Advice to aspiring business writers

I am approached now and then by people who "have a passion for writing" and want to change to or commence a career as a professional writer. Naturally I am happy to serve as a coach or, sometimes, a Cassandra, to these seekers. I wrote down some tips today for an aspiring writer who didn't know how to prepare for a job search, and decided to share an edited form of my tips here. There is much more that could be said, but I thought this list was a good jumping off place.

My advice is confined to people seeking writing positions within business. If you want to be paid for writing jokes, greeting cards, poems, screenplays or novels, or as a journalist, you will have to seek advice from someone more knowledgeable in those fields than I.

So, you want to be a business writer!

First of all, have you decided what type of writing position you want? You could be a technical writer, advertising copywriter, marketing communications writer, corporate communications writer, speechwriter, and so on. You need to focus on the path your skills are best aligned with, so the essential first step is to define that path.

Educate yourself

It's not enough to have a flair for writing. You must be able to demonstrate your knowledge of communications and know how to defend anything in your portfolio based on an understanding of the communications goals, specific medium, and audience.

Hunt around on MarketingProfs, Creative Business, MediaPost, and similar sites for information and advice on writing/marketing for different media. You can and must educate yourself on best practices and latest trends in advertising and marketing communications.

Make a portfolio

Create an organized and attractive portfolio of your past writings. This will be essential when applying for writing jobs.

If you need to build your portfolio ... 

• Do some professional writing for free. Not for big companies (they probably wouldn't accept you yet, anyway) but perhaps for friends who have small businesses of their own. Offer to edit their website or write a brochure or sales email for them. You can save the results in a "before and after" file for your portfolio. 
• Or, do this for a non-profit organization as a volunteer.

There are lots of online marketplaces for freelancers to find jobs – just search Google for "freelance writing." However, I have to warn you these sites are filled with desperate people who offer to take on big jobs for mini-fees. Not a way to make a living, but again, maybe a way to get your feet wet and add to your client list.

Take career advice from experts

Rewrite your resume to focus on your writing abilities and aspirations. A skills-based resume is probably the way to go when shifting careers. Look at the other skills and knowledge you have and see how these may actually play into strengthening your resume.

Consult a resume/career expert on the ins and outs of career changing.

Apply at a marketing temp agency. They will pre-qualify you by looking at your portfolio and giving you a proofreading and editing test. This will allow you to measure your current skill level and better understand how prepared you are to enter this field. The agency will also give an idea of how much jobs that fit your skills are paying.

Network

There is a world of advice available on LinkedIn. Join a few writers' networking groups – just search around and join and start asking questions.

Get real

Read employment ads for writers. What are clients looking for in a new hire? Read all the qualifications listed in the ads and see if you have them or can get them. Also, you will probably have to start out as an entry-level writer no matter where you go. Can you live on the salary?

Promote yourself

Start a blog to show off your writing skills and to comment on business and marketing issues in general. Be sure you treat each post as if it were going to be a published piece, writing and editing and proofing it carefully before you publish. Blogger is free and easy to use, but there are other simple platforms as well, such as WordPress.

When you are really ready to look for that first job, let all your contacts know! Use your writing skills to position yourself correctly in the market and to promote your capabilities. That is the hardest writing job you will ever have, by the way.

Summary

By all means use LinkedIn and other forums to get more answers and learn from other people who have walked the same path you are on.

Finally, writing for a living is not easy. Consider the possibility that you could satisfy your itch to write by maintaining a blog or writing short stories, while getting on with your career in other areas.