We look at 3 ways freelancers can transition their know-how into evergreen content that could be generated into passive income
If you’re a freelancer, you know that the feast-or-famine lifestyle can be tough. One month you’re rolling in dough, and the next you’re struggling to find work. But what if there was a way to create passive income from your freelancing experience? Enter evergreen content.
What is passive income?
Passive income is earned with little or no effort required after the initial investment. This could include, for example, an Excel monthly budget template. You create and publish the template once, upload it to a site for people to buy it and just wait for sales to come in.
What is evergreen content?
Evergreen content is content that is timeless and relevant to your target audience for years to come. It’s the kind of content that people will keep coming back to, even years after it was first published. That’s why it is ideal for freelancers looking to create passive income.
For those of you who may already be familiar with evergreen content or even produce it for clients, then why are you not taking what you already know and turning it into evergreen passive income? That however means there is no client, it’s all on you. It’s taking the leap to dedicate the time to plan, create and ultimately sell your knowledge directly to customers.
There are many different forms of evergreen content, but here are some of the most popular:
- Blog posts: Blog posts are a great way to share your expertise and knowledge with a wider audience. And if you write about evergreen topics, your blog posts will continue to generate traffic and leads for years to come. If you want to generate income from them though, you can consider affiliate marketing, display advertising, selling your own products and services, and/or paywalled content (such as a yearly or one-off subscription). Read our quick tips guide on Blogging here.
- Ebooks: Ebooks are another great way to share your knowledge and expertise with a wider audience. And unlike blog posts, ebooks can be sold over and over again, generating residual income for years to come. There are now tech platforms that can help you create e-books quickly and professionally. It’s just up to you to make sure that it is well-proofread and has had some feedback from say a freelance sub-editor.
- Online courses: Online courses are a great way to teach others what you know and generate residual income at the same time. You can create and sell online courses on a variety of topics, from your freelancing expertise to your personal hobbies.
Here is a list of sites where you can sell courses:
- Udemy
- Coursera
- Skillshare
- Teachable
- Kajabi
- Thinkific
- Podia
- LearnDash
- Memberful
- Mighty Networks
- Simplero
- TrainerCentral
These platforms offer a variety of features to help you create, sell, and market your courses. Some of the features that you may want to consider include:
- Course hosting: The platform will host your course content and make it available to your students.
- Payment processing: The platform will process payments from your students and send you the proceeds.
- Marketing tools: The platform may offer marketing tools to help you promote your course, such as email marketing, social media integration, and landing pages.
- Analytics: The platform may offer analytics tools to help you track your course performance, such as student enrollment rates, completion rates, and satisfaction ratings.
Do your research to keep you and your target customers happy
When choosing a platform to sell your courses, it is important to consider your needs and budget. Some platforms are more expensive than others, but they may offer more features and support.
It is also important to consider the platform’s audience. Some platforms are more popular with certain types of students, such as professionals or hobbyists.
Once you have chosen a platform, you can start creating your course content. Be sure to create high-quality content that is informative and engaging. You should also make sure that your course is well-organised, scripted and easy to follow. Creating downloadable notes and short how-to-videos could be added bonus content.
Once your course is created, you can publish it on the platform of your choice. Then, you can start promoting your course to potential students.
More tips to get you started:
- Identify your niche. What are you passionate about? What do you know more about than anyone else? Or how to present it in an easy and digestible way? Or just a more entertaining way? Once you know your niche, you can start to brainstorm evergreen content ideas that will be of interest to your target audience.
- Do your research. Once you have a few content ideas, do some research to see what other people are writing about in your niche. This will help you to identify any gaps in the market and to create content that is unique and valuable.
- Create high-quality content. It’s important to create evergreen content that is well-written, informative, and engaging. Take the time to edit and proofread your work carefully before publishing.
- Promote your content. Once you have created some evergreen content, you need to promote it so that people can find it. You can promote your content on social media, in your email newsletter, and on other websites in your niche. Use your closest network first and ask for feedback, then build from there.
Examples of freelance careers that can transition skills and know-how into evergreen content:
- If you’re a freelance writer, you could create ebooks or online courses on writing skills, such as how to write blog posts, ebooks, or even novels. You could also create evergreen content for other businesses, such as website copy, product descriptions, and email marketing campaigns.
- If you’re a freelance web designer, you could create ebooks or online courses on web design topics, such as how to create a WordPress website, how to design a landing page, or how to optimize a website for search engines.
- If you’re a freelance social media manager, you could create ebooks or online courses on social media marketing topics, such as how to grow your social media following, how to create engaging social media content, or how to use social media to generate leads and sales.
- If you’re an IT contractor you could like the careers above create e-books: on subjects such as programming, cybersecurity, or DevOps. You can sell your e-book on your own website or through online retailers such as Amazon Kindle and and other online book sellers. Online courses on web development, software engineering, or cloud computing are some to consider. The same goes for writing blog posts and videos. Videos could include tutorials, demos and case studies. These could be sponsored or generate income through advertising on YouTube or Vimeo.
No matter what your freelance expertise is, there is an evergreen content format that you can use to generate residual income. By following the tips above, you can transition your freelance career into a more sustainable and rewarding business.
Here are a few additional tips for creating evergreen content:
- Focus on evergreen topics. Avoid writing about current events or trends, as this type of content will quickly become outdated. Instead, focus on writing about timeless topics that will be of interest to your target audience for years to come.
- Write comprehensive content. Evergreen content should be comprehensive and informative. Don’t be afraid to go in-depth and provide your readers with everything they need to know about the topic.
- Update your content regularly. Even though evergreen content is timeless, it’s still important to update it regularly to keep it fresh and accurate. This will help to ensure that your content continues to rank well in search engines and attract new readers. It is also a way to promote the content again to new customers.
- Promote your content in multiple places. Don’t just rely on your website to promote your evergreen content. Share it on social media, guest post on other blogs, and submit it to directories. The more places your content is visible, the more likely it is to be found by potential readers.