Writing

What Should Writers Sell to Make Money?

I have read my fair share of articles giving writers advice on how to make more money. Yes, there are countless ways to do it, but I have never been spurred on by any.

Funny enough, last year, I decided to embark on making a course. Since I was a top writer in leadership, it made all sense to create a course. I have seen some success. A few people have signed up for the free email course for leadership, and I have had no customers for my paid course. Although that is quite upsetting, I am okay with it.

I have also created an E-book for leadership and plan to release another E-book for writers. I have not seen much success in sales of my E-book either, but I guess that will come with time.

Nevertheless, that is my experience. Many people on this platform tell you time and time again that creating a course, writing an E-book or affiliate marketing is the way to go. And although I can not disagree that all of these are methods to make money, it can be hard to decide which one to go for.

If you are anything like me, you do not want to become a salesperson or your everyday content creator. You want to remain true to yourself. And that means staying a writer.

Over the last month, I have been thinking about how I can change my strategy to make money as a writer. And I mean as a writer and not an affiliate marketer, podcaster or anything else you can become.

Not to say there is anything wrong with diversifying. I still think having my own podcast would be fun, and it is something I am looking into. But I think every writer comes to a point where they ask:

“ What can I actually sell to make money from my writing?”

And in this article, I hope to point you in the right direction.

The Two Main Things a Writer Can Sell

There are two ways a writer sells. One is indirectly, and the other is direct. The first way we sell is by writing articles. Although we are not putting a price on each of our articles, we hope that our articles draw people to read them.

As the audience reads and interacts we make money. And of course, the bigger our following, the more likely someone will come across our article.

So, writing more and building your skills as a writer in the niche you have chosen will help you generate more money. However, the most you can do to “sell” your articles is promote them on social media platforms in an engaging way to hope people click on them.

The second thing writers can sell is books. And I know it sounds obvious, but that is what it is. As someone skilled in a particular area, the only thing you can do is sell your product. For the most part, your product is a result of the skills you have, and for a writer, that is books.

Writing a good book can go a long way, and taking time to build a following in your niche before writing a book can help boost initial sales. So, the stage where you are writing articles and collecting a following is vital for releasing a book.

However, there is a problem. It is all well and good saying that writers sell books, but what if you do not want to write a book? Does it mean you can no longer sell as a writer?

Well, the answer is yes. And this is why people find it so hard to define what writers should be selling.

Writing Is a Means to Communicate

Unlike the farmer who can sell a carrot, writing is not a physical product. We can not sell a list of random words to someone, although we sometimes wish it were that easy.

The value of writing is not words we put down on paper. Words are free. It is instead what we communicate that gives writing its value. The message we carry is where the selling is.

As an entrepreneur, there are two questions you should have a clear answer to. I would hope my local farmer could answer these questions with ease. The first question is, what do you produce? And the second is, where can I get it?

When you say you are a writer, you are not saying you sell words. The same way the farmer does not say they sell farming. So, there must be a what and where to your sales pitch. And I believe this is where many writers go wrong.

What Do You Write?

What you write is your product. You could write about the economy, business, cooking or parenting. In the same way, the farmer could produce all different types of crops if they wanted to. The power of having a niche allows you to become specialised and hopefully the go-to person for that product.

A good example of this is a butcher who specialises in cuts of meat. They could go out and try to cut every type of meat. However, most butchers will only focus on a select few because it is what they are good at. And it is the same with writing.

What we communicate should be something we are good at and feel confident in doing ourselves.

Where Can You Find It?

This is the place where your customers come to receive your product. Unlike the farmer who is limited to just stores, the writer has many ways to communicate through words.

That may be a personal blog, a platform like this one, a newsletter or books. And the platforms you control are where you can set your price for what you communicate.

You can decide the price of your book, newsletter or personal blog. And this is where the writer sells.

Sell Your Writing

As highlighted in the section above, writing is a product. It has a what and a where, and you have the power to sell it. Many writers are sucked into the trap of over-diversifying because they want to make money fast.

They start a youtube channel, create a podcast and start all kinds of things that have nothing to do with writing at all. Yes, they are good ways to make money, but are you still a writer? Instead, you have become a podcast host, a YouTuber or a consultant.

Once again, there is nothing wrong with that. However, I have found that those who focus on selling their writing become much better writers. They focus on the quality of their products and create articles, books, blogs and newsletters that are delightful.

So, you decide what you want to do. Do you want to be a writer, or do you want side hustles that can make you money? Either is fine, but make sure you define that clearly for yourself before continuing. Both require different strategies and ways of thinking. And both can lead to great success.

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