In the past I have talked about how cheap it is to be a freelance writer. Once you get setup and have what you need there are not many expenses that come about. That being said, don’t be tricked into thinking that you will never spend money. Just like any business, there are expenses that will come about from time to time. Some of them you will see coming. Others will pop up on you out of nowhere.
It is very important to save money in your business bank account for freelance writing expenses. This way you have the money available to pay for anything that comes up. You may also want to start saving more if you are aware of a large expense in the near future. For instance, you may be in need of a new computer and printer within the next few months. In this case, you should set aside extra money every month to ensure that you have what you need when the time comes.
I don’t want to preach on this subject too much. After all, I am not a financial planner and everybody has their own way of budgeting. But I do want every freelance writer to remember that expenses can and will present themselves over the course of the year.
Freelance writing is a very cheap career, and if you are lucky you won’t have to part with much money. But if an expense does come about, you need to be in position to take care of it without much hassle and stress.
There is a good chance that you are not having a lot of success because your freelance writing marketing plan is out of order. This is something that many struggling writers never think about. Instead, they believe that there are not enough clients to go around. As a freelance writer you will face competition from others. It is how you deal with this that will determine the success you have in the near future.
If your marketing approach is not producing results you have to make the necessary changes. Those who do will find themselves in better position. Those who don’t may get left behind for the time being.
What are you doing right now in terms of marketing? This is the first question to answer. If you know what you are doing you can easily chart what is working and what is not. It should not be difficult to pinpoint where you are excelling and where you are struggling.
Now that you know where you stand, you can map out a better future. Do you need to put more time into cold calling? How about query letters? You should have a clear path once you begin to change your approach. If you don’t, you are still doing something wrong. The bottom line is simple: your marketing plan has to be one that you can rely on to move you from stage to stage. If something is missing or you are not confident in your plan, it is important to make changes and go through a trial and error process until you find the right ideas.
Is everything working for you right now? If so, don’t mess with your freelance writing marketing plan. Once you settle in and find results coming your way there is no reason to make a change. This post is more for freelance writers who are having a difficult time generating new business due to a problem with their marketing plan.
Are you working as a full-time freelance writer? If so, I urge you to compare it to your last office job so you can see just how far you have come. This is something I do from time to time, even though I have not worked a “traditional job†for several years. It has been a while, but every time I look back it is easy to see just how lucky I am to be able to work as a full-time freelance writer.
When you compare freelance writing to your last office job you will immediately see many differences:
1. You are in control. This is the first thing that I always think about. As a freelance writer you are making every last decision. This sort of power makes me feel as if I am in charge of my future. The same cannot be said for my last office job. Chances are that you feel the same way.
2. The money is better. Does this hold true for your career? The answer usually depends on the stage of your freelance writing career. It took me three to four months to earn as much from freelance writing as I did in my past office job. I know freelance writers who have equaled their past pay quicker, as well as those who took longer. You should set income goals, but don’t let them totally define your success.
3. Freedom. Every freelance writer loves how much freedom this career offers them. You can work when you want, vacation when you want, sleep when you want, eat when you want, and see family when you want. As you can see, you can do what you want!
After you become a freelance writing success you should look back from time to time to see where you came from. This will give you a good idea of just how lucky you are to be working as a freelance writer.
