Wow…what a weekend.
1 commentI posed a question about answering your questions, and more than a few if you surprised me with variations on a theme. That theme:
“Write a bigger e-book and sell it.”
If course, perhaps it shouldn’t surprise me…this is a group of writers after all. But that goes against two of the basic tenets I set out with when I started this site: make the information accessible fast, and put it out for free.
It would solve the problem I wrote about. If I sold a full-length e-book based on the Copywriter Survival Guide (at this point, with all the extra chapters I’d add based on your questions, we’re looking at about 250 pages or so), then I could focus on writing it over the course of about two months, taking time off from other work to get it done.
Which is where this starts to get pretty hairy. If I put the time in and no one decides to buy it (and who can blame them…this is supposed to be a Free-Resource site)…then I’m out two-month’s salary. Which, let’s face it, isn’t a fun prospect to look at.
So, I’ve decided once again to leave it in your hands.
First, let me detail what the book would cover:
Right now, I’m looking at 17 Chapters
1. Introduction
2. Maslow and the Hierarchy of needs (a more in-depth study than my post here)
3. Water
4. Fire
5. Shelter
6. Food
7. Teach a Man to Fish (the art of copywriting)
8. A Good Knife (the copywriter’s most indispensible tool)
9. Tracking (getting inside the mind of your target)
10. Toolmaking (How-to’s on a wide range of copywriting formats, print, radio, newsletters, Web, email, brochures, etc)
11. Navigation (Dreams, Goals and planning for increasing success)
12. Living with the Land (Waste-nothing tactics for turning each job into recurring, residual income)
13. Trapping (Getting clients to come to you, instead of you looking for them)
14. Quicksand and Predators (Important legal and tax concerns copywriters must know about.)
15. Should I Stay or Should I go Now? (To expand your niche, go general-purpose, or move on to greener pastures)
16. Giving Back to the Land (You get what you give…so what should you give?)
17. Beyond Survival (A down and dirty primer for moving past survival mode and “getting civilized” as a successful writer).
Well, there you have it. That’s what I have planned. I have no idea if you want to pay for this or not…but I’m hoping you DO have an idea.
So here’s the deal: I’m going to take the next week and write one chapter (the chapter I think MOST people will be interested in seeing right away; the chapter on Water)
On the 7th of April, around noonish, I’ll put it up for sale on the site for just $7. In order to keep the site uncluttered and to truly gauge interest, I’ll make it available for just 24 hours. On the 8th of April, I’ll gauge the results. If there is enough interest, then I’ll make plans to write the entire thing, and try to have it out by the end of May.
The good news, then, will be that, since the basic survival information will all be available there, I can move ahead with the blog and the special reports, and start getting into the real, high-impact business-building, money-making stuff. Which, to me would be really cool.
But, first things first. If you’re still stuck in survival mode, you might not even be ready for that yet. So, I’m going to be posting sparsely this week, as I’ll trying to finish up Son of a Niche (you don’t even want to know about the resst of my weekend. Ugh) and writing the chapter on Water.
And we’ll go from there!
Here’s to your success!
One more reason to look into the online freelancing sites
comment now!I’ve talked a fair bit about sites like Guru and Elance, and how they should be a part of your search for paying work, albeit a small part. And I also advise picking one or the other to pursue jobs on. There’s no need to frequent both a couple of times a month. One will suffice.
That said, I would create a profile on both sites. I did this when I was first looking into the sites and trying to decide which seemed more worth it. I ended up going with Guru.
But I also opted to leave my free profile up at Elance. Two days ago I got a contact from a fairly well-known co-blogger. His business has picked up and he just can’t keep up the pace with the blog. He saw my profile on Elance, followed the link to my site, liked what he saw and asked if I’d be interested in ghostwriting his posts for a couple of different blogs.
Now, keep in mind…I’ve bid on maybe five jobs on Elance, back when I was first testing it out. But I don’t think I’ve even logged on for, like a year and a half. And I’ve gotten three sizeable jobs, just from people stumbling upon my profile. This one is recurring income, with 4-figures per month (one more step toward keeping me on-track for a six-figure year). And it’s gonna be fun work.
No, “setting & forgetting” profiles alone won’t get you rich, but as I’ve said before, the easier it is for people to find you, the more people will. And you’ll get occasional surprise gigs out of the blue, without having to lift a finger to find them.
Using Imagery to Evoke Emotion
comment now!Okay, so let’s talk a little bit about craft—and how to evoke emotion in your copy.
Why evoke emotion in the first place? Because you can’t make anyone buy your client’s product if they don’t already want to. But that’s okay, because making them want to isn’t all that hard…but it requires connecting with them emotionally on some level first.
And the single best way to do that, as poets and novelists have known for centuries, is through the use of imagery. Imagery illustrates the abstract and allows the reader to engage with it in a rael and tangible way. What do I mean? Here are a few examples.
People don’t get excited about love as an abstract concept. But they will react to a young man on one knee in the middle of a posh restaurant, ring in hand, heart pounding as he looks up hopefully…the entire restaurant holding its collective breath in anticipation of her response. They will react to the mother seeing her own reflection in the eyes of her infant girl as she stares down in amazement and wonder at the smiling face looking back at her. At the nervous euphoria of a clumsy first kiss. At the warmth flooding the adolescent boy’s cheeks as his note is intercepted by the teacher.
Imagery can be used to quickly convey powerful emotions that we have all felt at one time or another. We empathize, and even feel the emotion inside ourselves. And that emotion is the potential for action. Once the chord is struck, all that remains is to channel that emotion into the action we desire…where to buy the ring, where to deliver the baby, where to buy the corsage, what phone to text with.
Look at the action you want the prospect to take: where can you find the potential energy to drive that action…love? ambition? laziness? boredom? fear? humor? (careful with those last two). Now, what image can you tap into to help the prospect experience those emotions?
Imagery is like the key in the engine of your ad, just sitting there waiting to be turned. Go on…give it a go.
What we’re doing here…
comment now!Hopefully you read my post on Maslow and the Hierarchy of Needs. So, what does that have to do with this site?
Well, As I said, the first needs are survival, and they must be met before you can focus on any higher-level needs. From a copywriting perspective, that essentially means that you must believe that you can actually make money doing this. That is why I recommend you start off with the “10 Days to Paid” and “Boot Camp” ebooks.
Next, you’ll need to achieve the “safety” level. For our purposes, that meas that you will need to start develop a little regular business coming in. Boot Camp will help with this, as will some of the posts here on the site. Plus, the FST prompts start building routines that will build the skills you need to run your business over time.
After Safety, comes Connection. That is, you need to develop a sense of community. This takes place in several areas: connection with other writers, with other business service providers, and even within your local, regional, even national business communities. Connection is essential in truly growing your business, but it will not come naturally until you feel SAFE in your new role as copywriter…which, in turn can’t happen until you have the exxentials you need to survive.
See how each level doesn’t just build, but DEPENDS on the level before? And does that help explain why, at this point, you don’t like to do cold calls? Why you don’t like networking in your local business community? Deep down, it has nothing to do with the fact that you don’t like sales. It’s that you either don’t feel safe in this new role yet, or you don’t yet believe you can survive.
So work backwards, try to make five calls in the morning, and five calls in the evening. If you still can’t bring yourself to do even that, then you need to work through “10 Days” again…maybe you need to strengthen your portfolio. Maybe you need to read up a little more on just what it is copywriters DO, or the businesses you’re pursuing. Or maybe you just need to get on Guru or Elance and get a few small jobs under your belt, to prove to yourself that you can do it.
But once you get to where you’re comfortable at the connection level, you’ll find you business starting to thrive. You’ll feel like a true colleague to your clients, rather than just another vendor.
Then you’re ready for the Self-Worth stage…you believe you’re not just capable of making it as a freelance copywriter, but you’ll realize you deserve top dollar for your work. You quit looking to outside sources to justify your rates. You no longer feel nervous asking for $75, $85, $125 an hour for your work. In fact…you don’t ask at all. People ask you, and you tell them how much it will cost. Very matter-of-fact. They’ll pay it, or they won’t, and you’ll move on to the next client.
And finally, you reach the stage of self-actualization. Creativity kicks in and possibilities open up before you. You approach clients you never thought you would…and get a yes. You realize…hey, I know how to promote a business…I think I might just promote a side business or two of my own! You realize you have time and money…and you no longer have to trade one in order to have more of the other.
Now…if all this sounds great, but you’re just rolling your eyes and saying “yeah, right,” that’s perfectly all right. Because you’re not at that self-actualization stage, yet. But all of the information I’m giving you is designed specifically to help move you through these stages as quickly as your own pace allows.
It will take some longer to get out of the survival or security phases, because they have more fear and inexperience to work through. And that’s fine…you can still get paid while you work through them. You don’t have to reach the top before you can be successful…but you do have to be there before you can enjoy it to the utmost.
Which is why I specifically set out to push you in some places. It’s why I tell you to make 20 calls a day in “Boot Camp.” First, it forces you out of your comfort zone, which is the only way you’re going to grow. Second, while you’re stretching, your setting the stage for the work to come in, which will help you transcend Survival that much faster.
It’s why Connection is an essential component of Son of a Niche (as you’ll soon see), even though it is primarily designed to instill the concept of safety. That way, while you create safety, you are priming the pump for the connection phase.
The point here is not “read this book, and make money…then read the next book and make money.” The point is, “do this to believe you can do it…then do this to create a security blanket…then do this to create an incredible network…then do this to understand how much you rock…then to this to realize your full potential as a writer and business person.” Each writer will have his own pace with each step…but here you’ll get specific tools to help you do it. And maybe to understand your own growth process at the same time.
Look at the things (doubts, fears, emotion, etc) holding you back from the things you SHOULD be doing. Ask why, in terms of the Hierarchy, and see where you are in the process. There’s nothing wrong with being in survival mode…only with being complacent and staying there.
So, let’s get going!
The Amazing Mister Maslow
comment now!So, where does all this “survival mode” business come from? Yes, I like playing in the woods, but the true source of this training is a man by the name of Abraham Maslow.
Maslow was a man concerned with human behavior. He studied men and their quirks and their motivations, and the result of that study was something he dubbed the Hierarchy of Needs.
According to Maslow, a person could only reach his full potential—he could only be really creative and productive—if he reached the point of self actualization. And in order to get there, he first had to have a few things.
First, he had to have the basic elements of survival. Second, he had to have a sense of security. Third, he had to have a sense of connection with others as equals. Fourth, he had to believe in his own self-worth. Only then coud he attain self actualization, which according to Maslow, encompassed “morality, creativity, honest, spontaneity, lack of prejudice, acceptance of the facts.”
Wikipedia offers an excellent starting point for a better understanding of Maslow’s hierarchy…which will give you a better understanding of what’s going on here at CSG.
Your First?
comment now!I’ve related the story before of how my first freelance gig landed me a full-time job with an agency. But I don’t think I actually talked about that gig itself.
It was a radio spot. In fact, it was a radio spot for a local day spa promoting gift certificates for the upcoming holiday season. I was on-site on a Saturday. The job took a little over 5 hours and I got $210 for it.
What was your first paid assignment?
Avalanche!!!
comment now!Whew.
Working on this weeks ebook, Son of a Niche, which is more involved, because I’m doing a side-by-side, real-time case study to go along with it so you can see how it works…and I’m falling behind because I’m stopping to read all your questions!
Seriously, I just closed my email so I could focus.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not telling you to stop emailing me. On the contrary, I want to know what you guys want to know more about. I just had no idea the kind of response I’d get when I decided to open things up for questions.
So keep ‘em coming. I’ve set up an email account here at the site just for you guys to handle the flow, so we don’t end up with an “inbox full” situation and your questions don’t get bounced. Just send email to me at danny@copywritersurvivalguide.com.
As I’ve already told the people who are on the FreelanceSurvivalGuide list, I’ve got topics to five new ebooks headed your way based on your questions, AND I’ll be answering the questions that won’t require an ebook right here on the blog (as you might have noticed). And don’t worry, I won’t name names if I answer your question here.
Thanks again in your interest in the site. I hope people are getting something out of this.
Here’s to your success!
“Cold calling really makes me feel uncomfortable.” So don’t.
1 commentThis came to me from a reader in response to the Boot Camp and yesterday’s “5 ways to get work” post .
If you read Boot Camp, then what I suggest I don’t really consider a sales cold call…because you’re not selling anything. You’re just calling to ask a few questions.
I think what this reader might really mean, though, is “I don’t want to call this complete stranger.”
That one is a little more difficult. This would be a truly great world if people just knew about you, and lined up at your door each morning at 9 a.m., just waiting for you to provide them with fantastic copy. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way (well, it does sometimes…and this week’s upcoming addition to the library will help a bit with that).
You don’t have to call, of course. If you can hunt down an email, you can drop them a line…or really drop them a line and write them an introduction letter or send them a postcard.
However, none of those options are going to give you as good results as a single phone call. With one call, you can gain a rapid understanding of whether there is a need and/or an interest for your services.
The only other alternative I can think of is if you can arrange a referral to this person. You know, they say that a person is only separated by any other person on the planet by six degrees of separation. So, maybe you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows this person.
But that still seems like a lot more work than making a simple three-minute phone call where you don’t even ask for any business. What’s the worst that can happen? He’ll say “No thanks. I’m not interested.” In which case, you haven’t lost anything. He wasn’t your client before. He’s not your client now. Nothing has changed…except now he knows you’re out there.
And once you’ve made that first call…than any future calls won’t be cold calls!
So, no, don’t make a cold call and ask for business. I don’t recommend that, because people would rather buy from people they have a relationship with. So, instead, call to try and establish a relationship. Call to introduce yourself to a new colleague, not a new customer.
Does that help at all?
A “Spirited Debate.”
comment now!I’ve been coaching one of my non-writer writer friends for the past few months. When he saw the announcement that I was going to be adding a new free report every week, he got a little indignant.
“What’s the deal. You told me that the firs rule of freelancing was to “never write anything for free, unless is has significant PR potential.”
And he’s right. That’s a general rule of mine.
But here’s the deal: this is different. This is neither PR, nor charity. This is a form of contribution for me. It’s the only way I know to easy my conscience for what God, or karma, of fate, or whatever has given to me.
I’ve told you all about the friends who have given up. But it goes farther than that. Back when I was an English major, there was a certain sense of despair that ran as an undercurrent. There were basically two options that presented themselves to us: remain in academia and teach, or go out, get a real job, and write on the side in hopes of making it big.
That was it. Fight for tenure, or fight for publication. The future of an English major.
I can’t help but wonder where all my classmates are now? How many of them made it into the relatively few teaching positions? How many of them took some other job, and actually saw their work in print? Hell, even the Writer’s Guild had to go on strike just to get a few cents per DVD and download…and that won’t even START for a few years.
And here I am, cruising along, happily writing for a living in my own little bubble of a world!
No, I feel Karma breathing heavily down the back of my neck. So, I’m sharing what I’ve learned since from not only in my 6 years as a copywriter, but the four years before that as manager and trainer. I want to hear those stories a week, or a month, or a year down the road: “I just got my first check!” “I just got my first referral!” “I just got my first long-term retainer check!” I don’t even care if I get a thank-you or not. I just want to know that others are making it; that they’re not giving up.
You get what you give, and that’s not just in terms of effort in your own sales or for your own clients. But in terms of your time and your willingness to help others learn from your experience.
So, yes. I’m writing for free. I’m writing a lot for free. I’m giving away the freaking farm. But that’s between me and the Gods of Copy.
5 Ways to Get New Clients This Week
comment now!Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend!
Let’s talk about a few ways that can earn you a couple of new clients, THIS WEEK!
1. Let’s start early: with the morning paper. Go straight to the business section. Look for signs of positive growth in businesses—not markets, but specific businesses. What are signs of growth? Acquisitions. Quarterly earnings reports. Product launches. Purchases of new equipment. Moving to a new location/facility. A new business opening in town. Etc.
Next, check out the want ads. No, you’re not looking for copywriting jobs here. Well…okay, you are…but not in the normal fashion. Peruse the jobs section. Look for companies that are hiring for multiple positions, or lots of people for a particular position. If you’re really lucky, there will be an email address where applicants can send their resumes. This won’t be the person you’re looking for, but it will give you the company’s basic email structure: is it First.Last@Company.com? FLast@Company.com? FirstL@Company.com? Once you have that, all you really need is to take the name of the actual contact for marketing, PR or communications, and plug it into the standard email structure for the company.
Next, go to the Metro section. Look for any possible opportunities. Is a new restaurant opening? Is the city trying to start some new initiative? Is a local Non-Prof hosting a silent auction (or whatever)? Signs of active businesses or groups are signs of an organization that could be willing to hire you.
Finally, peruse the ads throughout the paper. Look for the really big, but really bad ads. If a person can afford a large ad buy, he or she can afford a decent ad…he or she just might not be sure where to turn. There’s a good chance the paper designed the ad for free in return for the big buy (and even if the designer’s good, the paper’s not going to take the time to do the proper research to ensure a good ad).
Now, get online to find the appropriate contact info for these companies, and call them, one-by-one, not to ask for work, but to simply see if they ever use freelancers, and if they’d mind a follow up email with some samples of your work. That’s all you’re asking for: permission to continue the conversation.
2. That telemarketer you just hung up on? Who were they calling for? There is a company spending money on its marketing. Find a name and give the company a call.
3. Where do you spend your money? Where do you eat? Work out? Bank? Get your clothes dry-cleaned? Shop? Take your dog when she’s sick? Take your car when she’s sick? The best part about working with the businesses you frequent is the opportunity to do trade-outs—not spending money can be just as lucrative as making it.
4. Recession starting to hit close to home? Keep your ear to the ground. When rumors start floating around about potential layoffs, it is often simply a way to soften the blow and give employees time to find different work.
If you start to hear such rumblings about a company, contact the HR department. Preferably the V.P. or Manager overseeing the department. Offer them a resume-writing service at a reasonable price that they can, in turn, offer to their soon-to-be-laid-off employees for free, as a way to make the process easier. You could also include a free report on tips for landing that next job.
5. Check your mail. Those sales letters don’t write themselves. Each one is a potential job to be had. And sales letters can be a very lucrative business.
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