How to easily get Freelance writing jobs in Nigeria
Nigeria commands a number of firsts in sub-Saharan Africa. For starters, she has the largest population on the continent. This fact makes her a top destination for businesses and foreign investors. Internet penetration in Nigeria is also on the rise. This increase has brought about a new vista of jobs and careers, notable among them being Freelancing writing.
With websites and blogs needing content for their site for marketing and advertising purposes, freelance writing in Nigeria is on the upsurge. If you have a flair for writing and see freelancing as a career path, follow these tips to  get freelance writing jobs in Nigeria:
Own/Run a Blog
The benefits of running a blog or having a website cannot be over-emphasized. And the benefits are compelling. For starters, your writing can gain needed exposure. Once you have a genre you like and you begin to generate content, it is essential you give visibility to your work. Remember also that your website or blog page is up for twenty-four hours a day, 357 days in the year. In other words, your work can be viewed and accessed from just about anywhere in the world especially Nigeria.
Owning a blog also keeps you on your toes. The need to churn out content on a consistent basis serves as the perfect reason to always write.
Become a guest contributor
As mentioned at the beginning, Nigeria is embracing e-commerce and the internet culture. Many businesses run not just websites but interact blogs as well. Sites like travelstart.ng readily come to mind. These blogs need steady or part-time contributors for meaning and engaging content.Contributing to these blogs, even if for free as a start, puts you in a good position in negotiating for paid engagement.
Rules of thumb include carrying out research on the type of content wanted by businesses and obeying the laws and regulations regarding submitting guest articles.
Leverage on social media
Social media has and continues to revolutionize the way people and processes interact with one another.Nigeria is not exempted. In fact, Nigerians are some of the busiest people on the internet, sharing opinions/commentaries on local, regional and international issues.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, et al, engage large numbers of Nigerians, including those seeking for publishable content.
From your account, you can post snippets of your articles and create links to your website or blog.
Engage in Personal advertising/marketing
You can never get it wrong with word-of-mouth advertising. You can leverage on the network of friends, family, and acquaintances.
Tell them what you do, your genre of writing and what rates you charge for each job. The idea behind this concept is taking advantage of the networks of these people. You never can tell who amongst their inner circle of contacts would need the services of a freelance writer.
You can decide to take the extra step of offering a commission to people who help in securing writing engagements for you.
Join freelance platforms
You can secure freelance writing jobs in Nigeria by becoming a member of freelance job portals in Nigeria. Examples include portals such as Justfrom5k. These platforms have a large membership cutting across content curators, creators, clients, and organizations.
To take advantage of this opportunity, you would need to register with your details, providing information such as your genre of writing, the rates you charge as well as the level of writing expertise. Registration is typically free, with some platforms charging commissions for linking freelancer with clients.
Hone your skills/Offer unique content
It is important you build your competence/skill set with constant training cum practice. Do not conform to the norm; you can take a look at the Nigeria information content market and decide to offer something new.
Do you think the Nigerian local food service sector can do with the detailed information? Or do you estimate that the fashion industry could do with more targeted content? Then you should come up with compelling material to fill the void and capture attention.
Doing this on a consistent basis should open doors for getting freelance writing jobs in Nigeria.
Partner with other Freelancers
The freelance trade in Nigeria is booming. Businesses outsource tasks like website design, software programming, graphics design et al. to freelancers.
You can capitalize on this demand by forming partnerships with other freelancers in Nigeria. It turns out these professionals also have a need for content and write-ups for their projects. With a partnership in place, you are likely to receive referrals and contracts to provide content for these other freelancers.
Read widely
As a freelance writer, the next activity that you should engage in just as much as you write is reading. Reading opens up your imagination to the possibilities that exist in Nigeria and beyond.
You can choose to read up materials material peculiar to your niche or genre.In the alternative, you can brush up on your general knowledge inventory.
An illuminated mind gains visibility in the quality of your write-ups, which in turn predisposes you to get freelance writing jobs in Nigeria.
