How I Used Fiverr to Start My Freelance Writing Business
By: Chelsy Theriault
Tags: Freelance Writing, Freelance, Freelancers

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Back when I started my first mom blog, I got this idea in my head that I could sell parent-related content and make a little extra cash.

I had been browsing Fiverr for its hilarious services offered but came to realize that people were making money selling legitimate services too — such as writing.

With nothing to lose, I posted a gig offering parenting articles for a really cheap price. It didn’t take long before I was making some coffee money off my efforts — and getting repeat clients!

Yet, the money wasn’t substantial and I didn’t know how to move up from there.

Fortunately, one client turned out to be a game-changer in my freelance writing career.

Passing the Test

This client ordered a simple parenting article at my dismally low price and indicated that if they liked what they saw, they would want more.

Yay! Repeat business!

What I didn’t realize was that they meant they would want more in terms of bringing me on as a writer and having me write for their client’s site on a regular basis.

I passed the test and brought under their wing as a content writer. I was enjoying writing weekly articles for this site and making a steady income, even if it wasn’t enough to live off of.

However, I did come to rely on that income to supplement what I was making at my “real” job — so when the writing work started to trickle out, I began to panic.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

I was at a crossroads of sorts, trying to figure out if I should keep pushing for writing jobs or bite the bullet and find a higher paying full-time job.

The problem was, I love writing. It’s my passion and writing articles for money didn’t feel like work.

As a single mom with a lot on her plate, this situation was becoming ideal and I didn’t want to lose grip on the momentum I was building with my freelance writing.

I indicated this passion to the client and they began giving me writing assignments in other niches. While I wasn’t writing about parenting, I was learning so much about other industries while maintaining a cash flow.

What I thought was a pretty sweet gig just got sweeter and my client was willing to keep me working, no matter the nature of the job.

Eventually, they had me conduct guest post outreach to other parenting sites in order to build backlinks.

I hit Google running and started connecting with other mom bloggers, asking if I can post content linking to my client on their site.

One Door Opens and Another One…Opens?

One of these mom bloggers had a site exclusively for guest contributors and I submitted my article to her.

She told me that, while she typically doesn’t allow backlinks to 3rd parties, I could post my article on her site.

At that moment, I thought I was simply fulfilling my client’s current request. I had no idea this would turn into so much more.

After I submitted that article, she asked me if I was a freelance writer.

I guess I was at that time, although I didn’t feel I was operating on any sort of professional level — I was still writing on the side with no serious thought of what the future of my writing was going to look like.

She offered to have me write a few articles for her.

I Guess I’m a Freelance Writer Now

Over the last couple of years, my freelance writing business has grown between both clients — the OG’s from Fiverr and the mom blogger.

Eventually, my first client assigned me to edit articles as well as write articles and my income significantly increased from there.

My mom blogger client brought me on as her full-time writer and increased my rate of pay.

Where am I now? Working exclusively from home making a liveable income from writing.

As of right now, I’m not one of those $10K per month blogger/writer extraordinaires, but the fact that I am making a living doing what I love is absolutely wonderful.

Where Do I Go From Here?

Although I’ve reached my goal of writing for a living, I am not done broadening my horizons.

If there’s one thing using Fiverr taught me it’s that something big and amazing can come from something small.

So I’m going to use this momentum to expand my income, hopefully creating a passive income stream through my mom blog as well as my blog for mamas who want to create blogs.

What’s The Takeaway?

I was really hoping this article was going to be a sort of “How To” guide to using Fiverr to start your freelance writing business, but there’s really no definable process here.

If you want to be a full-time freelance writer, you have to put yourself out there.

Yes, Fiverr worked out very well for me, but I’ve also hit the job boards hard and have found no work or clients interested in me.

You have to keep trying and keep learning — and once you start getting clients, keep looking for ways to expand your value and increase your workload.

If you have the passion and you put your heart into it, you’ll suddenly wake up one day and be able to say, “I am a freelance writer.”