Take the work out of getting work

One of the most time-consuming things about finding freelance writing gigs is applying for them. I’m a writer, but writing an email to get a new job seems to be the hardest thing about my job.

I can find all the right words to explain how the bailout will affect consumer’s credit, but not enough words to say why I’m the right candidate. I know I should be selling myself, but I don’t want to come off as cheesy or arrogant. All this goes through my mind as I’m reading through an ad for a job I really like.

I was spending too much time writing out the perfect response to a job ad. So, I decided to do something about it.

I wrote a few canned responses and saved them as Outlook templates. Then, whenever I need to respond to an ad, I just choose a template, tweak it a little and send it off. No more time wasted thinking about what I was going to say.

Invest time upfront writing a job ad, then responding to ads is so much easier. As time goes on, be sure to tweak your templates based on your response rate.

Tired of low rates? Convince them to pay more.

I used to get upset by all the low paying gigs I saw advertised on the internet. I’d think, “I could make good money freelancing if only people were willing to pay more for good writing.” Then, it finally dawned on me that minds could be changed.

There are quite a few reasons that people advertise low rates. Sometimes, they’re just plain cheap, but sometimes they don’t realize what they could get if they just paid a little more money. That’s where your good marketing skills come in.

Don’t let a low advertised rate stand in the way of getting a gig you want.

Pitch to them anyway. Stress the benefits of hiring you and the type of result they can expect from hiring you. State your rate and explain why you charge that rate. Reiterate your unique benefit once more before closing out the message.

You’ll probably get a mixed response. Some webmasters are deadset on paying a low price and won’t budge. Others will see the value in hiring you can pay the higher rate.

The closer your rates are to the advertised rates, the better the chance of convincing the client to pay more. For example, if someone’s advertising $.02/word, you’ll have an easier time convincing them to pay $.05/word than you will $.10/word.

I like to check out the hiring webmaster’s publication to help decide if I’m going to try to persuade them to pay more. If there are no ads, the webmaster might not be generating enough income from the site to pay more.

Do you ever apply for gigs even though your rate is higher than what’s advertised? What do you say? How’s your success rate?

Every writer should know a little copywriting

Copywriting is often confused with content writing. The former is compelling and intended to persuade the reader to take an action. On the other hand, the latter is informative and intended help the reader make a decision.

Even if you’re not a copywriter, you can benefit from having some copywriting skills.

Part of being a freelance writer, no matter what your specialty, is convincing editors and webmasters to hire you. To do that, you’ll need some of the sales skills that copywriters use.

Write compelling headlines. Editors receive hundreds, even thousands, of letters from freelance writers. Having an enticing headline improves your chances of getting hired.

Stress benefits, not features. Talking about benefit helps the hiring client see what they have to gain by hireing you. Feature: I have 10 years of experience. Benefit: My experience will help you get more readers.

Show that you’re different from the competition. Make yourself stand out from other writers and convince potential clients that you’re a better choice.

Prove your credibility. Who are you and what qualities do you have that enables you to deliver the results you promise? For example, why exactly are you qualified to write the article, “7 Reasons the Sky is Falling?”

If you want to know more about copywriting, I suggest The Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan S. Kennedy and The Elements of Copywriting by Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly. You can find both books in the Amazon carousel in the sidebar.