I don’t have to tell you which companies these images represent, do I? You just know.

While we easily think of multi-million dollar corporations when we think of successful branding, we need to apply those same ideas, principles, and techniques to the freelance business we operate from a home office.

Why Should You Care About Branding Your Business?

Regardless of the freelance business you run—whether it’s writing, design, VA work, or something else—there are hundreds, if not thousands, of other business owners doing the same thing. It’s a crazy and competitive business environment.

Creating and communicating your unique brand identity sets you and your business apart from the competition, according to LeapZone Strategies. Discovering your brand message is not hard, but it does require intentional examination of what makes you different.

When crafting your message, consider what problems you solve, how your business makes life better, and how your clients benefit from what you offer.

Once you’ve answered some crucial questions about your identity, it’s time to work on messaging. What makes up your brand? Typically, you’ll want to name your business, choose a tagline, and design a logo.

Name Your Business

As a freelance business owner, you’ll need to come up with a name for your business. You’ll want to choose either your personal name or create a business name.

Freelance Folder outlines the pros and cons of using either a personal name or a business name for a freelance business. Sometimes using your personal name can be perceived as less professional, but sticking with your own name doesn’t lock you into a certain type or kind of business for the long haul.

Deciding on a business name, though, can be a long and complicated process, as you’ll want to find something that’s memorable and creative that is not being used. Once you do come up with a business name, however, it is the perfect vehicle for succinctly communicating the uniqueness of your offerings.

Weigh all the pros and cons of naming your freelance business, but most importantly, don’t let the process stall the actual work you want to do.

Choose A Tagline

A tagline is a catchy slogan that becomes a recognizable part of your overall brand message: “It’s everywhere you want to be” (Visa) and “Good to the last drop” (Maxwell House Coffee) have become synonymous with the brands they represent.

CrowdSpring offers many ideas for writing a memorable tagline to set your business apart from the competition. Many effective tagline characteristics may seem obvious: it should be unique, simple and concise.

But the most important characteristic that’s often overlooked or misunderstood is that your business tagline should focus on your audience, not your company.

As you consider your tagline, go back to those questions you answered initially to discover your identity. How does your business help your audience? Use that information to create a memorable tagline.

Design A Logo

A powerful tool for distinguishing your business from its competitors, your logo can speak volumes about your business using just an image and a few words.

“I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time,” said Blaise Pascal. This quotation captures the difficulty in producing something creative in tightly-defined parameters, which includes logo design. When working with a single image that is scalable from thumbnail to billboard-size, a couple of fonts, and one or two colors, the task becomes quite challenging.

Creating a truly professional logo is best left up to—well, the professionals. Smashing Magazine outlines ten common logo design mistakes to watch out for. Make sure your freelance business logo is simple, timeless, and unique and that it isn’t a copycat—whether intentional or unintentional—version of an existing logo.

Evaluate Your Brand

No matter how young or old your business (and your brand), it’s a good idea to keep a critical eye on your brand message and identity, revising and fine-tuning as necessary.

The calendar gives us natural breaks in our business routine to look over our business. As you make New Year’s Resolutions, celebrate your business’ anniversary, or as winter melts away, take inventory.

Spring cleaning your brand, according to Entrepreneur magazine, involves re-evaluating your audience (including a shift in the clients whom you do or don’t serve) and updating your offerings (including which offerings to promote more or drop).

Intentional branding is crucial to creating a successful freelance business. Capitalize on what distinguishes you from the pack through creative, memorable, and timeless brand messaging, and keep an eye on your brand, ready to adjust it as necessary in order to maximize profits.

You’ve set up your freelance business and you’re ready to take on the world.  A few referrals are coming in here and there.  Then things start getting really busy.

How do you keep track of what projects are active, who’s paid what, deadlines, status reports, delegated tasks…yikes!

Things can get out of control pretty quickly for a freelancer without a solid project management tool.

Choosing the Right Tool

There are quite a few project management tools out there but some of them are better than others when it comes to freelancers.  Some of the best project management tools right for freelance work are those that target smaller, micro organizations – i.e. you, you + one or more team member(s).

Anything too complex can get overwhelming and the goal is to keep things simple so you can focus on getting the work done.

Ask Good Questions

How do you know which tool is right for you?  Here are a few starter questions to get you going:

1. How many people will I need to collaborate with using the tool?
2. What type of projects will I manage within the tool?  All of them, or a select group?
3. What budget can I set aside monthly to pay for the tool?
4. What do I prefer to work with most – text, visual charts, spreadsheets?
5. How will the tool integrate with systems I already use – i.e. calendar, email, etc.?
6. Does this tool work on my computer platform – i.e. Mac or Windows?
7. As my business grows, will the tool expand with it or will I have to move all of my data somehow?  If I do have to move it, will it be easy or difficult?

10 Project Management Tools

I reached out through my social network to a group of freelancers to find their favorite picks.  We came up with this short list of 10 online project management tools along with brief descriptions:

• Wrike - This tool uses a social platform to monitor your team progress across all projects. Wrike has an interactive dashboard, microblogging, real-time activity streams and instant email notifications with both free and paid subscriptions.  
• LiquidPlanner - Professional online project management software with integrated features for scheduling, collaboration, time tracking, analysis and reporting.  Has easy to use, drag and drop tasks capability.
• Dooster.net - This is a pretty neat task & project management app with a user-friendly interface if you’re not a real “techie”.  Has a dashboard where you can see everything that’s going on, organized by priority.
• Basecamp - A very popular tool for freelancers, Basecamp probably has the most tenure of all the tools on this list. It shows tasks, stores files, tracks deadlines, and more. Recently, it’s become more mobile friendly which will be an advantage to freelancers who prefer to manage from an iOs or Android device.
• WorkEtc - This one is a pretty comprehensive service and it may be a bit hefty for a freelancer without a team.  Check out the “all-in-one” concept they’ve put together – everything from tracking billable time and managing customer support to marketing and invoicing.
• Daylite by MarketCircle - Note: this project management tool is for Mac, iPhone & iPad users. It lets you quickly review your phone calls, emails, notes, or meetings based on contacts in your database.
• SUBERNOVA - Installed with the Adobe Air platform, SUBERNOVA (yes, that’s not me yelling; they usually spell it all in caps) lets you create invoices, schedule emails to clients, synchronize tasks with your calendar, and more.  Another one good for multiple platforms – desktop and mobile devices.
• Insightly - One of my personal favorites, this tool integrates easily with Gmail and Google Apps.  Looks similar in some ways to Basecamp but a bit more user-friendly and simplistic on the surface.  Great for keeping up with customer contacts over email.
• ThriveSolo - This is in beta currently so you need to sign up for approval to participate, however, the initial version has a very simple platform and covers the basic well for solo freelancers without a team, tracking things like time worked on a project, and budget for resources.
• Apptivo - Good tool for small teams, this project management tool will track time and help you categorize what’s billable.  You can also set up invoices to your clients by integrating with PayPal, Authorize.net, and more.

As you’re considering the best project management tool for you, there will be other questions you’ll probably add to the starter list above.

Here’s a couple of suggestions: write out your list of “must-haves”, then make up a chart to compare your top 3 picks.  Once you have them, evaluate which ones best fit your needs using a trial (most of these will at least give you a 10 day or more trial version to see how it works for you).

The most important thing is to pick a project management tool that helps make your life easier.

Happy hunting!

A serious student who tried hard to ensure a successful career based on academic success, I was offended that my resume might not matter to a future employer.

I can’t speak for every industry and profession, but I do know that when it comes to operating a successful freelance business, it really is all about who you know. Finding potential clients, winning them, and keeping them are simply not possible unless you have a well-established and healthy network of relationships.

A Freelancer’s Relationships Are The Lifeblood Of Future Work

Relationships give you:

• Future clients – Acquaintances, colleagues, friends, and relatives may very well become your next paying clients.
• Referrals – Those who know you and the quality of your work will confidently refer you to their network, bringing you new customers.
• Testimonials – Satisfied clients’ heartfelt recommendations serve as a stamp of approval for the potential customer who may be on the fence about hiring you or buying your product.

Make New Friends, But Keep The Old

Did you happen to sing the song, “Make New Friends,” as a Girl Scout? I did. And its advice is just as pertinent to business-building as it is to any other relationship in life.

Online

Today’s social media tools make finding new friends incredibly easy—and sometimes overwhelming. Instead of going for quantity, focus on quality. Strong bonds with select leaders in your niche will have the most lasting impact on your business and your growth as a freelancer.

• Target key influencers within your key market. Concentrate on getting to know them, which is impossible by just casually glancing at their feeds. Interact with them and consume their products.
• Identify one or two online professionals with mentoring or training materials. Become a student of theirs. Learn the way they work a business and put their principles into practice.
• Once you’re “on their radar” and you’ve had some meaningful interactions, ask for a Q&A blog interview or audio interview. Promote the interview like crazy, and then make it available to them for their use afterwards—with no restrictions or conditions.

Offline

If your prospect list has grown cold, it’s time to speak up about your business in all the social situations you encounter daily.

• Call former bosses, colleagues, and co-workers. Let them know what you’re doing now and ask them to keep you in mind for any freelance projects.
• Talk to your friends and relatives. Remind the gals from Bunco night and Aunt Margaret exactly what you do. You don’t have to be pushy, just offer a simple, “Yea, I’d love to add a few more clients to my queue. Let me know if you know of anyone.” (I landed a client after talking with him at our church small group one Sunday night. I mentioned the type of work I did, and he had a need I could fill.)
• Locate a few local business owners within your niche and create a face-to-face group that meets on a regular basis. You can offer one another encouragement, new business ideas, and troubleshooting techniques. I’ve been a member of a group of Nashville women bloggers for about five years. We get together for coffee a few times a year and help one another with blogging questions. Between face-to-face meetings, we offer support through a Facebook group. Inevitably, members post job leads in the group a couple of times each month.
• Treat a mentor to lunch or coffee. Find someone in your area who is excelling in your niche. Offer to buy them a meal if they’ll answer your questions for one hour. Most people are flattered to be asked and will eagerly trade their expertise for a sandwich. Follow up with a thank you note and check in with them periodically as you grow your business.

My own freelance career started as the result of a relationship. I was working full-time as an editor at a publishing house when I became pregnant with my first child.  Just before my third trimester of pregnancy, I quit my job to get ready for motherhood. On my last day of full-time work, my boss said to me, “Let us know when you’re ready to work again. We’ll have some freelance projects we’d love to hire you to do!”

That relationship with my former employer was begun more than ten years ago, and his company is still one of my regular clients. (In fact, I have an assignment due to them in two weeks!)

Devote time in your business to intentional relationship building, and you’ll reap the benefits for years to come.

Ever heard of Jon Bon Jovi?  Raised by a hairdresser in a blue-collar New Jersey neighborhood, Jon had no secret “inside connection” growing up.  He simply had aspirations of becoming someone great one day and kept pursuing what he loved, hanging out at local clubs where his role models played so he could take on their qualities and do what they do.  By his twenties, Jon formed a band and started to get noticed.

After years of modeling the successful qualities of the people he hung around, staying persistent and making with the right connections, Jon eventually launched himself and his band into rock star history.

As a freelancer, you too might be starting from meager beginnings, but when you adopt the right qualities and grow strong connections, it can kick your business into rock star celebrity!

Here’s a short list of 6 Rock Star Qualities for Freelancers:

• Independent Thinkers – Rock star freelancers are comfortable in their own skin.  They know what they’re good at and they pursue it aggressively.  They see themselves as “star of the show” long before it becomes a reality to anyone else.

• Networkers – Rock star freelancers understand the value of a strong support system and creating powerful connections.  Like Jon, they surround themselves with people who can encourage and refer them to the right clients and partners for the “big breaks”.

• Resilient – Rock star freelancers get knocked down, but they get back up and keep going.  Every entrepreneur will face trials and challenges, but it takes resilience to pick up the pieces and rock on.

• Disciplined – Rock star freelancers make a plan and then commit to doing the things necessary to meet the plan goals.  They do something every day to make their dream a reality.

• Resourceful – Rock star freelancers learn how to find the right people, tools, money, and great ideas they need to get the results they want.

• Honest – Rock star freelancers are brutally honest  - with others and with themselves.  Being authentic and real will help you get noticed and build your fan crowd.

When you take a look at this list, which quality do you have where people already see you rock?  Where can you stretch yourself more?  What else would you add to the list?

Wherever you might be right now in your freelance business, fine-tuning these qualities will take you far.  Keep rockin’!

Is there a way to keep your freelance business running smoothly while kids are home on summer break?

Sure.

But freelancers should also accept that a summer routine will look different (than it does during the school year) for your family and your business.

As you plan your summer, use this post, 94 Ways to Keep Kids Busy for the Work at Home Parent, to find new ideas for keeping the little ones out of your hair while you’re working.

Keeping your sanity, the house running smoothly, and the kids happy all require some creative problem-solving, compromises from everyone, and flexibility.

1. Say goodbye to guilt.

We all talk about “balance” when it comes to work and family. I honestly don’t believe in “balance.” Getting things done—whether work projects or family projects—requires trade-offs of time and energy. And that’s OK.

Don’t feel guilty about devoting focused time to your business, and don’t feel guilty about devoting focused time to the kids. You can’t be in two places at once, and you can’t do everything simultaneously.

Often in the quest for balance, we try to cram too much on our plates. Forget multi-tasking, and everyone wins.

2. Lower your expectations and plan for interruptions.

The summer months are probably not the time to sign a multi-project client or tackle the biggest assignment of your career.

Summertime with the kids at home means you’ll have more interruptions, more fragmented days, and more open-ended time slots on the calendar. Identify a manageable workload and work it well. Watch that you don’t over-commit.

3. Plan to vacation at the end of summer.

Scheduling the big family vacation for late July or early August gives everyone something to work toward and eagerly anticipate. Hang a count-down sign in a central spot, so everyone knows just how many days are left before departure.

4. Pay for some help.

If a big deadline’s approaching, you may need to hire a sitter to watch the kids while you work. But you may also want to schedule more regular help throughout the summer just to stay on top of work tasks.

Most nine- or ten-year-olds can work as “Mommy or Daddy helpers.” While you are working in your home office, your tween helper is watching your little ones for a couple of bucks an hour. You’re on the premises—available for any question or emergency—but your helper keeps the little ones occupied, fetching snacks and playing Hide and Seek.

5. Hire your kids.

Pay your children to help you with age appropriate administrative tasks for your business. Doing so increases your productivity, cuts down on your outsourcing costs, and teaches your child work ethic and money management skills.

6. Create a Yes/No Jar.

Get a jar, box, or any type of container and label it, “Yes/No Jar.”

If your kids are constantly asking to do this or that and you must say “no” because of work demands, tell them to write their request on a slip of paper for the Yes/No Jar (i.e., “go to the zoo,” “go swimming,” “watch a movie with me”).

Designate two to three days each week as “yes” days. Kids get to pull a previously requested activity out of the jar and do a “no” activity on a “yes” day.

7. Send the kids to camp. 

If you’ve looked into summer camps, you’ve probably come away with sticker shock! They can be terribly expensive.

But take some extra time to research the local county or city government parks in your area. I am able to send my kids to an awesome day camp operated through a local county park system that only costs me $17/day (7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.) per child. That fee also includes field trips to a water park, the movie theater, and the bowling alley!  The best part is that you only pay for the days you use, so it really functions as a drop-in day care. Oh, and my kids love it!

8. Use the tried-and-true strategies that work.

Sometimes you’ve got to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Pop in a video, beg your neighbor to watch them for an hour, or stay up way past your own bedtime because the kids are asleep and the house is finally quiet.

I promise the kids’ IQs won’t suffer because they watched another Spongebob episode, you can certainly reciprocate babysitting for your neighbor, and a thirty-minute nap the day after a late work night will make you feel brand-new!

How do you manage work and kids during summer vacation?

I bet you never used the adjective ‘expert’ in conjunction with your own name before, have you?

It’s a mindset thing. For some reason I could always call myself a ‘business owner’ or a ‘virtual assistant’ but when given the term ‘expert’ I would cringe and think they couldn’t POSSIBLY be talking about lil’ ol’ me…

Until I had some friends point out the obvious…that SOMEONE out there needed my help and considered me an ‘expert’ because I knew more about a topic than THEY did.

Experts Still Learn

One of the misconceptions I had about the label ‘expert’ was thinking an ‘expert’ was at the top of their class, finished learning all there was to learn about a subject, and could answer any question about the topic.

But I think someone’s expertise in a subject is always evolving, always growing as new information is discovered or taught. Even the most skilled surgeons in the country learn new ways to operate and try new techniques. School teachers and other skilled professionals take part in continuing education classes each year to stay up to date on their industry’s standards.

The same is true for freelancers who work online. Sure, I know how to make changes to a WordPress theme but I’m blown away when I see the true talents of my web designer friends!

And think about all the ‘gurus’ in the internet marketing world who are teaching the latest and greatest techniques for running an online business. Learning in any subject is a never-ending process but you can still develop your expertise as you continue learning.

Now, let’s be real. Reading one book or blog post on a subject does not make one an expert on that topic. Your first-hand working experience lends to your expertise as well as your learned knowledge from school or classes.

Don’t Take Your Talents for Granted

So much time is spent doubting whether or not we can accomplish something. Is it a good idea to start an online business? Will anyone hire me? Sit back and think about everything you know how to do (and it doesn’t have to all be business-related…maybe your hidden talent could uncover a cool niche for you to monetize!) Remember, you know more than you think you do!

As I was trying to write about this very abstract topic, I kept thinking back to one of my husband’s very good friends, who he met through a business networking group. This friend installs business telephone systems. Is he an expert? Darn straight! I only know about using the phone, not the inner workings of setting up an entire network!

We’ve also got a handyman coming to replace the railings on our front porch. Is he an expert? You bet, since I don’t think we even own a saw or know the first thing about choosing the proper wood (we are the quite the opposite of ‘handy’)!

So…what’s your expertise? I’m a Virtual Assistant and an expert at creating website content for other online business owners.

Feel free to share your expertise in the comment section below!

• Do you have set business hours?
• Are you able to close the door to your office?
• Do you have a steady clientele paying you each month?

OR does this scenario better describe your typical day?

• You’re completing work in 1 hour intervals, in between naptimes
• You have no filing system and non-business papers are over-taking your work area
• The kids are kicking you off your computer because they want to play games (and you let them!)

If you relate more to the second scenario then you’re essentially working a hobby, or a part time job. You do what you can when you can instead of insisting on working a set number of hours or tracking just how much income you’re generating each month.

Lessons Learned from a TV Show

One of my favorite shows is Restaurant: Impossible on the Food Network. Chef Robert goes into these failing restaurants, evaluates the problems, and gives them a complete redesign. Very often he’ll ask the owners questions about their food costs and monthly income and expenses and more often than not, the restaurant owners can’t answer him without looking through stacks of papers.

Could you answer those same questions about your business?

As a business owner (and not a hobbyist) you should be doing bookkeeping each month to know your expenses and monthly income. If you don’t know these numbers, how can you possibly know how to grow your business?

Balancing Work and Life

Being a freelance parent is both a joy and a chore. The joy part is not having to commute or deal with a boss or the office politics but the chore is finding the time to actually do the work, while also marketing your business and finding new clients.

Many times I have complained to my husband that I just need another 18 hours in the day to complete my to-do lists. And he continues to reassure me that he meets people in the course of HIS job (doing sales for a local company) who encounter the same exact problem.

But if we’re working from home in an effort to spend more time with our kids, have you taken note of whether that’s actually happening? Are you truly present when they get off the school bus or are you thinking about the 50 things that are still on your to-do list?

(By the way, I suffer from this terribly!)

Changing Your Mindset

I must admit, even though I describe myself as a ‘business owner’ that’s not how I would treat myself. The work always gets done but I never had any kind of systems in place and I never truly thought about myself as a business owner.

But that’s changing and already I can FEEL a difference in my mind and body. Last night I paused the television and wrote out a to-do list with my client work at the top and all the non-paid work near the bottom (such as marketing, blogging, social media, etc). Obviously I hope that this non-paid work eventually turns into paid work but the point is I wrote down EVERYTHING that was on my mind.

Will it all get done today? Truth be told, probably not, but I’m a very visual person and seeing a list helps keep my mind focused. Just knowing that I gave myself 30 minutes to write this blog post has gotten me moving.

I’m also moving all the papers off my desk in the hopes of keeping my brain less cluttered. Maybe I can outsource some of the organization to my daughters for extra allowance money

Have you ever been in the hobbyist mindset? What changed for you once you thought of your hobby as a business? I’d love to hear your thoughts so leave a comment below!

About the Author: Christina Lemmey is a Virtual Assistant and Owner of Multimedia VA. She specializes in creating written, audio and video content for businesses who need an online presence. Christina was a call-in guest on The Dave Ramsey Show and is currently in the process of creating a super secret training course for other do-it-yourself-ers.

How do you know how long a job’s going to take? How do you know what to charge? And then how should you present it to the client – hourly, per word, per page, flat fee?

It seems like the whole process should be a matter of logic and math, but in the real world our emotions kick in.

When you want a job badly enough, you start to second-guess everything: “should I really charge this much? what if he thinks it’s way too much? what if she’s insulted that I even asked for this much? what if I’m undercharging? what if the client thinks my work must be crap if I’m charging this little?” And so on and so forth.

It gets even worse when you finally decide on a number, send it to the prospective client, and hear nothing. For days.

“Oh no,” you think, “this person thinks I’m an idiot. She’s never going to hire me, and she’s going to tell all of her friends that I have no clue what I’m doing. I’m never going to work again.” Or maybe that’s just me.

If you find yourself succumbing to these kinds of thoughts, take heart. There is a way out.

You have to remember that this is business. It’s not personal. It sure feels personal when you’re a one-woman (or one-man) shop, and it’s your name on the letterhead. It feels even more personal when you’re marketing to people you’ve met on Twitter or Facebook, and you have a friendly relationship with them already.

But in the end, when prospective clients are deciding whether to hire you or not, it’s a business decision.

They have to decide whether they will get the best value from you or from someone else. While personal feelings may come into play (who wants to work with someone they can’t stand?), they’re not usually the deciding factor.

Instead of getting caught up in the “OMG, what did I do, I should have asked for less/more, I should have said this/that, etc.,” try to think more like a business owner and less like the creative spirit you probably are.

Don’t agonize over every estimate – look at every estimate (and response) as a piece of data, compile the data over time, and use it to build your business. As you gather more data, you will start to figure out what works best for you and you will get better results.

The key to this strategy is that you must have a lot of estimates going out the door.

If you only have one potential project, it’s going to seem like the end of the world if you don’t get the job. If you have 10 or 15 estimates going out, it’s more of a numbers game. I think you can look at things a little more objectively when you’re not pinning all of your hopes on one gig.

What do you think?

photo credit: whatmegsaid

In today’s post, we’ll cover the most important step: adding content to your website.

Step 5: Create Content That Converts Leads Into Clients

As a freelancer, you will want to have at least the following pages on your website: (1) Homepage; (2) About; (3) Services; and (4) Contact Me. You may also want to add client testimonials, samples of your work, and other information that helps demonstrate your knowledge and skills. As you draft the content for your site, keep the following tips in mind:

Your Homepage

Before you write anything for your homepage, decide what the function of your homepage is going to be. Is it to get visitors to sign up for your e-newsletter? Is it to get visitors to call or e-mail you for a consultation? The most important thing is to decide on a next step that you want visitors to take, and then make that step the primary focus of your homepage.

Keep your homepage uncluttered, and make sure that visitors can easily find the answers to three questions: (1) what do you do? (2) why should they hire you to do it? and (3) how can they contact you? If people have to hunt for this information, they won’t. They’ll just move on to the next website.

Finally, don’t put a bunch of links to other websites on the homepage of your website. If you do, you’re just inviting visitors to leave your website. Why do that?

Your “About” page

The “About” page is often the hardest one to write. You have to talk about yourself, which is always difficult, and you have to promote yourself without coming across as unlikeable or egotistical. It’s not easy.

I think the most important thing to remember about your “About” page is that it’s not really about you. Yes, you have to provide information about your background and expertise, but think about this from your potential clients’ perspective. They want to know about you only so they can figure out whether you can help them. Don’t disappoint them; explain how your background qualifies you to meet your clients’ needs.

If you’re really having trouble writing your About page, consider getting some help. I know this may seem crazy to those of you who are writers, but even the best writers can run into trouble when they try to write about themselves.

Your “Services” page

Be specific about the services you offer. Potential clients may not have hired a writer/graphic designer/etc. before and they want to know what it will be like to work with you.

The big question freelancers have when it comes to their “Services” page is whether they should post prices. I think you have to decide what will work best for you. I post a range of prices so that potential clients have some idea what I charge. This helps me to pre-qualify leads (by culling out the people who can’t or won’t pay what I charge), and gives clients a little bit of guidance about pricing. You may decide that posting prices is a bad idea for your particular business, and that’s fine. Whatever works for you.

In General

All of the content on your site should be client-focused and serve a purpose. Don’t feel like you have to fill your site with hundreds of pages of content; just get your point across and encourage visitors to take the “next step” down the path towards becoming your client.

photo credit: dbdbrobot

Traci Feit Love is a freelance writer, editor & communications consultant for businesses that need smart, impressive content. To learn more or to sign up for her free e-course, “How to Get More High-Paying Clients,” visit her website at http://tracifeitlove.com.

Now it’s time to talk about how to make your site look good (without spending a fortune).

Step 4: Select a theme and then customize it.

Whether you’re working with WordPress or Squarespace (the two platforms I recommended earlier in this series), you’ll need to select a “theme” (called a “template” in Squarespace) for your website. The theme you choose will determine the basic look of your site.

Selecting a Theme in WordPress:

If you’ve created a self-hosted WordPress blog, you can select a theme by logging in to the admin area of your site, clicking on “Appearance,” and then clicking on “Add New Themes.” This will allow you to choose from a variety of free themes. There’s nothing wrong with using a free theme, especially if you find one you really like – just make sure you add some customization to make your website unique.

There are also premium (read: not free) themes available elsewhere on the web. There are a lot of them (do a Google search for “premium WordPress themes” and you’ll see what I mean). The premium theme that I use on my site is Thesis, which I highly recommend. I selected Thesis (and subsequently became a Thesis affiliate) because it is exceptionally flexible, easy to use, and well-supported. If you choose a premium theme, you should follow the installation instructions from the theme designer instead of using the “Add New Themes” button.

Selecting a Theme (Template) in Squarespace:

If you’re using Squarespace, go to your website and then log in. Click on the paintbrush in the upper right-hand corner and you’ll see the Appearance Editor pop up on the bottom half of your screen. You’ll see a button that says “Switch Templates” on the lower left-hand corner of the Appearance Editor. From there, just select the Template you’d like to use. Once you select a template, you can use the Appearance Editor to change the colors, fonts, column sizes, and other design elements of your site.

Customizing Your Site

Once you’ve selected a theme or template, you’re almost done – but not quite. If you stop now, you’ll have a site that looks pretty basic (and possibly very similar to a lot of other sites out there). You don’t have to spend tons of money on a web designer, but if you’re willing to spend just a little bit it will make a big difference.

For my site, I hired a designer (Jamie Varon of Shatterboxx Media) to customize the stylesheet, the header image, and my subscription button. I was really happy with it turned out, but you may not even need to go that far. At the very least, I recommend that you get a custom-designed header image. You can find very inexpensive designers on Elance, but be careful to review samples of their work before committing. Alternatively, find a website you like and ask who designed it. You may end up paying more, but you’ll probably be very happy with the results.

So that’s it for now. If you run into problems or have any questions, share them in the comments and I’ll see if I can help!

Up next: Step 5 (Content and Copywriting)

photo credit: Paul Keleher

Traci Feit Love is a freelance writer, editor & communications consultant for businesses that need smart, impressive content. To learn more or to sign up for her free e-course, “How to Get More High-Paying Clients,” visit her website at http://tracifeitlove.com.

I shared my own story here yesterday about not being paid by a client but my friend’s story is a little bit different because the client pulled the job prior to it being completed. My friend worked a few hours on these graphics, trying to bring the client’s vision to life, but the client decided to go with another designer. Certainly, that is the client’s perogative but should the first designer get paid, even if it wasn’t what the client wanted in the job?

Absolutely yes.

It’s certainly unfortunate that the communication broke down between my friend and her client but once she sat down to begin working, the time clock began. And that’s not just for those who work at home. Advertising agencies and lawyers immediately come to mind as those who keep timesheets and bill by the hour. No matter if you’re on a phone call with the client or actually designing, time spent on the project should be billed.

In fairness, I don’t know the exact details of my friend’s plight. Maybe she didn’t ask enough questions, maybe the client was vague about what she wanted the final project to convey. No matter the reason, this type of thing happens everyday to freelancers and you need to have a plan of how to avoid this situation.

1. Use simple contracts for each project. Contracts don’t have to be long or jammed with legal jargon to be effective. Write down all the aspects of the job as you understand them along with deadlines, client expectations, and payment policies. Be sure your client initials the section about being charged for any work that is done, even if they change freelancers midway through a job.

2. Ask questions. Getting a clear explaination from the client about what the final product should convey is difficult if you’re sitting face to face in a conference room and can become more challenging when conducting business online. Ask as many questions as necessary to clearly understand the project and make sure your client is available if additional information is needed.

3. Determine how many rounds of changes are included in your price. Very often designers will limit the number of changes per project to avoid having a fickle client changing his mind every minute. This is especially important if you’re charging a flat project fee rather than an hourly rate. Even if you’re charging hourly, keep your client informed how much additional money these changes will cost.

4. Be willing to share your timesheets. If a client is complaining that something is taking too long to complete, have a hard copy of your timesheet ready to show and be willing to answer any questions. Keep accurate notes on each timesheet entry so the client can clearly see which aspect of the project you worked on and when. I highly recommend Freshbooks for their timesheet and report capabilities.

Without a doubt, some clients will need more hand holding than others, some will be super picky, and some will still balk about not knowing your policies even though you have a signed contract. Use those clients to learn important lessons and be more prepared to handle future client projects.

photo credit by shadphotos

Last summer I was doing some writing work for a client who I really liked and he asked if I had time to do a writing assignment for a friend of his. This was easy – 5 blog posts – so I said yes.

All freelancers reading this, PLEASE learn from my mistake!

Being the trusting soul that I am, I did not require payment up front nor did I even think to ask for half payment upfront. I was more focused on doing the job and getting that extra $100 into my bank account that it never crossed my mind. Afterall, I had never had issues with clients and non payment before so why would it start with this client?

Foolish attitude!

After I completed the 5 blog posts (which fortunately did NOT take that much time) I heard from the client that she loved them. I was thrilled that she was happy because I was hoping for a regular gig. So I went along and sent my handy dandy PayPal invoice.

Weeks went by and I received no payment. After sending some friendly inquiring emails, I got the standard response, “Oh, I missed seeing the invoice.” Then I heard, “The company doesn’t have a credit card; can we send you a check?” Figuring this would be the only way to get my money, I agreed and sent her my mailing address.

Needless to say (and I’m sure you’ve probably guessed by now) I’m STILL waiting for that check.

Lesson learned.

Here are some tips so you can avoid this exact situation. You work too hard to be stiffed!

1. Develop a payment policy and stick with it! Paypal is the easiest way for freelancers to accept online payments but you can’t force someone to pay that invoice. Many freelancers require half payment upfront before any work is started and then bill for the remaining 50% upon completion of the job. If a client is willing to give some payment upfront, they are most likely serious business people.

2. Discuss this payment policy with each client. Just as important as having a policy is making sure ALL your clients KNOW about the policy and agree to it. Don’t just put it somewhere on your website and “assume” that your clients will see it. Tell the clients about the policy either in your contact email or phone call, direct them to the page on your website to read, and have them sign a payment agreement before you start the job.

3. Consider charging a late payment fee. While it’s unlikely to receive payment within 24 hours of sending an invoice, freelancers shouldn’t have to wait longer than 10 days to receive payment. Sometimes a late fee will be a percentage of the total bill or it could be a flat dollar amount. Again, let your clients know about this ahead of time and send followup emails prior to charging the late fee. This might be the incentive they need to get the invoice paid.

4. Develop a collections plan if no payment is received. So, what’s your plan to get paid if your client disappears? You can register a PayPal grievance but that only works if your client has a PayPal account (mine did not). You can also pursue payment through small claims court or, if the amount is substantial, you can hire a contingency fee-based collections attorney.

No one likes to think of doing work with unscrupulous clients but sometimes things like this do happen. Thinking of these problems and solutions when you BEGIN your business can only help you in the future.

photo image by bertop

Step 3: Decide whether you want to publish a blog and where it should go.

In my last post, I listed three options for setting up your site: using a hosted service (which I recommended against), creating a self-hosted site using WordPress, or using Squarespace to create and publish your site. Whichever option you chose, you will now need to make your first big decisions about the structure of your site.

In this post, we’ll go through the first two big decisions you need to make. To learn how to implement your decisions on a technical level, I recommend that you review Getting Started With WordPress or the Squarespace Manual (depending on which service you chose). If there’s enough interest from people in the comments, I would also be happy to run a free webinar demonstrating how to do basic setup stuff in WordPress and/or Squarespace.

Note: If you are creating a self-hosted site with WordPress, you’ll need to install WordPress on your site before you do anything else. Luckily, most of the hosting providers out there (including the three I mentioned in my last post – Reliable Webs, Bluehost, and Godaddy) will install WordPress for you. You can either go into your control panel and navigate your way to the “install WordPress” button, or just call your hosting provider and ask them to install WordPress.

Now on to those “big decisions” I was telling you about.

1. Will your website have a blog?

The first decision you need to make is whether you want to have a blog on your website. You don’t have to. I emphasize that because if you’re not going to have the time to update your blog regularly, you probably shouldn’t publish a blog at all. A stale blog is much worse than no blog.

At the same time, a blog is a fabulous way to establish your expertise. If you have the time and writing ability to update your blog at least weekly, go for it. Just make sure that your blog is geared towards your prospective clients, rather than other people who do what you do.

2. Will your blog be on the homepage of your website?

Your blog doesn’t necessarily have to appear on the homepage of your site. Since the primary goal of your site as a freelancer is to sell your services, you may want to create a simple homepage that quickly tells visitors (1) what you do; (2) why they should hire you; and (3) how to contact you.

On the other hand, if your blog posts are well-written and provide information that would be useful for potential clients, you may want to keep it front and center.

Not sure what to do? Start looking at your competitors’ websites. See what you like and don’t like. Take the time to figure out what format would best show off your talent and abilities.

What’s next?

Between now and the next post, think about whether you want to publish a blog on your site, and if so, whether you want it to go on the home page. Once you make that decision, you can begin setting up the basic framework of your site. Starting next week, we’ll cover (1) the other pages you must have on your website; (2) how to customize the look of your site without spending a fortune; and (3) how to write web content that helps you get more clients.

Please share your questions and/or suggestions in the comments! The more direction you give me, the more useful these posts will be.

photo credit: tj scenes

Step 2 – Choose a web host and purchase a hosting package.

Two basic options: Hosted blog service or self-hosted.

There are two basic ways to publish a blog-based website: (1) use a hosted blog service, such as www.blogger.com or www.wordpress.com; or (2) use a self-hosted blog. What’s the difference? The main thing you need to know is that with a hosted blog service, you have a lot less control over your website. Different services have different rules about what you can and cannot do, and you should review those rules carefully if you’re considering using a hosted service.

If you really want your site to look professional and business-like, I recommend against using a service such as Blogger or WordPress.com. They may be easier to set up (and free), but you’re sacrificing the ability to completely customize your site.

Note: WordPress.com is a hosted blog service; WordPress.org offers WordPress blog software for free download, which you can then install on your self-hosted blog.

Setting up a self-hosted website.

If you’ve decided to take the plunge and set up a self-hosted website, congratulations! You’re on your way. I think you’ve made a good decision. Now it’s time to choose a hosting company.

There are literally hundreds of web hosts to choose from, and there’s no way I could list them all. Here are 3 web hosting companies that I believe to be reliable and user-friendly. I’m an affiliate of ReliableWebs, but not the other two:

1. ReliableWebs

2. Bluehost

3. GoDaddy

All three of these companies will install WordPress for you (one less thing to worry about). I recommend that you visit their websites, read about their offerings and pricing, and select the one that you think will work best for you.

You could also choose another company – I’m just trying to keep things simple. The important thing is just to select a company and purchase a basic hosting package (it should be less than $10/month).

One other option: Squarespace.

Just in case any of you are freaking out or feeling overwhelmed by the idea of a self-hosted site, I want to mention one other option: Squarespace. Squarespace is a hosted blog service, but it gives you far more control over your website than services like Blogger or WordPress.com. It has a lot of built-in options that make it easy to get your site up and running, and the learning curve is much shorter than with a self-hosted blog.

Unlike Blogger or WordPress.com, Squarespace isn’t free. After the 14-day free trial, you’ll have to pay $14/month for the version allowing custom domain names (meaning you can post your website to your own domain name, instead of on a domain name such as www.yourname.squarespace.com). But if you’ve ruled out self-hosted blogs because you think they’re beyond your technical ability, I strongly recommend Squarespace over the other hosted services. I built my first website (The Breadwinner Mom) with Squarespace and have been happy with it so far.

I put together this extremely brief video to show you what it’s like to set up a new site with Squarespace. It’s my first foray into the world of video so please let me know if you have any suggestions for improvement. Hope you find it useful.

(note to the curious: I don’t work for Squarespace and I don’t benefit financially if you use Squarespace. I just think it’s a good option for people who don’t have the time or inclination to learn about self-hosted blogs)

photo credit: KristianD

COMING FRIDAY: Step 3 – To Blog Or Not To Blog?

Traci Feit Love is a freelance writer, editor & communications consultant for businesses that need smart, impressive content. To learn more or to sign up for her free e-course, “How to Get More High-Paying Clients,” visit her website at http://tracifeitlove.com.

In light of that goal, I’ve put together a “Build Your Own Freelancing Website” series that I hope you will find helpful.

Each post in the series will cover one step in the process of building your own website, and I’ll be available to answer your questions about that step in the comments.

Please keep in mind that “building a website” is a huge topic and there’s no way I can cover everything. Maybe it’s better that way, since I got the impression that many of you are suffering from information overload on the subject of websites.

So we’re going to keep it simple. My plan is to just take you through the steps I followed to create my site. If that sounds good to you, read on!

Step 1: Choose and Reserve Your Domain Name.

The first thing you have to do is choose a domain name for your website. You can search for available domain names at Instant Domain Search, Go Daddy, 1 and 1, or elsewhere (there are a lot of services that sell domain names). In most cases your first choice for a domain name will be the name of your business, but you may find that someone else has already taken that name. What to do then?

You can use your own name (this is what I did), a name that describes what you do, or an abbreviated version of your business name. Whatever you do, just make sure that potential clients won’t accidentally end up on a competitor’s site when they’re looking for you.

If you’re having trouble finding a good domain name, try www.bustaname.com. You can enter a bunch of words that you would like to include, and it will give you a list of different options based on what’s available.

Once you find a domain name that you like AND that’s available, purchase it. It should cost you less than $10/year.

What else do you need to know about domain names? Please share your question(s) in the comments! To make sure you don’t miss a post in the series, subscribe to the Freelance Parent blog.

photo credit: KristianD

COMING WEDNESDAY: Step 2: Choose and Purchase a Web Hosting Service.

Traci Feit Love is a freelance writer, editor & communications consultant for businesses that need smart, impressive content. To learn more or to sign up for her free e-course, “How to Get More High-Paying Clients,” visit her website at http://tracifeitlove.com.

On the other hand, if you either (a) don’t have a website or (b) you have a website, but it’s not quite right – I’d like to help.

I’ve learned a LOT about creating and managing websites over the past couple of years, and it would be great to share some of that knowledge with my fellow freelancers. In that spirit, I’m planning to do a series of posts for you about how to build a professional website that will get you more clients – with limited time and limited funds.

The thing is, I don’t want to bore you with stuff you already know, and I don’t want to skip ahead to advanced material if you’re still stuck at the beginning.

So I need to know a few things from you:

1. If you don’t have a website, why not? What’s stopping you?

2. What are your biggest questions about creating and/or managing a website for your business?

3. If you already have a website but you’re not happy with it, why not? What would you like to change or improve? Would you like a free review of your website with suggestions for improvement (this would be a public review so you’d have to be ok with that)?

4. What resources do you think you need in order to create or improve your business website?

5. Anything else you’d like to know?

You can provide your answers in the comments, or, if you want to respond privately, click here for my contact information.

Thanks in advance for your responses – I’m really looking forward to answering your questions and helping you build or improve your website!

• 5 Must-Have Qualities to Become a Top Freelancer
• The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Marketing Your Business on Twitter
• Who’s Your Ideal Client?
• Is The Customer Always Right?
• 16 Things You Can Do Yourself to Create Word-of-Mouth for Your Business

What have I missed? Any other posts you think should be on this list? Please share in the comments!

Here is Part Two of my interview with Jan:

6. What are the qualifications a successful Author’s Assistant has?

A successful virtual author’s assistant knows how to provide the 24 services (or can choose to specialize in just some of them), but beyond that, I think there is an attitude and mindset that makes people successful.  Authors don’t know what they don’t know, so the VAA is part teacher and part collaborator, plus providing the assistant services.

While many VA’s accomplish what their clients ask them to, the VAA is often taking the lead in helping the author know what he or she needs, not just following a list of tasks.  There is a level of professionalism in the traditional book publishing industry that we teach VAA’s so that they can help their authors create a superior product, one just as well done as anything you would see in a bookstore.

So the really successful VAA takes initiative, likes variety, is good with both the big picture and details, is resourceful and doesn’t mind doing a lot of educating in the process.  If you really like books, this is a particularly gratifying job.  You get to see new books come out and most authors acknowledge the author’s assistant in the book itself which is especially fun.  It is wonderful to be a part of a tangible product – I have a bookshelf full of books I helped with and most VAA’s do, too.

7. How long is your training course? What topics are covered in the course?

The training course is self-paced and includes 37 short slidecast videos, where we take you through the web pages you will be working with.  It also includes 47 checklists, tools, planners and hundreds of links as resources.  When you register for the course you get the key to a password-protected web site that is the official headquarters for working VAA’s and those in training.

You can choose to take the course in a planned 30-day curriculum or take it subject-by-subject in any order you wish.  The 30-day structure is great for people brand new to virtual working, because it includes business set up information as well as the 24 services.  But for VA’s who might have a brand new client who needs something specific next week, they can go right to that item, learn it and use it, and come back to the other subjects as they have time.

We have had people finish the entire course in a long weekend when they were really motivated, but it takes an hour to two hours a day for 30 days, typically, so the participant can keep doing other work and learn this material at the same time.

8. When students finish the course, do they need any further training or are they ready to accept clients?

We have practice exercises throughout the course which simulate the experience of doing the actual tasks you will be performing with authors, so we think people are ready to go when they finish.  We also give sample language, emails, a proposal, an author’s assistant contract and many other tools to make the transition from learning to working as seamless as possible.

But, of course, we recognize that no matter how well prepared, most people are tentative when they take on something brand new.  It takes experience to have that really deep mastery of any subject, but we’ve done our best to use our experience to get them to that point as fast as possible.

I feel strongly that we best serve our clients when we work with them on what we know well and refer them to other experts when what they need is outside of our expertise and we talk a lot about what virtual author’s assistants should take on and when they should refer to someone else.  They don’t have to suddenly become book publishing experts to do this job, but after being trained they will know far more than the average person.

We think one of the biggest benefits of our training program is that it doesn’t end – ever.  We have a forum that VAA’s use to pose questions and challenges to publishing experts and their peer group.  We have live specialty classes where we help VAA’s keep up-to-date with the constantly changing book-publishing world.  And we never charge extra for any of these things.  Once you’ve taken the course, you have a place to learn, partner, collaborate and grow for the life of your business.

9. Do you teach students how to market themselves or where to find possible author clients?

Yes.  It was very important to us to get participants started right away working with authors.  Getting that all-important first client is the difference between having the confidence that you can do it and doubting it and perhaps subconsciously sending potential clients away.

We spend about 20% of the entire course work focused on marketing to authors.  We have actual marketing tools, including a video, articles, special reports and ebooks that are available to the VAA to give to authors to help them understand what a VAA does and how to work with them.

We built marketing into the 30-day curriculum, so that one of our goals is to have the VAA get his or her first client by the end of those 30 days.

We also put a lot of emphasis on selecting the right potential clients.  Not all authors make good clients.  Some are writing books as a hobby and may not have the budget for an assistant.  It is important for the VAA to know where to find good potential clients and we teach that as well as how to approach authors and how to set up a referral network that will keep the VAA stocked with clients.  We have a number of VAA’s who partner with other VAA’s so they can hand-off clients when they are too busy – yes, that actually happens!

Finally, we also have a directory of PVAA’s, the trained Professional Virtual Author’s Assistants who have completed the course. You can see that at www.AuthorsAssistants.com.  We market that heavily to writer’s groups.

10. What advice would you give to those who are struggling to make a living working from home?

It is really important to have a good set of marketable skills, have confidence in your ability to do great work for clients and get the word out.  What has really worked for me is to set up a referral network I can count on – other professionals working with authors who send their clients to me for what I uniquely do.

If you really work on setting up your own referral network, something we emphasize in the course, it will serve you well for a long time.  My author consulting business is 100% on referrals and has been for a long time.  My best source of referrals is my past clients, so doing great work for current clients is the best way you can assure yourself of future clients.  Marketing can be done in so many ways now – online, through social networking, by teaching webinars and teleclasses, in person at networking groups.  Pick what you like and what fits you and then really work it.  Persistence really does pay off!

Thank you so much, Jan, for sharing your experience and insight into the book publishing field and how VAs can develop some specialized skills for this author niche! For more information about Jan’s training program, visit VirtualAuthor’sAssistants.com

When you’re setting up a business, trying to find work, completing projects, handling administrative tasks, and trying to be a good parent at the same time, “branding” tends to sit quietly on the “when I have some free time” list. And we all know what happens to the stuff on that list.

I’ve been as guilty of this as anyone. I sort of have a brand – “smart writing for smart businesses.” But I haven’t spent enough time defining and building it. So I thought I’d do some research on branding, share my findings with you, and then try to apply that knowledge to my own business (I’ll keep you updated on that).

Here are the most important things I’ve learned so far about branding for freelancers:

1. Your brand has to quickly tell people what’s different about you. I like the way Dave Navarro put it in “3 steps to creating a freelancing brand that sells,” a guest post on the Freelance Folder blog: “Since the drop-dead easiest way to get extra business without extra work is by word of mouth, it’s up to you to give all of those mouths the word(s) they need to say.” In other words, it should be easy for people to tell others about you in a way that differentiates you from your competitors. What do you want people to say about you? What words should come to mind immediately upon hearing your business name? Do those words make it obvious why potential clients should choose you instead of someone else?

2. Your brand has to address a real need. This one is fairly obvious but extremely important – it’s pointless to build a brand around something people don’t care about. Make sure that your brand will really resonate with your target market.

3. Your brand should strike an emotional chord. Without an emotional aspect, your brand is boring and you won’t be able to command top-notch rates. That’s because your prospects are more likely to make decisions based purely on your rate if they view your service as an interchangeable commodity. If, on the other hand, your brand makes prospective clients feel something that makes them want to work with you, your rate becomes less of a deciding factor.

4. Consistency is key. Two types of consistency are important here. First, your message has to be consistent. What you tell people about you and your brand (through your logo, your blog posts, your social media activity, etc.) has to be consistent in order to make an impact. Second, the level of service you provide has to be consistent (consistently good – or consistently great if you’re selling yourself as the best in your field). People gravitate towards brands they can trust.

This is not meant to be a comprehensive list (branding is a huge topic), and I’m sure I’ve left out some important stuff – so please share your thoughts and suggestions in the comments! We can all learn a lot if we share our knowledge and experiences.

Recently I was introduced to Jan B. King, a publishing strategist and a publisher-turned-coach with over 30 years in the publishing industry.  She created a training program, VirtualAuthorsAssistants.com, especially for VAs who want to work with authors in the publishing field because this is a very high demand industry.

I love to read and this program really piqued my interest because to me, it’s very original and not a niche I ever realized existed. I always figured authors had their editors and publishing staff to do this stuff but not every author has those resources at their disposal.

Jan cordially granted me an interview about the specifics of her training program and some details about the publishing field. Here is Part 1 of our interview:

1. You’ve made your career in the book publishing industry. How did you transition from working in an office to working from home? Was it easy to do?

Yes and no.  In the physical sense, it was really easy.  I had an eight-year-old at home and being able to get him off to school and pick him up in the afternoon was just wonderful.  I live in Los Angeles, and I had a relatively short commute, about 30 minutes each way, but that saved me an hour a day at least, so I loved that part, too.

The toughest part was missing the co-workers who were long-time friends.  I had to make a real effort to get out and see them and stay connected because I couldn’t just walk into their offices any more.  I think if you don’t have work to do that you love it would be easy to be distracted, but for me the problem was working too many hours since the work was always right there.

2. What are some of the everyday tasks that are commonly performed on an author’s behalf?

When I left the corporate world and started consulting with authors and authors who were becoming their own publishers, they kept asking me for information on how to do the same things over and over.  I finally started noting them and I realized there were 24 things I was asked for most often.  These vary according to where the aspiring author or author is in the process of developing a book.

When the aspiring author is creating a manuscript, they typically ask for help in organizing their material or making sure it is all available in electronic form, in getting permissions to use quotes or statistics that were developed by others and in fact-checking or doing research.

When authors decide to publish their own books, they typically ask for help in getting the ISBN (International Standard Book Number), finding a cover designer, finding a printer, getting testimonials for the back cover and filing the copyright.

Then, for as long as an author wants a book to sell, he or she needs help in book marketing.  Authors typically ask for help in setting up their Amazon pages, doing virtual book tours, doing social networking, getting books out for review and more.

What is amazing these days is that all of these tasks can be done online or by telephone, so the job is perfect for someone working from home.  And you don’t need to be anywhere near the author geographically to do them.

3. Why did you create your course on how to become a Virtual Author’s Assistant?

When I was consulting with authors on their strategies as well as these specific services, I realized that although they were asking me for information on how to do these tasks, what they really wanted was for someone else to do it for them.  The learning curve for authors who are only going to do these things once is high and they are usually full-time busy themselves.

At the same time, I had started working part-time with a VA myself in my own business and I realized how capable she was of doing just about anything involving a phone and a computer.  In fact, she already had author clients – but she was handling customer service activities and correspondence for them rather than doing the specific publishing-related services.  It just seemed like such a natural fit for her to be able to offer more services and ones that were particularly valuable for these specific clients.

I started teaching her and then a few other VA’s how to do these things and then I started getting calls from other VA’s asking if I would work with them.  The training was just a natural next step in helping more people work with authors.  It has been great for me because I work with about 100 authors a year as a publishing strategist, and now I have people to refer authors to so I no longer have to do all the explanation I used to with the authors.  I absolutely love training and coaching VA’s because they love to learn and they are usually obsessive about details and getting things right.

4. What are the benefits to hiring a Virtual Author’s Assistant rather than a “regular” virtual assistant?

For authors, working with a virtual author’s assistant is like having the perfect collaborator for your book.  They get someone who understands the process of writing, publishing and marketing a book from A to Z, which most authors don’t.  And the VAA comes (because of our course) with two additional benefits – a referral network of editors, indexers, copywriters, book designers and more, plus they have access to publishing experts so any time the author has a new challenge, we help the VAA find the answer.

So not only does the author get all the benefits of working with a VA – great work ethic, administrative skills and the flexibility of having expertise just when the client needs it – but they also have these specialized skills and connections just for authors, aspiring authors and publishers.

Oddly enough, there is no “author school” – no place where writers can learn the skills they need to know to write a book, let alone publish or market it.  The way I learned publishing, and everyone else in the publishing industry learned publishing, is by working with more senior people, usually in a publishing company.  It is hard to describe how valuable these services are to authors, but even more how valuable the perspective of a VAA is – someone who knows the process and knows the author isn’t leaving something out that would be critical to success.

5. In general, what pay range can an Author’s Assistant command?

We ask our VAA’s this from time to time and we have heard a wide range – from $30 to $80 an hour.  One of the full-time VAA’s has reported making over $100K a year working with authors, and I don’t doubt it.  The amount charged varies by experience, geographic location and the type of services provided.  Authors tend to be willing to pay more for book marketing services, especially the newer online book marketing services like virtual book tours, Amazon campaigns and social networking.

A typical VAA will have between 4 and 7 author clients, depending on how much work they want to take on.

The demand for these services is already high and growing fast.  Even with the economic challenges, there are a record number of people becoming authors.  Up until about 2005, about 150,000 new trade (bookstore-type) books would be published every year.  That number started to grow and it has recently been announced by the people who keep those stats that over just the past 12 months, the number of new trade books has grown to 500,000 – way beyond predictions.

And here is what is especially significant – over half of that number were books published by their authors.  We couldn’t train enough author’s assistants to meet demand if wanted to!

Jan provided SO  much information about the Virtual Author’s Assistant niche that I decided to break the interview into two parts. If this niche appeals to you, check out Part 2 tomorrow and Jan’s website, VirtualAuthorsAssistants.com