Free Advice Friday: 10 Steps to Your Freelance Writing Brand

What’s on the iPod: How to Save a Life by The Fray

I’m still away from the desk entertaining my mom. My daughter’s bridal shower (the first of two) is set for tomorrow, so there’s much to do in the meantime.

I was talking recently with a friend about her client’s struggles with gaining name recognition. I looked at the materials the company was putting out. No wonder they are struggling. The website is antiquated, the colors bland and sedate to the point of boredom, and the message did not match whatever they were trying to pass off as their image. The only thing missing was the animated dog running across the screen (yes, that outdated). It shouldn’t be a surprise; typically, companies don’t get it right on first pass. This, however, is a marketing company.

I wouldn’t hire them.

It’s an extreme example, but it does serve to punctuate the point that brand does indeed matter. You as a freelance writer have an opportunity to reach potential clients with a refreshing, confident image that best reflects your abilities. Or you could just stick with “I’m a writer: hire me” and hope clients notice you.

Right. Brand it is.

Free Advice Friday: 10 Steps to Your Freelance Writing Brand

Here are some pretty simple ways to create a brand without breaking much of a sweat. If you’re new to your career, you might want to stick with simple stuff, anyway.

Identify what makes you you. Maybe you’re a fantastic short story writer, or maybe you’re really good at unraveling health care legislation. Do you meet deadlines religiously? Are you a strong editor? You have skills that set you apart. Write down everything you can think of that makes up who you are.

Play at writing your slogan. Have fun with it. Pretend you’re a product – what would you say that would convince people to “buy” your product? You don’t have to share it with anyone other than yourself, but have in mind that one phrase that sums up who you are. Read it and own it before you communicate with any clients.

Create consistent messages. If your website talks about your awards in science fiction writing and your brochure (that links to your website) presents you as an educational writer, how can clients hire you? They’re not sure what you do or how that relates to them. A consistent message across all forms of communication makes it easy for clients to see why they need to hire you. Sure, you can still write science fiction and work in education — just do it from two different websites.

Establish yourself on social media. Don’t go nuts; a few social media tools used consistently work much better than all social media tools ignored altogether. Complete your LinkedIn profile or create a Twitter account just for customer interaction. Make sure to build social media outreach into your work day.

Communicate with, not at. I follow Lexi Rodrigo for one simple reason – her emails are conversations with her audience. I don’t follow one of my closer friends because she doesn’t seem to have the sense to know that six emails a week all selling something is going to tick off her readers.

Don’t be a publicity whore. No one, and I do mean no one, responds well to constant self-promotion on all channels. Stop the madness. Shift the focus from you to your customers. That goes for your blog, as well. I know a few self-proclaimed top bloggers who have ticked off large portions of the audience they think they’re reaching. Too much is still too much — lay off and practice a little humility.

Don’t alienate your peers. One writer I know has openly begged for work and monetary help several times on social media and in email. Unless you’re going for the “woe is me” brand, that’s a super way to end your career before it takes wing. That’s because not only are writers seeing this, but so are potential clients. And people do talk.

Remember the shelf life of your online life. If you’re saying you love X today and hate X tomorrow, that shelf life could be much shorter than you think. People can see – and smell – an attempt to drive traffic through half-baked attempts to incite comment wars. Also, remember anything you say about a client isn’t just visible to your blog or forum audience – it’s visible to anyone using the Internet. Start that professional demeanor now and think before you hit the Post button.

Think like a potential client. If you were going to your website in order to hire you, what questions would you want to see answered? Create a welcoming, informative space where clients can get the information they need to hire you. Do the same for your letters of introduction and any direct communication with your clients. What do they need to know most about you?

Separate business from personal. I use Facebook only for friends and family. If I were to include a trusted client or two in the mix, I’d still be okay with it. However, not all clients need to hear my bad jokes, see photos of my last trip, or get even an inkling of my religious or political leanings. While my opinions and bad jokes don’t change in my business life either, there are some things that just don’t need to be shared with clients. Resist over-sharing and make sure you know how to draw the line between business life and personal life.

Writers, how do you define your freelance brand?
What are some of the key ingredients to your brand?