Many freelance writers find it difficult to setup their home office. For whatever reason this is the one detail that they get hung up on. This is not something that I readily struggled with when starting my freelance writing career, but I can see how some may find themselves in a different position.
It is very important that your home office is setup in the best possible way. After all, this is where you are going to spend a lot of your time. I am in my office more than 10 hours per day, and there is a very good chance that you will be in the same position once your career gets moving.
It is hard to say how to best setup your home office. Everybody has a different space and particular wants and needs. For instance, some freelance writers have an entire room to devote to their career. Others only have a small closet or a nook in the corner of their bedroom. As you can imagine, space greatly effects what you can and cannot do with your home office.
Experiment with different ideas before you settle on a particular home office setup. Move your desk around, try different areas in your home, and do anything else that will open your eyes to the possibilities that are available. You never know when you will find the perfect setup.
It is important that your home office is comfortable and setup just the way you want it. You don’t want to spend too much time on this, but make sure you are happy with the way things end up.
There is nothing more exciting to a freelance writer than getting paid. This shows that you are making progress, and that there are clients out there that are willing to work with you in an honest manner. Do you know what payment options exist? In my early days as a freelance writer I never really thought about this. Soon enough I realized that there were many options, and some that I had never taken into consideration.
I have found that PayPal is the easiest way to receive funds from clients. If both you and the client have an account this is an easy process. Once you receive payment you can then transfer the funds to your checking account, and then use the money as you see fit. The majority of my payments are made via PayPal, and despite the fees, I do not have any problem with this.
Many of my clients prefer to pay by check. You may not get paid right away with a check, but as soon as it arrives in your mailbox it is ready to be cashed. On top of this, you do not have to pay any additional fees when you are paid via check. While I usually opt for PayPal over a check payment, this is not something I will fight. This works out fine for me in the long run.
Finally, wire transfers are quite popular as well. I have a couple of clients that wire money from their account to mine every month. This is quick and efficient for the most part. The only thing that I don’t like about it is that my bank charges $10 for each transfer. This is not a lot of money, but it is something I always notice.
If your clients give you an option on how to get paid make sure you think long and hard before making a decision.
Is your marketing plan letting you down? Are you finding it difficult to land new clients? If you answered yes to either of these questions you need to make some immediate changes. The question is: what changes should you focus on?
Here are three things you can do to better your marketing plan today:
1. Keep track of what is and is not working. This is the biggest mistake that many freelance writers make when it comes to their marketing plan. They do not know what is working because they are not keeping track. A simple spreadsheet will make it easy for you to chart your successes and failures.
2. Get rid of anything that is not working. Are you spending a lot of time on cold calls but not seeing any results? If so, cut this out for the time being and replace it with something that has been more effective. There is no point in charting what is working if you are not going to use this information to your advantage.
3. Give everything a try. Some writers have a marketing plan, but it only includes one or two methods of generating clients. You need to give everything a try. This includes cold calls, cold emails, your own website, query letters, etc.
If you are looking for ways to better your marketing plan you should consider the three simple changes outlined above. All of them will lead to a better plan which will eventually result in more clients and increased profits.
As a freelance writer you definitely need a website and/or blog to showcase your abilities to potential clients. If you are not attempting to generate new clients via the internet you are holding yourself back. In my opinion, it is very important for every freelance writer to have and use a website.
I have several websites that bring in new clients. Additionally, I manage this blog which also attracts clients and those interested in partnering with me. Believe it or not, it is very easy to create a website and blog that can be used to show off your talent and offerings. If you are not up to it, you can always hire a professional to design and code your site. For a few hundred dollars you should be able to get exactly what you want and need.
Will my site bring in a lot of new clients? Right away, the answer is usually no. It will take a while before your site gains traction. For instance, the first six months of this blog were slow. I had a few readers, but not too many people were asking about my services. Sometime around the one year mark I gained traction, my search engine rankings increased, and more and more people were asking about my services. You need to be patient if you want your website/blog to payoff in the long run.
If you are serious about your career as a freelance writer you need a website to showcase your talent. Soon enough your website(s) will be attracting new clients and making it easy for you to expand your business.
There are many ways to land new clients as a freelance writer. One that I talk about from time to time is cold calling. This is not something that most freelance writers like to do, but it can be quite effective. Just like anything else, if you want to have success with cold calling you need to know what you are doing. There is a right and a wrong way of doing this. What you say and how you say it will determine the success you have.
Keep in mind that not every cold call is going to result in a new client. In fact, you are bound to get hung up on and told no more times than not. Your goal is to stick with things until something breaks your way. It may take a couple of calls to land a client. It may take 50 or more. Will you stay persistent?
Have a list. If you are going to make cold calls you need to have a list to work from. For instance, you may want to cold call every real estate agent in your area to offer your services. Start out by compiling a list of agents by searching online and in the phone book. This way you can move from one call to the next without stopping.
Once you get the proper person on the phone you should give a short introduction explaining who you are and what you offer. If the person shows interest you can continue to offer more information on yourself and what you can do for them. Some people will give you a job on the spot. Others will tell you to email your resume, clips, etc. It should be your main goal to either land a gig or setup a second conversation on the phone or via email. It often times takes several calls and/or emails until you receive good news.
Finally, don’t give up if you are getting rejected time after time. This is a mistake. As noted above, you will get rejected more times than not. You have to continue forward with the thought that you will eventually land a new client.
Hopefully this information gives you the knowledge and confidence needed to implement a cold calling strategy.
Last week I received a couple of emails about the cost of being a freelance writer. These people wanted to know how much money it costs to start a career in this industry, as well as what I spend from month to month. While this is different for everybody, you should know one thing: freelance writing is a relatively inexpensive career. This is not a career that will suck your bank account dry from one month to the next. Of course, you have to be smart about how you spend and save.
Starting a freelance writing career can be semi-expensive, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. The biggest expenses you will face are for a computer, printer, and internet connection. Do you have all three of these things already? If so, you are way ahead of the game and pretty much ready to start your career without spending more than a few bucks on some office supplies, etc. Those who don’t have the above three items should shop for them on a budget. In my experience you can buy a quality computer and printer for roughly $500. This may not buy you the best of the best, but it is more than enough to get your career started.
I don’t spend much money on a monthly basis to further my career. My biggest expenses are for offices supplies, such as printer paper, as well as my internet connection. To go along with these, I also spend a bit on domain names, hosting, design work, and other things for some of my own projects.
All in all, it is not expensive to start a career as a freelance writer. If you are interested in becoming a freelance writer you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to get started. Most people already have what they need.
As a freelance writer, every minute that you work should put you closer to reaching your goals. There are many time wasters that can hold you back from achieving success. I try to keep these out of my career as much as possible, but they always try sneaking back in.
Yesterday morning I spend entirely too long checking and responding to emails. For whatever reason, I had five or so miscellaneous emails that bogged me down for roughly 30 minutes at the start of my day. While this may not seem like a big deal it pushed back my entire morning.
Every freelance writer who I speak to says the same thing about checking and responding to email: it can be a huge waste of time! Notice the word can. Even though you can waste a lot of time checking and responding to email, it is something that you have to do. But remember, you don’t want to go overboard. I am a big believer in getting back to people as quickly as possible. Checking my email is top priority, but only during certain times of the day. You should have designated times for checking and responding to email, and then stick to this schedule no matter what it takes.
While there are other time wasters that come into play, I have found email to be the number one killer. It may not seem like a waste of time, but if you check your email 12 times per day at five minutes per session it equals one hour that you will never get back. Imagine how much work you could have completed in that same time frame.
Everything you do during the day should help you advance your freelance writing career. Don’t waste time. I know this is easier said than done, but it is something you should always be thinking about.
Has a client recently decided to part ways with you? This is never an easy situation to deal with. Every client is valuable, and you want to stay in good standing with as many of them as possible. That being said, if a client does leave you need to find out why no matter what it takes.
Here are three common reasons why a client may decide to go in another direction:
1. You did something that upset them. This could be anything from missing a deadline to not providing quality work. Even though it may be hard to hear, you still want to know if this is what caused the relationship to end. At the very least you can learn from this situation to ensure that you do not make the same mistake in the future.
2. They simply don’t need you any longer. Believe it or not, there are times when clients no longer need freelancers. You didn’t do anything wrong. Your client’s situation changed, and they decided to cut you out of the equation.
3. They found somebody better. Remember, you are not the only freelance writer around. At anytime a client can begin to look for somebody else. Maybe they want somebody with a different style. Maybe they are searching for a lower price. You should strive to provide quality work at all times so your client never thinks twice about comparison shopping.
If the information is not offered you should always ask a client why they are moving on. Chances are that the reason will fit into one of the three categories above. Even though it is never good to lose a client, you should do your best to learn from the experience.
Are you finding it difficult to land new clients? Is this something that you are struggling with? If so, your career as a freelance writer has probably come to a halt. The only way to grow and to earn more money is to find new clients. Those who are having trouble with this should look at one thing: their marketing plan. If you want to land new clients you should start with a new marketing plan. This can go a long way in breaking out of your current funk and eventually moving forward with a more successful career.
To start, take a strong look at your current marketing plan to see what is working and what isn’t. For instance, if you are having some success with cold calling you should keep this in your plan for the time being. At the same time, if something isn’t working for you, such as sending query letters, you can leave this out and replace it with another option. You should always be tweaking your marketing plan so you can learn what works, what doesn’t, and what you have yet to try.
It is very important to track the success of your marketing plan. Everything you do should be recorded. If you know that 25 cold calls usually results in two new clients you can ramp up your production to see if this ratio holds true over the long haul. If you are not tracking your marketing successes and failures how will you know what is working and what is not?
There is no good reason to rely on a marketing plan that is not turning up results. Instead, review your current plan and then see what changes you can make to better your chance of success. You should always know what is working, and then rely on this until a change is needed.
One thing that many new freelance writers forget is that they are responsible for more than just writing. They are also in charge of every other aspect of their career including accounts payable and receivable. It is very important that you keep all of your invoices organized. This is something that many freelance writers look over, and in the long run it ends up getting them in trouble.
The way that you organize your invoices is up to you. Personally, I like to keep both electronic and paper records for every invoice that I send and receive. I know some freelance writers who do not like to keep paper records. There is nothing wrong with using your computer as your primary mode of organization, but if a crash happens you may find yourself in deep trouble. This is why I print out every invoice no matter what.
Staying organized is relatively simple if you have a system for doing so. I have folders on my computer for sent and paid invoices, as well as a filing cabinet which holds pretty much the same information. Once you have a system in place that works for you, staying organized is very easy.
Don’t overlook the importance of keeping your invoices organized. I know that you want to spend most of your time writing and marketing. But remember, you cannot have a successful career unless you take care of all the details; even those that are not very much fun.
