What’s on the iPod: How to Save a Life by The Fray
I don’t remember blinking for that long. March is really over? Crazy, but here we are in April.
I spent the weekend driving back home (300 miles/5 hours each way) for a bridal shower, then driving back in a snowstorm that ended 100 miles from home. Alas, it turned into torrential rain for the rest of the drive. It wasn’t until we got off the turnpike that it stopped. Since my daughter was with me and she doesn’t drive my car all that often, I did the driving. Is there anything more exhausting that a five-hour drive that’s extended to nearly six (thanks to lousy weather)?
Then there was the wind. I drive a heavy car — a Saab. But a few times, the wind was so strong, I fought to keep it on the highway. One gust nearly pushed me into a car beside me. Not fun.
After all that, I’m back at it today. It’s also a new month — time for an assessment of how the business is doing. Let me get to it now and get it over with (does that tell you how it went?):
Queries:
I sent out six. Of them, only one responded. I don’t expect to hear from the others, but the ideas will be recycled in about two months. That’s enough time to let the first contacts consider them. I don’t wait for formal rejections because so few people bother with the courtesy anymore. They can’t — they’re short-staffed and overworked.
LOIs:
I’ve sent out 48 LOIs this month, and received eight immediate inquiries. Usually on follow-up I get a few more conversations going, but eight responses is not bad for a new market. One conversation happened in email already (I suspect I’m not within budget), and a few more are about to occur.
Social media:
I made 20 new connections on LinkedIn. I may have said it before, but I don’t push a sale when I’m connecting. I make a connection and focus on getting to know people. I consider this my relationship-building exercise. The more people you know, the better for all sorts of reasons, right?
Existing clients:
My tried-and-true clients kept me working this month. One long-time client sent projects my way and is talking about long-term, ongoing projects. I’d contacted five other existing clients to no avail (though there are two projects that should be coming in the end of this month), but something even nicer happened. Last week, a number of existing clients I hadn’t contacted got in touch. Now I have more work than I could imagine going into this month – I have four new article assignments. My quota for April is already met, and I have work for June, as well.
New clients:
Aside from one inquiry yesterday, I haven’t contracted with anyone new. Yet. Optimism is essential to freelance writing, isn’t it?
Earnings:
Despite all the projects hitting my desk last week, earnings this month were dismal. My February marketing, which should have brought in work, didn’t generate much. I’m about 40 percent off my goal. However, I think I’ll more than make up for it this month.
Bottom line:
So far, the marketing focus in the new industry is showing promise, but nothing concrete. The marketing I’m doing is working, so I’ll push forward with it. Also, I have a new marketing process in the works and as soon as I get time, I’ll sort it (hopefully this weekend). For now, the article market is where the work is, but I’m seeing much interest in corporate projects again. That’s good. By October, magazine budgets are scarce. Time to line up other avenues.
Did you do okay in March?
What’s your outlook for April?
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