5 Free Training Resources to Learn Freelance Writing and Blogging Right Now
It seems like everyone is after your money. Every site you go to is trying to sell you something. You get it. We are all trying to make a living and get our little piece of the pie.
It’s probably got you wondering if there are any resources out there that you don’t have to pay for.
There are. A lot.
Throughout the course of my career as a freelance writer, I have found a few fantastic free resources for freelance writers and bloggers.
These sites are great for people that want to learn how to become a freelance writer or blogger without spending any money.
Should I Take a Course or Can I Get Everything for Free Online?
Courses are definitely worth it if you find the right one. There are lots of great resources online for people who aren’t ready to spend any money. I highly recommend taking a course if you are serious about becoming a freelance writer or a successful blogger.
The main reason for this is because most of the bloggers out there are providing you with just enough information to keep you coming back, but the secret sauce is behind a paywall.
You can get a boatload of information online for free, but it will be little nuggets at a time. It’s like consuming your spaghetti one noodle at a time over the course of 4 hours. You will eventually get there, but it’s going to take a lot longer.
5 Ways to Learn How to Become a Freelance Writer or Blogger Online for Free
These are the writers and bloggers that I follow closely. They are all successful and they all provide valuable information in their free content.
Most, if not all, have some type of product or course you can pay for that is worth every penny, but their blogs and content provide so much information, you can get started without having to pay.
Elna Cain
Elna is one of my favorite writers. She’s very genuine and she’s a fellow Canadian, so she’s polite, soft-spoken and likely apologizes a lot also.
She grew her business while raising young children and has been very successful. She provides an incredible amount of information in each blog post and doesn’t waste your time with fluff.
Her content revolves around how to become a freelance writer and a blogger. I will continue to follow Elna until she stops creating content.
She does quite a few Facebook live videos and most of them are available on youtube. You can check them out here.
If you want to take advantage of her free training, you can take her free course on how to get paid to write here.
Click here if you want to read an honest review of Elna’s paid training called Write to 1K course.
Here is one of her videos about having a sticky blog, so you can get a feel for her personality.
Neil Patel
Neil is one of my favorites. He’s built a sort of empire. His light-hearted and genuine demeanor pulls me in every time.
Neil has all kinds of awesome resources. Whether you consume content by video, audio, or in the form of blog posts, he’s got something for you.
Neil’s Podcast
His podcast is called Marketing School.
This podcast is on my must listen list mainly because it’s short and to the point. His episodes are usually around 5 to 10 minutes long, usually around the 5 minute mark.
They don’t do the typical intro and blabbing on and on about what’s new in their lives.
Although I love to know that people I follow are doing well in their personal lives, Neil has recognized that most people that listen to his podcast are busy and just want to get the info out of his brain and move on with their day.
Short and Sweet Youtube Videos Worth Watching
Neil has an incredible library of short videos that have the same style. He gets straight to the point and isn’t wasting anyone’s time. I LOVE this about him.
Here is one of his videos as an example. I love how uniquely genuine and knowledgeable he is. He’s just Neil!
In case you are wondering, yes I will email him and let him know I linked out to him.
I watched this video a while back and started doing this with each of my clients after we work on a post.
This technique has helped me get boosts of traffic all over the place. Neil really knows what he’s talking about!
Don’t Forget Neil’s Blog
Neil has a blog that pumps out valuable content regularly. You can find it here.
Neil’s Taking Over the (Blogging) World
I can’t mention him without telling you about his keyword tool called Ubersuggest.
This tool is 100% free and is great for doing an analysis of your own site and your competition.
The first thing I do when I get a new blogging VA client is head over to Ubersuggest and punch in their site.
This tool will provide me with information about their domain authority, their backlinks, keywords they are ranking for, and more.
Ubersuggest can also help you analyze any keyword. It will tell you how hard it is to rank for this keyword and give you some variations you can use.
This is probably the best free tool I’ve come across in my blogging journey.
Carol Tice at Make a Living Writing
Carol is another writer that comes across as very genuine. She has a lot of valuable and actionable information on her site.
All of her readers consider her a trustworthy source and very relatable, myself included.
She started out like most of us, working for content mills and making peanuts. She started her blog in order to chronicle how to find better paying work and share it with others.
Sign up for her newsletter and you can get valuable information sent right to your inbox.
Brandon Gaille – The Blog Millionaire
Brandon has an incredible story. He was injured and had to figure out how to make a living from his bed with a severe illness.
That’s when he started learning how to blog and make money online. He put his head down and worked his tail off and the results are incredible.
Read his comeback story here.
A friend sent me a very valuable and intriguing blog post from Brandon that blew my blogger mind out my ears.
It is an extensive research study on blogging. Which niches are doing well, who makes good money and how they do it? Read that article here.
I soak in everything I can from him. He’s proven himself to be a valuable resource and the success story we all strive to become.
Brandon also has his own podcast that you should definitely download on whatever program you use for podcasts. It’s called the Blog Millionaire.
Here is a video from Youtube of one of his podcast episodes so you can get a quick peek into his style.
Problogger
Darren Rowse is a household name in the blogging world.
He’s been blogging since before blogging was popular.
Darren’s blog is very valuable to any blogger. He mastered the art of engaging with his readers right from the very beginning.
Whether it’s his blog or his podcast, he will provide you with actionable steps to get better engagement, build traffic, and move in the right direction with your blog.
His podcast was the first blog related podcast I listened to. He has a program called “31 days to build a better blog.”
When I first began blogging, he had that course for free on his podcast. He has since added value to it and it is now behind a paywall, but if it’s anything like the free version that used to be available, then it is worth the cost.
Check out his free course on how to get started blogging here.
Here’s a quick taste of his podcasts.
Which Resources Is Right for You?
Browse around these sites and see which is right for you. Sometimes you just connect with a certain individual’s style and it’s easier to consume the information from them.
Let me know what you think and if any of these resources resonates with you. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.
Pin this article so you remember where to find these awesome resources.
Bloggers tell all is a course that is recommended by Nicole Johnson, a very successful blogger, in her interview here. Deposit photos is where I get all of my photos from. They have high quality images and when you purchase from them, you are purchasing the rights to use the images. Make sure you read the disclosures to be sure you are using the images in a way that does not violate their terms. For instance, if you intend to sell their images on merch, be very careful you do not violate their terms. ConvertKit is an incredible program that is very user-friendly. When I was learning, I went from not knowing the program at all to setting up an email sequence, sending out an email blast (they call them broadcasts), and setting up forms all in the first session. It does have a monthly fee, but it is worth every penny. As a newbie blogger, you don't want to pay for a lot of extras and I know it can be tempting, but this is by far one of the best investments you will make. Siteground is not just a service for me. They have been a sort of partner and IT helper. when I was a newbie blogger, I didn't know how to do anything. They have a chat function as a help resource that I used almost daily to figure out how to install certain things, or figure out the backend of WordPress. They have saved me hundreds of dollars on services. You can set up your site, buy your domain, get privacy for your information connected to your domain, and get all kinds of help if you need it. Tracy Lynn is so knowledgeable. She has created this awesome calendar for bloggers. When you are first starting out, it can feel like something I call "information soup." You are bombarded with information and you have no idea where to start or what you should be focusing on. Tracy Lynn breaks it down into manageable steps. What should you be doing and when. It is an incredibly valuable resource and it's a great price. Tracy Lynn came up with this lead magnet ideas resource that can really help if you are trying to figure out how to get traffic for your blog. This is a fantastic resource to have in your library to refer back to when you need to figure out what your next steps are. If traffic is low, pull it out and see if you can find something that is a good fit. With that many (100+) in there, you are sure to find something. Grayson Bell is the man you want to talk to when you have an issue with your tech. He knows his stuff and is incredibly quick. Every time I have sent an email, I get a response within minutes. I LOVE that kind of service. I know a few other bloggers that swear by him. He is professional, quick, and knows what he's doing. This quick fix one service is exactly what it sounds like. Click through to read more about it. Elna is the BEST!!! When I first started writing, I followed her blog because she has all kinds of free resources that are incredibly helpful. I took one of her courses and signed up for all of her groups. She never stops pumping out valuable content and her paid resources are packed FULL of valuable information!! Grayson will do an evaluation of your blog for speed. Speed is a huge factor when getting people to stay on your site longer. Having a quicker site can lower your bounce rate and increase your dwell time. I've seen people get a traffic boost as soon as their site speed increases. Site speed is not to be taken lightly, it is a huge factor for SEO. Grayson can help you get your site speed up in no time. This inexpensive and quick tune-up is perfect for the beginner blogger. You've spend hours and hours working on your blog and getting all the plugins, widgets, themes, builders, and more set up on your site. But now you've read that plugins can interfere with each other and you may have issues with security. Send Grayson Bell a quick email and he will get you fixed up in no time. He responds quickly, is an expert, and will get your new blog up to snuff in for you so you can stop worrying. Elna knows her stuff. I have not taken this class, but I highly recommend anything from Elna. She knows her stuff and grew her business while raising small children. She is an invaluable resource of information and very relateable. Image on Pinterest are so important. These templates can help you crank out attractive and clickable Pins quickly. I have not purchased this service, but I know others who have and they are very happy with it. Learning how to design in Canva is a crucial skill if you are going to make quality images for your blog. Unless you know photoshop, or another design program, you need something like Canva to make images. This is a crash course on how to learn Canva and will help you make better quailty images for your blog. Read More...
Resources for Bloggers
5 Free Training Resources to Learn Freelance Writing and Blogging Right Now