8. Do a Freebie: When all else fails, this is a great standby.
As a personal example, I recently decided that I wanted to do some work for a local nonprofit government agency (I've seen some of their material and it's not up to par, and I also have several more ideas that could increase their visibility in the community).
So, I'm currently working on a brochure that I plan to present to the communications manager, whom I happen to know from networking (see article, ?Why Every Freelance Writer Should Join a Chamber of Commerce? on InkwellEditorial.blogspot.com).
Now, I'm doing this ?freebie? because I know that if I can get my foot in the door, I can get more work from other city agencies.
So, when all else fails, a freebie can be your calling card.
9. Create a Backlog of Material: There are days when I just want to write. I don't want to market, I don't want to do follow up calls, I don't want to do interviews - I just want to write. Sometimes, I have the luxury of giving in to this. I may turn out 5 or 6 articles and come up with ideas for a dozen more and create outlines for those.
This is why I always have a backlog of material. On days when I don't feel like writing, I will market the pieces I've written. The point is to take advantage of whatever mood you're in, as long as it's not throwing in the towel.
NOTE: The following are what you might call cerebral ideas, but you have to get the brain moving before anything else can work, soooooooo:
10. Stop Procrastinating: We all do it - but have you ever stopped to figure out how much it's costing you in real dollars?
When freelancing, time is money, so if you can cut down on the surfing, answering email, talking on the phone - whatever it is that sucks up your time - and churn out one more marketing task a day, think how that can add up over weeks and months and by year's end.
11. Pay for Knowledge: Many times, we get so stuck in our own world that we don't take the time to expand our skill set. And I'm not talking a grave amount of time here.
Eg, how long would it take you to learn how to build a simple website? Learning how to do this can add a whole other revenue stream to your business. I falter on this myself.
I ordered a new software almost two months ago and have yet to open it. I bought the program because it would allow me to add another revenue stream to my business, but I have yet to get around to opening the box.
I tell this story to make a point - if you are a real do-it-yourself, then by all means, e-learning and/or figuring it out yourself might work for you.
HOWEVER, if you are extremely busy and/or a procrastinator, take a class with an instructor. You will get the knowledge you need and are more likely to use it than let it sit on a shelf and collect dust (note to self: open the box!)
12. Create a Dream Life: What do I mean by this? Think where you want to be in 5, 10, 15 years and ask yourself if what you are doing at that very moment is propelling you toward that life.
This has snapped me back in line on hundreds of occasions. When I get unmotivated, lazy, and/or find myself doing something other than what I should be doing during the hours I set aside to devote to my ?business,? I remember that I want to have the option of retirement at 55, that I want to travel 3 months out of the year, that I want to be debt free in 10 years, etc.
Your goals may be different. But when you make your dreams a priority, not a distant ?someday goal? to achieve, your every action will be oriented towards making it happen.
Nothing succeeds like perseverance - there will always be those who are smarter, faster, funnier, wittier - whatever. But, a field you can always compete on is perseverance - most don't have that.
13. Become an Optimist: Although this may sound a little new agey, we really are what we think.
If you start to dwell on how hard freelancing is, how frustrating, how underpaid you are, how many rejections you received - and believe me, I KNOOOOOWWW the feeling - you start to internalize those negative feelings. This stops the natural flow of ideas.
So, by all means, eat that pint of ice cream when yet another client cancels a project, but don't grab a cookie too. Grieve and move on.
I've come to embrace my failures as much as my successes because invariably, I can pinpoint a success on a failure. What I mean is, I can look back and go, wow, if that [bad thing] had never happened, then this [good thing] never would have.
It is absolutely uncanny how life works. Life is a series of yings and yangs. Learning to appreciate this will only make your life easier - on all levels.
14. Do Something Completely Different: And I'm not just talking about projects - I'm talking about life. Try bungee jumping, motorcycle riding, hang gliding - the point is to recognize something you've always wanted to do and finally just do it!
Have you ever eaten Raisin Bran? You know how after a while the raisins settle in the bottom of the box and you have to shake it to get them to come back to the top.
Well sometimes you have to do that to life - that is, shake it up for it to offer you its best. Even if the only thing to come out of it is one more thing you crossed of your life's ?to do? list, then, you've gotten your two scoops out of life - if only for a day.
1. Subcontract from Others: Many freelancers forget this strategy, or don't use it because they are reluctant to contact other freelancers because they are the ?competition.?
However, many successful freelancers often get overwhelmed and need help. To make the contact professional and ?non-threatening?, say something like the following:
Dear Ms./Mr. Smith:
I noted from your website that you are a copywriter specializing in corporate finance. I read several of your articles and your list of clients. I was impressed with the quality of your work and the breadth of your experience.
I'm contacting you today because I would like to form a mutual alliance, eg, if you are ever in need of help on a project, or need a reliable person to outsource work to, feel free to contact me.
FYI, I am a copywriter specializing in general finance. I have written on everything from mutual funds to personal wealth management (samples at www.mywebsite.com). A list of references attesting to my professionalism and reliability can be forwarded at your request.
If I ever come across a project I can't handle, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend you. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Yuwanda Black
P.S.: I advise contact via email, and a follow up with a phone call after about a week.
P.P.S.: The first paragraph of this correspondence is particularly important. You want to establish that you know what they do and have taken the time to review their website and several samples of their work.
This does two things: 1) it lets them know that you are not just collecting addresses and sending out a form letter to everyone; and 2) by doing this, it shows your professionalism. For added measure, you may even want to mention the title of several pieces of their work that you have read. This makes them much more likely to contact you.
NOTE: When you subcontract, the pay is probably going to be much less than what you'd make if you'd garnered the assignment on your own, but hey, it's a job - a job that you didn't have to market for.
2. Build Basic Websites: With all the ?ready to go? software available now, there is no reason that freelance writers can't build basic websites for clients.
Most clients just want a web presence. Template software makes it as simple as clicking and adding text (which you already provide anyway). As a one-stop resource, this is an easy service to add to your existing business.
Nervous about delving into this realm? Don't know HTML from a hole in the ground? Don't want/need to learn anything about building websites? Guess what? You don't have to.
Team up with a web design company and/or another freelancer who offers this service and outsource it. You can pay them the full fee, or get a cut off the top of every client you refer to them. Either way, it's a good vehicle for bringing in more clients.
3. Target a Business Niche: Most freelancers know that the real money to be made is in the business community, ie, commercial writing. But, with so many types of businesses to target, it can be hard to focus.
Solution: Target a niche. For example, I target realtors and mortgage brokers. Why? Because I have been both in my professional career. Hence, I know a lot about these markets.
The best way to find a niche is to start with your professional/personal background and write down all of your skills and knowledge in each particular area. If you don't find a suitable niche from this exercise, try your hobbies.
No luck in hobbyland? Try what you would like to learn about/have an interest in. What makes freelance writing so exciting these days is that with the advent of the Internet, it's easier than ever to research a particular niche and gain a wealth of knowledge in a relatively short period of time.
So, no matter where you are skill wise, don't let lack of experience be a barrier to targeting a market.
4. Have More than One Income Stream: However, try to make your second income stream compatible with your first.
Eg, build websites; create an e-book and sell it via Clickbank.com, or on your own website; create your own line of writing paraphernalia (eg, t-shirts, cups, mouse pads) on cafepress.com do logo design - the possibilities are endless.
5. Become a Resource for Others: I forget who said the following, but to paraphrase: ?To get what you want, help others get what they want.? Ie, become a go-to resource. How?
Build a website with helpful resources and links
Participate in forums and ask questions
Have a helpful Q&A on your website
Publish an industry ?must know? list
Create a forum on your website
The list is endless on how to go about this.
But, once you are known for being a resource, you become the go-to person, the industry ?guru.?
NOTE: This is a roundabout way of getting business and takes a longer time, but over time, the amount of business it can bring in is immeasurable. Projects will seem to come to you effortlessly once you build up this kind of reputation.
6. Develop a Marketing Plan: When I first started freelancing, I was doing a lot of work in the legal field, because that was my background.
Not relying solely on freelancing, I just kind of took what came my way, eg, I didn't devise a marketing plan. Once I decided that I really wanted to make a go of it, I finally did this.
Drawing on all of my experience and what I liked to write about, I decided to target the real estate and mortgage industries. I wrote 5 articles within each specialty and developed brochures and postcards introducing myself as a freelance copywriter specializing in newsletters for real estate and mortgage professionals.
Focusing my marketing efforts did two really important things for my business: 1) it DECREASED my advertising budget; and 2) it INCREASED my income. How?
Focus helped me to hone in on a specific market. Not trying to be everything to everyone, I could deliver a concise message to a defined group. Therefore, I spent less.
I increased my income by being more productive. I could sit down and pump out 10 articles at a time because I knew the industries I was targeting. I always had a cache of new material on hand. And, the old material I had could be rewritten with a different slant, then sold.
As demonstrated here, writing for a defined market saves time (eg, reslanting old material and writing numerous articles at once). This goes directly to the bottom line, which leads to my next point.
7. Market Incessantly: When freelancing, time literally is money. You should always be marketing for new clients. When you are busy, it's easy to forget this.
The one thing I like about writing for a defined market is that you have so much more time to market for new clients, because, as outlined above, the work flow is so much smoother.
In conclusion, the problem many of us have when we encounter a list is that we try to do everything on it and wind up not doing any of them well.
So, take 1-2 ideas from the above and really own it (work it!) and watch your income increase.
Yuwanda Black has sinced written about articles on various topics from Quit Smoking, Blogging and SEO Articles. May be reprinted with the following, in full: Yuwanda Black is the publisher of http://www.InkwellEditorial.com: THE business portal for and about the editorial and creative industries. First-hand freelance success stories, e-courses, job po. Yuwanda Black's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.