[For Web Writer Beginners] The Key to Getting Projects is "Can Do x Exciting"!

I think many web writer beginners use crowdsourcing as a means to get work.
How do you all choose the projects you apply for?

In my case, I choose based on the criteria of:
"It is a project I can do"
"It is a project that excites me"
I choose based on these standards.

Let me explain each one with some personal experiences.

It is a project I can do

A project I can do is one that fits criteria such as: "I can utilize my past experience," "I have experienced it and know it realistically," or "I have abundant knowledge about the subject."

For SEO articles, you create content by searching online based on keywords. However, writing about something you know absolutely nothing about is a very high hurdle for beginners.

First, let's look for projects where you can utilize your strengths.

There is always something you can write about if it relates to work

When it comes to work genres, you might think it's difficult unless you have highly specialized knowledge or qualifications, such as in finance or medicine. However, if you have experience in any job, you should be able to write about the periphery of that work or share your experiences.

I once wrote articles for a site aimed at job changers. The task was to explain the content of the jobs I had been engaged in and to describe the pros and cons of those roles.

For an article about telework, my experience of working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic was useful, and for an article about studying after becoming a working adult, my experience of studying on the commuter train or at a cafe for about 30 minutes on the way home from work was helpful.

I have changed jobs several times and have also watched my son go through job hunting up close, so I have also written articles about changing jobs and job hunting.

Even if you think, "My work experience has nothing to do with writing," you might be surprised at what you can find. Please try looking for it.

There is always something you can write about if it relates to daily life or hobbies

Even if you don't have work experience, you are living your daily life, so shouldn't anyone be able to write about things related to life?

When I was in my second month of working through crowdsourcing, I accepted a project about child-rearing. It had been a long time since I raised my children, but since I didn't put my age in my profile, I casually appealed by saying, "I want to share my experience of struggling with child-rearing with young moms."

The unit price was very cheap at 0.2 yen per character, but I was able to deliver five articles, which helped me build my track record.

I have also written articles such as:
Caregiving experience => Surveys about caregiving
Experience building a home => Success and failure stories of building a custom home
Experience serving as a chief mourner twice => Funeral etiquette

Beyond daily life, there are also recruitment opportunities where you can utilize your interests, such as hobbies like camping or fishing, or "oshi-katsu" (supporting idols or anime characters).

In other words, everyone has some kind of material for a project they can handle.

It is a project that excites me

It's not quite like the tidying specialist Marie Kondo, but I think the point is whether you feel "excited" or "not excited" when looking at a project.
According to the Digital Daijisen dictionary, "tokimeku" (to excite) means "to have one's heart pound with joy or expectation. To be thrilled."

"I've been wanting to write an article on this theme"
"It's a field I'm inexperienced in but very interested in"
"I'd love to take this opportunity to challenge myself"

If you find a recruitment like that, please go ahead and propose it.
If you can land a project you wanted to do, your motivation will increase, and you should be able to work hard to make it the best article possible.

Challenge yourself with projects you want to try even if you are inexperienced

About six months after I started applying for crowdsourcing jobs, I found a job that involved "explaining the meaning of words." It was a task to explain the meanings of proverbs and such in about 3,000 characters.

I was worried about whether I could write 3,000 characters to explain words that were only a few characters long, and it was my first time using CMS entry, but I poured my feelings of "this seems interesting" and "I want to try this" into my proposal, and I was hired, which became my first long-term contract.

Sometimes you think you can do it, but you don't feel excited, and you fail

There are also cases where I failed because I applied for a project I wasn't very interested in but thought I could do just to increase my order history. It was an article introducing educational facilities to users.

The character count was small at about 500 characters, and the unit price wasn't bad for a beginner, so I thought I could manage, but the regulations were very strict, and every time I delivered, I was criticized by a different proofreader, which broke my heart.

After that, I was scouted for a similar job, and although I still didn't feel excited, the unit price was good, so I ended up accepting it again, never learning my lesson.

Since I had gained some experience by then, I wasn't criticized and delivered it successfully. Even though I didn't feel excited, I continued to accept and deliver additional orders for about half a year after that.

Summary

On crowdsourcing platforms, if the quality of the manuscript you submit is poor and you receive a low rating, it will affect your future orders.

Therefore, at first, it is best to accept projects you are capable of doing and steadily increase your number of accepted orders.

However, for growth, challenging yourself with things you are inexperienced in is also necessary. If there is a project that makes your heart flutter and you think, "I want to do this," please go ahead and submit a proposal.