Content creators often call themselves bloggers, but sometimes they also identify as just creators or content, or writers of articles. There is much confusion around freelance writing as to what the difference is, if any, between writing blogs or writing articles.
As a freelance writer or someone who works in the marketing industry, blogs can sometimes be more helpful than articles, and vice versa.
Why is this?
Let’s break down the differences between the two so that you can see and decide which one is more tailored to fit your marketing needs.
Table of Contents
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Your Opinion Matters Within The Writing Style
The first noticeable difference you should find between a blog post and an article is that of the writer’s opinion. In a blog, a writer tends to sway you into a less objective viewpoint, making clear the intentions of one way or the other. Whereas in an article, opinions aren’t usually allowed because the writer’s job, in that case, would be to just state the facts without any bias involved.
This leads to yet another distinguishable difference between the two and that’s with the writing style itself. With a full-on objective article, writers will do much more research and even interviews if necessary to make sure that they have both sides of the story. It is almost like you would write a report or write an essay in the academic world, with credited sources listed in the footnotes if necessary, or specific quotes in quotations when conducting any interviews.
In blogging, you don’t have to do this. In fact, less research is required because writing original content is what is cherished. Whether or not your opinion is leading the reader in a specific direction, the true intent of blogs is to be more casual in style, using less involved language or big words so as to entice the reader. Blog posts can have interviews presenting interesting facts or anecdotes, so interviewing is not completely out of the question. It’s just not a necessity.
To SEO Or Not To SEO?
This is another big difference you would see between the two writing pieces of content. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization as many bloggers are familiar with, is very common in the blogger world. Utilizing resources to help with managing links to make them more affiliated, and various optimized content to leverage a good score for your audience in a blog post is very important.
Bloggers want to be sure that when someone is searching for a particular topic, your blog has the best chance of being the very first one that they see and click on to read. SEO for marketing is important to be aware of when blogging. Since more traffic drives more visits to websites, you have a better chance at growing a following and being noticed.
When writing articles, keywords are not important. In fact, most articles don’t focus on any specific keywords or phrases at all. Since the goal is just to relay facts, or otherwise just create a report, there is no need for specific words or phrases that should be included for optimized searching, even online. Typically, if someone is looking for a specific article or the facts on a certain topic or event, they should still be able to find your article fairly easily.
Editing And Publishing
Typically with an article, chances are that you’re working directly with an editor who is going to work hard to clean up your words and grammar before it is published. When articles are written under magazines, newspapers, or other printed materials, they have editors who double-check all of the material before sending it to print for publishing.
Bloggers don’t typically work directly with editors within their reach unless they are hired by the owner. Big-name bloggers and influencers who have blogs on their websites may utilize editors before publishing their blogs, but it’s not required. Since blogging is more of a casual style, the grammar and punctuation are also not as meticulously scrutinized to be sure that it reads perfectly. However, if you want to be well-respected in the freelance writing community, you should utilize certain grammar and spellcheck resources to be sure that your writing is correct.
Pay Rates
This is a big one that freelancers should take note of: freelance writings for blogs are typically paid very low compared to those hired to write true articles. Typical blog posts only range starting at around $20 USD per piece, which is very low compared to the $0.10 cent to $1.00 per word that article writers receive.
Now, freelance writing is negotiable, so if you value yourself as a true writer you shouldn’t settle for the low-end gigs, even when writing blogs. Don’t sell your writing short if you know that it should be worth more. As a beginner in the business, it may take some time to built up your reputation but once you’re there don’t be shy in asking for the bigger bucks.
The truth is, clients who need writers are still going to want to pay as cheaply as possible. As a writer in this type of industry, you have to know where you will draw the line when it comes to rates. The difference between a blog vs. an article is more blurred now than ever, freelance writers shouldn’t be afraid to work on capitalizing their marketplace.
Blurred Lines
Since more and more articles have started to appear online since the decline of people buying in print, magazines and newspapers still want to drive traffic to their sites. This means that many of them have adapted more to the blog-type article ways of more opinionated pieces, a more casual writing style and even utilizing SEO for optimization.
The lines between blogs and articles have become more blurred, meaning that many uneducated publishers and/or editors haven’t been able to distinguish the true differences.
Some ways that you can market yourself as a writer in the online world that is more deserving:
- Start by developing your own research on trending topics that relay to your ideal clients’ sites, and find the newest posts that are already making headlines. You can use these ideas to pitch your spin on what you would write about to potential clients as “new” topics.
- You should work to create more of the now article-style blog posts, which tend to convey a stronger sense of power by having more thought-out, well-edited, and researched writing. They tend to impress more clients and customers alike. Doing some research and fact-checking is also a good idea to following actual sources that can help you to relay the truth in your writing.
- Also, when you feel confident in doing so, charge more for your writing upfront. People who tend to charge more right from the start for your blog or articles, show that they are exuding the confidence of someone who is deep within the business, rather than someone who isn’t sure on their rate – demonstrating just how much of a rookie you are.
The most important thing you can do as a writer is to sway your clients. Show them how you can and produce top-notch material that people want to read. Take their blog to the next level with more well-researched, in-depth article-style writing.
