Sometimes you can’t find freelance work to save your soul.
Sometimes it’s there, but either the timing is off or you’re missing some of the must-haves the client is looking for. Or the client and you are not a good match.
Sometimes everything that could possibly align in the right way does. And you still don’t get the work.
Sometimes it has everything to do with you.
More specifically, it could be what you’re doing — or not doing — that’s turning off potential clients.
It’s like a writer I saw recently who was looking for a full-time gig. Here are the things that were definitely sabotaging her chances:
- She billed herself as a freelance writer.
- She applied for full-time positions that she admitted she didn’t qualify for.
- She accepted an interview, in which she planned to argue for them to let her work from home.
Any one of those things would sink one’s chances at securing a gig. Securing an employer? Forget it.
Oh, the things we do to sabotage our own chances, right? I mean, you’ve probably done something this week that cost you a client or a gig, right?
Wait, you didn’t know that? Well, let’s look at some of the ways in which writers (including yours truly) can shoot themselves in the foot:
Go into uncharted territory without a map.
Yes, you did. You sent that query to that new magazine, the one that never publishes profiles, and tried convincing them that you were the exception they’d been waiting for. Or how about that job posting (you’re not still trying to find work that way, are you?) for a medical editor you applied to, thinking your editing of the community press is going to be enough experience?
If you want to go into writing things that are new to you, be smart about it. Don’t approach markets that will never publish what you’re offering (trust me — you’re not the exception). Take that skill to markets that want it. And if you want to break into a new niche, study it. Announcing that you, a lifestyle writer, are now specializing in mechanical engineering report writing without the skills or basic knowledge of what the hell you’re doing is like being a car stuck in four feet of mud. There isn’t a shovel big enough to get you from point A to point B.
Confuse your potential clients.
Most writers I know are true pros, and their websites, posts, and marketing attempts reflect that. But I’ve seen writers who kill their chances with poorly written websites, LinkedIn profiles, and mixed messaging. For instance, if you handle more than one area of specialty, it’s smart to keep them separate in your marketing (unless they relate directly). It’s wonderful that you’re a published romance writer, but does a financial firm whose business you’re trying to secure need to know that?
Expect preferential treatment.
No, that client is not going to change their entire business model just to accommodate your need to work with them. We’ve all had contact with potential clients who say they’re really looking for a full-time employee. While it’s okay to tell them how you’d save them money, it’s not okay to lead with “I can only work remotely, and here are the days I’m available.” Unless, that is, you’re trying to drive them away.
Also, some companies cannot hire freelancers or even remote workers because of security issues. Respect that. Don’t think that you’ll change their minds after they hire you, or that they’re willing to change up how they do things to meet your needs. They don’t know you. It’s like asking someone to babysit your kids the minute you meet them.
Have you seen writers sabotaging their own chances? In what ways?
4 responses to “The Freelance Saboteur”
Agree with the uncharted territory and the expectation to change a business model. It’s one thing to have a learning curve, and if there’s a small portion I don’t know, but a large portion I do in an assignment, I’ll say so up front and say I’m willing to learn. If that doesn’t fit their needs and their timeline, that’s that. If they’re willing to take a chance on me and teach me, I learn as much as I can as fast as I can, and put in additional time on my own to learn more. I try to learn about the business model because if I’m pitching to them, I’m supposed to make their lives easier, or why hire me? They’re not supposed to change what they do. Although understanding evolving uses of language and key words and triggers and working with companies on how expectations and context evolve are important.
I get more work from cross-promoting that I write fiction/stage plays/radio plays than keeping it separate from many companies because it showcases my storytelling ability. Plus the ability to do radio/video spots. So, in my case, it’s been helpful to mention those skills. I do keep some separation, but in my LOIs and pitches, I point out how it’s a tool that serves their messaging and communication needs. I find companies that can’t understand how skills in fiction relate to skills in business generally aren’t companies I’d be compatible with in other ways, either.
I just deleted a tangent because it’s something that I’ve noticed from companies lately in the past few months, but it turned into SUCH a tangent, I’ll bring it up for conversation somewhere else, when appropriate, and that’s about the outsourcing of the initial freelance conversation with third party recruiters who don’t actually know much about the company or the assignment they supposedly represent. But that’s a conversation for another day. 😉
Know exactly where you’d go with it too, Devon. I have the same “Huh?” when it comes to recruiters not quite getting what they’re selling.
It makes sense that you cross-promote what you do because of what you mentioned — it relates to the skills you need for the job.
Wish I could incorporate poetry into my corporate work. Could you see those brochures? 😉
I would love to read a brochure in verse! 😉
Can you imagine a marketing presentation in song? Of course, unless it’s a jingle for a product. . .
I think business would be a bit more enjoyable. 😉