Working as a freelance academic writer, you probably know that the freelance world goes beyond this particular area. Perhaps you are already involved in a number of writer’s revenue streams or have become tired of a steady flow of essays. Our aim, however, is not to promote the other spheres of expertise in the freelance market. Knowing the advantages and disadvantage of various niches for gig workers is nothing but a broadening of your horizons.

Advertorials

If you have never dealt with Internet marketing before, guessing what a typical advertorial is might be a bit tricky. So, what is this about? An advertorial is an advertisement concealed with a layer of content. If a person or an organization pays for a publication and it is very similar to an article, then you have bumped into an advertorial! The mark of one’s sponsorship won’t be far behind, and you will definitely see a corresponding reference to a brand that initiated the posting.

The most efficient advertorial ratio is 70% of juicy content plus 30% of an unobtrusive product’s promotion.

Brand journalism

The whole concept is in the name itself. Compared to traditional journalism (which tends to be objective), corporate journalism has its own perspective. The viewpoint of a corporate’s journalist is anticipated by a brand’s politics. It’s all about telling a story that builds a company’s name and involves a targeted audience.

According to brandjounalist.com, “Brand journalism actually has its roots in the franchise industry. In 2004, McDonald’s Chief Marketing Officer Larry Light said that mass marketing no longer worked and that “no single ad tells the whole story.” Eventually, the idea became particularly acute. Furthermore, this industry remains hot as long as it helps companies to build a dialogue with customers, captures the audience with engaging content, and increases public confidence.

Content marketing niches

Content marketing goes along with brand journalism as it moves towards attracting and retaining clients’ loyalty. As stated by Content Marketing Institute, “Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.” In doing so, this is an abundant landscape for copywriters, content writers, creative copywriters, content editors, marketing researches, content strategists, and so on.

Content marketing is not limited solely to written form. It works great with almost every known format:

• Blog articles
• Videos
• Social media marketing
• Emails
• Webinars
• Infographics
• Cartoons
• Generators/Calculators
• Apps

E-learning courses

Being a specialist in a particular area is an amazing opportunity to share your expertise with others, especially when the training industry is moving online. It is a real chance to take a lucrative place among other freelance trainers. Do you have a teaching or writing background? Are you ready to share your working experience and relay your knowledge to hungry minds? If so, it is high time to put thoughts into action. For instance, PrePly is an up-and-coming platform to kick-start your tutoring achievements.

Social media marketing

Social media is a set of powerful platforms for boosting traffic and engaging targeted audiences. Those companies that want to keep up are actively developing and applying various strategies for increasing their social popularity. This is where both PR agencies’ and freelancers’ assistance may come in handy in knowing the targeted consumers and the tactics used by Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google+, Youtube, LinkedIn, and Tumblr to drive traffic, find leads, and establish loyalty, resulting in long-term results.

White papers

This particular type is designed to – wait for it – involve the audience. Designed to promote a product, white papers are nothing but long-form content ordered by a specific company. Why use this? Its most remarkable feature is the presence of compelling arguments along with selected facts. The ultimate goal varies: carrying out a sale, making a business case, and persuading investors, customers, analysts, etc. In fact, the outcome for an execute freelancer is rewarding, as long as such services are quite expensive.

Long-reads

The opinions on whether long-reads are worth using vary. Results, however, indicate fruitful outcomes for those who put them into practise wisely. According, wordstream.com, the long-form strategy, works beautifully as a mixture of outstanding content promotion, genuine content quality, and in-depth, meaty texts.

For example, they also state that “Business news site Quartz refuses to publish articles in the typically news-friendly 500-800-word range because Kevin Delaney, Quartz’s Editor-in-Chief, believes that too many sites adhere religiously to this format.”

Quartz Curve also demonstrates the following tendency:

This way, a 1200-2500-word range may be both a good profit for a freelance expert and an attractive piece of writing for the reader. Sounds like a good deal!

Blog posts

This is a branch of content marketing that deserves a closer look. Blogging is far from vanishing in the foreseeable future, as long as it is constantly mounting. It is said that the first known blog was Links.net, created by a Swarthmore College student in 1994. The term itself belongs to John Barger, who implied “logging the web” by naming it “weblog”. Having changed drastically over two decades, now blog is not only a trendy and easy way to spread information, but also a set of powerful selling techniques. To have a full picture on the matter, we also can add that blogging is useful in terms of:

• Good income
• Ease in handling
• Compatibility with search engines
• Boosting of communication skills
• Personal development
• Creating new opportunities

This list is not complete, and so you can certainly definitely find your own pros and cons in posting blogs.

Case studies

As an academic writer, you might associate case studies with an in-depth research method for students. Its second meaning implies that case studies are very useful in smart content strategies. “Personalized marketing rule”, would say some of the companies. Saying this, they wouldn’t be wrong. “Examples of our works”, “Success studies”, “Samples”, “Testimonials” – the titles may differ, however, their significance will remain relevant for a long time. The businesses that seek an excellent writer to put into words their stories of success will be quite generous.

Website content

A famous quote is, “Content is a King.” We would like to add that content is a king who has two sons: text and media. Even though the website is dexterously designed and has a good interface – it is never enough. What a common user seeks on a website is directly related to quality content. If on one site the data is not relevant for users, they will simply search for a better piece of information on a similar web page. So, these gigs in the freelance market are widely available for those writers who are ready to satisfy the requirements and think outside of the box.

Video sales letters

Feeling overwhelmed with tons of information, people often prefer interactive and engaging videos as an alternative. Why not save time by watching a VSL instead of scanning lines in long, superfluous content? With a charismatic person and meaty topic, a 3-6-minute video can be equally effective as a long-read text of high quality. The hitch is to write a selling scenario, so it all comes down to you, dear writer.

Video scripts

Youtube is at the top of all search engines, so companies have learned how to draw customers in via informative, aesthetic, and entertaining videos, thus, writing a script is a crucial aspect for creators of media content. They often seek writers who are well-versed in understanding or identifying audience, targets, topics, and special triggers for action. Putting into practise clear, concise, and conversational context is a valuable recipe for successful video scripts and, eventually, good selling media. Take a look at HubSpot’s quick guide to have a better understanding of the concept.

Trade publication articles

A common trade publication focuses on a particular area, whether it is Healthcare, Geotechnics, Education, Architecture or Automotive News in the form of news, current events information, articles, or ads. Their comparatively narrow specification allows gathering a friendly target audience. If you happen to have either a field of expertise or a hobby that is in demand for trade publications, this may be a real chance for extra income.

Email newsletters

This is one of the most reliable, ongoing retainer gigs going. Having learned the most essential working secrets of a good newsletter, you may be as good as the guys from Thrillist:

As you can see, a compelling subject line is what can motivate you to open a letter and check the content. Then, the most accurate ratio of 90% informative content + 10% of promotional part plays its role. Adding a funny story line and a strong call to action will yield awesome results, as well as a lucrative income.

Articles for periodicals

Regardless of the type, both printed and online consumer magazines have a wide audience, which is a great platform to kick-start new talents. Writing articles for this kind of media is a wonderful chance for developing legitimate credentials, sending you great traffic (if you happen to earn as a blogger), and make profits in terms of experience and cash rewards.

Further research in terms of existing niches will show that this list is far from exhaustive. We have not specifically mentioned the academic writing field, since we guess you have that down pat so far, including: proofreading, editing, technical writing, resume writing, and so on. Becoming aware of the various freelance gigs available in content marketing and blogging will probably give you a breath of fresh air for considering your future career endeavours.