Do You Want to Market the Easy Way — Or the Way That Will Land You Freelance Writing Gigs?
Many writers ask me, “What’s the easiest way to find clients?”
Well, here’s the thing: Do you want the easiest way to market — or do you want the way that will actually land you gigs?
I’ve discovered there’s an inverse relationship between how easy a marketing technique is and how effective it is.
For example: When I built my own prospect list several years back using a business directory at the library, called to verify names, and snail mailed sales letters, I got an 11% response rate of people asking for my information kit — and enough gigs to kick-start my career in copywriting.
But when I downloaded a mailing list from Hoovers a couple of years ago and mailed my letter to them, all I got was a guy e-mailing me to complain that his name had been spelled wrong.
Writers who research markets and send out well-written query letters and letters of introduction make way more money than those who pick the low-hanging fruit from the content mills and bidding sites.
I get better leads sending InMails to businesses that have looked at my LinkedIn profile than relying on my profile to entice people to contact me.
When I tried to attract copywriting clients via Google ads several years ago, I got zilch — not even a nibble.
In short: Shoe leather counts. There’s a huge difference between going out and asking people for work (yay!) — and doing the virtual equivalent of lying there on the couch and hoping prospects and editors will come to you (boo).
Of course, it’s a great idea to have a compelling website that ranks high for your search terms, and a good LinkedIn profile, and a nice Twitter bio. But those tactics equal you waiting around and making other people do the work instead of you going out there and drumming up work.
Don’t be like most struggling writers who take the easy way and then whine that they’re not making any money. Find out where your markets are and go after them with letters of introduction, query letters, sales letters, warm calls and cold calls, LinkedIn InMails, DMs on Twitter, and other forms of contact.
These are proven ways to get work. They’re not as easy as downloading a premade list or throwing an ad out there — but they’re more effective.
How about you: What’s been your most effective marketing technique for getting writing gigs? [lf]
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May 24, 2012 Advice, Marketing, Money, Motivation
Did you know the old adage that someone has to “see” your name 7 times for it to register is now 13 times or something like that? All those beeps, tweets, inmails–it’s cyber hassling. As for mailing, when you call after, they say oh, I never saw that, can you send it again. But if you call first, they say send a card–that’s stupid–just ask on the phone. This game gets tricky. Anyhow people don’t answer much anymore.
Thanks for your insights!
I agree. The more personalized I make my LOIs, the higher my response rate is. It helps me stand out, and it shows that I’ve done some research on the target publication, which I’m sure the editors appreciate.
Interesting! How personalized do you make them…what do you do beyond changing the name of the editor and maybe mentioning the magazine or an article that ran in there? Anything else?
If I have a connection to the industry, either from work experience or life experience, I include that. I also like to include a mention of having written for other publications published by the same company, and if the publication has recently won an award, I mention that, too.
Thanks for these great tips, Elizabeth!
This is excellent advice and so true. It reminds of a news story I heard on public radio several years back. Some well-known author (I do not recall his name or genre) was running a contest where entrants had to send him correspondance. What struck me was that he would only accept handwritten or typed letters. No email. His reasoning was that writing and sending a traditional letter required thought and effort to do. As such he promised he would personally read every letter he received. People (and that includes editors) want to feel special and appreciated. A persoanlized traditional letter is one of the simplest ways to do that. It can also be done with email if extra effort is made to persoanlize it.
That’s an interesting story! And so true. When I run contests I often ask people to write a comment or an essay…not just throw their names into the hat. When I gove away a course seat or book, I want to make sure it’s going to someone who will use it.
I just wrote a story on the teaching of penmanship–and my editor said basically, oh, do we even need that anymore? He had never heard of the Palmer Method much less the more streamlined, unslanted technique I was writing about. I asked him–do you own a pencil? What if the electricity goes out? what if you run out of batteries? What about notetaking where laptops are not allowed…what about a lot of things? This is a brave new world here…and I guess I am not that brave. I wonder if editors would read a handwritten letter. I used to have (or make) stationery and write paper pitches–I got no more answers than from email. Just no answer. At least reject me!
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That’s excellent advice! When I started my own PR business 35 years ago I soon discovered, as you did, that direct mail to cold lists didn’t work. So I developed an ‘intensity mailer’ trick that worked a dream.
I found a suitable suspect – of major but not mega potential. I studied their brochures and Company Accounts. I bought something from them. If they were a retailer, I visited their store.
Then I wrote a personal 20-page letter to the CEO, gently suggesting three things they might do at once to enhance their sales – and dropping in actual statistics about their business.
That’s a step that few folk trouble to do.
Result: every letter led to a meeting. One client hired me on the spot after saying ‘Son,’ (I was young in those days) ‘you’re a hustler’. My hopes fell. He then smiled and said ‘You’re just like I was, at your age.’
That client stayed with me for eight years.
Yes, you have to work on new business. But the simplest way is to… study your potential clients in depth before you approach them!
A 20-page letter…LOVE it!
John, that is an amazing idea. Were I a CEO of company, I know I’d pay attention to that!
Duh, what I meant to write was a ’2-page letter’
However, it promised a personal depth-researched report on the CEO’s business, when they responded to my letter. And I would deliver that report in person (no way was I going to mail it). And very often it did stretch to 20 pages.
That said, I did once promote high-end conferences with personalized 20-page letters. I knew only 0.5% of my recipients would read to page 20 but, as the events cost $2500 upwards, I needed only a 0.5% response to do very well indeed.
I hate to say this but the post from Bamidele Onibalusi in October seems to contradict this post here. So I am left asking: who is right?
Or is this the case that both people are right and it just depends on circumstances as to which one is applicable to which person?