6 Ways To Make Money Writing Articles
- Authors Aflame
- Jul 26, 2019
- 7 min read
Updated: Sep 20, 2019
By Heather Hart
You’ve probably heard the expression “starving artist.” That’s the last title any author wants to be described as. Thus, in this article, you’ll find six ways to make money writing articles. Because it is possible.
6 Ways to Make Money Writing Articles
1. Sell Them To Websites
Quite a few websites are always looking for authors to write articles for them. You can do an online search for “write articles for websites” and get pages of results. A better search would include a keyword or phrase for your niche.
When looking at websites to submit articles to, there are several aspects you should consider.
📖 Subject -- Is this a subject you already know a lot about? Is it something that interests you? Will writing this article just be a paycheck, or will it also help you become known as an expert in your niche?
📖 Research -- How much research will you need to do to complete this article? Can this research be done online, or will you need to do interviews or visit a library?
📖 Deadline -- When is the article due? Can you realistically meet this deadline? What else do you have going on between now and then? How long will it take you to complete the article – writing, research, and editing?
📖 Price -- How much are they paying for the article? Do they pay for articles (not every website does)? Are they paying per word, or per article?
📖 Pay Date -- When will you get paid? When you turn the article in, when it is published, or at some other time?
2. Submit Them To Publishers
Getting your work published in a book or magazine can be a great way to build your portfolio and pad your wallet. Many publishers pay authors for accepted submissions. They usually have a flat fee listed upfront.
For instance, Chicken Soup pays writers $200 for accepted stories. Writers receive this money one month after the book is published. Knowing this in advance will help you plan. It would do no good planning to get that money when your submission was sent in, or even accepted, as it could be months (or even a year) before the book was published.
That said, here are just six Christian publishers that accept submissions. You can do a quick online search and find many, many more in any niche you want to write in.
Once again, you will want to consider the subject, how much research you need to do, and when the piece is due when submitting your articles to publishers.
Writing articles for publishers can be a great way to earn an income as an author, but it definitely takes work. Publishers expect high-quality work. Take the time to edit your work and always put your best foot forward.
3. Write Articles For A Client
If you use a site like Fiverr or Upwork, there are always clients looking for writers to write articles for them. You can post your resume and clients will be able to hire you. These sites do take a small commission for pairing you up with clients, but it’s a great way to generate an income.
When writing articles for a client, especially when using a site like the ones mentioned above, it is extremely important to meet your deadlines. These clients can (and usually do) leave reviews. Other clients hire freelance writers based on the reviews previous clients have left.
4. Use Affiliate Marketing
You can still write articles for money when publishing them on your own website. Two ways I have found to do this are with affiliate marketing and sponsored posts.
Google defines affiliate marketing as, “a marketing arrangement by which an online retailer pays commission to an external website for traffic or sales generated from its referrals.”
You can use affiliate marketing by adding relevant links within your article, or by adding banner ads to your post or sidebar (a banner ad is a picture that links to the product).
When using affiliate marketing you are required by law to disclose your relationship with the advertiser. This can be a simple disclaimer in your sidebar or at the top of your article. Here’s an example of one you might use at the top of an article:
“Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.”
Some affiliate programs have specific disclaimers they want you to use or specific wording you can or cannot use in your disclaimer. The Amazon affiliate program is one of these programs.
Here is an example of the Amazon affiliate disclaimer
“{Disclaimer} Heather Hart is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.”
When signing up for affiliate programs, always read the terms of service to see what their requirements are for disclaimers and advertising.
How To Find Affiliate Programs In Your Niche
Finding affiliate programs can be as easy as visiting your favorite company’s website and checking the footer to see if they have an affiliate program listed. Best Buy is an example of this:
Another way you can find affiliate programs is to search for the name of the company you want to advertise plus affiliate program; e.g., “Best Buy affiliate program.”
You can also sign up on affiliate platforms such as Commission Junction, Pepperjam, JV Zoo, Share-a-Sale, and ClickBank. Once you have an account with them, you can apply to different advertisers that use them, and search for products within their database.
5.) Sponsored Posts & Links
Similarly to affiliate marketing, you can make money by writing articles for your own website by writing sponsored posts or using sponsored links.
Sponsored links vary from affiliate links because they are not dependent on the number of clicks or purchases made through them. Instead, sponsored posts and links are purchased in advance. Advertisers will pay you to write about their product or include a link to their website in one of your articles. It is a flat fee.
As with affiliate links, the Federal Trade Commission also requires you to disclose your relationship with the advertiser of sponsored links.
A sample disclaimer could be as simple as:
“Disclaimer: This post contains sponsored and affiliate links.”
Usually, advertisers who want to run a sponsored post or link on your website will reach out to you. These are companies who have come across your articles when doing an online search and liked what they have seen. This is where your SEO and writing skills pay off.
I have had multiple companies approach me about running sponsored posts and links for them, but I don’t always say yes. Here’s why:
Your brand is important.
When readers come to your website, they need to know what they are going to find. If you are a health and fitness website and someone approaches you about running a sponsored post about mascara, it’s probably not the best fit. They probably found you when doing a search about beauty, or something related to women and are trying to reach a new market or didn’t even pay attention. But that doesn’t mean you should dilute your brand. If people don’t come to your website to buy makeup, don’t start pushing it to make a quick buck. It will backfire, and you will start losing your readers.
There have been several times where advertisers have approached me about adding a link to an article I already have written. There is nothing easier than updating an old article with a link and getting paid for it.
As with any transaction you make, know the terms in advance. Sometimes advertisers only want to purchase a link on your website for a set period of time. Others want to purchase it for the life of the article.
You will also note that some advertisers have a larger budget than others. You will want to decide if you have a set fee for working with sponsors or if you want to let them dictate the terms. No matter which way you go, you need to make sure you know what you are agreeing to and keep a record.
6.) Publish Them In A Book
If you write enough quality articles on the same topic, you can compile them into a book and self-publish it. For example, Holiday Marketing was originally written as a series of articles during the holiday season, and then published as an eBook.
Once you have the content written, all you have to do is combine it, do some editing, and possibly fill some gaps. Then format it, get a cover made, and you are ready to go.
Just know that if you have written articles for a publisher or client, you may not be able to use them for anything else. It is always important to know what you are agreeing to when working with someone else.
Some clients/publishers buy the rights to the article from you, some request exclusive publishing rights for a certain number of days, and others don’t care. Always know what you’re agreeing to when working with someone else.
Quick Note:
If you’re a member of Amazon’s affiliate program, you can use it to promote your own book on your website so you can earn extra money. You can even advertise the book you published in the articles you wrote for it.
Recap
So, there you have it. Six ways you can make money writing articles. By now, you should be able to see that just because you’re an author, doesn’t mean you have to be a starving artist. Writers can be successful and support their families with their writing.
You can take the steps to get started today.
Heather Hart — Author Coach
Heather has a passion for helping other writers make their dreams come true. With well over a dozen books in print, she has been working as an author coach for close to a decade.
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