How to Become a Professional Business Writer

    Anyone can become a writer just by writing. To transition into professional writing, however, you need to practice a lot. 

 

How Much Should You Write Per Day?

    In his book On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King says he writes about 2000 words per day. Now, you don’t have to write that much, but you should maintain a disciplined schedule. Since this relies on information only you know, setting this schedule is up to you. 

 

    The important thing is adhering to whatever you set. If you decide to write for an hour every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, then you better be writing for an hour on all three days. And sometimes you won’t feel like writing, but it’s mandatory you do so. Once you’re a professional, no one cares that you’re not in the mood, and you’ll have deadlines and higher expectations for your work quality. 

    Personally, I write between 1000-3000 words every single day, with no failure. This includes fiction, blog posts, and sales copy. The point is, choose what works for you, then stick to it.

 

How to Get Started in Business Writing/Building Your Portfolio

    First off, you need to practice enough to match or beat, the competition’s writers. If you’re not there yet, just keep practicing and reading tons of blog posts in your preferred niche or field. Learn how pro writers structure their posts and take the time to learn about transitions, grammar, and overall outline. Your posts should flow from top to bottom like a river, guided by transitions and solid word choice. 

    Once you’ve sharpened your skills enough, reach out to mid-level businesses and ask to write a blog post for them. Even if you’re rejected multiple times, don’t worry about it. Instead, write a series of practice posts that are relevant to what’s popular, or intriguing, innovative ideas you’re not seeing anyone else cover. 

    For example, let’s pretend that you’re a former veterinarian tech that would love to write about animals. You’ve already reached out to mid to high-level businesses with little luck. At this point, you have two options:

 

    1. Scan the most popular animal blog posts on Google, then recreate your own blog post using them as inspiration.

    2. Write about topics you’re not seeing covered. For instance, maybe you have ideas on how veterinarian technology will develop over the next 10-20 years. Since you have experience in the field, you can probably imagine which direction the tools, medicine, and machinery are headed.

    Once you have a few of these posts, start sending them out to businesses. Make sure they’re polished, without grammar or spelling errors, and are relevant to the business or blog. Once published, continue building your portfolio until you’re considered an expert writer in your field.

 

How Many Hours Should You Spend Researching/Editing for Blog Posts?

    In short, enough to thoroughly explain your topic. This could be anywhere from thirty minutes to five hours, sometimes more. Previous experience in the field makes the process much faster, as does writing in a field you’re already curious about. 

    I’ll use myself as an example. Since I was a kid, I've loved history, mainly Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, and both World Wars. While I’ve never written a history post before, if my goal was to break into the history field, I’d write about one of those three subjects to get started. Why? Because I’ve already researched them enough to discuss just anything. 

 

    But now, let’s say a major history blog is looking for posts about the Spanish-American War, something I don’t know nearly enough to write about. So, I’d sit down for a few hours, learning everything I can about the war. Which countries fought on each side, what led to the war, and how it affected both countries and their populations. At some point, I’d come across a few unique details I could structure into a full blog post. 

    Research is arguably more important than writing ability, especially in sales copy, and editing is your best friend. Spend the time you need to research for your blog post, write it all while it’s still fresh, then spend the time required to edit each sentence. Don’t skip researching or editing; they’re crucial to great business writing.

What Writing Style Should You Use for Blog Posts?

    It depends on who your audience is. If your audience is primarily everyday people, then choosing a casual approach is better. But, if you’re in a more advanced field such as medicine or science, writing in a more rhetoric-based lecture-style might be more appreciated, since that’s what they’re used to. However, I recommend trying both and judging audience engagement and interaction. 

    Since I write blog posts related to digital marketing and small businesses, my writing style is a lot more casual. What’s most important, though, is writing in the same voice as your client if you have one. Learn this by reading their website and blog posts to get a feel for how they speak. Then, adapt your writing to fit their voice. (Unless they hire a variety of freelancers who they allow to write in their own unique voices.)

    

In Summary,

    Starting your business writing career is something that’ll take practice. Over time, however, you’ll become comfortable and discover your own unique ways of writing blog posts and may even expand into other avenues such as sales copy or ghostwriting. Take your time and enjoy the journey, but make sure you maintain your writing schedule. Discipline will take you far as a writer.