nDash’s Managing Editor, Jenn Greenleaf, talks to Mike C. about his transition from digital marketing to becoming a full-time freelance writer and much more! He shares insights into his diverse background in finance, digital marketing, and SEO. Learn how he uses these skills to craft high-quality content that boosts engagement and sales for clients across the globe.
Background: The Highlights
Mike is a seasoned freelance writer boasting over a decade of experience in the industry. Before shifting his focus to freelance writing and marketing, he owned and successfully ran his own digital marketing agency for five years.
In addition to his marketing expertise, Mike has spent over eight years working as a financial professional. His diverse background has equipped him with a deep understanding of SEO and marketing strategies. In his personal life, Mike has a passion for traveling and learning new languages.
As a freelance writer, Mike is dedicated to helping clients achieve their goals by crafting high-quality, engaging, and conversion-focused SEO content. His writing style is tailored to flow naturally and resonate with target audiences. Mike’s primary objective is to significantly boost engagement and sales for his clients quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. Keen on fostering long-term relationships, Mike is also open to forming strategic partnerships with clients to ensure continued success and growth for their businesses.
nDash’s Discussion with Mike C.
As a versatile freelance writer, Mike specializes in serving various niches to cater to a wide range of clients. With a strong finance and digital marketing background, he excels at creating engaging content for the business, real estate, and cryptocurrency sectors.
His experience as a financial professional also makes him a go-to writer for finance-related topics.
Moreover, Mike extends his expertise to the health, wellness, fitness, and medical industries, where he crafts well-researched articles that resonate with target audiences.
Jenn: Thank you for your interest in participating in this series! To kick things off, can you tell me about your background as a freelance writer?
Mike: Thanks, Jenn. I became a freelance writer before beginning my career in Fintech to supplement my income and put myself through a degree in 2012. As a result, my Finance and Economics degree is self-funded, and I can create the content I do now. Also, being professional in this industry makes me well-positioned to write for these subjects.
Jenn: I noticed that you previously owned a digital marketing agency. Can you tell me about that and what made you decide to switch to focusing on a freelance writing career?
Mike: Like any budding entrepreneur, I quickly saw that starting a business is no joke. I couldn’t land consistent clients to save my life, and content mills paid me well below a livable wage.
To make matters worse, I live in a High Cost of Living (HCOL) area.
After trying dropshipping, affiliate marketing, video streaming, and a bunch of other things, I started media buying for insurance and real estate agents.
This developed my love of marketing as a whole. After five years, I decided that writing ads and content on web pages and blogs were my favorite part of the job.
I sold the company and switched to freelance writing; now, it’s become my main focus.
Jenn: How does your digital marketing experience support your freelance writing career?
Mike: Writing is a vast industry, so figuring out that I should focus on content and copywriting was a pivotal moment that I owe to starting the digital marketing agency. By running ads on behalf of multiple companies, I realized that, while writing is essential, the overall content strategy is a determinate factor.
Jenn: How did you know a career in freelance writing was right for you?
Mike: Freelance content writing as an SME feels like a better version of “consulting.” Instead of taking on clients specifically in my primary industry by going downtown and creating ppt decks, I am assisting businesses with more meaningful things.
Plus, I can do this remotely and reach a global audience. Finally, I dream of starting a venture capital fund. I worked in an accelerator and quickly found out I am much better at helping others build out their vision rather than starting many of my own.
Jenn: How did nDash become part of your journey?
Mike: A funny story, actually. I write to some regular publications through agencies. I was light on work one day and did a LinkedIn search for a very small agency I was writing for. It’s not common for this company to be listed as a place of employment on most profiles, as it is sparse work and small.
I found a mutual connection and searched for her employment. She wrote for multiple content mills and also saw “nDash.” Turns out, this is one of the only places connecting writers and brands without friction. I was happy to find out this is a marketplace, not another mill.
Once I saw that the creator responded to my messages and had an active presence on Reddit, I was sold.
Jenn: How does your background in finance tie into your career as a freelance writer?
Mike: As an active Fintech professional for the past eight years, this gives me a unique perspective on current macroeconomic events and macro events in the tech world. By combining this technical knowledge with a digital marketing lens on a project, I can make traditionally esoteric and complicated subjects more engaging.
Jenn: What tools and resources do you use most to support your freelancing business?
Mike: Grammarly and Hemingway are a must. Although Grammarly Premium can sometimes replace a word incorrectly, it lets me worry about the content rather than the grammar or spelling mistakes. A tool that I have been using more recently is clearscope, as a client required me to become an expert. It definitely helps with SEO scores for keywords but doesn’t do the examination for you like SEMrush.
Jenn: You have a lot of experience pitching on the nDash platform. Can you share your experience with that?
Mike: One of the biggest advantages is contacting clients and brands directly without waiting for an invitation or peeking behind the curtain for a casting call. This, in turn, is a double-edged sword as very few clients have relevant open assignments.
I also appreciate that the pitch also contains the ability to insert an abstract, but I find it is a little short. Also, I cannot format it properly with spacing when creating lists.
There’s also no limit to setting a price or the number of pitches. What would make this better is if pitches had more transparency about where we are in the process. For example, if a client has seen, read, rejected, or approved it, etc. Sometimes it is discouraging to pitch endlessly to non-managed accounts and not receive any feedback.
Jenn: What advice do you have for other freelancers new to pitching on the platform?
Mike: This is a marketplace, not an agency or mill feeding you content. It is like high-ticket recurring sales. Always put your best foot forward and personalize your pitch. Charge what you’re worth right out of the gate. Generally, it can be discouraging when you need to eat what you hunt, but the payoff is recurring clients in the end.
Jenn: What is the best advice you’ve ever received during your career as a freelance writer?
Mike: The best advice pertains to any type of business in general. Two things I’ve learned:
- Always go for more than you can handle and push your comfort zone. You can always scale back, but scaling up defeats your fears.
- Pivot. Pivot. Pivot. New industry? Pitch those clients. Got better? Raise prices. AI taking jobs? Level up your content. Know only 60% about what the topic is? Take it and research.
Thank you for chatting with me about your career as a freelance writer!
Work with Mike C. on nDash Today!
Do you have a project that aligns with Mike’s background? Check out his writing portfolio to see examples of his work and learn how his experience can level up your content strategy: Mike C.
