How to Become a Pro Content Writer in India? [Revised]

We have seen the digital revolution in just a few years. There is digital everywhere and there is everything digital.

Human beings are now depending on digital for everything they want and everything they do. If you need to purchase something, you will e-commerce. If you need any information, you will google. There is hardly anything that is not digital.

In this digital era, if there is someone who is catering to all your needs with useful knowledge and healthy content, is a Content Writer. Every digital thing has content. A kind of content that is specifically created to cater to the need of each individual.

Now, who creates all this content? A content writer. And who is a content writer? Obviously, someone who loves to write. A non-writer cannot ever write any kind of content because it needs writing skills and it is not a one-time job, it needs to be consistent.

So, if you are someone who writes or loves to write, then this blog is your chance to know everything about content writing and how you can excel in this field.

What is Content?

Before diving into the technicalities of content writing, you need to understand the meaning of content.

“Content is the information that educates, inspire, inform, motivate, entertain, convince, influence, or persuade a specific audience to take a specific action. “

Your content is depended on various aspects such as your target audience, your niche, your motive, and your goals. A content writer keeps a lot of things in mind while writing any kind of content. Because it is just not about writing content but also taking care of other ingredients.

Adding value to the content is an important aspect of content writing that helps you to build trust and brand loyalty.

Who is a Content Writer?

A content writer is a person who produces digital content for either himself or any agency, is a content writer. The content writer is someone who plans, creates, and publishes the content on a digital platform to engage the audience.

The major responsibility of a content writer is to produce content that has the potential to engage the right audience. For that, the content writer needs to focus on many things such as keyword research, search engine optimization, target audience, and digital marketing-related stuff.

Are you a content writer? Or want to become one? Then, keep reading.

What Does a Content Writer Do?

A content writer creates a lot of content for different brands, digital platforms, social media, websites, etc. The category of content varies according to the work a content writer is hired for. The main focus of a content writer is to create quality content and engage the audience.

As a content writer, you will be hired for writing web content, social media content, e-books, blog posts, white papers, guides, product descriptions, podcasts, press releases, etc. Each of these contents requires a different style of writing that a content writer possesses.

The work of a content writer may seem easy but it is not, you will have to perform your work responsibly.

What Do You Need to Become a Successful Content Writer?

Now, you must be curious to know what skill set you will need to become a successful content writer. No one out there is pro without possessing a few skills. Do you want to succeed? Then, you need to master the right skills.

Before going further, you must know that the power of taking the right action at the right time works wonders for a content writer. As a writer, you must focus on taking action and not holding back anything.

When you will learn to take action, you will be ready to learn new skills and execute them with a better understanding.

There are several skills on which you should focus on mastering to become a pro content writer in India;

1. Research Skills:

Writing a quality piece requires a lot of thorough research and detailed study on the topic you are working upon. A writer who digs deep into the facts, figures, details, data, and knowledge, undoubtedly writes the best content.

2. Grammar Skills:

Having impeccable grammar is a plus point for you. Grammatical errors sometimes kill pretty good content. Also, a lot of people demand grammar-free content. So, you need to be proficient and dominant in the language you are writing.

3. Digital Marketing Skills:

Nowadays, every writer is expected to have digital marketing skills. Because at the end of the day, it is about doing the right marketing to engage the right audience. Although, when you join this industry, you will end up learning a lot about digital marketing automatically.

4. Communication Skills:

Communication skills have become an important aspect of an individual’s day-to-day life. Similarly, for a content writer, it is of utmost importance to have great communication skills which will help you to communicate better with your prospects or clients.

5. Editing Skills:

A content is incomplete until you go through each line thoroughly two to three times. Yes, you heard me right. You need to have editing skills to remove unwanted errors or mistakes that may be there in your content. No one bothers about the mistakes while writing, but once you are done with writing, do make sure to proofread.

These are some of the few skills which are necessary for a content writer to have.

What Are the Qualifications to Become a Content Writer in India?

I am pretty sure that you must have gone through this at least once while on this journey to become a content writer. But if you are a budding content writer and wondering what degrees you need to get to become a content writer in India, then you better read the next few lines carefully.

There are no such degree courses or professional qualifications to become a content writer. Repeat after me, “You can become a content writer without pursuing any degree or professional course”. Ignore every trash you read that says “you need a degree course to become a content writer” because there isn’t any.

All you need are the right skills, a presence of mind, determination, and hard confidence. There you will become a content writer without getting into college or getting a graduation degree.

Something more important than a degree in content writing is your Writing Skills. Your writing skills will decide how long and how fast you will become a pro content writer.

I am sure that you will find it shocking how there is no such qualification necessary for this field. But please don’t be shocked. I am telling you the truth. There will be a lot of job descriptions asking you to have some kind of qualifications, but don’t ever fall into such a trap. The only thing you need is a skill, if you have that you would easily win the world of content writing.

Is Content Writing an Ideal Career Choice?

It is very easy for you to sometimes wander around the doubts, and one of such constant doubts is whether it is the right career choice or not?

It is a very ideal career choice. Let me clear the air of doubt for you.

Earlier, there wasn’t much talk about content writing or content writers but in the past few years, it has become one of the most chosen and most earned fields in India.

In case you are not aware let me tell you how there are people doing content writing full-time and earning a handful of money. Also, they are getting better at it every day.

As long as you’re holding the skill of writing rich content, you will be going to land yourself into new opportunities every day. Skills won’t be confined to a few career options only; they will be going to enhance your options.

The beauty of content writing is that you prosper regardless of your qualification, location, gender, age, or status.

An ideal career is that where you find the liberty to do anything you want to and manage to grow unconditionally, this is content writing for you.

What are the Career Options Available for a Content Writer?

Having multiple career options gives you a sense of longing for what you are doing. You will be able to explore various options in the same field.

The content writer also has such options which they can choose while in this industry. I believe you should know all these options so that you can decide what you want to do when you join the stream.

Following are the career you can choose in content writing;

1. Freelancing:

Freelancing is the most fascinating thing these days. Every content writer is choosing to freelance over a full-time job. In freelancing, a content writer has the freedom to choose clients and projects. Freelancers also have the liberty to choose the number of working hours, rates, and the kind of writing they want to do. You can start freelancing at any stage because you don’t need any prior experience, you just need to implement your skills. For freelancing, you will need to have one thing and that is a portfolio of your writings where you can show your writing skills to your prospective client. As a freelancer, you also need to pitch your prospects and for that, your pitch must be clear and explicit. There are also some freelancing sites such as Fiverr, Upwork, Freelancers.com, etc.

2. Full-Time Job:

Doing a full-time job as a content writer is the most common option which everyone juggles at least once in their lifetime. Everybody wants to play safe when it comes to their career, so they choose to do their job. If you are also thinking of doing a full-time job as a content writer then you just have to apply to openings at different companies or agencies. There are many contents writing jobs available in the market that you can apply for. But if you want to do a content writing job then you have to meet the criteria set by companies for hiring the content writer. A fresher might have to show some samples of their writing or simply they may ask you to write one for the post. Some of the popular job portals are Naukri.com, Indeed job search, LinkedIn, Glassdoor, etc.

3. Internships:

Internships are the best way to kickstart your content writing journey. These internships give you an overall experience of this field and help you grow some of the main skills. Well-established businesses as well as startups hire interns for a short tenure, say two or three months. Many unpaid internships are also there, but my suggestion is for you to never join them. Because they are straight away denying you to pay for your efforts. Internships give you a splendid chance to learn new skills and get some prior experience.

Types of Content Writing

It’s now time to know what forms of content you will be curating while doing a job, freelancing, internships, etc. Here are the kinds of content you will explore as a content writer;

1. Blog Writing:

– Blog writing is the most common kind of writing you will be seeing in this field. It is that form of writing where you will be writing about different types of things in the form of information blogs. You may write food blogs, DIY blogs, entertainment blogs, etc.

2. Academic Writing:

Academic writing is that form of writing where you write education-related articles, blogs, e-books, guides, etc. As its name suggests it covers academic-related writing which you often find while googling any course, college, subjects, etc.

3. Social media writing:

Social media writing is all about social media content that you see daily such as captions on the post, stories, PR articles, infographics, etc. All of it comes under social media writing.

4. Copywriting:

Copywriting is an act of writing which helps you sell better. It is advertising writing where you write to advertise your products or services in such a way that a customer is persuaded to buy.

5. Technical Writing:

Technical writing refers to writing where the writer is expected to provide technical information which involves complex ideas. The writers who do technical writing are required to have a few qualifications, sometimes.

6. Travel Writing:

Travel writing is one of the most interesting forms of writing where a writer writes about traveling such as travel guides, travel blogs, magazines articles, travelogues, etc. The people who love to travel write about their travel experience or share the travel guide to help others to find the best places. Sometimes, these people hire you for writing their blogs.

7. E-mail Writing:

– E-mail writing is also a very common form of writing where you compose, send, receive e-mails for various business purposes. Businesses communicate through emails; it is a very traditional yet effective way of formal communication.

8. Ghostwriting:

– Ghostwriting is very common among young and budding content writers. You ghostwrite for websites and other individuals. By ghostwriting you are making your portfolio and collecting samples to show your prospects.

All the above forms of writing are very familiar in the content writing industry.

Steps to Become a Pro Content Writer in India

After assuring that this field will be a perfect career choice for you, it is time to know how you can make it happen by following just a few steps. And there you will become a pro content writer in India.

Here are the following step-wise guide to be a pro content writer;

1. Choose a Niche:

Choosing a niche for yourself is the utmost thing to do as a content writer. When you combine your skill of writing with the things you love to write, it becomes your expertise. Working with the right niche will help you grow a lot as a content writer. At the start, you may be confused about your niche or area of expertise because you are just starting and you want to do everything. As soon as you will go ahead, you will start to find your best area of writing. That will help you to identify your niche.

2. Create a Portfolio:

The portfolio is the most necessary thing for you, whether you are applying for a job or pitching a client portfolio will depict your expertise. You may not understand its value at the start but as you will start engaging with agencies or companies, you will regret not having a portfolio. Creating a portfolio helps your audience to trust your work. You can write blogs or articles on either your niche or anything you want to like for your portfolio.

3. Create a social proof:

Today, everyone is busy creating a social image that influences people. This works exactly how you think it will. Social proof gives an instant idea about your overall personality and how others perceive you online. It includes creating accounts on LinkedIn, Quora, Instagram, etc. These platforms not only upskill your writing skills but also highlights how individuals are loving your work. Sometimes, companies or prospects may ask you to share your social media handles because that helps them to understand you and your work better. So, as a budding writer, you must focus on creating social proof.

4. Start Blogging:

Are you reading this blog? Then, you must be a budding writer. Every budding writer has a blog of its own where they write and express different aspects, it not helps them to write better and frequently, but also works as a portfolio. It is also an ideal approach to acquire work and explore different avenues. Blogging is actually where you are free to express every personal sentiment regarding any issue. It is also the best way to reach people around the globe. Creating reader-friendly blogs attract more readers and helps you develop a community.

5. Create a LinkedIn Profile:

LinkedIn is one of the famous platforms for working professionals where people from different working backgrounds, experiences, or personalities come together. It creates a professional network where you can communicate and engage with professionals from your field. It has been a content writer’s favorite place to learn, upskill, and grow their network. If you want to start working as a content writer then you should join LinkedIn, set up your profile, and start engaging with your network. This platform will help you rise both professionally and personally. You will also get a lot of work on LinkedIn.

6. Learn Digital Marketing:

When you will enter the world of content writing, you will be going to explore the digital world as well. To grow professionally in this area, you must know about digital marketing and other related skills. Content marketing is one of the important aspects of content writing which needs you to learn digital marketing. Learning digital marketing will only complement your content writing career. There are different digital marketing courses that you may take up along with your regular work. These courses can be free as well as paid.

7. Choosing your way of working:

At the end of the day, you want to get paid for your work. But it depends, how you would like to get paid as to whether a full-time employee or a freelance writer. In simple words, choose how you want to work. There are two options either you can do freelancing or hop into a full-time job. The difference between these two is the liberty of work. In a job, you will be confined to someone else’s boundaries while as a freelancer you will work on your terms. Both ways, you will get paid but the way of getting paid will be different.

8. Keep upskilling:

At last, the one thing that will lead you to natural heights will be your skills which you must have polished time and again. You must upskill because this world keeps on changing so does everything around. Keep yourself updated with trends and new skills which are a must for your field.

Conclusion

I guess this blog has everything that you must know, I have every doubt or question that may arise in your mind while going forward.

Ultimately, the only thing you need to do right now follows this blog and create wonders with your writing.

The foremost thing you need to have above all is Patience because things take time and it requires your endurance. This piece of advice will help you conquer everything in Life.