Last week was an interesting one for me in terms of responses to query letters. Two editors got back to me via email, both with the same response: we like your style and ideas, but have done too much like this in the past. Do you have any other ideas that we can run with? While some freelance writers may see this as a bad
Today we have yet another post inspired by @vcmcguire (you can ask your own questions which will appear on the blog by tweeting @queryfreewriter or emailing jenn@allfreelancewriting.com). She wanted to know how freelance writers can make time for pitching their services to new prospects, especially when they already have a fairly full schedule. First let’s talk about why you might want to keep marketing (or
Stacey Abler contacted me recently with a question about a new prospect. In her email she mentioned that she was considering offering a discount just because the contract could be a long-term regular one. My reaction was shock, followed by a “no, no, no….” Offering this kind of discount to a brand new client is a recipe for disaster. At the same time, I can
A funny thing happened to me last week. I received three call backs from companies I cold called in late July. While this happens from time to time, getting three call backs in one week was a unique situation. Of course, I am not complaining. Why did they call back? All three companies wanted more information on what I could do for them. Fortunately, I
Yesterday I asked on Twitter what All Freelance Writing’s readers wanted to learn about here. Courtney Ramirez responded saying that she wanted to learn more about breaking into newer and better freelance writing markets. It’s something I talk about a lot on this blog — setting higher freelance writing rates and how that often involves re-targeting your market. Now let’s talk about how to make
Although I don’t keep exact records, I would guess that I have made more than 500 cold calls in an attempt to better my freelance writing career. Over this time, I have learned quite a bit about the cold calling process including what works and what you want to avoid. Here are three tips that anybody can follow: 1. You must get the decision maker
If there’s one thing that can help you earn more through your freelance writing business, it’s understanding your target market. You can’t jump into business blindly and expect to succeed — or at least not excel. Are there cases of dumb luck? Sure. But don’t expect to be one of them. Instead you need to focus on two things: what you’re selling, and who you’re
I recently received an interesting reader question from Jazmin of Capital Web Writing. Her question was about whether or not it would be appropriate for her hubby to accompany her to a conference, especially given his unique quirks. She gave me permission to share the email and my thoughts here. I’d like to hear your thoughts on the topic as well. Here’s the email: I
Cold calling is a great way to land new clients, while spreading the word about the services that you offer. The main issue with this way of marketing is that you are going to get turned down more times than not. With this in mind, you need to have a good follow-up strategy in place. In other words, one call is not often usually enough
As you know, marketing your services as a freelance writer is important – there is no two ways about it. Although it is good that you are spending time on marketing, it is essential that you stay as organized as possible. There are several reasons for this: 1. When you are organized it is simple to see what is and isn’t working. Are you having
I’m naturally a bit of a reclusive person. I enjoy working with others and socialising with groups of friends, but I tend to find that if I can do something by myself rather than with others, I generally will. Since being a freelance writer, however, one of the most important points I’ve learnt is that networking with other writers is key to developing your writing
Are you looking for a creative way to market your freelance writing services? Are you trying to stand out in the crowd? If so, you may want to create a free report as a way of increasing exposure and hopefully adding new clients. The number one benefit of a free report is that most people will take advantage if they know about it. After all,
From time to time I run into this situation: my schedule becomes so full of projects that I barely have enough time to market my services. While it would be easy to let this slide for a few weeks (or even longer) I know that marketing is the key to long term success. For this reason, I always find time to send query letters, make
As you know by now, marketing is a big part of achieving success as a freelance writer. But along with this, it can also take up a big chunk of your day if you are not careful. While you want to spend time marketing your services, you still need to complete your client work on time. By creating standard templates that can be easily customized,
One of the very first gigs I got over a year ago when I started full time freelancing was to work on the Twitter account of a life insurance company. The company actually found me through my own Twitter ramblings and still decided to hire me to do the same for them. Since that time I’ve had many different social networking clients and I’ve answered
I know that some freelance writers do not enjoy cold calling. Although this is something I have had success with, many just don’t want to try it out. For this reason, I thought it would be a good idea to talk a bit about cold emailing and whether it can lead to new clients. To give you a better idea of how things have worked
Before you can think about marketing your freelance writing business, you need to know where you currently stand among your competition. Are you dealing with over-saturation in your specialty area? Are you lacking skills other freelance writers have, that clients want? Do you have something going for you that justifies charging higher rates than others? A SWOT analysis can help you figure those things out, and
As a freelance writer, you always want to keep a steady flow of work coming in. The best way of doing this is to market your services on a regular basis. It does not matter how you do this, as long as you are comfortable and happy with the results. With this in mind, many freelancers ask the same question: is there any way to
All successful freelance writers have a marketing plan. That being said, changes may be needed on a regular basis. Although you do not want to be quick to jump ship, there may come a time when you need to abandon your marketing plan. Here are three times when this makes sense: If your marketing plan has failed you for an extended period of time. Have
As you may have noticed by now, I am in the guy at All Freelance Writing who talks about marketing. While most of my posts are tips and how-to articles, I wanted to give some “first hand experience advice” this time around. Last week, I decided to make 25 cold calls to local businesses. Gasp! I am sure some of you get scared even thinking
I have taken a secret lover. Now, I don’t want my hubby to know because it would devastate him, so I’m only going to tell you guys. The name of my secret lover? Elance. I know, I know, it’s weird. Before I did the Elance experiment for AFW, I never really considered Elance a real place to work. Through the experiment, Elance and I had
At least once per week I receive an email asking the same question: Chris, how much time per day do you spend on marketing? This is a very important question, but for the most part it is one that does not have a “set” answer. Everyday is different in terms of marketing. For instance, one day I may send three query letters but the next
Imagine this: you have been relying on the same marketing plan for several months or longer. Everything you do, for the most part, has been working. But out of nowhere you hit a snag and now nothing is breaking your way. What are you going to do? If your marketing plan begins to fail, don’t panic. Instead, follow these steps: Don’t abort what has worked
There is no denying that freelance writers should spend a lot of time marketing their services. This can be done in many ways: cold calls, cold emails, and query letters among others. But before you get ahead of yourself, there is one thing that you may be forgetting. You have to back up your “marketing claims.” In other words, you have to be ready to
Do you have a “go to move” when it comes to marketing your freelance writing services? Many people like to send query letters, some send cold emails, and others rely solely on word of mouth. Have you ever thought about the benefits of cold calling? Believe it or not, this is a great way to drum up new business. There are thousands of companies out
One of the best ways to market your services as a freelance writer is through your own website. Believe it or not, many writers do not have a website – this is a big mistake. With your own site clients can find you 24/7. In other words, you are marketing your services but do not have to put a lot of time and effort into
Normally I don’t talk about my clients directly on my blogs, but today is an exception. One of my clients (the owner of DirJournal.com) made a special link building offer to writers and bloggers, and I’d like to share that with you today. But first, let’s talk about link building in general, why it’s important for freelance writers, and how you can build quality links
Every now and then I talk about the excuses freelance writers make for their lack of success when they’re not happy in their careers (and how they need to take personal responsibility if they want to change that). Let’s talk about the latter half — making changes. It’s not enough to knock off the excuses. You stopped blaming the economy for your lack of work.
Before I get into more complex posts on how to market your freelance writing services, I want to touch on some of the basics. Although I feel that it is very important to have a marketing plan, many aspiring writers do not agree. If you believe that this is a good thing, the following information should help you get started. Believe it or not, your
Thanks to Thursday Bram for bringing this story to my attention. I don’t think it’s any secret that I despise oDesk. Why? Because they not only allow, but encourage, clients to cross the employer / client line with their software that lets clients actually watch you work, while you’re working from your own machine in your own home, etc. I’m not going to get into