For freelance bloggers there is a huge range of pay available by writing for different blogs. Some will pay only a few dollars per article while others can pay very well. Of course, the pay is impacted by factors such as the income of the blog and the complexity and detail of the posts being written.
Additionally, many blogs pay freelancers at different rates according to their skills and to the results that they produce. This leaves freelance bloggers with an opportunity to increase their income by finding the right jobs and by producing better results.
If you’re hoping to do both of these in order to raise your income, one of the best things you can do is to focus on building your name recognition. Freelance blogging can be greatly influenced by how well you are known and respected in your niche. Those who are well-known have an easier time finding work, and in fact the work often finds them.
When you’re hired as a freelance blogger, why are you really being paid?
Of course, the pay is based on you producing a post that’s worthy of being published, but really you’re being paid to get results. Without results the blog will eventually not be making the money to support the writers and the opportunity will dry up.
But if your posts attract visitors to the site, new subscribers, and increased revenue, your clients will love you and they’ll want to keep your around.
With that in mind, how can you consistently improve the results that your posts produce?
The quality of your writing is obviously important, but name recognition is also a huge factor.
Take for example someone like Chris Garrett. Chris has written for a number of very well-read blogs (including Freelance Folder) and he is well-known and well-respected by readers. Recently he’s added to his name recognition by co-authoring a book with Darren Rowse.
When Chris publishes a post on another blog, people instantly recognize his name and they read the post with more attention than they might if it had been written by someone they didn’t know.
While unknown bloggers always have the opportunity to create results with high-quality content and/or effective marketing, having a recognized name is clearly an advantage. As a freelance blogger you may only be publishing 10% of the content at a particular blog. In this case, it’s difficult to develop a reputation with those subscribers because they see content from many other writers as well, and they’re unlikely to remember everyone and what they’ve written.
You can turn this into an advantage by building your name across the niche so that whenever you publish a post, regardless of where it is published, readers will give your posts a little bit more attention.
How Can You Improve Your Name Recognition?
1. Write Quality Posts
The most important thing you can do is to write the highest quality posts that you’re capable of. You can do everything else correctly, but without strong content you’ll have a difficult time building respect. Your reputation will spread pretty quickly if your quality is extremely high.
2. Take More Jobs
One easy way to improve your name recognition is to get more exposure by writing in more places. Rather than sticking to writing for the same blog all the time, branch out and reach some new audiences. Each blog you write for will have a unique audience, even if you’re writing for others in the same niche.
3. Focus on an Industry/Niche
It’s basically impossible for a freelance blogger to build strong name recognition throughout the internet as a whole. Even those who are well-know and respected as leaders in their niche are highly unlikely to be recognized in the outside world. Focus your efforts on your specific niche and do the best job that you can do to become a leader.
4. Get Some Variety
Spread yourself out a bit throughout the niche. For example, if you’re a freelance designer you may want to write for freelancing blogs as well as for those that are focused on design. Part of the audience is likely to overlap, but by being in a few different places with some variety you can get added exposure.
5. Have a Home
All freelance bloggers really should have their own blog to give them a home or a starting point. When others mention you, give them a place to link back to besides just your work at other blogs. Your own blog will serve as your portfolio and it will allow others to track you down and contact you if they want to hire you.
6. Be an Active Networker
Freelance bloggers have excellent opportunities for networking. They’re constantly in contact with influential blog owners, they’re always reaching new audiences, and they’re working side-by-side with other talented and well-connected writers. You may find that many of your freelance blogging opportunities will come by way of your network. Additionally, these contacts can be valuable for you on your own projects outside of freelancing, such as building your own blog.
7. Seek Out Exposure
From time-to-time you may have an opportunity to write for a blog that would provide you with some valuable exposure, but it might not pay as much as you’d like. This is something that you’ll have to weigh, but sometimes you may get more out of the opportunity in the long term than just the pay for the post. If the blog could give you a chance to improve on your name recognition, it may be worth considering.
8. Market Your Own Work
As a freelance blogger, your responsibility will usually not include marketing the posts. However, if you’re attempting to improve your name recognition you may want to do whatever you can to get your writing in front of more eyeballs. Several months ago I wrote a post at Daily Blog Tips about using social media to market your freelance blog posts. Social media is an excellent opportunity for freelancers because with a strong social media presence you can create significant results for your work, regardless of where it is published.
What’s Your Experience?
What have you seen to be the impact of name recognition in your own freelance blogging efforts?
Steven Snell
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About the author: Steven is a website designer and blogger for Vandelay Website Design. His blog contains frequent posts on the subjects of web design, marketing, SEO, and blogging. He also runs Traffikd, a blog about internet marketing and social media.
source : freelancefolder.com
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