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Web content writers (especially SEO writers) are often looked down upon among other writer groups. They’re known for working at dirt-cheap rates (a penny per word or even less), writing content stuffed with keywords (written more for search engines than readers), and in many cases for having generally poor writing skills (because many are non-native speakers of the language they’re writing in). But is being an SEO Web content writer really all bad?

Like any type of writing job, Web content writing is what you make it.

To break past some of these misconceptions of what the Web content writing life is like for SEO writers, let’s explore some of the myths, why they came about, and what Web content writing can really be like (on a more professional level).

SEO Web Content Writing Job Opportunities

In the current digital age, companies are all itching to get more search engine traffic. To do that, they try to optimize their Web content, tailoring it to show up in search results for certain keyword phrases. SEO content writers play a significant role in creating that content, so there’s definitely a demand for specialists.

Web content writers also aren’t just needed in a few content areas–they’re hired in just about every niche or industry you can think of. However much of the work publicly advertised is low-paying, so while there’s a never-ending demand, you may have to dig a bit to find that demand in a professional rate range.

The Pay

While it’s wrong to assume all SEO Web content writers are in the penny-per-word crowd (some earn several hundred dollars per article), there is a bit of truth to it. Much of publicly advertised Web content writing jobs fall in the $5 to $25 per article range (exceptionally low when compared to writing for many print publications or even Web publications focused primarily on authority / expert content over search engine optimization).

To earn the higher pay ranges, you would have to look beyond those advertised writing jobs. Many well-paid gigs in this field are found through referrals (from colleagues or past clients). It can seem difficult to break into the higher ranges (since you need clients in that market generally to get referrals for more clients in that market), but it’s not impossible.

A good way to start is to pitch local corporate clients which may not traditionally look for Web content writers (they may not even know they need them). It’s a field where you still have the ability to create your own demand. For example, you may convince them to publish how-to articles on their company site to educate visitors (which can turn them into customers), but also to attract more search engine traffic interested in what the company is offering. Another option might be to pitch content for a company blog.

The Job

The job of Web content writers can be relatively straightforward–they write articles and blog posts that get published online (we’re not talking about things like company homepages, product pages, sales pages, etc. - that’s copywriting rather than content writing).

In many cases, the client or employer will provide the target keyword phrases to be included, and they may give the writer a target keyword density as well. In other cases, it will be the writer’s responsibility to conduct keyword research to determine the best keyword phrases to focus on for SEO purposes.

While there are some clients who really don’t care about readers (they don’t care if the articles don’t make sense as long as they drive traffic, which brings in ad revenue), others do genuinely want reader-friendly (as well as SEO-friendly) Web content. Those are the clients who generally hire professional writers, and who pay more professional rates.

What SEO Web Content Writers Write

It’s often assumed that SEO writers only write basic articles tossed onto ad-optimized websites. In fact, they can work on several types of projects, including:

• Articles for a client’s site
• Articles to be used in article marketing
• Short e-books and reports (usually in the indexed .pdf format)
• Blog posts
• Reviews
• Forum posts
• Answers (on Q&A sites like Yahoo! Answers)
• Online newsletter content

While many writers choose to stick to basic articles and blog posts, as you can see, there’s really an opportunity for diversity in Web content writing. Like I mentioned earlier, it’s all in what you make of it.

Find out more about becoming a Web content writer with the following resources:

• The Web Writer’s Guide to Launching a Successful Freelance Web Writing Career (A comprehensive e-book on getting started as a Web writer.)
• All Freelance Writing (For job leads and Web writing advice.)
• Freelance Writing Gigs (For more job leads and Web writing advice.)
• Adwords Sandbox (For keyword research.)
• Web Content Writing Tutorials and Resources

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