Category Archives: Freelance Writing Business

Other Writing Income Streams That Bring in Freelance Clients

By on June 19th, 2013

While this blog is (currently) focused on freelancing writing, freelancing doesn’t make up the whole of my writing business. I also write nonfiction e-books, am (slowly) working on edits for my first print nonfiction book, write fiction for three different audiences (from short stories to a novel-in-progress), and I’m a very active Web publisher. I chose this business model for the diversity it offers — both in my schedule and in my income streams. And I’ve slowly moved from full-time freelancing to a well-balanced schedule. Over time I’ll focus even more heavily on the publishing side of my business. Now, …

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Posted in Freelance Writing Business |

Why Clients Come Back After Going the Cheap Route

By on June 17th, 2013

One of the biggest complaints I hear from new freelance writers is that clients don’t seem willing to pay professional rates. Prospects are tempted by bottom-of-the-barrel offers from hobbyists, scrapers, and people who do little more than regurgitate other people’s articles. The prospect gets more content for their site for less money. The “writer” gets paid. And professionals get screwed in the deal. Let’s emphasize something up front — you’ll only get screwed as a professional writer if you target these low-paying non-prospects in the first place. Having a solid marketing plan and knowing how to target appropriate buyers can …

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Posted in Freelance Writing Business, Freelance Writing Jobs |

What Gets You Through a Long Day of Writing?

By on June 12th, 2013

There are some days when I really don’t feel like writing. But the work has to be finished anyway. Sometimes I plug away and get through the day on sheer will. Sometimes it’s more of a struggle and all I can think about is making it to quitting time. Fortunately these long, exhausting days aren’t the norm. Maybe I committed to too much because a project ran longer than expected. Or perhaps a project is simply boring me to tears and the thought of writing another word seems unbearable. Rare. But it happens. And I know I’m not the only …

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Posted in Productivity & Organization |

Three Key Words: Always Be Closing

By on May 28th, 2013

As a freelance writer, there is more to your success than producing high quality content. Even though you may not enjoy the sales and marketing process, it is a big part of achieving your goals. With this in mind, these three words should always be close to your heart: always be closing. In other words, you should always be ready to close a deal. You should always be ready to show a prospect why you are the right person for the job. Since the phrase “always be closing” is quite generic, let’s take a closer look at three tips that …

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Posted in Marketing |

How to Be Better With Your Freelance Writing Income

By on May 20th, 2013

Too bad we’re not born knowing how to deal with money. If you had a financial literacy class in high school, you were pretty lucky. For many of us, much of what we know about personal finance we learned from our parents or our own mistakes. It’s not too late to learn those critical lessons you may have missed. Here are some tips on being better with your money. Read about money. You don’t have to completely immerse yourself in personal finance, but learn what you need to better manage your money through books, blogs, magazines, and other people. A …

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Posted in Finance |

When is the Best Time to Make Cold Calls

By on May 14th, 2013

Lately, we have been discussing cold calling as a marketing method quite a bit. For example, my last post touched on how to discuss freelance pricing during a cold call. This time around, I want to take a closer look at when you should be making cold calls. If you are going to spend time on the phone, you might as well give yourself the best chance of success. Note: While there are some general rules of thumb to follow, don’t be shy about experimenting with a variety of schedules. Here are three tips that will help you iron out …

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Posted in Marketing |

3 Things I Don’t Want To Hear When Hiring Writers

By on May 13th, 2013

If you read my previous blog post, you’ll know that over the past few years I’ve gone from being a part time freelance writer, regularly pitching for projects, to working in a full time role, hiring freelance writers for content production on an array of different topics. When I was freelance writing myself full time, I thought I had a good idea of just what those people hiring writers were looking for.  While I’m not saying I had a perfect success record when it came to applying for gigs – far from it – I liked to think I knew …

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Posted in Freelance Writing Business |

Weekend Reading: Freelance Blogging

By on May 10th, 2013

One of the topics we’re focusing on this month is freelance blogging. This is one path toward professional blogging (alongside being a Web publisher in your own right by managing and monetizing your own blogs). If you enjoy blogging for your own business, maybe it’s something you’ll want to consider doing for clients too. So let’s get some feedback from people who are already working as freelance bloggers, so you can decide if it’s a good fit for you or not. Here are some articles that might be of interest to freelance bloggers or those interested in beginning a freelance …

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Posted in Freelance Writing Business |

How to Overcome Your Clients’ Biggest Fears

By on May 8th, 2013

By: Anthony Chatfield Of all the obstacles faced by a freelance writer, one of the biggest is the endless worry a client has going into a new project. Deadlines. Communication. Attention to detail. Whether they had a bad experience before or just read too many horror stories from their colleagues, these clients expect the worst. How then do you alleviate these fears before a project begins and ensure each of your clients sees your work with fresh eyes? Here are a few strategies I use for just such situations. Fear of Misunderstanding It might feel like a project starts and …

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Posted in Freelance Writing Business |

Managing Freelance Writing Income and Regular Income

By on May 6th, 2013

For most people transitioning into full-time freelance writing or freelance writing on the side for awhile, there will undoubtedly be a period of time that you’re managing two kinds of income: income from freelance writing and income from a regular job. Or if you’re a writer who’s married to or cohabitating with someone who earns a regular income, the two of you may also face the challenge of managing two types of income. Freelance writing income alone can be tough to manage because it can be highly irregular. Couple that with income from a regular job and it’s natural to …

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Posted in Finance |