How I Created Content Writing

Make money as a freelance writer without writing content… here’s how to do it.

If you were to conduct a search for “freelance writing jobs” on Google, the result would look like this; about 172,000,000 results. Many people think they can produce quality articles. Writing for others can be difficult, time-consuming and even less fun.

That’s because anyone who is just starting out will not get the choice, lucrative jobs that pay substantial amounts. In order to show their talent, they will need to create a large body of work. That takes time and doesn’t pay well.

The secret that many content writers won’t disclose is that they use a system to produce quality work fast. The pros rarely start with a blank screen. I’ll share how I earned $34,000 selling content writing templates and swipe files to help writers land jobs.

Take the Stress and Uncertainty out of Content Writing Templates

A content writing template is a structure that you can use repeatedly to generate your content. Go to your assignment sheet or your content marketing calendar and choose your subject. When most novice writers get started, they get lost trying to figure out what to write. With content templates, you start with your keywords and build your outline first.

Choosing the right keywords and researching competitor articles is the first step. I would have two screens loaded with references on various browser tabs. Let’s say I’m writing about the James Webb Telescope. I would look at what keywords were popular for that subject.

Next comes the research on what people want to know about the James Webb Telescope. I’m selecting the number of questions based on the length of the post. Now, my research task is straightforward.

The outline comes next. There are dozens of ways to create your outline. Understanding the type of content writing format is crucial. Choose the article or blog template based on your outline.

Content writing templates for articles and blogs will come in various formats. Promotional posts, tip sheets, lists, and tutorials are available. Once the writers have created their outline, they can choose from a list of options. You can even choose an outline template!

Templates are usually set up to guide the writer through a series of blocks. The first block is usually the title. It’s not necessarily the final version, but it’s a good start. A series of blocks of copy is structured so that the production moves smoothly from start to finish.

The Anatomy of a Content Writing Template

When I first started writing articles back in the day, I painfully completed them one at a time from start to finish. It was long and boring. By the time I was training writers for my company, there was a series of templates created to speed up the process while keeping the writer on task and ensuring that the finished material was SEO and reader-friendly.

This was a visual schematic of what the parts of the standard 500-word article would contain. It looked something like the list below.

500-Word Article Template

1: Title Choice.

2: Introduction.

3: Subtitle 01.

4: Paragraph 01.

5: Paragraph 02.

6: Subtitle 02.

7: Paragraph 03.

8: Paragraph 04.

9: Subtitle 03.

10: Paragraph 05.

11: Paragraph 06.

12: Summary /CTA.

13: Tags.

There wasn’t much to it, but the framework allowed anyone who wanted to construct an article to fill in the sections. Brief articles could be completed in 30 minutes. What was more significant than speed was the completeness of the material. When the articles were edited, they met the professional standards required to get paid.

There are content creation templates for just about every type of content out there. For example, I’ve created templates for:

Blogs.

Buyer Persona.

Call to Action.

Case Studies.

Content Calendars.

Ebooks.

Editorials.

Email Marketing.

Facebook Ads.

Infographics.

Pinterest.

PowerPoint Presentations.

Press Releases.

Social Media Images.

Webinars.

It’s difficult to return to the old way of doing things once templates are used for daily production. That’s how I got writers hooked on templates. Like any honest drug dealer, I started giving them out to my friends for free. Once they were hooked, that’s all it took.

Make Your Own Content Writing Templates

In order to create your own templates, you must first break down your content into sections. For example, look at my simple breakdown of a 500-word article. There are clear boundaries outlined.

In the old days, I’d get lost in the material and had to double back to figure out if I was sticking to the point. Each box is a guide to keep you on track. The subtitles describe our theme before each paragraph’s content.

The communication became clearer and less rambling when I was working with a system that allowed me to sketch out my schedule. I could think ahead with precise sentences. It’s okay to extend the length of a paragraph if there’s more to say on a particular thought. This guide will prevent you from rambling and being unclear in your presentation.

Some people may see something like this as too restrictive. It may be off-putting for some to adhere to rigid rules of concise paragraphs and even subsections. I understand. Consider this training for content writers.

Some of these conventions can also be broken when necessary. Brief paragraphs are not a hard and fast rule. The reader can skim the content more efficiently because it’s written in brief paragraphs and is more visually appealing.

I started with mind maps. This made it easy to segment out the information and created a fill-in-the-blanks type of format. You can even include prompts in your template. For example, take a few of your previous introductions and create boilerplate versions for sample intros. You can do the same for the summary and call for action.

You’ll be surprised how easy it will be for you to create templates once you start. The problem is keeping them organized. I’ve moved all my templates online to keep them manageable. There are now hundreds of them.

You can make a template for any content production this way. I even produce my eBooks, webinars and tutorials from my content templates.

Now, when you’re done with your template, be sure to save a backup copy. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve saved the file over my original template in the past. Compress your collection and keep them safe.

You may not be interested in selling your templates. However, they will make you a lot of money when producing content for yourself or clients. Treasure them and use them to generate income more efficiently.

Now, there are writers and designers out there that may want some help in making their workload a tad lighter. They might be happy to get some help from a seasoned content writing template maker. Good luck.