What’s on the iPod: Summer Sun by Jukebox the Ghost
Good day yesterday. I conducted one interview, one client marketing materials critique and follow-up discussion, and pounded out a customer case study. I love being busy. LOVE it. Today, I’m continuing with the case studies, putting together a proposal for some new client projects, and starting an article for another new client. The conference has netted three new clients in as many days. It was a good business decision!
Yesterday’s comments about overcoming the Catch 22 (the no experience/ no opportunities without experience dilemma) were fantastic. It made me think that perhaps new writers –and those longing to leave content-mill work behind — would like to see some of the what-to-do-first items when launching (or relaunching) the career. Some of the things I wish I’d have known at the beginning or would have done would be these:
Accept that you’re now a business owner. If you’re a writer working for yourself, you’re also a business. Every negotiation, project decision, and client communication should go first through the business filter — Is this good for my business? Conversely, none of those decisions should go through an emotional filter — What if my rate’s too high? What if they don’t like me? I’d say the only emotional filter should be the one that decides if the project or client business practices pass muster with your own moral code.
Make your own samples. Cathy said it. I’ve said it. Devon’s said it. Hell, anyone in the career for any length of time has said it. Don’t work for free, don’t work for “exposure” (that’s not happening), and don’t work for peanuts. Work for free for yourself. Create sample brochures, newsletters, articles, etc. Put them on your site. Use them as samples to get you the better-paying stuff.
Figure out your hourly rate. I’ve posted how a few times, as has Jenn Mattern on All Freelance Writing. If you know what you need to make and what you want to make beyond that need, you’ll come to your hourly rate. Without it, you should even think of conducting business. Seriously.
Never work without a contract. Ever. The contract protects you from deadbeat clients, scope creep, and miscommunication that could double your work. Every job should have a contract. Period.
Expect to market. That’s the part many of us didn’t get at first, but it’s essential to business survival. You should be reaching out to potential clients every day. Don’t let that concept scare you; reaching out by email, Twitter, LinkedIn, phone, and Facebook all count. Get in front of potential clients and chat them up. Send a letter of introduction convincing them, as Devon often puts it, that they can’t live without you. Spend a few minutes every day (more in the beginning — it will take up most of your time at first) researching client companies and finding out where your ideal clients hang out.
Know what you want to do. Sounds simple, but if you don’t have even a basic idea of the direction you’d like to take — press releases, articles, resumes, newsletters — you’re going to be approaching your marketing in the same way you’d throw darts at a dartboard while spinning in circles. It’s going to be too random for anything to stick. Pick something that interests you: a few article ideas, copy writing gigs, proofreading jobs, etc. Then go out and research clients who would need whatever it is you’re selling.
Grow a business backbone. This is something I wish I’d had at the beginning. The sooner you learn to stand up for your business, your rates, and yourself, the sooner you’ll gain the confidence it takes to handle the most difficult clients.
Embrace your own worth. Your work has value. Your skills aren’t shared by everyone, which makes you, the writer, a commodity. Don’t settle for less than your hourly rate without a fair negotiation and having the client give something too, like an upfront payment or an agreement for more than one project.
Writers, what do you wish you’d known at the beginning?
I wish I'd understood the contempt so many people have for what we do. They think it's "easy", that "anyone" can do it — but they can't.
Also, because so many of them hate their jobs, they resent us because we love what we do, and therefore try to punish us.
Devon just said what I was think, only she said it better than I would have.
My response when people who think the fact that they passed high school English means they can write well, and therefore writing is so easy that any yokel off the street can do it cheaper than I can? "If it's so easy – do it yourself."
I also wish I'd understood how long some clients take to pay. Every other profession I can think of is paid one of these ways: Up front; immediately upon completion; or within 30 days of invoice. Often writers are stuck with 30-90 days after acceptance, or worse yet, 30-90 days after publication.
One client claims to pay 30 days after publication, but instead of starting his count on the first day of the month of publication, he starts counting on the last day of the month. So he thinks he has another month left to pay for my article that ran in his April issue. This is work I did in February.
None of the people I've gotten estimates from for some high exterior painting would accept payment two three months after they did the job….while I'm still waiting to be paid for work I did when there was snow on the ground.
Ya Paula I don't understand the payment issues either. Why is it acceptable for publishers to take so long? My electric company would throw me to collections if I did the same thing. The marketing bullet is still the biggest for me. Knowing how to market effectively is crucial and there is a big learning curve.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Devon, it's because they've written so many papers in high school. They think it's all that easy. Funny how they don't remember tearing their hair out over those papers! LOL
Paula, I understand why they do it. The money is in an account earning interest. The longer it stays in their account, the more they make. It's their way of making expense accounts work for them.
Wade, see above. It's also because we are low priorities. There are the must-pays, the have-to-pays, and the have-to-pay-eventuallys. Guess where we fall?
Lori, we just have to keep saying it again and again, and sending those invoices with late charges until we get paid… or go to court.
Amen, Anne. Amen. Pay up or tell a judge why you haven't.
My dad always said that was why some places were pay to slow. Wow – turns out he was smarter than we knew! Not bad for a cartoonist.
Lori & Anne – you might want to check this out: http://www.worldslongestinvoice.com/
Interesting experiment.
Hmm, it seems blogger ate my comment.
I wanted to add to what Devon said. Sell the holes, not the drills – meaning sell the solution, rather than the tool. Someone selling grass seed is really selling the neighbor's envy (not a lawn).
And absolutely pick a target – it's much easier to market yourself when you know who you're looking for, where to find them, and what their needs/problems are. You wouldn't go fishing for tuna in a lake, after all.
Another key thing is to differentiate yourself in some way (ghostwriter for athletes' memoirs, 24-hour service, etc.). When you're the go-to person, offering something unique or unusual you're a lot harder to replace.
Good advice, quite a few points there that I wish I had known early on! I'm still quite remiss on insisting on contracts – I must get better at that.
Wow. Paula, that site is something!
Jodi, great advice all the way around! It's the old "sell the sizzle, not the steak" adage, for sure. The differentiation makes a huge difference in both to whom you'll market and how.
Philippa, I can say from my own experience that learning to invoice well came from some bad experiences. Better to learn from those who have been there than go through the trials! 🙂
I love your list. I would like to shout out for the 'Make your own samples' item. I'll put it in simple terms.
Content Mill clips = no good work for me.
Created my own samples for a client = much better paying opportunity. It grew from there.
Need I say more there?
You needn't, Wendy! 🙂 Excellent advice.