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.

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.

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.