a publisher means when they ask you what your last "in-house style" was, for example, that's a prime example right there of why a background in journalism matters. As far as "research skills" and "writing experience," the same is true; there's a vast difference between the skills that are taught by a university's School of Communication and its School of Business, for example. I mean, come on! How can you honestly imply that the training and experience received by a journalism grad is no more useful than any other degree when it comes to writing (even if the other person has studied writing on his own, as you say, since college, or even high school)? I don't purport to have the same skills or qualifications as a business or law graduate, nor would I trivialize someone's degree (which includes all the time, energy and resources they spent to achieve it) by suggesting that it's insignificant or overvalued compared to those who followed different paths of education. Aside from being untrue, it's a slap in the face and undermines the respect that many people have earned. I graduated in 2006, not 2000. I've been writing professionally since 2000, when I majored in journalism. I'm no veteran, but I've been in the industry long enough to see how it's changed throughout the decade. I still stand by my opinion, which is based on real-world experience, as well as my degree... I've seen it first-hand at quite a positions I've held, both freelance and on-staff: There are many competent writers online, yet at the same time, there's no substitute for a true education in the industry, generally speaking.
One thing a degree means is that the graduate did a great deal of writing of a level high enough to be deemed passable by another writer. All the better academics are published writers. Sure, you can be self taught, if you either write an equivalent amount under equally competent mentorship or were blessed by circumstances of your birth to be a literary savant. Another opportunity that did not seem to be explicitly mentioned is writing information products. Of course, a writer could write an ebook as an incentive to sign up for an auto-responder sequence, written by the writer, that delivers more valuable content to the subscribers, solicits for product ideas, solicits for product price, solicits for objections, deals with the objections in the auto-responder sequence, offers the product in the sequence. Once that is working, then write to solicit joint venture partners and affiliates, write the actual copy for them to deliver to their readers sending them to sign up for your free product. Maybe they could even have their own specially written ebook to give away just to their readers as an exclusive. Seems to me, once you put your head in the right place, a lot of writing opportunities show up. In my experience, some of the best writers never pose as writers, they pose as something else, some other profession. Then they write incredible stuff that they sell, and even more incredible stuff they use to sell. IMHO, the best thing about an education in the humanities or social sciences is that you learn something about people. The more you know about people, it seems to me, the better writer you can be. If you can move people then you are a great writer and will have much outside work as you care to do as a distraction from writing for your customer-fans.
Did you say you wrote catalog copy for a while? If so, I'm under the impression you enjoyed it. Here's a suggestion if you decide to keep with it: * Get your own dot-com. Use it to position yourself as a Web publisher whose niche is "catalog news & related how-to's." Of course, you'll also offer your copywriting services for hire on the site. * Consider any company in the English-speaking "universe" your target. U.S., U.K., Australia, etc. You can focus special attention on companies in your hometown, but really, you should be able to cultivate business from around the U.S. (and very possibly beyond). If you do this idea, I consider ad agencies a key audience for your pitch material. * The blog portion of the site would showcase your writing skills. What are you blogging about? Catalog business news, product description writing, industry pioneers, e-commerce/printing technology, trends, and maybe include special interviews you conduct with influencers, etc. * Mount an aggressive, ongoing PR & marketing effort to attract clients. Create a database. Create attractive info kits and mail offline. Create an attractive PDF version to email online. Note: Maybe snail-mail the expensive kits to only the top 40 contacts on your list; use email for all others. Consider offering a deep discount or free service just to get your foot in a few doors. Start an opt-in newsletter ASAP so you can stay better connected. * If you add an affiliate marketing layer, investigate if there's sufficient demand for books / e-books your target audience would value. Buy the books you recommend and write AWESOME, in-depth reviews on them. I suppose books about marketing, copywriting, etc. would interest them. If you go the affiliate route, plan to put even more time into making this aspect pay off. Keep us posted about what you decide!
I'm sorry mate, but I feel you're looking at this all wrong. You have a skill set - use it, expand on it, monetize it. Why are you even considering jumping into a whole new niche, especially one as challenging as copywriting? Yes, challenging, because everyone thinks they have a knack for it, and yet, there's only a few who actually makes a good living out of it. Copywriting is possibly one of the most challenging branch of writing, because it DEMANDS not only impeccable language control, but also an understanding of the human psychology, a wet finger in the wind style of writing and an empathic understanding of the market/product/consumer. Don't get me wrong, at the end of the day, you may very well turn out to be a great copywriter. but it takes time to reach that stage, and I guess at your age, home-interning doesn't sound that hot, eh? But I digress - returning to the point. Leverage your ability, narrow down your focus. There is always work for the capable - a good employer never turns away potentially good people. Prepare a portfolio of your work, put it up online, either through your own site, or through article directories, popular blogs or even sites. If you don't have any, write some. I cannot stress the importance of having a great portfolio. Most of the time, this alone will clinch you the assignment. Half of my clients now originated from a Wikipedia page I wrote three years ago! Good luck! And if you need further clarifications, please feel free to ask Perry.
Buck up ol' chap. Professional writing is making a comeback. The $3 keyword stuffing/backlink search engine algorithm exploit called "article" is beginning to enjoy the reality of a market that doesn't want it and search engines that consider it fraud. On a separate yet loosely related note, L believe globalization gets a bad rap. $3 dollar articles have nothing to do with the price of tea in China or the cost of living in the Philippines or India or anywhere else. I mean, it sorta does, but not in the way that most people think. Here's why ... Writing an SEO article for backlinks is like producing a widget. Once the template is created, just about anybody can learn how to push a button and churn one (or a thousand) out. And that's because it's a process heavily weighted on the technical side. Writing an engaging, informative and entertaining article is not like producing a widget. Not just anybody can push a button and churn one out. And that's because it's a process heavily weighted on the creative side. Google is more responsible for the $3 article phenomenon than globalization is. If tomorrow Google published that unique pictures of fried chicken wings would increase a website's relevance score and page rank, you can bet there'd be a huge demand for cameras, frozen bags of chicken wings and cooking oil. And the world would be filled with thousands of $3 photographers.