OK, so this is going to sound so sales-y but it’s not a sales message at all.
I’m not even asking you to buy something. I just didn’t want to open this blog post bombarding you with questions.
Here I go.
Are you tired of applying to job boards and hoping for responses? Or feeling tempted to sign up for a marketplace to increase visibility? Well, I’ve got the SPECIAL TRICK, RIGHT HERE, FOR ONLY $9,999,999! ON SALE TODAY FOR…!
OK, I’m kidding, I’m kidding. I promised you no sales. But what I do promise you is a way to change course if you’re feeling like that ☝️
It wasn’t until I heard the concept of becoming your own case study that I was in the same place as you. Up there, spending half my time on client work and the other half finding client work.
The idea of becoming your own case study is simple in theory: when someone finds you online, anywhere online, make it known that you are the one they should hire.
You’re doing that, right? You:
✅ Made that Twitter profile
✅ Obvi you’re on LinkedIn
You even added a phone number to your contact page in case someone needs to reach you ASAP (say what?).
Yet still, you’re on the job boards. Well, my friend, let’s get you the hell off low-paying job boards and into the hands of high-paying clients. The following tips come from my talks with content managers and CMO’s that actively hire freelance writers for their editorial programs.
1. Become more vocal, be more visible
Another simple theory, harder to execute thing. Get more vocal online.
That doesn’t mean post crap on your Twitter profile and expect to get leads. It means actively post valuable stuff and start conversations with your peers online. It also means going beyond a “This is so smart! Nice work 🚀” comment.
Contribute to the conversation with insight and questions. Get people to talk about how they think and why they do the things they do. Share what you know. Get involved in the right ways.
Take Georgi Todorov for example:
I challenge you to write 30 tweets (or LinkedIn posts) today. Right now. Schedule them out for the next 30 days and see what happens. Report back to me here.
2. Post about your processes and experiences
Managers with big budgets ain’t gonna hire you because you’re pretty. They want to know that you think like them. That you know what the heck you’re doing and can show results.
Even if you don’t have specific results, you can share how you would approach a problem or article. Explain your research and thinking. You could even turn it into a blog post for your site and send people there to read more.
Kaleigh Moore does this regularly on Twitter:
You want a lead to come to you and say “Hey, I think we have similar values when it comes to writing. Let’s see how we can work together.”
Keep that in mind when posting any type of content. What are your ideal clients’ values? What the heck are your values? Is what you’re about to post align with them?
This process also works for other freelance writers out there. If they find your content valuable, they could follow you and refer you out if they can’t take on any more work.
The visible people who talk about their processes are the folks’ managers will look for when they set out to hire. If you talk about operational processes and working with clients, people interested in those topics (i.e., content managers) will amplify that message for you.
3. Share your published work
I don’t care if it’s a small website that no one has heard of yet. If you have the byline, SHARE IT.
People will come looking for bylines. The easier it is for them to find yours, the more likely they will hire you (if they like your writing, of course).
Take inspo from Massoma:
Well, my friend. That’s my rant for today. Be visible, share your processes and experiences, share your published work.
That’s how you become your own case study and land higher-paying clients.
