Freelance Writing Niches: How to Pick the Perfect One

“What’s your freelance writing niche?”

That’s the question most freelance writers cannot answer.

Because most of them write on multiple topics. And that’s a BIG mistake!

Beware of these other mistakes new freelance writers make.

Do you really need a writing niche?

YESS!!

Today, I’ll tell you why you must have a writing niche and 4 easy steps to choose the perfect niche for yourself.

Here’s what I’ll cover

First, What is Niche in Content Writing?

A niche is your area of knowledge where you have a solid understanding of the needs of the potential customer, are updated on the latest trends, and have connections with industry experts.

I know that’s difficult to consume in one go!

So, I’ll put this as:

A niche is the field you write in.

For example, Finance, Business, Marketing, Health, etc.

But, Why it’s Important to Have a Freelance Writing Niche?

The opinion on having a freelance writing niche is varied. Some prefer to be generalists writing on any random topic that comes their way while some are experts in a special niche.

If you ask my opinion, I will ALWAYS vote for having a niche.

And there’s a reason for it!

Look at this conversation I had on LinkedIn! A blogger aproached me for writing content on his blog.

This is just one instance. But, I’ve had clients asking for my writing niche before hiring me as a writer.

And this is obvious. They don’t want generalists who can write anything. ONLY experts who specialize in the content they need, thus, helping them drive traffic and business revenue.

Also, as an expert, you can scale your pay-rate higher which you can’t as a generalist.

Bottom line?

Remember the dialogue from the movie, 3 Idiots: Chase Excellence, not Success!

Now, comes the real part…

How to Choose your Freelance Writing Niche?

Let’s learn it step-by-step!

Step 1: What’s your area of expertise?

I am a homeopathic graduate and was practicing at my clinic for the past 5 years before I jumped into freelance writing.

Being from a medical background, I chose health and medical writing as my niche.

As you see, medical practice is nowhere related to my writing job.

But, since I have a medical background, I was a good choice for the health and medical communication firms I started my writing career with.

So first ask yourself!

“What is it you are most knowledgeable about? Or what’s your field of experience?”

Look at your degree or the past job experience. Is it Finance, Health, Technology or Any other?

However, besides knowledge, you gotta love what you do which brings us to the next step.

Step 2: What you’re passionate about?

Though I had a medical background, but writing in health was getting monotonous for me. Also, I was attracted to the corporate life.

So I expanded my writing niche to content and digital marketing.

By the way, I recommend digital marketing skills for every content writer. Here’s why!

Besides establishing what you know, it’s also important to consider what you love to write about. Unless you are interested in what you write, you can’t deliver good content.

Identifying your passion also involves your style of writing – blog posts, white papers, social media posts, etc.

Whatever be the style you enjoy writing, you must specialize in it.

Step 3: Know your target market

Picking freelance writing niches for which you don’t have a target audience will be a complete waste.

So browse to find businesses, blogs or magazines that offer to pay for writing in your niche.

If there’s no market or an audience who would be interested to read what you write (and pay for it), your niche might be too specific. Take a step back and see how you can broaden your niche to appeal to a wider audience.

Also, identify the gaps or opportunities in your target market which you can fill with your writings.

Step 4: The Final choice

Hope you had put all the brainstorming done so far to paper. Now, it’s time to take the final decision on your writing niche, using the formula:

Area of expertise/experience + Your passion + Your Style of Writing + Your target market = your freelance writing niche

However, picking a niche doesn’t mean choosing only ONE. If you are experienced in more than one field and are equally passionate about it, you can choose multiple niches to work in.

What’s Next After Choosing the Freelance Writing Niches?

Once you have identified your writing niche, it’s time to start freelance writing. However, don’t limit yourself here.

Be a continuous learner and improve on your freelance writing skills and area of expertise. Higher the level of your expertise, the more you’ll be in demand by your clients.

Conclusion on Freelance Writing Niches

Many writers love taking a generalist approach towards freelance writing.

But, let me assure you!

Picking a freelance writing niche will position you as an expert in the eyes of your client and target audience. You can scale up your freelancing business faster than without a niche.

For picking up your perfect niche, identify your area of expertise, your passion, your style of writing, and your target market.

Even if you aren’t an expert in your field, but are willing to learn, you can choose that niche.

And what’s the next phase?

Once you choose your freelance writing niche, market yourself as a niche writer, and not a generalist.

Mention your niche in the headlines and your bio on all your social media channels so that when a client visits your profile, this should be their first thought:

Whoa, I have found the exact writer I needed!

See how I’ve mentioned my niche on my LinkedIn profile

Don’t miss out my post on How to Create a LinkedIn Profile as a Beginner!

So, what’s your writing niche?