The best way to explain to you what I’m talking about is to tell you a story about my friend, Phil. Phil is a nurse in the real world, but in his spare time he likes to study history. He’s what you’d call an “armchair historian.” He reads books on history, watches the history channel, and is, in many ways, very knowledgeable about a great number of historical subjects.

Because I have a graduate degree in History, Phil likes to ask me questions. For example, just a few weeks back he posed this one:

“Do you think the economic devastation in Germany after World War I helped to create the environment that allowed Hitler to come to power?”

To which I answered, “I really have no idea. I’ve never given it much thought.”

“But you’re a historian!” Phil replied. “You’ve got the degree and everything. You write a history blog. You’ve even got a bumper sticker on your laptop that says ‘Everyone remain calm… I’m a historian.’ How can you not have any idea?”

This part is always a little difficult to explain to folks. “My area of study is pretty narrow, Phil. I’m into 19th-century U.S. History. Specifically, my research has been in Antebellum Southern intellectual and social history.”

To which, as usual, I received a puzzled look. I continued: “You’re a nurse, right Phil? You work in the Infant ICU. I bet you can tell that a preemie is in distress almost before the machines tell you. But do you think you could do the same with a geriatric patient?”

“Well, yeah,” came the answer. “I mean, it might take me a couple of weeks in that unit to get the hang of it, but yeah.”

“And it might take me some time studying German history between the World Wars to answer your question.”

———

In the world of Internet writing, there are countless opportunities. There is web copy, keyword articles, blogging, sales page writing and white papers just to name a few. In my business, I’ve done each of these types of writing. Some I enjoy more than others. Some pay better than others. Some I’m better at than others.

At some point, however, you have to pick a specialty. What will your bread and butter be when it comes to your Internet writing? Michael Stelzner knows his specialty: it’s writing White Papers. That’s even the name of his site. James Chartrand knows, too. He writes about the writing business, whether he’s doing it at Men with Pens or whether he’s doing it at one of the many other sites he writes for. When the Pen Men ran a contest last year, it even focused on business. That’s James’ Internet writing specialty. Sure, Michael and James do other writing and they do it well, but you can tell where their passion lies.

For me, it’s blog writing. It’s writing content for people that is conversational, authoritative and still packs a punch. Yes, I do a lot of other writing, but that’s where my passion is and where my greatest talents lie. When I get an order in, that’s the writing I keep for myself rather than passing along to my writing minions.

So, what about you? What’s your Internet writing specialty?

How the Writing Business Works

I recall, before I started writing for money, how I had this very distinct image of the professional writer. Like most people, I thought of the novelist. I pictured a cabin in the woods, overlooking a crystal clear lake, with a dedicated artist furiously banging away on her keyboard, creating the next bestseller.

It’s funny, because that image really isn’t what most writers’ lives are like. Oh, sure, there are some successful novelists who live that way. But most of the people who make their living from writing do it in a home office, at their kitchen table, or at a local coffee shop. In my case, it’s all three.

So, one of the things that happens in my coaching is that the illusory wall comes down. My clients get a chance to look behind the scenes, to see what the writing life is really like. I’ll walk them through a particular project, from start to finish. And more often than not, their reaction is one of surprise as they see that the writing business is a lot like many other small businesses.

The Characteristics of a Successful Writer

The other thing my clients often experience first-hand is a realization of what it takes to be a successful writer. They learn things about themselves, about what it would really take to make their living by writing. While working on a project together, one of my coaching clients described it this way:

Before this project, I would sit and write as my schedule allowed, and if I did not feel like producing much, I did not. This project made me realize that when there is time, there must be productivity. For me, transitioning from working a “day job” to being a productive writer is about being able to “turn on” the switch when I have the time to sit at the computer, focus on results, and produce.

And that, truly, is one of the first lessons you learn when you begin writing professionally. Back when I worked as a Network Administrator, I could blow off a Friday afternoon if I wanted to, usually with very little consequence. Today, if I blow off work time it has to be made up, and sooner rather than later. While it’s true I have more flexibility working for myself than I did when I worked for someone else, I also have to take things more seriously.

If you’re a poor writer, don’t worry. Not everyone is born with the gift of writing. You can still be a successful blogger. You just need to work hard to keep things interesting and unique. Play to your other talents, and the writing won’t matter.

Now, it’s been just a year and 12 days since I took Skellie to task for suggesting that great writing doesn’t matter online. Nothing has changed since then. I’m a firm believer that content is king, and that good writing is the premier form of content online, and in blogs specifically.

Look. Confessions of a Pioneer Woman didn’t win Blog of the Year by having mediocre writing. Yes, Pioneer Woman’s pictures are great. But she’s a good writer, too. She keeps readers coming back, in part, because of her ability to turn a phrase.

The same is true for Darren at Problogger, Dooce and Morrow’s own Copyblogger. Even Cake Wrecks wouldn’t be as hilariously funny if Jen were a sucky writer. It also holds true for Hugh MacLeod at Gaping Void, the only solid example Morrow uses of a highly successful blogger whose main attraction isn’t his writing.

Good writing hooks the reader and keeps them coming back for more. Conversely, poor writing detracts from the blogger’s own message.

I like the spirit of what Morrow is trying to do here, I really do. He wants to encourage bloggers who may not be the best writers, or who may not have confidence in their writing ability. In some ways, that’s exactly what I try to do here with every post. I want to help other Internet writers improve their craft (and their business).

But Morrow and I disagree about how best to serve other Internet writers and bloggers. Rather than encourage them to hone their craft, Morrow seems to be suggesting they develop a catchy gimmick. This is somewhat surprising, given that Morrow himself says that, rather than being born with a pen in hand, he devoted years to honing his craft. So, why wouldn’t he encourage other writers to do the same?

My message, instead, is this:

If you’re a poor writer, don’t worry. You can still be a successful blogger. You’ll need to work hard to hone your craft so that your writing accents and supports, rather than detracts from, your blog. The good news is that just about anyone can become a good writer with a little bit of hard work.

So, what do you think? Is good writing really necessary to have a good blog?

The Writing Journey was different. Sure, I ran Adsense in the early days. And yes, I’ve found a handful of affiliate programs that I can really believe in to promote over time. But this blog was more about giving back: sharing my experiences as a professional writer, and helping other Internet writers achieve their dreams.

Through this blog, I’ve met many other Internet writers. I’ve formed business alliances, landed writing gigs, had the privilege of mentoring several writers, and just had an overall good time.

Unfortunately, late last year I let the passion slip a bit. Writing my regular blog post became something of a chore. I found myself struggling to find something more interesting, more useful, more inspiring than what I’d posted before.

A day or two without a post turned into a week, a week turned into a month, and a month turned into three. I broke the number one rule of blogging.

And what is the number one rule of blogging?

To blog successfully, you have to post consistently.

Now, I don’t feel too terribly bad about all of this; after all, this blog has primarily been a labor of love. Not blogging hasn’t horribly impacted my bottom line. Still, I’ve missed it. And, I’ve missed you, my readers.

I’ve also realized something: not every post has to be profound. Well-written, yes. Useful in one way or another, of course. But some of the most important lessons about being a professional writer are the simplest. It’s not nearly as important that I be clever in a post as it is that I post to begin with.

At any rate, without making any grand pronouncements of broad commitments, I do want to let you know I’m back. It’s been a long, cold winter, but I’ve missed you all. I hope to get back into the habit of consistently writing here, of interacting with you and helping you achieve your dreams, even as I’m living mine.

One of those sites is Freelance Folder, where I’ve also been a regular contributor. Freelance Folder is for us one of the hottest sources for advice and information for the freelancer, whether you’re just starting out or whether you’ve been around the block.

Well, I’m excited to let you all know that James Chartrand and Mason Hipp, the current brains behind Freelance Folder, have joined forces to put together an indispensable book. If you want to:

• Overcome your limits as a freelancer
• Discover your true freelancer potential
• Grow your business
• Land more clients
• Add value to your services

Then this book is for you.

I’ll be offering a review of this book within the coming days, but I wanted to get it out there right now so you can have quick access to this awesome book. If you enjoyed Write for the Web, you’re going to absolutely LOVE The Unlimited Freelancer.

I have to say, I’m excited about what the new year is going to bring. If 2008 was any indication, 2009 is going to be the best year for my freelancing business yet. While there may be some tough economic times in the world, there’s no business I’d rather be in.

Why am I so optimistic? There are a bunch of reasons, but I get the most encouragement by looking back over the last year. In the past 12 months, here are some of the amazing things that have happened for me:

• I started this blog, which has grown my freelance writing client base by leaps and bounds. It’s also allowed me to meet so many interesting people, network with other writers and given me the opportunity to help other writers achieve their own dreams.
• I began my coaching program, which has allowed me to help a great group of writers get their start in the business.
• I’ve grown the business to the point where I’m regularly outsourcing work, allowing me more time to focus on the business itself.
• I’ve increased my business revenue, as well as my personal revenue, by a significant factor.
• Ive been able to work together with my wife, bringing her in as a partner behind the scenes of the business.

There’s plenty more, too, but those are just the things that come to mind.

2009 promises to see all sorts of new and exciting things. While I’m still in the process of refining my business (a process that truly never ends) I am thrilled to think about some of the irons I’ve got in the fire, and some of the projects that are yet to come.

I also want to take a minute to thank everyone who has regularly read this blog, and helped me reach each milestone. As of today, I’m happy to have just shy of 1,000 RSS and email subscribers, and I’m happy that you’ve joined me on this journey.

Here’s to hoping we all have a very bright future in 2009:

photo credit: Shermeee

There’s money in SEO writing. If you can do it right, you can make a killing. Understanding the inner workings of search engines, knowing the right keywords to pick and being able to insert them into your writing is a valued skill.

If you write on the Internet at all, chances are you do at least some SEO. If you surf the Internet at all (who doesn’t) you’ve seen perfectly-optimized SEO pages.

You’ve probably also noticed that, in many cases, perfectly-optimized SEO pages suck. The writing is contrived, sentence structure is awkward and those keywords - usually in various formats - are repeated ad nauseum. In other words, good SEO is often terrible writing.

Now, this isn’t always the case. You can optimize a page without having to make the SEO so in-your-face noticeable. (If you want to know more, go to SEO School. Naomi will tell you all there is to know about good SEO.)

What happens, though, when your client wants the SEO to be so thick you can cut it with a knife?

You have two choices: take the gig or don’t.

If you take the gig, you’re going to have to get pretty damn creative. Chances are you’re still going to wind up with a piece of work that’s less than stellar, at least in terms of its readability. But, hey, you’re not an artist, right? You run a business, and businesses need to make money. Besides, if you don’t write it, someone else will.

If you don’t take the gig, you can go on with your own writing integrity. You can take satisfaction in the fact that you’re not contributing to the wealth of crappy writing on the Internet. By keeping your high standards, you help raise the overall quality of information on the Internet.

A few months ago, I took a gig that had some very specific SEO requirements. The keyword density was very high, so much so that I’m pretty sure Google won’t catch the page on those keywords (although MSN or Yahoo search might). I went along my merry way, wrote the article, and sent it to the client.

The client loved the article. Unfortunately, I hadn’t hit the SEO requirements, so the client bounced it back to me for a revision.

I realized, as I began writing the revision, just how intense these SEO requirements were. The client wanted specific word pairings that just didn’t work linguistically. (A similar example would be the keyword, “Tobacco Virginia.”)

At this point, though, I didn’t have much of a choice. I reworked the article, trying to preserve the quality as best I could. The result wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t great either.

After finishing the work, it occurred to me: there was a third option I’d missed. I could have challenged the client’s requirements from the start. I could have pointed out the difficulty of the awkward word pairings, and offer other suggestions. Maybe the client would have taken the suggestions and let me do the work, maybe not.

I’m not an ar-teest, not by any stretch of the imagination. However, I do believe that great writing matters online. Just because we web writers don’t have the kind of editorial gatekeepers that print writers have doesn’t mean we can just let quality go. There has to be some kind of middle ground between using the tools we need (like SEO) and creating something that’s readable, clear and correctly uses the language.

Today, I’m hesitant to work gigs with more than just basic SEO.

What do you think? Am I being a snob here? Am I being unrealistic? Or is it sometimes worth it to sacrifice a sale in favor of the quality writing principle?

Image by elblogdeffuentes

In this age of instant connectivity and social media, there really isn’t a good reason for freelance writers or other web workers to become isolated. Truly.

Still, it happens. You can become so involved in your work, in producing the content you need to produce, in dealing with clients, paying bills, hiring writers and everything else involved in the business that you wind up spending a majority of time on your own.

Is this isolation a bad thing?

Experts tell us it is. Depression is one of the most common conditions affecting web workers, according to studies. As a freelance writer, you can easily go a full day without hearing a single other person’s voice, and that can become a problem.

I’m at one of those places right now. Business is, well, busy. I’ve got lots of irons in the fire. I’ve got projects left and right. I’m pounding pavement constantly to find new clients as the economic downturn claims old clients as victims. The business is humming along fine, but it’s taking more hours to produce the same results.

What that means is I spend no time on Twitter. I comment less and less on other blogs. I log out of Google Chat, knowing that it’s all too easy to become unfocused and distracted.

Distracted, that is, by social interaction. You know, that stuff that makes life worth living. The stuff freelance writers need to keep from going loopy.

Now, I consider myself lucky. I’ve got a family that I can socialize with in the evenings, and I’ve got friends I can enjoy as well. That’s enough, for now, to keep my minimum social needs met.

In the long run, though, I think we all need that interaction that comes from interacting with our peers. At some point, we need that give and take. Not only does it keep us sane; it also helps us sharpen our skills.

You see, the more you interact with other writers, the more likely it is for you to become a better writer. We freelancers tend to be “as steel that sharpens steel.”

So, how do you address the problem? In concrete terms, on a personal level? Well, here’s my approach:

Pick a certain amount of time - maybe 15 minutes, 3 times a day - that you’ll get outside of your work and outside of your head, and connect with other freelancers.

Pick a medium. Whether it’s Twitter, chat, blog commenting or whatever method you usually use to interact with your peers, get going with it.

Don’t stress about missed opportunities. Do you have unanswered emails sitting in your inbox where you’ve dropped out in the middle of a conversation? Pick up on them if you want, but don’t beat yourself up. We all do it, and anyone else in the business will understand.

Be ready to explain. The minute you go active again, you’ll have folks who’ve missed you call you out. “Where you been? Are you hiding from me? Are you alive?” that sort of thing. You don’t have to go into detail. You can just say, “been horribly busy” and send them a link to this post. They’ll figure it out.

So, what about you? Have you had this sort of thing happen to you?

(On a side note, this post was inspired, in part, by Losing Your Sense of Self Because of Your Business over at Men with Pens. Thanks James, for making me think!)

Photograpy by by rephotography

My state, Michigan, hasn’t really ever recovered from the hard times that started after 9/11. Back in 2005, I recall newspaper headlines declaring that Michigan was in a “one-state recession.” Times are tough here, and have been for a long time.

Am I worried about this situation? Sure. I’m worried for my friends, my extended family. I see people around me getting laid off every day, and my heart goes out to them.

But I’m not worried for myself.

The thing is, you see, I choose not to participate in the recession.

What do I mean by that, exactly? I mean, simply, that I’m not going to allow the recession to affect my income or my lifestyle. You see, there are a few facts about running a freelance writing business that can, if you’re smart about it, make your business recession-proof.

Freelance writing clients are worldwide

Right now, my biggest clients aren’t based in the United States. While I have clients in the U.S., my client base spans the globe. I haven’t had a client in Michigan in some time - further proof that my state is in dire straits.

Unlike my good friend who runs an appraisal business just down the road, the local economy doesn’t affect me as directly. If the local market dries up, I can get work from Aussies, Canadians, Brits and lots of other folks. I like working for local clients, but they aren’t my bread and butter by any means.

Freelance writing gigs aren’t tied to a specific industry

I have the same sort of flexibility when it comes to industries. Michigan is, of course, tied very closely into the auto industry. If you’ve been watching the shenanigans in Washington as of late, you know the auto industry is in trouble. That makes for a lot of economic devastation in my community.

Here again, though, I don’t work with just one industry. I have clients in real estate, technology, food service and even some related to the auto industry. But should any one of those areas take a dive, I have plenty of others to choose from.

A freelance writing business model has to be flexible to succeed

Now, I don’t want to paint some kind of rosey picture here. Hard economic times do affect the way I do business. I may have to spend more time searching for clients. I might have to chase down a client or two for payment. I might have to offer deeper discounts than I’d like.

But the business I’m in allows me the flexibility to do those things. I can make adjustments, on the fly if I need to, to insure that my business continues to be healthy and to thrive.

Freelance writing is about creating opportunities

Even when the markets all dry up, there is still potential for success. As a freelancer, I can use my ambition, imagination and creativity to come up with new ways to succeed. The possibilities are endless, it’s just a matter of identifying the ones with the greatest potential for success and then executing them effectively.

This is what being a freelancer is all about, folks. Expanding your horizons, breaking into new markets, adjusting your business to the times and making your own way is how you get ahead as a freelancer.

Freelancing not for the faint of heart. It’s for those folks who are willing to do what has to be done in order to come out ahead, recession or not.

photo credit: eob

Before I tell you what it is, though, Let me start off by telling you a story.

When I was a younger man, I was horribly shy.

No, strike that. Shy isn’t the right way to say it. I had plenty of friends, and was pretty outgoing in most social situations. I was very involved in student groups, even taking leadership roles.

My problem was that I couldn’t seem to talk to a pretty girl to save my life. I’d get all nervous, tongue tied. I’d be scared to death that I’d say something stupid, embarrassing or awkward.

And then I would say something stupid, embarrassing or awkward.

It was 1994, and the Internet was still a young pup (at least, the public side of the Internet was). Everyone that was on the Internet was on AOL or, like me, Prodigy. The web was still fairly new and something of a novelty; online services were where it was at.

Now, today we take for granted the online dating services. Match.com, eHarmony and all the others hit us with TV and radio ads. Back then, however, the best you could find was a sort of “classified ad” section on your online service.

And I did find it. And I used it. You see, I discovered that I could write to pretty girls all day long. I never had to worry about getting tongue tied, or that my shirt would be buttoned wrong. To make a long story short, that’s how I met my wife. If I’d have had to meet her in person first, chances are I’d have chickened out and we would never have met.

(And, yes, I know the whole “we met online” thing is old hat today. But, in 1994 it was still a bit of a novelty. It was fun to watch, as the years went by, the changing reactions people would have to us “meeting online.” In the early days it was a confused “huh?” After a while it became “ooh, that’s interesting. How do I do that?” Eventually it was “I have a friend who met her husband that same way.” Finally, today it’s “You got lucky. She could have been an ax murderer!”)

At any rate, here’s my point: I’m much better at writing than I am speaking. When I write, I can carefully craft what I want to say into a cohesive whole. I’m much more likely to close a deal in writing than I am in person or on the phone.

What does that have to do with clients? Plenty.

You see, most of my writing clients aren’t writers themselves. I realize that’s pretty obvious in itself, but hear me out.

At times, it’s easy to become frustrated with clients. Communicating with them about specs, project details and even costs can be challenging via e-mail. So, some clients prefer to talk on the phone or meet face-to-face.

I don’t mind face-to-face meetings or phone calls, especially when they result in more business. But I also know that my strengths aren’t in those situations. My strength is in writing - which is why they’re hiring me in the first place.

So, I naturally prefer to negotiate on my terms - in writing. But I realize that this, in many cases, puts my clients at a severe disadvantage. So anytime a client requests a phone call or meeting, I try to accomodate it.

And these days, I try to be more understanding of those requests. After all, some clients probably feel about written communication the way I used to about verbal. They’re not sure what to write, and when they do write it comes out awkward. In other cases, they’re just playing to their strengths, and I can’t begrudge them that.

So, what do you think? I know freelancers on both sides of this issue. There are some who will not - under any circumstances - take calls or meetings. Others prefer it. How about you?
photo credit: Foxtongue

You see, it isn’t that I don’t have any more writing advice; I’ve got plenty of ways to help you supercharge your writing. I mean, that’s what this blog has always been about: helping Internet writers reach their dreams.

But so much of what I could tell you from here is very specialized. I could tell you how to make your writing pop. I could tell you how to blog with passion. I could tell you how to bid for work at specific freelance sites. While all of this is useful, though, I don’t think you need it in order to start your freelance writing business.

There’s really only one more thing you need from here.

You need to jump in.

You see, the best teacher in life, whether it’s in your freelance business, as a parent or even playing poker is experience. We human beings tend to learn best by doing. Yes, there are certain big-picture principles you need to have in mind; that’s what this series has been about. But until you apply them, until you actually get out there and start putting pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) you’ll never really make any progress.

So, let me give you a simple roadmap from here, incorporating the ideas from the rest of the series. If you want to start your freelance writing business today, here’s what you need to do:

1. Make a plan for your education. Buy Rockstar Freelancer and Write for the Web. Subscribe, at a minimum, to Copyblogger, Men with Pens, Freelance Folder and, of course, The Writing Journey.
2. Start to improve your writing. Invest in a mentoring relationship, or join a writing group.
3. Make your business plan. If you need help, Sign up for Online Business School.
4. Create your portfolio. Do it like I do, with my blog. You might even be able to make some money blogging on the side.
5. Get out there and look for work. Get to Freelance Writing Gigs and, bid on some projects at sites like Elance.
6. Be ready to spend some money. Yep, you can start your business for next to nothing. But the more you can invest, in the above components and in things like marketing and equipment, the faster your business is likely to grow.

I’ve said it before: writing is a skill that can be learned. You don’t have to be naturally gifted to have a successful freelance writing business. You just need to have the desire, some know-how and be able to put those things to use in an efficient way. These six steps are the best way I can think of to get started on that path to a successful freelance writing business.

photo credit: Derek Farr ( DetroitDerek )

I’d encourage you to follow those debate threads. Each side makes some good points, to be sure. If you pin me down and force me to offer my opinion, I’ll say that any small business, whether they’re freelance writing, plumbing or basket-weaving, can benefit from a significant cash investment in the beginning.

Now, for my part, I started out with no investment. I fell into the freelance writing business quite by accident. I put nothing but time into the business in the beginning, and I did just fine.

(Of course, that’s part of it, isn’t it? If you don’t have cash, you need to have time. Ideally, you’ll have both.)

However, it wasn’t until later on in my freelance writing business, when I was able to invest some money in some tools of the trade, some new office equipment and some marketing that my business really took off. It also helped that I found a mentor who’d been where I had been who could teach me a thing or two.

If I were to start my freelance business today, I’d spend some money. I’d make sure I had the right computer and the right work environment. I’d hire a writing coach for at least three months, and I’d buy Freelance Rockstar Freelancer and Write for the Web. I’d spend some money on marketing. If I wanted to make money blogging, I’d get into Blog Mastermind. I’d probably even hire a Virtual Assistant to help me keep organized.

So, what are the real costs of starting a freelance writing business? I can honestly say I’d put them somewhere between $0 and $20,000. Am I trying to play both sides of the fence here? I suppose I am.

The real cost of starting a freelance writing business is this: It is the amount of capital you can raise, spent in the most efficient way possible. For every dollar you can’t spend, you have to make it up in blood, sweat and tears.

Starting capital doesn’t guarantee your success, just like the lack of capital doesn’t guarantee your failure. But having some startup cash for your freelance writing business does increase your odds of success.

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: A Jump-Start

How to Start Your Freelance Writing Business: The Costs

photo credit: (UB) Sean R

In the meantime, I want to tell you about a great way to get your business off the ground. The guys over at Men with Pens are running a contest with a top prize of almost $12,000 in writing business resources, including a month of coaching from yours truly.

Go Enter The Men with Pens Sticky Business Contest today!

(Incidentally, it’s Harry, James and Charlie at Men with Pens who are responsible for my new theme today, as well. If you like it as much as I do, get over there and have them design your site.)

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

Still, you can’t build a business by expecting people to show up on your doorstep. I’ve said before that opportunities aren’t made, they’re painstakingly crafted. To be successful, you’ve got to get out there and make some sales.

Freelance bidding sites

You know these sites. Elance, Guru, Scriptlance and so on. These sites offer a place for clients to post a project and freelancers to bid on those projects. I’ve had some success over time with this kind of activity, and my work on these sites has led to at least a couple of long-term clients.

I could (and probably will, one day) write a series on these sites. There are so many different elements that it’s hard to know where to begin. Rather than trying to do that here, let me just offer four of the most important things I’ve learned about bidding sites:

• Ignore the abysmally low bids. Just because someone else is working for $2 an article doesn’t mean you have to. It just means you have to demonstrate added value to get those higher rates.
• Customize every bid. Yes, it takes time. But you really need to engage the potential client if you’re going to capture her interest. Speak directly to her needs, both written and unwritten, in your bids.
• Showcase your best work, and plenty of it. Include links to your freelance writing portfolio, and attach a relevant sample to your bid. In my case, a link to this blog increases sales by a significant factor.
• There are plenty of different styles of work at these sites, from copywriting to SEO articles to blogging. Pick one and focus on it to maximize your success.

Freelance job sites

There are a number of these out there, but many of them have the same info every day. Two of the ones I check regularly are John Hewitt’s PoeWar and Deb and Jodee at Freelance Writing Jobs. These sites have plenty of potential, but they’re also more competitive. Whereas you might find a dozen gigs a day with eight or ten competitors at Elance, you’re going to find 20 gigs a day with 200 or 300 competitors at these sites.

Beyond that, though, these sites offer a different type of work that what you’ll find at the bidding sites. Here you’ll find a higher concentration of blogging gigs, for example. You’ll also find more long-term assignments and actual “jobs,” if that’s the thing you’re looking for.

Cold calls

I’ve done cold calling, to be sure. If there’s a niche that you’re an expert in, or perhaps have a special knowledge of, it’s all right to contact webmasters of those sites and offer your services. Your rate of success with cold calls is going to be lower than it is with the other methods, but it’s something to try. You may find that you have a knack for this type of sales (I don’t) and make a killing.

Networking

If bidding sites have provided me with some of my long-term clients, networking has provided me with the rest. Whether it’s using social media to connect with other freelancer writers who are looking to outsource, or whether it’s a client’s recommendation to a colleague, word of mouth is still one of the best ways to land clients.

Networking is a bit tricky, though. You can spend all day networking and never land a client. You can network with someone in your field just for fun and wind up forming a long-term partnership. For me, it’s hard to know early on what kind of fruit networking will bear. While you can’t rely solely on networking to get you writing gigs, don’t count it out altogether.

———-

So, what about you? Where do you find your freelance writing clients?

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

Photo by EveryNobody

Today, I want to talk about the next step on your writing business journey. Once you’ve built that business plan, you should naturally start trying to land a writing gig or two. I’ll talk next time about where to find writing work, but for now I want to focus on something that will help you immensely when it is time to do that:

Building your portfolio.

A good portfolio is, in my estimation, one of the most important assets of your freelance writing business. It displays the quality of your work, demonstrates the depth of your skills and gives potential clients a reason to choose you.

In the print world, a portfolio generally takes the form of “clips.” Clips are, in many cases, articles that you’ve written that are literally “clipped” from the newspaper or magazine you’ve been published in. The challenge with online writing is that much of the writing you do will be “ghostwriting” - that is, you won’t get the byline.

This was one of the challenges I faced early in my freelance writing career. I started out writing in one niche for a single client. When it came time for me to branch out, I found that I had no work samples to show prospective clients. In my case, I worked around it by getting permission from my client to refer potential clients to my articles on her website. But I’d have been much better off if I had a solid body of work I could point to.

So, let’s get practical for a few minutes. What makes a good freelance writing portfolio?

A good freelance writing portfolio is accessible.

If you want to showcase your talents to a prospective client, you need to make it easy for the client to see your work. That means reducing the number of clicks required to see your portfolio. That might mean you set up a website with work samples. It might mean you keep copies of some of your work as MS Word documents, to be attached to emails.

My best portfolio tends to be right here. This blog is one of the most important resources for my freelance writing business. I found that, once I started including a reference to my blog on my freelance writing bids, my sales went through the roof. In fact, bids that included my blog outsold bids that didn’t by a margin of 2 to 1.

However you do it, though, you don’t want to make your client look under every rock on the Internet for your work. I’ve been published all over the web, including some big names in the writing business like Freelance Folder and Freelance Switch. While I could send clients links to those articles, it’s much more convenient for the client if I include them as attachments.

A good freelance writing portfolio is diverse.

Every freelance writer has his favorite style of writing. Certainly a part of what you can do to market yourself as a writer is to brand yourself as the expert in a particular niche or style of writing. Still, the Internet is a funny place. What’s popular today may not be tomorrow. To make it over the long haul, you must have a diverse set of skills. On top of that, having a diverse set of skills means that you have a more diverse set of potential clients.

I keep, at any given time, more than two dozen work samples in my portfolio. It includes the best examples of my sales writing, blog writing, website copy, SEO keyword articles and several other types of writing. I also try to vary the niches, as well, showcasing some of my areas of expertise and interest.

A good freelance writing portfolio showcases your best work.

It should go without saying, but your portfolio needs to be error-free. Even if it’s work you’ve published already, it’s worth an extra proofread to make sure everything is as it should be. Simple grammatical or spelling errors can cost you potential clients.

Along that line of thought, it’s important also to realize that, by including something in your portfolio, you’re saying “I can do this again.” As such, the work you do for a client needs to meet that same level of quality. There’s nothing more frustrating for a client than to see great work in the portfolio followed by a substandard deliverable.

So, what about you? Do you have a freelance writing portfolio for your business? If so, what kinds of things do you include, and what form does it take? Feel free to include a link to your portfolio in the comments section.

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

Let’s talk some about planning, shall we?

One of the biggest reasons small businesses of any sort, including freelance writing businesses, fail is because they don’t have a solid business plan. I can tell you from personal experience that this is the case, because it happened to me.

it was 2000. Our second child had just been born, and I was working at a power plant as a Network Administrator. I had just been hired from a contract position to full-time, and was in a great place in terms of my career.

Still, I was already showing signs of IT burnout. I wasn’t happy with my job. I’d been selling computers and fixing computers on the side for years, so we decided in July of 2000 to start our own computer business. I quit my IT job, rented an office, and hung my shingle.

Six months and $30,000 of credit card debt later, my business folded. I went back to the IT world, defeated.

There were many reasons my business failed. One was the economy; in the fall of 2000, the economy started a downward trend. That’s a factor that can’t be ignored, but it probably could have been overcome.

No, the bigger component to my failure was this: I didn’t plan my business. I didn’t have an organized marketing campaign, a thorough understanding of the local market, specific business goals and milestones that I was working toward, an understanding of inventory control or any sorts of overall strategies. I just took out some ads and hoped people would call me.

Needless to say, this wasn’t the best of strategies. I had some folks call me (mostly through word of mouth; I wasn’t yet a skilled copywriter). But it wasn’t nearly enough.

So, how do you plan your freelance writing business? Just like you plan any other business. You study your market. You write a business plan. You develop specific strategies, goals, and tactics.

Now, I could go through how to do this, but let’s be honest: it’s been done. I’m not going to be able to tell you anything about writing a business plan you can’t find elsewhere. So, instead, let me point you to the best resource I’ve found for planning a business: The Small Business Association Small Business Planner. Give it a look, especially the sample business plans.

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

photo credit juhansonin

You see, in my mind, there is no more important task for the freelance writer than really understanding her own writing, seeing where it fits in the larger context of things, and improving her craft.

I’ve said it before: one of the great challenges that the Internet presents is preserving quality writing. You see, great writing matters online. There are plenty of websites out there with poorly-written content that serve only to attract search engine visitors and send them on their way. While this may be a successful business model for some, to make your living as a freelance writer you need to move beyond this kind of writing.

Honing your writing craft is a part of that process. It takes a dedication to quality, and a commitment to continual self-improvement.

Let me give a real-life example. One of the newer areas of freelance writing I’ve been exploring lately has been writing sales letters. Six months ago, when I sold my first sales letter, I can honestly say that my first attempt was pretty sad. I had a lot to learn about how sales pages work, about the progressions involved, and about the kinds of voice that a sales letter needs in order to convert.

So, what did I do? I worked at it. I researched it (we’re back to education here, of course). I discovered that there are a number of approaches to sales letters. I found one that fit my personal writing philosophy and my style, and I practiced. Today, I’m writing sales letters on a regular basis, and they’re vastly improved over those first efforts. Not only that, I’m getting positive feedback that they’re working.

So, how do you do it? How do you go about honing your craft, in preparation for starting your freelance writing business?

There are plenty of ways to improve your writing, but here are some general principles you should keep in mind:

• You write. Plain and simple. Write every day. Write many kinds of things, test out different ideas, and see what you’re capable of and interested in.
• Beyond that, you need to be willing to critique your own writing. Set your writing aside for a day or two, and come back at it. Slash it up with a highlighter and pen, and then rewrite it. Keep doing this until you feel like the finished product is something worth selling.
• You also need to be willing to put your work out there for others to critique. Join a writer’s forum, post to a ratings-based article directory like Helium, or find yourself a mentor. Find people who are willing to give you some honest feedback about your writing, and be willing to accept that feedback.

Like most things in life, becoming a great writer is less about being inspired, and more about being dedicated to the task.

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

photo credit: liveandrock

Still, I wouldn’t trade it for anything; however I got here, I can confidently say I’m more happy with my career today than I have ever been at any point in my life.

So, this series really is an effort to identify some of the steps I missed in my business, some of the steps that I did get right, and some of the steps that I maybe did out of order.

The first thing I’d do, if I were going to start a freelance business, is to get some education.

Now, I started my freelance business around the time I was working on my Master’s degree. I had plenty of academic education. I didn’t need lessons in grammar or style. As a humanities major studying history, I had to become an expert at very direct and precise writing.

Still, there were some important things that I didn’t know, that I couldn’t really learn in a classroom.

Business education

I dabbled, around the turn of the millennium, with my own computer business. It failed miserably, within a year of opening. There were a variety of factors that went into that failure. Some of them I could have prevented. For example, I had very little understanding of marketing, and even less understanding of how to do some basic business tasks such as keeping an inventory of commonly-sold items. And don’t even get me started on the accounting nightmare.

Some of these things, in retrospect, I could have learned in school. A course on marketing, one on business management, and one on accounting would probably have really helped shore up my business skills at the time.

When it came time to start my writing business, however, I had learned from many of those mistakes from my first business flop. I was able to avoid most of them. I set out to learn everything I could about those weak areas, to shore them up. Over time, I’ve studied all sorts of business subjects via books, blogs, ebooks and even just talking with other people in business.

Do I consider myself an expert in business today? Nope. I have what I need to run my business, and even see it grow by leaps and bounds, though.

Freelance education

If I were to start over today, I would try to spend some more time learning about freelance work and the freelance marketplace before jumping in. I’d spend time on blogs like this one and others. I’d ask questions about how the freelance marketplace works.

One of the ways that this hurt me, in the early days of my freelance business, was that I really didn’t understand the marketplace. I had a wonderful client who paid me a decent price for my work, and her work was nearly enough to meet my budget. However, when I went out and tried to find other work, all I could seem to find was offers to write $3 articles.

I didn’t understand what was going on. I didn’t realize that, just like in other types of situations, you get what you pay for. Those $3 articles are, typically, very poorly written, often inaccurate, and just plain bad writing. I felt sheepish, though, bidding so much more than these low bids that I just left some opportunities behind.

So, how do you become educated about freelancing? There are plenty of ways. I mentioned reading blogs - that’s one way. There are also some decent books on the subject. In terms of eBooks, I’d highly recommend How to be a Rock Star Freelancer (read my review here). You can, just like with business, talk with other freelancers. Find out what they’re doing, what the business is like, and what you can expect.

Writing education

Writing online isn’t like writing for print. It certainly isn’t like academic writing, either. It’s a very different world. There are many aspects that, when you first start out, you aren’t going to understand.

For example, understanding the difference between web copy and website copy is important if you’re going to freelance online. Knowing when to use a personal tone and when to use a professional one is important, too. It doesn’t hurt to have some understanding of the basics of copywriting, either.

For my part, I came about this all backwards. I learned, first, how to write SEO articles. Granted, SEO is an integral part of web writing, and it’s an important skill to have. But there were other skills, such as copywriting, that I had to learn slowly, over time. I learned new ways of writing in response to business opportunities that I was missing because I didn’t possess the required skills.

If you start your freelance writing business with several types of writing skills at your disposal, you’re going to have a leg up on the competition.

How do you learn to write? Again, you’ve got lots of options. The one difference with learning to write is, in my estimation, that all of the study you do won’t do you much good unless you practice the techniques. Writers become better, in many cases, simply by writing and editing their own work.

So, what about you? If you have a freelance business, are there areas you wish you’d been more educated in when you started? If you’re not freelancing yet, do you think it’s realistic and important do learn some of these things?

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

photo credit: Menlo School

DISCLAIMER: the links below are affiliate links. I do earn some money if you enroll in Blog Mastermind by clicking on them. However, I encourage you to enroll whether or not you do it via my links, as I think Yaro’s advice will prove extremely valuable if you have any interest whatsoever in making money from your blog.)

Unless you are an Australian you probably don’t know this.

The Australian dollar has dropped dramatically, from 95 cents US a few months ago, to about 68 cents US as I type this.

Why this matters to you is that Yaro Starak’s blog coaching program, Blog Mastermind, charges admission in Australian dollars.

I’ve already raved about this program before and if you don’t believe me, just do a search on Google for “Blog Mastermind Reviews” to see what other people are saying.

It’s the only program of it’s kind that teaches you how to make a full time living from blogging only part time, and is led by one of the best blog teachers I know of.

Already over a 1,000 people have taken part in the program, with many satisfied graduates earning good money from their blogs.

YOU CAN SAVE IF YOU ACT BEFORE MONDAY

If you paid for entry into the program right now with a credit card that is in US dollars, you would save roughly 32% off the entry fee, because the course fees are in Australian dollars.

If you ordered the $97 month for six months plan, your credit card statement would show about $66 as
long as the Aussie dollar remained where it is now.

For the $497 AUD prepaid package, where you get the entire program up front, the cost on your US card would show roughly $338.

Note of course these prices are subject to change based on the current exchange rates, but it doesn’t look like the Australian dollar will climb back up any time soon (but who knows!).

It really doesn’t matter though, because Yaro is changing his pricing from Monday and will be charging in American dollars then. So you only have until Monday to save.

You can join here.

When you go to the payment page you will see prices of $97 or $497 depending on what you choose.

Those prices are in Australian dollars, so the discount will show up if you pay with a US dollar credit card, assuming the Aussie dollar was still weaker when you ordered.

THE $97 MONTH PAYMENT PLAN IS GOING TOO

On Monday Yaro is also eliminating the $97 a month pricing plan. He said he does have plans to bring it back, but because of his bank and online shopping cart system, he can’t charge in USD for recurring subscriptions.

Until he changes his system or they upgrade the features, there won’t be a $97 a month option, only a $497 prepaid course option.

To put it in simple terms - If you want to join Blog Mastermind, the cheaper price deadline is Monday, so you better decide soon.

Here’s the order page.

Good luck with your blog and make sure you tell me what you think of Yaro’s course if you join.

One of the most common questions I get asked by my readers is “how do I get started writing online?” In some ways, I feel underqualified to answer the question. Like I’ve said before, I sort of fell into my writing career while I was doing other things. I hobbled together my writing business rather haphazardly.

If I were to start over today, I’d be more organized about it. I’d avoid some of the mistakes I’ve made over the past five years. I’d put energy into the projects and ideas that were a good fit for me, and I’d let all of the extraneous stuff go.

To be sure, you can’t exactly do that. You can’t mystically experience what I’ve experienced, and some of the things that are a good fit for me aren’t going to be a good fit for you. There are lessons that only experience can teach.

I can certainly share my experiences here, pass along things that have worked for me, identify some general pitfalls to avoid. I can identify writing resources that have helped me immensely. I can talk about the freelance business, share my setbacks as well as my successes. I’ve done all of those things. All of these things provide benefits to you, but they don’t tell you how to get started.

So, over the next week or two, I want to offer my plan. I want to tell you how I’d do it if I could do it over again. Along the way, I hope we’ll have some interesting discussions, and that you’ll offer me your thoughts and questions in the comments section.

Follow The Journey: Other Posts In This Series

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Introduction

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Education

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Honing Your Craft

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Planning

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Building Your Portfolio

How To Start Your Freelance Writing Business: Finding Work

photo credit: Jon_Marshall