Freelance Writing and Cold Calls
As I have said time and time again, making cold calls is one of the best ways to increase your freelance writing workload. Of course, many writers think that this is a bad idea because they would rather write and not act as a salesman. While I can agree with this to a certain point, you need to look at cold calling as a marketing technique. In other words, when you cold call you are attempting to drum up new business. Sure, you are trying to sell yourself, but at the same time this is a great way to market your services and spread your name throughout many industries.
If you have yet to look into cold calling but want to move forward soon enough, the tips below should be able to help you get started:
1. Make a list of companies that you want to cold call before you get started. This way you can move from one to the next without having to waste time finding companies and contact information between calls. By doing this, you will be able to get 10 or more cold calls done in an hour or less. Of course, you may end up spending a lot of time on the phone if you locate a few companies who are interested in what you have to offer.
2. You want to get in touch with the decision maker on the first call. In most cases, you will have to go through at least one person, usually a secretary, before you have the chance to speak with the person who can actually hire you. Although this can take some time and creativity, it is very important. Unless you speak with the decision maker, you have no chance of actually getting hired.
In many cases you will not know who is in charge of hiring freelancers. When you run into this situation, a receptionist or secretary can be your best friend. Tell them who you are, and what you are trying to accomplish. Although not always the case, the majority of receptionists will at least put you through to the appropriate party’s voicemail.
3. When you get the decision maker on the phone, be ready with your pitch. You should quickly tell them who you are and what you are selling. For instance, “My name is Chris and I am a local freelance writer. I wanted to touch base with your company to see if you hire freelancers in any capacity.†This is short and sweet, and will put the ball in their court.
With these three tips, making cold calls for your freelance writing career should no longer seem intimidating. Instead, you should be confident that this is a great way to find new work.Â
