Why the Gig Economy Will Reign Supreme in the Post COVID-19 Era
The gig economy has been around ever since mankind started exchanging services for items of value. Granted, that lengthy history is partly due to the fact that prostitution is one of the oldest professions. However, a gig by any other name is still a gig. Now, I'm not saying that working for an employer or becoming an entrepreneur is going to go anywhere. However, excess and lengthy government lockdowns have frighteningly demonstrated the risk in operating a traditional brick and mortar business. Look, you'll will get no COVID-19 conspiracy from me, but my heart breaks at the cost of these lockdowns, businesses lost, and dreams shattered. It's also why I cling to my freelance copywriting business more than ever. I saw what government could do and we as a free society would do well to take notes. Moreover, whereas pandemics are routine throughout human history, we now live in an age where humans can manufacture a pandemic in a lab. I'm looking at you Chinese Communist Party. I'd like to say this is the one pandemic of our lifetime, but alas, I'm afraid it is not. That's why the gig economy will reign supreme and that's why I'll never give up my side gig for as long as I should live.
So What's Copywriting Again?
Since I've been selling my course, The Veteran Copywriter, I've been a little bit amused by the amount of people who think it is a scam. Some of this is for good reason as there are Copywriters selling dreams of making six-figures working a few hours a week from a beach in Thailand. Then, they charge hundreds if not thousands of dollars to show you how. Now, there are people who pull that off but they are truly few and far in between. Meanwhile, my course is only $47 bucks and it shows how to build your way up. Maybe making enough for the car payment each month or a good vacation is all you want. If you want to check out the first lesson for free, you get that free lesson at this link.
Then, there are those who think the word Copywriting is some sort of intellectual theft. In reality, copywriting is just writing for other people on the internet to help them make money. It's often confused with content writing which is essentially helping others build an audience through blogs and other engaging content. My course teaches people how to make money doing both and most will actually get their start writing content.
Copywriting and Content Writing is a Real Thing
However, these are both real paying gigs and your prospective clients are the entire freaking internet. Every single brand selling a thing, service, or opportunity uses content and copywriting. If you read a blog titled, "Top 5 things that may be wrong with my HVAC unit", that is content writing. If you see a landing page that tells you why you need to take advantage of the winter tune up for half price for your HVAC unit, that is copywriting. One engages and the other motivates the reader to take action.
Look, you can even use the oldest profession example if you want. I'm sure somewhere in Nevada there is a Vegas escort service putting out blogs and articles to get men to think about sex. That's content writing. Then, they'll likely see a pop up ad or get an email offering them a discount on the Goonies special escort package where your girl will dress up like Sloth and yell, "Hey you guys!" the entire time during intercourse. That's copywriting and yes, I'm a little disturbed my mind even came up with that example. So let's move on before the image sticks.
A Side Gig Guarantees the Ability to Make Money
I truly never thought I would see the government tell people that the can't make a living, but now that I've seen it, I can't get the image out of my mind. Now, I'm fortunate in that I have thriving nonprofit executive career and I was not personally impacted by the shutdowns. I do the writing as a side gig to be financially free and enjoy the stuff in life that makes living more fun. However, if I was shut down in my nonprofit career, I would simply hit the gas on the writing.
You don't have to be a writer, but I would highly encourage everyone to put the infrastructure in place to make money when you need to make money. Do not be entirely reliant on an employer and certainly, do not rely on the government. You see, a side gig is essentially a vehicle and you may find yourself in seasons of life where you are making plenty of money and you don't want to spend time on your side gig. That's fine. However, when it all hits the fan and the bottom drops out, you don't have time to build a vehicle. You have to have the vehicle ready and idling for when you need it most.
The Gig Economy Will Thrive Because We Are Built to Survive
At the end of the day, the gig economy will thrive because humans are hard wired to survive. Yes, it is supported by the endless digital opportunities available today and with the internet, the whole world can be your prospects. Yet, it's really about survival and we've all been put on notice by the actions of government during this pandemic. I support wearing a mask and I believe this virus is real, but so is the pain and hardship protracted lockdowns have caused.
On one of my ads for the course, one gentleman responded, "how dare you try to take advantage of veterans with this nonsense. I'm struggling to get by and feed my family and you try and give people hope that they can make money writing." It was humorous and sad as no matter how hard I pleaded with him to believe this was real, he just couldn't do it. He couldn't get past his own self-doubt. It sounds like he could have really used a side gig and I would have loved to help him.
At the end of the day, your side gig doesn't have to be writing. It could be mowing lawns or shoveling snow off of roofs, but please have some vehicle to make extra money ready for the day you need it most. If writing is for you, then you can pick up the Veteran Copywriter Here and I will be your guide. If you've got a good nest egg to fall back on when times get hard, that's great. However, the average family needs to find someway to break free from the tyranny of being behold to a singular paycheck. The gig economy will thrive in the post COVID-19 era because the world has been put on notice as to just how important it is. If you've got questions about the course or side gigs in general, feel free to email me at [email protected]
Stay safe my friends and I sincerely hope you can remove that Goonies image from your brain. I'm truly sorry about that one.
