A typical magazine assignment goes something like this:

1. You send a query letter proposing an article you’d like to write for a publication.
2. The publication accepts your proposal and gives you a contract for the assignment.
3. You do the research, write the article and submit it.
4. The publication pays you.
5. You send another query letter to a different publication proposing a new article…

…and the cycle of “query-acceptance-research-write-get paid” starts all over again. You can double, triple or quadruple your profits with half the effort by doing this one thing: “Over” research your first assignment.

Capitalize on the research you do for one assignment by using it for multiple projects. For example, if you propose an overview article about identity theft prevention to a national consumer magazine and are awarded the assignment, conduct your research with a “scout’s” eye – be on the lookout for additional opportunities, such as:

Statistics related to gender or age groups.

Uncovering statistics about identity theft linked to certain groups could lead to additional articles in other magazines; simply focus on the audience. For instance, if you learn that a certain percentage of all identity theft victims are women, build an article around that and submit it to a women’s magazine. Similarly, if tweens and teens are a prime target for identity theft, you’ve got yourself a potential article for a parenting magazine.

Prominent people in the industry.

Your research may turn up the name of one or more people who are experts in the field of identity theft prevention. Propose writing a profile piece for a business publication about a prominent person in the industry about how he/she became an expert in the field, or submit a multi-source article to a trade publication where each participant gives a prediction of what’s ahead for identity theft prevention.

“Just the facts” fillers.

Use all of the interesting facts and stats that you uncover as fodder for multiple filler articles. Gather all the facts and statistics, separate them into specific categories, i.e. identity theft prevention, identity theft in cyber space, kids and identity theft, phishing scams and identity theft, telephone scams and identity theft, and on and on until you’ve exhausted all of the research you’ve gathered. Write quick filler articles, like Top 10 lists, Did You Know? items, a Q&A piece, etc., to appropriate publications including national, regional and local magazines, major city newspapers, local and community papers, consumer publications in newsletter format like Consumer Reports, and various association and trade publications.

Research consumes a good amount of the time you invest in writing an article on assignment. Make the most of that time spent by identifying other opportunities to share the knowledge.

P.S.  It’s no accident that I chose identity theft prevention as an example for this post. In 2007, I researched and wrote identity theft prevention tips as web content for a company that wanted to market its identity theft prevention services. Those tips were later expanded into several articles, fillers, and a book I authored, published by Life Tips Press, named 101 Identity Theft Tips, ISBN: 978-1-60275-031-9.

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