Bulk Freelance Writing Assignments: Specific Tips for Landing Them
November 3, 2009
In last week’s post, Freelance Writers: How to Land More Gigs in a Difficult Economy, one of the things we discussed was landing bulk freelance writing assignments. I promised to give some specific tips on how to go about it, so here goes . . .
2 WAYS TO LAND BULK WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Following are two things that I’ve tried that have landed me bulk writing assignments. One is something you can do right away – I’m talking by the end of the day if you want. The other may take a few days or a few weeks to implement.
I. MAKE CLIENTS AWARE OF YOUR WORTH
Freelance writers tend not to be good at this. Many are timid about marketing in general, so when it comes to tooting their own horn, it’s beyond what many even think of doing. But, the tougher the economy is, the more direct you have to be with your marketing.
Making clients aware of your worth works particularly well with existing clients, which is a group you should market heavily to for bulk writing assignments. Why?
(i) Because they already know and trust your work; and
(ii) You are familiar with their product/service.
This presents a “perfect storm,” if you will, for landing more freelance writing jobs relatively easily.
Now that you know why you should make clients aware of your worth, you may be thinking, “How do I go about it?” It’s actually quite simple – create mini case studies.
How to Create Mini Case Studies
To do this, go back through your projects for the last quarter or two. Pull out those where you can state a specific benefit/problem you solved for the client (over and beyond your super copy, of course).
For example, one client of mine called me one day in a panic. This was unusual because he usually emailed me. He needed 44 SEO articles in 48 hours. This client ran an internet marketing firm. He needed the copy for the launch of one of his clients’ websites.
My firm produced it on time – and we gave him a bulk discount to boot (he had given us a lot of work since he came on board and I was happy to reward him this way).
Benefit to client: He was able to keep his promise to his client (and ostensibly gain more business).
What this says to prospects you target is that you can handle bulk orders in a timely manner.
To use another example, I had another client who wanted me to write testimonials for one of his client sites. Only these weren’t normal testimonials. I had to interview this site owner to get the stories behind the testimonials (the site was about proxy marriages). Then, I had to turn what he told me into what I called a “story testimonial”.
The client of my client was so happy with how the copy turned out that he put in a standing order for one to three a month.
Benefit to client: He was able to meet this unusual request of this keep his promise to his client (and ostensibly gain more business).
Note: These little assignments are particularly lucrative because I charge a fee for the phone interview, which lasts about 10 to 15 minutes, and a separate fee for the writing of the “story testimonials.”
How to Present Your Case Study to Clients
I wrote up three examples, then presented them in the following manner:
Client Problem
How We Helped
Tagline: We can do the same for you!
These were what I called unofficial case studies. You can literally put this together in a couple of hours (or less) and send it off to prospects. FYI, see a more official version of a case study (pdf file).
II. WRITE SPECIAL REPORTS
The best example I can give of this is outlined in the post, SEO Copywriters: How to Make an Extra $61,880 This Year.
This one report continues to bring me so much business that I’ve create several others as free promotional tools for my various ventures, eg:
Proven SEO Tactics: How to Start Getting Up to 5,000 Visitors Daily
2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report
The great thing about special reports is that they demonstrate your knowledge of a particular subject in depth. This removes the barriers a potential client may have about your ability to handle their particular project.
Special reports are powerful selling tools. And, while they may take a few days or even weeks to produce, they are worth the effort because they can be part of your marketing arsenal for months – or even years (depending on the timeliness of the subject matter).
Final Tip: Don’t forget to ask for the sale, eg:
Let us handle your continuous content needs . . . a month of blog posts; weekly articles for your site; etc. We put your content needs on auto pilot. You can outsource it and forget it!
So there you go – two ways to market for bulk writing assignments that really work.
Your freelance writing marketing maven,
Yuwanda
P.S.: Find this post informative? Follow Inkwell Editorial on Twitter.
P.P.S.: Want to start making money from home as a freelance writer? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for informative info on everything from freelance writing ecourses to how to make passive income with your writing skill.
P.P.S.: Want to train for a recession-proof freelance writing career? Get the FREE Report, Learn SEO: 6 Reasons SEO Copywriting Is the Ideal High-Paying, Work-from-Home, Recession-Proof Career (pdf file).
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