Hey, you! Yes, you. Do you already have a travel blog? Want to get paid to write travel articles? If you answered yes to these questions then you’re already a step ahead of the competition! I’m not here to boast false promises or make you rich… that’s on you. However, if you’re already writing travel posts on your blog, why not get paid for travel writing? Here’s the scoop on how to find freelance travel writing jobs and get paid on Upwork!

Flesh Out Your Portfolio

The single hardest part about finding travel blogger jobs on Upwork is building a freelance writing portfolio. Unfortunately, there’s only one way to do it: write, get published, then write more. This is where many potential freelancers get deterred, yet it shouldn’t be so. Perhaps you haven’t been published yet. That’s ok! We’re living in the digital era, meaning you can literally self-publish your shower musings for the digital universe to see and get paid for travel writing. If you’re a talented travel writer, use your blog’s published travel posts as your first writing samples in your Upwork portfolio. Perhaps the greatest advantage of having your own blog is that:

Having your own blog shows that you take yourself seriously, are capable of creating amazing things, and worth investing in.

Don’t believe me? Ok, I’ll break it down. I first started my Upwork portfolio this year after getting rejected by the platform last year. The difference this year is that I uploaded everything I could think of into my portfolio. This includes my best travel blog posts, published travel articles, and some side work I did creating websites for family and friends. Are these items considered professional? Not exactly by industry standards. However, an amazing thing happened because I started getting hired by clients based on my blog ALONE. I didn’t realize how incredibly beneficial it was to have a blog until I started getting feedback from clients saying the aesthetics, writing quality, and overall appeal of my blog sold them on hiring me as their freelance writer.

What mattered to my clients is that I’m a good writer with solid blogging experience. Boom. That’s how I landed my first, second, and third clients. There is no exception for hard work, and no substitute for good writing. Combine both with your own blog and voila, you’ve got yourself a writing portfolio.

This was my portfolio before I got paid for travel writing, I included posts from my blog, and self-published websites and content related to travel.

Use All of Your Connects

As with most bidding and pitching platforms, this is a numbers game. With Upwork’s free plan, you get 60 connects per month, and proposals usually require two connects. Ultimately, you can apply to up to 30 travel writing jobs with the free plan.

That’s 30 chances for you to get paid for travel writing; 30 opportunities to change your job, build a business and start writing and working from the road (or home). The more you apply, the greater chances you have of getting hired for travel writing jobs! However, none of these connects are going to help you if you don’t…

Submit Proposals They Can’t Refuse

One of the most time consuming and crucial components of being a freelancer is pitching proposals. It’s essentially your bread and butter. Bottom line, if you don’t pitch, you don’t get hired. So, how do you submit a proposal to travel blogger jobs that stands out from the rest? That is a blog post on its own but here are a few basic pointers.

• Proposals are like cover letters, so each one has to be personalized, tailored to the position, and show that you spent time crafting a proposal, not copying and pasting to every listing.
• That said, because you are likely pitching daily, it helps to have a fool-proof template and customize it from there. A quick google search will ping back dozens of templates, get one that suits you and run with it.
• In your proposal, highlight your qualifications, tell them why you’re the best fit for these freelance travel writing jobs, include a link to your Upwork portfolio or professional portfolio, and…

Know Your Worth

This is pretty straight up, but so easy to clutter and overthink. When you’re starting out, you’re essentially competing with “rising talent” as Upwork calls it. Personally, it’s more like the bottom of the ladder and you have no choice but to climb up. You will get paid for travel writing, but your starting rate will be low. Don’t let that deter you!

Over-quoting yourself will just dissuade potential clients from hiring you. I highly recommend starting out very low, you need to pay your dues and add some published work to your resume outside of your blog. So, bite the bullet, bid low until you build up your resume with some solid work, then raise your rate.

Don’t spread yourself too thin, either. In the beginning, you may be tempted to take any and every opportunity you get. It’s simply not worth it. Focus on quality, not quantity. This comes with practice and trust me, I’ve definitely had to learn the hard way. Another story for another post.

My rate is based on my 100% job success score, my work experience, and increases the more I write and get published.

Now, About Getting Paid For Travel Writing

On Upwork, there are plenty of freelance travel writing opportunities. Once you’ve got your profile created, your portfolio filled with travel posts from your blog, and a rockin’ bio, start pitching like there’s no tomorrow. Just this week I got invited to apply to two travel writing jobs. The truth is that there is money out there that clients are going to spend on excellent writers who provide high-quality content, so why not be one of them?

Who is looking to hire travel writers? Everyone from bloggers, businesses, e-commerce, hotels, travel agencies, and more. You’ll never find out if you don’t put yourself out there, though. After reading this post you’ll either be inspired or overwhelmed. Hopefully, you see that there are opportunities for you to get paid for travel writing.

All of these steps can literally be done within the week, so what are you waiting for? You love traveling, right? You love writing, right? Go forth and freelance your heart out, travelers! When you’re ready, let’s build you a freelance writer portfolio in 5 simple steps!

Look at that! Today alone yields 138 freelance travel writing opportunities.

So, what are you waiting for? Are you a freelancer? If so, drop your advice for newbies in the comments below. Or, feel free to ask any questions and I’m happy to help!

Christina Lyon

Christina Lyon is a coffee-sipping, word-obsessed business blogger, content writer, and blog consultant. She’s on fire for helping creative entrepreneurs and small biz owners build thriving blogs that enhance online visibility and convert to sales. When she’s not reading or writing, she loves to play music and explore the beaches and wild trails along the California coast with her husband Steve and rescue pup, Clio.