Do You Need to Challenge Yourself Marketing-Wise?

I've posted before about the importance of marketing constantly; it's how you fill your freelance pipeline with work. Yet when I'm busy, marketing often falls to the bottom of my to-do list. I'm preoccupied with the work on my desk, and when I finally look up, I realize I'm short on work and have to scramble. I hate that feeling, and I hate the loss of productivity, and the loss of income, that results when I haven't marketed enough to keep me busy. 

That's one reason I signed up for the eight-week marketing challenge sponsored by Freelance Success, a website I belong too. (Freelance Success is a website for serious freelancers; it produces a weekly newsletter with market guide information and includes active forums for freelancers. It's a great place to find market info, network with other freelancers, and share advice about our business.) 

Writers who want to participate are divided into teams (there are five teams this time). Each team's writers keep in touch throughout the week, sharing pitching advice and ideas, and then at the end of the week, each writer reports their weekly points to the team captain. During the challenge, members get: 

• 1 point for each query
• 1 point for each LOI, or letter of introduction 
• 1 point for each follow-up
• 1 point for each social media post
• 3 points for each assignment

While each team wants to win (our team is in second place this week), the marketing challenge is about more than gathering points. It's about consistent marketing, and having other people to cheer you on--which should hopefully result in more assignments. 

But you needn't belong to a member of Freelance Success to participate in a marketing challenge! Consider creating your own with some freelance friends. Agree in advance what points will be awarded for different types of marketing, and how long the marketing challenge will last, and then get pitching! 

Readers, what do you think? Have you ever participated in a marketing challenge? And would you be interested in doing on through this blog? Comment here to let me know and if there's enough interest, I'll consider managing and overseeing one!  

**Want more advice about marketing? Check out Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition, a freelancing classic that helps both new and experienced writers boost their bottom line, and my latest book,Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks: Make Money Ghostwriting Books, Articles, Blogs and More, Second Edition, which shows how to break into the ghostwriting/content marketing field. If you're brand-new to freelancing, I recommend Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets. 

Are You Ignoring Your Best Source of Clients? And Here Comes the Blogathon

Do you know who your best source of clients is? 

You should. Your best source of clients are your current--and former--clients. 

Clients who you've worked for before are an overlooked marketing tool for freelancers. When you've done a good job for an editor, private client, or corporate contact, he is (presumably) happy with you and your work. That means he's a potential walking advertisement for you.  

So let me ask the tough question: do your clients send potential clients your way? Do they think of you when someone they know is looking for a writer? Have you even asked your clients to refer you or give you leads?  

If not, why not? 

I suggest you get in the habit of asking your regular clients for referrals. I don't hit up a regular editor for work all the time, but when I'm getting slow, I'll mention that I'm actively looking for new work and ask her to keep me in mind for referrals. When I complete an assignment for an editor who's new to me (and she's accepted it), I'll ask if she knows of other editors looking for freelancers. For a ghostwriting client, when I finish a book, I'll ask if he knows of any other would-be book authors looking for a ghost.

No, I can't expect my clients to do all of my marketing for me. Depending on where you are in your freelance career, and the type of work you do, you can expect to spend 20 to 90 percent of your time marketing your business. But looking to satisfied clients for leads and referrals should be one of your go-to freelancing strategies. 

**I'm excited to announce that in June I'll be participating in the 2014 Freelance Success/Word Count Blogathon. I commit to blogging every day for 30 days, along with 50+ bloggers on a variety of topics.  I'm already putting together a list of topics but if you've been wanting me to cover a specific topic here (and I'm already considering the ones readers suggested here), comment below and I'll see what I can do!  

What Freelance Writers Made in 2013

If you read this blog regularly, you know that I talk about money a fair amount. As a freelancer, I think it's important to know not only what you're making, but what other freelancers are making. It's also also helpful to know what markets are paying--you can negotiate for more money for a publication that you know pays more than its offered rate, for example, and set rates for projects that are in line with what other writers are charging. 

So I'm happy to share the results of a freelance income survey conducted earlier this year by FreelanceSuccess.com, a resource for established, professional nonfiction writers. (I've been an off-and-on member of FreelanceSuccess--known as "FLX" to subscribers--for years, and often recommend it to new freelancers. It's an excellent of market info and a place to connect with smart, successful writers.)

FLX surveyed 100 of its members in early January, asking what they'd made in 2013. Of the full-time freelancers:    

• 1.5 percent made less than $10,000
• 9.1 percent made between $10,000 and $24,000
• 10.6 percent made between $25,000 and $39,000
• 36.4 percent made between $40,000 and $74,000
• 28.8 percent made between $75,000 and more, including 
• the 13.6 percent who made $125,000 or more.  

That's more than a quarter of writers making $75,000+, good news for those of us who aspire to make serious money as writers. 

Self-described "part-time" freelancers reported the following income: 

• 22.9 percent made less than $10,000
• 22.9 percent made between $10,000 and $24,000
• 22.9 percent made between $25,000 and $39,000
• 25.7 percent made between $40,000 and $74,000
• 5.7 percent made more than $75,000. 

Not surprisingly, the part-time writers make significantly less than their full-time peers. But with more than 30 percent grossing more than $40,000, I still think you can work part-time hours and produce decent money. (I do!) 

Just as important, forty-eight percent--nearly half--of freelancers said they made more in 2013 than in 2012, while another 30 percent made about the same amount of money. 

And just what types of work were these freelancers doing to make money? The top eight answers included: 

• 39.1 percent were doing corporate writing
• 33.3 percent were doing marketing writing
• 32.2 percent were writing for websites 
• 26.4 percent were writing blogs 
• 23.3 were ghostwriting
• 19.5 percent were writing for consumer magazines
• 18.4 percent were writing social media posts
• 12.6 percent were writing for trade magazines

Thanks to Jennie Phipps of FLX for permission to share these figures. Regardless of what type of writing you do, however, there are simple ways that you can boost your productivity and make more money. Next post, we'll share some of them. 

** Don't forget, the luck of the Irish offer ends at midnight, Monday, March 24! Use the discount code SHAMROCK (all caps) for 25 percent off of the cover price of Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition, and Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets. 

How Excited are You About your Freelance Career?

I've had a lot of jobs over the years. I've been a lifeguard, sold concessions at a movie theater, bussed tables, and served drinks at a country and western bar. I've worked at Trader Joe's, at my dad's dental office, and at a doughnut shop. And I've worked (and still do--more about that in another post!) at my local Y as a personal trainer and fitness consultant. And oh yeah, I was a lawyer for more than five years. (How did I forgot that?) 

But freelancing is by far my favorite gig. I love the freedom and the flexibility of being self-employed. I love the fact that I can set my own hours in most cases, and that I'm (usually) rewarded for doing a good job. I love building relationships with clients, and when they come back to me with new assignments (there's no bigger compliment) and I love the satisfaction of taking a complicated subject and turning it into an article, book chapter, or even book. It's gratifying work. 

So you may be surprised to learn that I don't always feel this way. There are days, weeks even, when I don't really feel like freelancing any more. My enthusiasm for it is gone...until it eventually returns. 

I used to freak out when this happened, thinking I wasn't cut out for the freelance lifestyle. With 16 years in, though, I know that's not the case. My drive, motivation, and excitement for my career fade...but they always come back.  

Over the last few months, I've suffered a bout of what I call career malaise. I knew the reasons, but that didn't change how I felt. I'd had several promising book deals fall through, one after another. I wound up taking on a project that should have taken just a couple of weeks--but it stretched into a nightmare that lasted nearly two months. I was putting most of time (and mental energy) into launching Improvise Press. I didn't have much left over for my freelance career. Maybe, I thought, I was done freelancing--I'd just put all my energy into my new publishing company and working at the Y. 

Then several things happened. I got an email from my agent on Memorial Day about a lucrative ghosting gig--which did go through. Then I got a rush assignment from a regular client, a company that I license reprint rights to. It had me scrambling for the next 24 hours, but it netted me a quick $550. And then a new client contacted to me to say that not only was she pleased with the article I wrote (along with the photos), that they were going to hire me for a longer, more complicated project. All of a sudden the thrill of freelancing was back. Once again, I feel like I'm running toward something promising, lucrative, and fun. 

That's how you should feel about your freelance career, too. If not, give these tips a try:

1. Focus on what you can control. You can't make an editor say yes, or give you an assignment. You can send a certain number of queries or LOIs this week, though. Focus on what I call production goals and you'll feel like you're getting somewhere. 

2. Cut back on the nonessentials. When I started this blog more than three years ago, I posted several times a week. That's great for my readers, but time-consuming for me. Now I post once a week (almost always on Mondays), which gives me more time for work--and play.  

3. Do something different. One of the best things about starting Improvise Press is that all of my career eggs are no longer in the freelance writing/editing/ghostwriting/authoring basket. Now I have another business--albeit a related one--to put some of my creative energies into and for me, that's energizing. 

4. Reach out. Freelancers may work alone but it's wonderful to have a community and even better to have freelancing friends who "get it." For example, I've been a member of FreelanceSuccess.com for more than a decade, which is a great resource for established and new-but-serious-about-it freelancers. You get market guides, access to back issues of the newsletter, and the chance to network with 500 other freelancers. I also have friends who freelance both online and IRL, and I know that they all experience the same periods of burnout, self-doubt, and loss of enthusiasm too. 

5. Make a list. Why do you freelance? I assume if you read this blog, it's to make money from your work. That's a given. But why else? Do you love the creative process of writing? Do you still get a thrill to see your name in print? Do you get to write about subjects you care about? What does freelancing give you that another career would not? Write down your reasons, and reflect on how lucky you are to do something--write for money--that too many people only dream of. 

I bet that will breathe some life back into your freelance career--and make you feel like you're running toward something wonderful.   

**Need a freelance boost? Time to read Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition.I promise you'll garner tips and techniques to help you make more money from your writing! 

And if you're a new freelancer, or want to launch a career where you can get paid for your writing, Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets, will take you from unpublished to published and paid. 

Both books are available through any online or brick-and-mortar bookstore. But if you order directly from Improvise Press, use the discount code, IMPROVISEPRESS (all caps/no breaks) for 20% off of your order, which makes it cheaper than buying from Amazon. 

5 Tips for Writing for Online Markets--and 8 Sources of Markets

When I surveyed freelancers last year about the types of work they were doing, more than three in four said they write for online markets. Yet some writers mistakenly think that there's no money to made writing for the Web, assuming that most online work is for “content mills” that pay a pittance (say, $5 for an article or blog post). 

Actually there are thousands of online writing opportunities for freelancers, many of which pay well. Want proof? More than half of the six-figure freelancers I recently interviewed for Six-Figure Freelancing said that the majority of the work now comes from online markets instead of print. If you want to add online writing to your freelance mix or want to do more of it, follow these five simple steps: 

Step 1: Locate Markets

Looking for online markets? Look for the electronic versions of your favorite print magazines, and check out company's websites, which often use freelance work. And check out free websites including: 

•   www.gorkanajobs.com;

•   www.journalismjobs.com;

•   www.online-writing-jobs.com;

•   www.freelancewritinggigs.com; and

•   www.mediabistro.com.

Fee-based websites that provide online market information include: 

•   www.freelancesuccess.com; 

•   www.freelanceswitch.com; and

•   www.writers-editors.com. 

      Step 2: Analyze your Target 

      Just as you would with a print magazine, analyze your potential market before you query. What types of subject does the site cover? How long are the articles or blog posts? How often are different sections of the site updated? Which sections seem to use the most freelance material? And of course, read the writers' guidelines if they're available online. 

    Rates vary widely, but promising online markets pay anywhere from $50 to about $500 for a blog post of 500-800 words and $0.25 to $1-2/word for articles. If you can't tell what a market pays, don't hesitate to email and ask. 

      Step 3: Pitch the Market 

     Next up, send a query letter or LOI to pitch the online market. Make sure you play up your online writing experience in your pitch. If you have zero e-clips, consider creating a blog to get some practice with the online form as it's a bit different than writing for print.  

     Step 4: Write your Piece  

    Researching an online piece is no different than researching one for a print market, but there are some significant differences between writing for online versus an online market. In general, online articles tend to be shorter, more timely, and more "chunky" than print stories on the same topic. Online stories tend to include more subheads, bullets, and numbered lists than print articles might, and their visual impact (how they'll appear on the page) should always be kept in mind. Another critical factor is a compelling headline, which draws readers--make it as attention-getting as possible. The same goes with the lead--it should grab readers and make them want to stay on the page.

    As you’re writing, model your work after the site's style and tone. You may also want to consider including certain SEO, or search engine optimization, words as you're writing. Not every editor expects this, but offering to include SEO keywords in your piece, if desired, may endear you to yours.  

     Step 5: Turn the Piece in--and Pitch Again 

    Just as you would with a print story, turn the piece in on time and with any necessary backup, or fact-checking information. Offer to promote the story through social media when it appears, and answer your editor's questions promptly. And be sure to pitch another idea when your editor lets you know he has approved your piece--it will help you create an ongoing relationship with him.  

    ***Want to launch your freelance career--or make more money as a freelancer? Check out Improvise Press' first two books: Dollars and Deadlines: Make Money Writing Articles for Print and Online Markets, and Six-Figure Freelancing: The Writer's Guide to Making More Money, Second Edition. You can order them through any bricks-and-mortar or online bookstore, or directly through www.improvisepress.com. 

          Use the discount code, IMPROVISEPRESS (all caps, no breaks) for 20 percent off of your order--and please let your friends who would like to make money writing know about Improvise Press and our new line of books.