I get asked this question over and over again by online business enthusiasts who want to be sure before taking the plunge.
I’ve done and still do freelancing, I’ve owned and sold several blogs, and I’ve made money both ways.
So, I believe I have the necessary experience to give my opinion on which of freelancing and blogging is a more lucrative business.
But before then, I would like to clarify on the issue of which is more lucrative.
I’ve made millions of Naira via freelancing and I’ve made millions of Naira via blogging, but the truth is, any of both businesses can be lucrative for you depending on your skillset and how you leverage the opportunity.
I’ve met people who failed at freelancing and succeeded at blogging. Likewise, I’ve met people who failed at blogging and succeeded at freelancing.
So, there is no one-size-fit-all opinion on the matter.
That said, in this article, we’ll be comparing the two opportunities of blogging and freelancing, using a set of criteria.
Through the comparison, you can know which one is best fit for you and if you should consider the opportunity.
Let’s dive in.
Easier Business to Start
Personally, I believe that freelancing is easier and cheaper to start than blogging.
Even though you can start blogging with a free blog on blogspot or WordPress, no one would take you seriously as a blogger until you get your own domain and hosting, which are quite complex to set up for the average blogger.
On the other hand, freelancing is quite easy to start. All you have to do is choose a freelancing platform, register, and start working.
When I launched my first professional blog, it cost me over 10,000 Naira, coupled with 5 days of restless work setting it up.
In contrast, when I first launched my freelancing career on upwork, I started bidding for jobs the same day that I verified my account. And it was totally free to set up my freelancing account.
So, if you are looking for a business that is easy and quick to start, freelancing might just be the way.
Income Flexibility
The way you make money with either freelancing or blogging is very important, as that would influence your lifestyle and the growth of your business.
In my experience, I believe that blogging has a lot more income Flexibility than freelancing.
As a freelancer, you only get paid for work done. It’s like a one-way street. You either work for a client and get paid, or you shut down and go broke.
On the flip side, I’ve had a blog that continued to give me income even after I went on a 30-day hiatus.
Also, a blog could pay you in several ways. You could make money via Google Adsense, affiliate marketing, selling your own products and services, and monetizing your email list.
The income flexibility of a blog is just on a higher level.
Business Control
If you love to be in control of your business, then this criteria is a very important one.
As an entrepreneur, you want a business that you control 100 percent and can do whatever you want with it.
More often than not, blogging offers that sort of control.
With a blog, you could change the content focus, add new income streams, rebrand, or sell it to someone else.
For example, I sold one of my blogs for almost 2 million Naira after getting disappointed by the blog’s income and growth.
I wouldn’t be able to do that with a freelancing account.
For example, I used to have an upwork account that stopped generating leads. That means I couldn’t make money with the account.
In that case, I couldn’t sell the freelancing account, so I had to close it and walked away with zero royalties.
But with a blog, you own it and could even turn it into a lead generator for your business that could be passed down to the next generation if you want.
So, if you want more business control, kindly stick to blogging.
Speed of Earning
How fast do you need to make money right now?
That’s a very interesting question if you are confused on whether to launch a freelancing career or a blog.
To answer that question, it would depend on your strategy for any of both businesses.
On average, freelancing could help you make money right away if you do a few things right. But it is not set in stone, especially if you are a newbie who needs time to learn the ropes.
Blogging on average takes time to make money. It could take you anywhere from six months to one year to make your first income via blogging.
However, I’ve seen some micro-niche blogs that are making serious income right from the first week of launching their blog. The secret lies in their choice of niche and marketing budget.
Consistency of Earning
How do you rate consistency of Earning? By monthly cash flow? By how much your earnings can grow?
Well, in my experience, I’ve never had a bad month with any of my blogs. Once the blog starts earning, it goes up from there.
In fact, my blog never stops earning me money until I sell or redesign it. It never stop, not for a single day.
On the other hand, I’ve had many bad and inconsistent months as a freelancer. There are some months where you just get a lot of bad clients and your earnings plummet.
There are other days where clients just choose not to hire you. You have no control over these things, so all you can do is wait and pray.
With blogging, if something isn’t working, you have the power to change it. You could change inconsistency in your earnings by tweaking something to restore the blog back to normal.
Same cannot be said about freelancing.
Long-term Business
Have you heard of someone who freelanced for up to 20 years? I’ve never.
But I’ve heard of someone who owned a blog for 20 years.
For context, John Chow has been blogging for over 18 years. Linda Ikeji and Bella Naija have both been blogging for more than 15 years.
What does this tell you?
It shows that blogging is, and could be a long-term Business for many entrepreneurs looking to start an online business.
The main reason why people don’t last with freelancing is because most freelancing platforms are dynamic. They would always tweak their algorithm to favour fresh talents in order to rinse out old-time freelancers.
The freelancers who last on most platforms are those who either reinvent themselves or maintain multiple accounts.
Otherwise, freelancing is usually a race to nowhere, as the long-term business prospect is controlled by the freelancing platforms themselves.
Conclusion
Both freelancing and blogging are good ways to make money online from Nigeria.
You could even use both in combination as a lethal cash generating system. All you have to do is to know how your skillset fit in the whole system.
Right now in Nigeria, there are people making millions via freelancing and there are those making millions via blogging.
If you feel strongly attached to any of both businesses and you believe you have the skillset to be among the best in your chosen niche, then you can take the plunge.
There are no written rules anywhere, so avoid the mistake of thinking narrowly and limiting yourself.
Freelancing can help you make a shitload of money into your bank account. Likewise, blogging.