The High Demand for Writing Skills in the Digital Economy:

The old school system and mentality of you going to school and getting good grades, then going to college and getting a degree and a high-paying job. Then retire, and dying with regrets, are fast being disrupted by the creative and digitized lifestyle of entrepreneurs, freelancers, solopreneurs, and startup CEOs who believe in doing what they love and creating wealth out of their skills and passions. Work-life balance has become the guiding principle in living healthy lifestyles that can only be shaped by exploring and exploiting your talent, skills, and interaction with knowledge and information for success and thriving in the creative digital economy.

Writing skills are continuously in high demand and have become powerful tools for wealth creation in digital marketing. Yet writing has always been a shunned skill, and most traditional writers saw it as a difficult skill to break through and earn a living it. But with the advent of digital marketing, with content marketing as key to digital marketing, the winds have changed direction as freelance writers are killing it in the digital economy. Mostly into blogging, web content writing, product descriptions, newsletter writers, you name it. There are so many writing services in high demand for a writer on most freelancing marketplaces like Fiverr, Upwork, Elance, Freelancer, and many more.

You can even start your agency, unlike long back when it was a rare practice. So, you can never underrate the importance of writing skills in the present-day digital economy. Here are the basics of leveling up your writing skills and why you need to be home and dry with your writing skills. Let’s start by defining what it is and what it involves holistically for holistic literacy empowerment in the present-day digital world.

What is Writing?

Writing is putting letters, words, and phrases together to express meaning and sense in written form. In business, it is more than just putting letters and words together. It is more of appropriately putting letters and words together in a way that addresses the readers and audience to whom the written words and message address. So, it is not just about throwing letters and words or phrases together, but a meaningful written expression of carefully thought-out ideas and facts that convey the meaning, sense, and purpose of writing. So, the Writing Skill is the ability to put letters, words, and phrases together to express your thoughts, ideas, and facts in written form.

What does it involve?

It involves a creative and critical approach to any subject you want to write on. I believe that writing communication does not happen in a vacuum. These five factors determine the words and message you are going to write.

• Situation: The context of writing the words and the message.
• Place: The setting in place is where you are at that particular time of writing the words and the message.
• Audience: Who is that you are addressing? Is it a colleague or your boss?
• Purpose: The reason behind writing the words and the message. Is it to explain, apologize, instruct, and many more purposes for writing anything in life and business
• Time: Setting in time. What time of day are you writing the words and the message which sets out the mood of the whole writing process?

The above aspects will determine the style and tone of your writing and the tone of voice you use in the message.

How to do it in Life

Most people have used writing to compile knowledge and information for people to consume for personal development, especially in the creative economy. Some have used writing as an escape zone for refreshing, isolation, and therapy. Recording good and bad memories are more meaningful when you record them for future reference or empty your head of any junky experiences that disturb your mind. You can use it to improve your reading and writing skills. Decluttering your mind of a bad experience by pouring them out on paper can be holistic and healing.

You can use it for crafting application letters, resumes, and cover letters. That will make some good impressions on your writing and communication skills. Your writing skills will also make you confident in applying for any job without fear. Confidence in writing skills means confidence in understanding anything in written form you might find yourself in your career.

How to do it in business?

The five aspects of the appropriate use of languages like situation, audience, purpose, place, and time need serious consideration in business writing and communication. The ability to appropriately communicate ideas through writing is in high demand in the present-day business world. No business can operate at a large scale without an in-house copywriter or freelance copywriter. So, it is necessary for marketing and everyday business communication.   And with the advent of content marketing, writing skills have become a gold mine. Anyone with the ability to write and a passion for content marketing is in demand. The six writing skills you need to be familiar with both as a learner at school and as an adult in the business world are;

• Descriptive writing: For describing events and objects of interest and observation.
• Expository writing: Writing facts for clarity and explanation
• Persuasive Writing: Expressing your views and opinions.
• Narrative Writing: Writing to tell a story in the past using first- or third-person voice in the narration.
• Creative Writing: Writing using your imagination to capture readers’ attention and emotions- Applicable in all the writing styles in life and business.
• Content Writing: Writing for business in the Marketing Industry.

Opportunities in Writing

There is continuously high demand for writers as the traditional selling of products and services is being disrupted by Digital marketing, specifically content marketing, which is fast being overtaken by blog marketing. The bottom line to be aware of and explore these opportunities is to appreciate Holistic Literacy & Learning program that will empower you with the Holistic Literacy skills needed in the present-day world. Here are the job opportunities in writing in high demand in the creative digital economy.

• Content Marketer: Needs experience and expertise in Content Marketing, its significance in business, and what it involves.
• Copywriter: Writing persuasive copies for consumers to take action.
• Content creator: Brand analysis and content needs for brand building
• Content strategist: Result Content analysis for strategizing content creation needs
• Social Media Marketer: Managing social media marketing platforms for brands
• Blogger: Blogging as a business on its own and for business blogs as a marketing strategy-Blog Marketing
• Blog Marketer: Writing blogs for business marketing and brand building.

There is a long list of these opportunities. The good part is that they are interwoven, especially in Digital Marketing as an industry for the present-day business world. I have only cited the above as the main ones you can venture into as a freelancer or solopreneur in the Digital marketing industry.