The Number 1 Tip to Becoming a Successful Freelance Writer

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.

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.