Writing For Profit: Part 4: Closing words.

Some things sell better than others

You can’t sell fresh air. Some articles, no matter how much you advertise them just won’t sell well. On Triond, the most popular articles seem to be “Top 10 x.”, or “World’s blank-iest blank.” Lists and top tens. Sometimes if you want to make money you need to accept that your thoughtful and interesting piece about life in a poverty stricken slum just isn’t going to sell well. Quality is also a major issue as I have mentioned before. You can provide the most interesting top 10 list of all time but if you’ve not written it properly- it will fall like a lead balloon.

Interestingly, what works for some people doesn’t work for others. This probably goes back to the quality issue. One person may be able to write the most entertaining top 10 list in the world, yet be incapable of writing an informative piece on the impacts of the Iraq war. A person who can do well at the latter, may find they can make just as much from that as the person making a top ten list. You’ll need to experiment to find your comfort zone. Golden Rule Four:

If you’re writing for profit, then write profitable articles.

Karma

As a Buddhist I believe in the principle of Karma, but this is often misunderstood in the general public. Karma is not some strange force that deals out punishment to bad people and rewards to good people; it’s more of a philosophy. The old phrase “You reap what you sow” best describes it. For example, if you treat people badly, they will treat you badly. If you look after people, then you’ll find that when you need it, they’ll look after you. It’s no mystical force, it’s common sense. I’ve found this to be true in my life- for the most part (There are some exceptions where trying to be good to people has left me severely boned), and it remains very true for you, a content provider.

Treat your readers with respect, even if it is for no other reason than they are the means by which you get your pay cheque. If you provide your readers with quality content, help them grow and learn, or even simply amuse them, it will come back to you as good fortune. In this case, you will have fans who will come back and help advertise your articles by sending them to friends, adding them to site sharing services, providing good feedback, or even just giving you a pat of the back for a job well done. All these things will help you write more, and write better content. The snowball effect continues, and in the end you are left much better off, having helped to enrich/amuse/teach others along the way. And hey, you might make a friend or two while you’re at it. It’s not ALL about the money you know…

Golden Rule Five:

Treat your readers with respect

Closing advice:

Write! For Buddha/God/Vishnu/Satan/Odin/Jesus/Science’s sake, write! Sitting around here all day reading my work isn’t going to get you anywhere. Now get out there and write me a killer article! And submit it to me, I want to see it! Whenever I write a piece of advice about writing, I always include this little bit. There is no substitute for experience. You must find your own path, you must make your own mistakes, and you must find what works and what doesn’t for yourself. Reading all the advice in the world will not help unless you put finger to key, now get to it and give me a masterpiece!

So, the Golden Rules are:

• Site sharing services are not your advertising tool. You have no right to advertise on them. If you do, you take matters into your own hands. ALWAYS submit other content and take an active part in the community to demonstrate to others you are not abusing the service.
• If you are going to advertise the article, ensure the quality of your work is high. Put extra effort into the start and finish of any article you publish.
• Write what you know about. Don’t lie. Spice your articles up by adding links to external resources in new and interesting ways.
• If you’re writing for profit, then write profitable articles.
• Treat your readers with respect.
• Don’t just sit there, Write!