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LinkedIn3 ways to attract higher paying clients and avoid the $10 content mills
Back in February, I warned you about CrowdSPRING, another in a long line of “content mill” sites that professional writers should avoid.
Today, Matt Ambrose makes his debut on Pro Copy Tips with some advice on how to avoid these nefarious content mills and earn what you’re really worth.
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If you’re new to the freelance writing world, you might be worried about the poverty-inducing wages offered at “content mills” and freelance bidding websites.
Well, you’re not alone.
There’s no shortage of writers outraged at what they feel is a slap in the face for the sweat and tears that goes into a piece of writing. Some think these sites even threaten the future of the profession.
After all, how are you supposed to persuade clients to pay you $200 for an article when there’s a glut of “writers” happy to fight bidding wars over $10?
But while some writers might be happy to chain themselves to a conveyor belt and churn out 20 articles a day, it doesn’t mean you have to.
There are a number of ways you can find clients that will pay you a fair rate for your copywriting skills.
Admit it. Why do you really freelance?
Today there’s a flood of people who want to freelance.
And if you listen to some of the freelance gurus, you’d think it’s because of the money.
It’s true. You can easily make $50K a year working just a few hours a week. And 6 figures isn’t all that hard if you freelance full-time. With a little skill, plus some persistence, you can get to $200K or $300K or more.
But that’s not why I got into freelancing.
Back in the 90s, I got into freelancing because I hated all the jobs I had.
Paint mixing guy in a hardware store. Radio account executive. TV producer. Nonprofit development director. English teacher.
So when people ask me why I freelance, I tell them it’s a better lifestyle. I’m just not cut out for a 9-to-5 job. I don’t like ties. I don’t like rigid schedules. I don’t always play well with others. So freelancing is ideal for me.
Plus, I have a ton of other interests I need time for, including politics, competitive target shooting, cycling, and gardening.
What about you?
4 winning secrets of superstar direct mail copywriters
In the world of copywriting, there’s an unspoken pecking order. And despite the growth of the Internet, direct mail copywriters are still the superstars.
Here’s an article by direct mail superstar Hugh Chewning about working as a copywriter in a business or agency, redefining yourself, and becoming more than just a hired hand.
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When I was first starting my direct mail career thirty-some years ago, I wanted to become a copywriter. It was exciting and glamorous — the fighter pilot position within a direct mail agency.
Yet my mentor advised me to become a direct mail “generalist” rather than a copywriter. Copywriters, he warned, were “a dime a dozen.”
Well I took his advice and before I started writing copy, I learned about list selection, print production, how graphics affect results, what to test and how to analyze results.
Yet after all that, I make the bulk of my money from copywriting.
And over the years, I’ve tested against copywriters who wrote prettier words, enjoyed reputations more widespread and commanded larger fees.
And repeatedly, I’ve beaten them!
$#!* Happens! A dirty story about freelancing success
It was about 11:00 a.m. when we started up the mountain outside of San Pedro Sula in the northwest corner of Honduras.
The humid air lay heavy and still in the valley below, causing the fields of sugar cane to shimmer in the hot sun.
We were videotaping b-roll for a few TV spots one of my fundraising clients wanted to test. Our task that day was the same as it had been every day that week: to capture images of the devastating poverty these people suffer.
The camera crew donned their battery belts, cables, and assorted gear and we followed the narrow dirt path toward the shacks above.
As we ascended a steep rise and veered to the right, we came across a young boy toting an armload of dry firewood. One of our videographers wanted to shoot this and positioned himself in the middle of the path.
That’s when it happened. And to understand what happened, you must understand the term “wrap-and-throw.”
Can freelancers REALLY make 6 figures a year?
I won’t keep you in suspense. The answer is yes.
There’s a lot of hype about this, of course. And unfortunately, the hype has caused many would-be freelancers to be cynical about their earning potential.
Some years ago, while speaking to a roomful of writers at a local conference, I encountered one young man who kept rolling his eyes during my presentation.
When I asked if he had a question or comment, he told me that he just didn’t believe that you could earn lots of money from freelance copywriting. He said it all sounded like a scam.
I can’t blame him for thinking that. I see all those get-rich-quick ads on the Internet too, and they make me roll my eyes.
Are you gambling with your freelance future?
This last weekend, I went to Las Vegas to visit family and enjoy a little R&R.
I’m not a gambler and have no illusions about winning a jackpot, but I do enjoy some of the games there.
While feeding money into a slot machine at Bally’s, I started thinking about freelancing. (Slots don’t take any brain power, so the mind naturally wanders.)
It occurred to me that many of the freelancers I talk to are gambling with their future because they just don’t know how to intelligently play the game.
So here are a few of the things that popped into my mind as I doubled my money, then lost it all over the weekend.
8 rules for setting your freelance copywriting fees
Setting fees causes most copywriting freelancers to break out in a cold sweat. Besides getting clients, it may be the most stressful thing copywriters have to do.
Ask for too much, and you’ll drive clients away. Ask for too little, and you’ll lose respect and reduce your income. To make matters worse, no two clients are ever the same. Some are willing to pay more, others less.
So what’s a freelance copywriter to do?
Over the years, I’ve struggled with this, made every possible mistake, and discovered these 8 rules for setting professional-level freelance copywriting fees.
1. Don’t underprice yourself. This is probably the most common mistake freelancers make, especially early in their career. There are at least four reasons this happens.
First, fees vary widely from writer to writer. There is no industry “standard.”
Second, most freelancers don’t make their entire fee schedule public. This makes it impossible to separate truth from hype about what copywriters actually charge.
Third, too many writers are brainwashed into thinking that their work has little value.
Fourth, many writers charge ridiculously low fees. This distorts the perception of both clients and writers and can make even moderate fees seem high by comparison.
The freelancer’s short guide to getting paid
Recently, I wrote about freelance contracts, the point being to weed out bad clients at the beginning of a project and improve the odds of getting paid.
But what happens when a client doesn’t pay on time or refuses to pay altogether?
Let’s begin by looking at the right way to invoice for your freelance services.
After you’ve completed your work, make sure the client is happy and has received everything you have promised. This is important because you may think you’re finished when, actually, the client has a few extra changes to make.
Also, if you send documents by email, there’s always the chance they will get caught in a spam filter or may get lost in a client’s in-box.
Once you’ve confirmed the project is truly finished and your client is satisfied, send your invoice within a few days. There’s something irritating about sending a bill too soon, but you don’t want to drag it out either.
I create my invoices in OpenOffice from a template, save them as a PDF, and email them as an attachment. I add the words “Please confirm receipt” at the top of my email message and use the delivery status notification and return receipt features in my Thunderbird email program. Again, you want to be sure the email gets through.
In most cases, your invoice will be paid on time. But if it’s not, here are some tips:
7 elements of a solid freelance copywriting contract
Freelance copywriters can be a bit shy about the business end of freelancing, especially when it comes to contracts.
That’s because most freelancers are writers first and business people second.
But contracts are an essential part of any copywriting business. Why? Three reasons:
1. A contract helps you set a businesslike tone at the beginning of a project.
2. A contract specifies and clarifies your responsibilities and the obligations of your client, primarily the work you will do and what the client will pay.
3. A contract acts as a screening device to weed out bad clients.
For me, that last point is the most important.
Are you the job type or the freelance type?
If you want to make a career of copywriting, should you look for a full-time job or strike out on your own as a freelancer?
Good question.
With the economy the way it is, there’s a lot of curiosity about freelancing. So much so that I created a copywriter information center on my business site with quite a bit of information about this.
Over my career, I’ve done both the job thing and the freelance thing and have come to the conclusion that freelancing is what I like best.
I earn good money, set my own hours, and don’t have to deal with the stress of traffic, corporate politics, and an office full of idiots and suck-ups.
Oh, and no ties. I hate ties. I work in jeans and Hawaiian shirts (which I love but my wife thinks are ugly). Yes, I know I’m wearing a tie in my publicity photo, but I did it just that once. And with therapy, I’ve recovered fairly well.
But that’s just me. What’s best for you?
