Did the title get your attention? Wouldn't you like to know there's just one thing you need to do to have a successful freelance writing career? While it's not exactly true, there is one thing that is so important, you shouldn't overlook it. I can sum it up in one sentence: Put yourself in their shoes.
It doesn't matter whether you're writing copy for a Fortune 500 business, creating website content for a small Mom-and-Pop company or writing a pitch for a magazine. If you want to be successful at anything you write, you must put yourself in their shoes.
Define "They"
First, you must know who they are. The answer will change based on what you're writing. If you're writing a blog post, it will be the people who read it. If you're writing copy for a clothing company, it will be the customers or potential customers for that store.
You should get a clear picture in your mind of "them." Get specific and give this person a name, features and a personality. The more detailed you can be, the better you will be able to write for them. Think about what they like and dislike, their pet peeves and what makes them upset or uncomfortable. Know what matters to them. As you create a character for your writing, it will be easier to create content that is relevant and valuable.
Put Yourself in Their Shoes
Now that you have a person in mind, you should be able to figure out why they will care about what you're writing. (Hint - if you can't do this, you're writing probably won't appeal to them.) Go back to that clothing store. Is the person looking for affordable clothing for work? Are they interested in the latest name brands or styles? The person you're writing for will influence what you say and how you say it.
The same is true when you're pitching to a potential client. Instead of rambling on about how great you are or what experience you have, think about the other person. What are they most likely interested in? What are their needs, and how can you meet them? If you shift your focus from yourself or your interests in writing and think about the other person, you'll notice that your tone changes. And more importantly, the results will change. Suddenly, people are interested in what you have to say. Why? Because you get it.
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Set Your Writing Goals for the New Year
It's been a long time since I've posted to this blog, but one of my goals for 2018 is to post regularly and help others who are starting their freelance writing career or hope to. I'm still writing, and in fact, it's because I'm so busy with work that I haven't kept up with my blog. It's a good problem to have, but I want to spend less time writing for others in 2018 and more time writing for myself this year.
One of the most important things you can do to either begin a freelance writing career or take it to the next level is to set some goals. These goals may be to land your first client, to earn a specific amount so you can quit your day job or to increase your rates. If you don't have goals, you won't get anywhere and writing for a living will just be a dream.
Putting Wheels to Your Dream of a Freelance Writing Career
To turn your dream into an achievable goal, you must set reasonable mini-goals. For those who are struggling and working hard with their current client load, the next step is to figure out how to earn more money and work less. That's where I'm at today. I earn enough to get by when I work hard, but I would like more balance in my life.
My first task was to figure out how much more money I wanted to earn off of each blog post or piece of content. The next step is to market for those clients. I've set a goal to send out at least 10 proposals a week to clients who will pay my minimum required amount. So far this week, I've sent out five. I need to submit five more by the end of today to meet my goal for week one in the new year.
It's these actionable steps that will help you start a freelance writing career or get to the next level.
Setting a Dollar Goal
It's easy to focus on your deadlines and forget about how much money you need to make. However, since you're likely doing this to earn money so you can pay your bills, you need to set a monthly, weekly and daily dollar goal. Even if you have no deadlines for the day, your work isn't done until you meet that dollar goal. If you don't have work to do and you're short your goal, you need to continue marketing.
For me, it has gotten tiring to try to meet my dollar goal every day. This tells me I need to increase my rates so that it isn't a struggle to meet the goal and so I don't have to work so hard to do it.
A Balancing Act
It takes time to market and send out proposals or cold emails. Marketing often gets pushed off to the side if you have a lot of work to do. However, you'll never get to the next level in your writing career if you don't make time for it. I'm learning this lesson now. I didn't start my marketing until Wednesday of this week, which means I have to send out more proposals in the three days I had left. It would have been much easier if I'd started on Monday. Of course, with the holiday, I'll give myself a break for this week.
If you want to become a writer in 2018 or would like to earn more, what writing goals can you set for yourself? Let me know in the comments, so we can work together to reach our goals and enjoy all the writing life has to offer.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
How to Create a Writing Portfolio If You've Never Been Published or Had a Client
Often, editors and clients will ask to see samples of your writing. They may also be called clips or a writing portfolio. What happens if you don't have previous work? Does that mean you cannot submit your work or win the client?
Not neccessarily. You can create a portfolio even if you've never been published or had a paying client. You will want to have a basic portfolio before you start seeking work.
Know What You Will Write
Before creating a portfolio, decide what kind of writing you will do. You may want to do some research to see what is popular and what sells and pays well. Take into account what type of writing you are good at or interested in learning. This may require you to take some classes.
Create Samples
Once you know what you will be writing, create samples. If you are focused on one type of writing, like sales letters, write 4 or 5 to include in your portfolio. Use a fictional business that you are promoting.
If you will be writing in several areas, include 1 or 2 examples of each one. Choose topics that you are knowledgeable about and write on them. Your portfolio may include a couple of web content articles, 2 blog posts, a sales letter, and a press release.
Put Your Portfolio on Your Website
Put all of your writing on a website created for your writing business. When you approach a potential client or editor, submit relevant samples of your writing but include a link to the entire portfolio.
If you find a potential writing job and none of your samples are appropriate, take the time to write a new one. You can add it to your portfolio for future use.
Submitting samples that aren't relevant will lessen your chances of winning the client or job. Take the extra time to write a sample that showcases your knowledge and skills in the correct area.
A portfolio is a neccessary tool for freelance writers. Take the time to make yours stand out.
Not neccessarily. You can create a portfolio even if you've never been published or had a paying client. You will want to have a basic portfolio before you start seeking work.
Know What You Will Write
Before creating a portfolio, decide what kind of writing you will do. You may want to do some research to see what is popular and what sells and pays well. Take into account what type of writing you are good at or interested in learning. This may require you to take some classes.
Create Samples
Once you know what you will be writing, create samples. If you are focused on one type of writing, like sales letters, write 4 or 5 to include in your portfolio. Use a fictional business that you are promoting.
If you will be writing in several areas, include 1 or 2 examples of each one. Choose topics that you are knowledgeable about and write on them. Your portfolio may include a couple of web content articles, 2 blog posts, a sales letter, and a press release.
Put Your Portfolio on Your Website
Put all of your writing on a website created for your writing business. When you approach a potential client or editor, submit relevant samples of your writing but include a link to the entire portfolio.
If you find a potential writing job and none of your samples are appropriate, take the time to write a new one. You can add it to your portfolio for future use.
Submitting samples that aren't relevant will lessen your chances of winning the client or job. Take the extra time to write a sample that showcases your knowledge and skills in the correct area.
A portfolio is a neccessary tool for freelance writers. Take the time to make yours stand out.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Create a Winning Profile
One of the most important things you can do to advance your online writing career is to write an outstanding profile. If you choose to use bidding sites like Elance or oDesk, you will have to create a profile to participate. However, creating a profile is beneficial for whatever writing you plan to do.
Your profile should do three things:
1. It should introduce you as a writer to potential clients. Your profile should tell something about the kind of writer you are, what you write, and what experience you have. This will help clients decide if you are right for their project.
2. It should show who you are as a person. While your writing abilities are the most important aspects of your career, people like to hire real people. Do your interests fit with what you write? Do you have real-life experience on the topics you cover?
3. It should gain you writing jobs. Your profile should be so compelling that clients want you to write for them. It is an advertisement for your abilities. This advertising is done by meeting the first two points.
How do you write a great profile?
You start by listing your skills that are relevant to writing. Any previous work experience or volunteer efforts should be listed. Any life experience in areas where you plan to write should also be mentioned. What you don't say is just as important as what you do say. This is not a Facebook or online dating profile. Don't mention that you love cats and have three of them unless you plan to write about cats.
Three tips to create a winning profile:
1. Use powerful words to describe yourself. You might want to study up on writing great resumes, and look at some of the wording that is used. Instead of saying you wrote articles for an organization, you might say you wrote "compelling content" or "creative sales pages."
2. Find as much experience in your background that is relevant as you can. This may include writing for a school newspaper or editing a work newsletter. Anything that will make you stand out should be included. At the same time, don't lie about your qualifications, because it will be obvious when you submit your first article to the client if you don't really have the experience you say you do.
3. Add a portfolio. This is essential to getting clients. People don't just want to hear you tell them what you can do; they want to see what you have done. If you don't have previous work to show, write some now. If you want to get work writing press releases but haven't done any before, write one for a fictional company. It will show your abilities, which is what the client wants.
You may be wondering where to post this outstanding profile if you aren't using bidding sites for work. You can create a blog or a website that includes your profile for others to see. A profile is one of the basic keys to getting work on the internet.
Your profile should do three things:
1. It should introduce you as a writer to potential clients. Your profile should tell something about the kind of writer you are, what you write, and what experience you have. This will help clients decide if you are right for their project.
2. It should show who you are as a person. While your writing abilities are the most important aspects of your career, people like to hire real people. Do your interests fit with what you write? Do you have real-life experience on the topics you cover?
3. It should gain you writing jobs. Your profile should be so compelling that clients want you to write for them. It is an advertisement for your abilities. This advertising is done by meeting the first two points.
How do you write a great profile?
You start by listing your skills that are relevant to writing. Any previous work experience or volunteer efforts should be listed. Any life experience in areas where you plan to write should also be mentioned. What you don't say is just as important as what you do say. This is not a Facebook or online dating profile. Don't mention that you love cats and have three of them unless you plan to write about cats.
Three tips to create a winning profile:
1. Use powerful words to describe yourself. You might want to study up on writing great resumes, and look at some of the wording that is used. Instead of saying you wrote articles for an organization, you might say you wrote "compelling content" or "creative sales pages."
2. Find as much experience in your background that is relevant as you can. This may include writing for a school newspaper or editing a work newsletter. Anything that will make you stand out should be included. At the same time, don't lie about your qualifications, because it will be obvious when you submit your first article to the client if you don't really have the experience you say you do.
3. Add a portfolio. This is essential to getting clients. People don't just want to hear you tell them what you can do; they want to see what you have done. If you don't have previous work to show, write some now. If you want to get work writing press releases but haven't done any before, write one for a fictional company. It will show your abilities, which is what the client wants.
You may be wondering where to post this outstanding profile if you aren't using bidding sites for work. You can create a blog or a website that includes your profile for others to see. A profile is one of the basic keys to getting work on the internet.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Where to Start Your Online Writing Career
The internet is an easier place to break in with your writing than magazines or book publication. That being said, if you want to make money with your writing even on the internet, you will have to learn the correct style and what is expected for the type of writing you will be doing.
Give it Away for Free
No one likes to give things away for free, but it can be beneficial to allow your writing to be published without pay. It gets your name known and allows you to get critiques from others to help you improve. This is especially beneficial for web writing. There are numerous places where you can see your writing published on the internet. Some of the most popular ones are Hubpages and Squidoo. While they don't pay you to write for them, you can earn money from page views. Of course, it can take a long time to get to that point, but in the meantime, you will be getting comments from others who write on those sites. This will help you grow as a writer.
Consider Lower Paying Sites
Look at sites such as Yahoo Contributor Network or other sites that pay you a small fee to publish your work. It will not be enough so that you can quit your day job, but you will be able to say you are a paid writer. With sites such as these, the benefit is the experience you will get as a writer. You will learn more ao bout what works and what doesn't work and how to edit your articles.
Don't Forget Contests
Put a search in Google for writing contests and you will find thousands of listings. Sort through these and you will find some that suit your style and don't cost a fortune to enter. Sometimes, you can even get feedback from these contests about your work. That is worth more than the prize money if your goal is to be a published writer.
Look at Outsourcing Sites
Sites such as Elance and oDesk have projects and writers who bid on those projects. You can often find jobs that interest you that you can get paid for. It's not easy to get started and the pay is often low, but you can make a decent second income from these sites. I wrote an article titled How to Get Work as a Freelance Writer on Bidding Sites Like Elance and oDesk. It details how to set up your profile and how to bid on jobs and tips to help you get them.
I don't recommend trying to make a full-time living with these sites, even though some people do. At the very least, it's a great way to start your writing career and let you experience writing for someone's specific demands.
Becoming a successful online writer takes time. Each of these steps is a way to get you exposure and help you learn more about your craft. With patience and persistence, you can become a professional online writer.
Give it Away for Free
No one likes to give things away for free, but it can be beneficial to allow your writing to be published without pay. It gets your name known and allows you to get critiques from others to help you improve. This is especially beneficial for web writing. There are numerous places where you can see your writing published on the internet. Some of the most popular ones are Hubpages and Squidoo. While they don't pay you to write for them, you can earn money from page views. Of course, it can take a long time to get to that point, but in the meantime, you will be getting comments from others who write on those sites. This will help you grow as a writer.
Consider Lower Paying Sites
Look at sites such as Yahoo Contributor Network or other sites that pay you a small fee to publish your work. It will not be enough so that you can quit your day job, but you will be able to say you are a paid writer. With sites such as these, the benefit is the experience you will get as a writer. You will learn more ao bout what works and what doesn't work and how to edit your articles.
Don't Forget Contests
Put a search in Google for writing contests and you will find thousands of listings. Sort through these and you will find some that suit your style and don't cost a fortune to enter. Sometimes, you can even get feedback from these contests about your work. That is worth more than the prize money if your goal is to be a published writer.
Look at Outsourcing Sites
Sites such as Elance and oDesk have projects and writers who bid on those projects. You can often find jobs that interest you that you can get paid for. It's not easy to get started and the pay is often low, but you can make a decent second income from these sites. I wrote an article titled How to Get Work as a Freelance Writer on Bidding Sites Like Elance and oDesk. It details how to set up your profile and how to bid on jobs and tips to help you get them.
I don't recommend trying to make a full-time living with these sites, even though some people do. At the very least, it's a great way to start your writing career and let you experience writing for someone's specific demands.
Becoming a successful online writer takes time. Each of these steps is a way to get you exposure and help you learn more about your craft. With patience and persistence, you can become a professional online writer.
Friday, February 17, 2012
What to Do When You First Start Your Writing Career
So you've decided you want to start your writing career? Maybe it's been a dream for years and you're finally doing something about it. Or maybe you just discovered you enjoy putting words to paper. What's next?
Learn
Before you can make a career as a writer, you have to learn your craft. The first decision to make is what you'll write. Will you write fiction or nonfiction? Within those categories, will it be romantic short stories, novels, children's books, magazine articles or a host of other options?
If you plan to become an online freelance writer, which is where the growth is today, you will have to figure out what you want to write in the online world. There is a number of categories that you can study, but to begin with, it's best to focus on one or two. I began with writing articles for the web. Now, I'm learning more about writing blogs. There are other areas I will study in the future.
Write
The best way to learn to write is by writing. You may want to start with sites such as Squidoo or Hubpages to get your feet wet. The great thing about those sites is that you can get feedback from other writers. This will help you grow and develop your skills.
When it comes to criticism, listen to everything you read or hear with an open mind and decide for yourself if it is valuable. Do not be put off by negative comments, but learn from them.
Learn
Before you can make a career as a writer, you have to learn your craft. The first decision to make is what you'll write. Will you write fiction or nonfiction? Within those categories, will it be romantic short stories, novels, children's books, magazine articles or a host of other options?
If you plan to become an online freelance writer, which is where the growth is today, you will have to figure out what you want to write in the online world. There is a number of categories that you can study, but to begin with, it's best to focus on one or two. I began with writing articles for the web. Now, I'm learning more about writing blogs. There are other areas I will study in the future.
Write
The best way to learn to write is by writing. You may want to start with sites such as Squidoo or Hubpages to get your feet wet. The great thing about those sites is that you can get feedback from other writers. This will help you grow and develop your skills.
When it comes to criticism, listen to everything you read or hear with an open mind and decide for yourself if it is valuable. Do not be put off by negative comments, but learn from them.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
My Journey
Hello,
I am a single mom with a full-time job as an office manager. My dream is to become a freelance writer full-time. I imagine getting up in the mornings and wandering in to my home office after getting the kids off to school and working until they come home. Then I can help them with homework and play for awhile, and after they go to bed, I'll work on my mystery novel.
Of course, that dream is a few years away yet, but that is my goal. Right now, I have a two year old daughter and I'm balancing a job, family, and household responsibilities with my freelance writing. I've been actively pursuing this since June of 2011 and I've already learned a lot.
I decided to blog about my journey and share my experiences and lessons I've learned with others. I know I have done much of my learning by reading about the journeys of other writers, so I thought I'd pay it forward.
For everyone who joins my blog, welcome, and good luck on your own writing journey!
I am a single mom with a full-time job as an office manager. My dream is to become a freelance writer full-time. I imagine getting up in the mornings and wandering in to my home office after getting the kids off to school and working until they come home. Then I can help them with homework and play for awhile, and after they go to bed, I'll work on my mystery novel.
Of course, that dream is a few years away yet, but that is my goal. Right now, I have a two year old daughter and I'm balancing a job, family, and household responsibilities with my freelance writing. I've been actively pursuing this since June of 2011 and I've already learned a lot.
I decided to blog about my journey and share my experiences and lessons I've learned with others. I know I have done much of my learning by reading about the journeys of other writers, so I thought I'd pay it forward.
For everyone who joins my blog, welcome, and good luck on your own writing journey!
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