How to Lose $$ with Bad Freelance Marketing (and how to fix it)

Freelancers, are you killing your chances of gaining a client or a network connection? Do you know if you are?

Hint: you are if you do anything like this:

Writer Jane submitted a thread to a writers’ forum. The moderator, another writer, turned it down because it was promotional, which is against the forum rules. Jane apologized.

Shortly after Jane decided to send the moderator a LinkedIn connection request. The moderator answered same day: Good to hear from you. I hope that means you’re getting something out of the group. I’m curious — was there something that prompted you to send the invitation to connect?

Nine days later, Jane sent this note: Hi (Moderator’s name): I just thought your profile was interesting and wanted to see if there was any way I could help you.

Her request for a connection was deleted.

Here’s why:

• The length of time between the moderator’s note and Jane’s response. If Jane has responded within a few days or even offered some apology for taking so long to respond, that would have scored some points. As it is, Jane said nothing except to answer the original question.
• The answer. My god, does anything say, “I want to mooch work from you” any more than wanting to “see if there was any way I could help you”?
• Your profile was interesting. What does that even mean? That can be interpreted in so many ways I’m not sure if Jane was complimenting or insulting this writer. Neither was the writer in question. She pointed to that sentence as nonsensical. It is.
• The ask. Aside from begging indirectly for work, Jane gave the impression that she didn’t have a clue what this writer did for a living. The writer has a business name and uses it on her profile. She doesn’t hire writers and certainly does not collaborate with writers with whom she has no relationship. But Jane appeared to be assuming that this writer was a business and therefore she’d give it a shot.

Can one sentence really reveal that much about a person? It sure can.

Before anyone gets all huffy about asking others for work or leads, stop. It’s allowed, but you can’t just go begging strangers for work.

Imagine this — you’re on a writers forum with over 20,000 members. You decide to connect to ALL of them. In doing so, you also ask them all to let you “help” them out.

That took you a week working nonstop. And of all of that work, you haven’t yet realized that you are barking up the wrong tree. Honey, the work you need isn’t on someone else’s desk. It’s the stuff you have to score on your own. Otherwise, you’re getting garbage no one else wants.

Wouldn’t your time be better spent contacting and nurturing relationships with your own clients? Try this instead:

6 Easy Marketing Hacks for Freelancers: Start here. This gets you in the habit of marketing.

One Freelance Marketing Tweak to Boost Results: Revamp your letter of introduction. It’s an easy way to send fresh messaging and gain more attention.

3 Moves to Power Your Writing Career Forward: Enhance what you’ve already built. Try these three ways to get more notice and more referrals.

Build a Freelance Client List: Yes, you can. It’s not tough. Deciding what type of client you want to work with means you’ll be pulling in clients whose projects actually appeal. That’s a bonus because you get enjoyable work, and they get the benefit of a fully engaged writer.

Writers, how do you respond to requests for “overflow” work or offers to “help” you out with client work?
If you turn these types of requests down, why?