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Sometimes freelance writers will encounter clients that don’t pay on time or at all. How many times have you encountered clients like this? It’s time to say goodbye to these clients for good and hello to solid clients that understand that you’re more than a freelance writer — you’re a business man or woman.

Freelance writers deserve respect. In order to have respect, you must respect yourself. This means saying “no” to low paying clients. Refer them to the college kid down the road who’s just starting out or someone in India charges next to nothing. There’s no reason for you to put up with clients who don’t pay you or pay your rates.

Before you agree to write for anyone now and in the future, tell them your rates and your terms. Also tell them that your rates are subject to change. This is nothing new. Read your cell phone bill if you don’t believe this. In fact, you may want to read the fine print because you’ll be surprised at what you find. You’ll see that rates are subject to change and sometimes without notice.

Being a freelance writer also means that you’re in business for yourself. Yes, you are a business owner. If you don’t think you could handle owning your own business, you may want to forgo becoming a freelance writer. Remember, you’re responsible for marketing you and your services. You’re also responsible for finding and retaining clients. Think about this before you enter the realm of freelance writing.

Here are some steps to follow if you clients aren’t paying:

• Send another reminder invoice. Give your clients the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they got busy and just forgot. It happens — no one is perfect.
• Make sure your clients know your terms. Do you expect payment up front? Do you expect 50% up front? Are your terms net, 30 days or net, 20 days? Make your payment terms clear.
• Get a signed contract. Before you proceed with writing, lay out all the details in a contract. Who owns the copyrights? What are the payment terms? What are the termination terms? This way there aren’t any surprises.
• Contact a collection agency or lawyer. Do this as a last resort; it’s up to you if you want to take it this far. Depending on the amount of money, you may choose to use a collection agency or lawyer. Sleep on it before you proceed.

Freelance writers deserve to be paid for their services. Be consider in your services and you’ll attract professional clients that will pay you on time. Start being selective about clients and forget about writing for everyone that approaches you. Take time to consider the project. Meet face-to-face with a client in order to get a better “feeling” for them. Sometimes you can’t “tune” into someone via email or phone. Be discerning and discriminating. More importantly, be a smart business owner!

Rebecca

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This is Part II of the blog What Type of Clients do You Attract? If you’re not attracting the right clients to you, take a look at your personal beliefs around your freelance writing. What is your personal philosophy around attracting clients? What types of clients do you expect to attract? Knowing the answer to these and other questions will help you get clear about who you want to write for.

Getting paid on time is important

The most important aspect of running a business is revenue. Some people will disagree and say it’s loving what you do, providing impeccable customer service, or knowing that you’re the best at what you do. This is true but you must be paid in order for your business to continue.

How do you want to get paid? By check? By PayPal? Direct deposit? How much do you require up front? Knowing the answers to these questions is imperative to running your freelance writing business. Clients want to know what your rates are. Tell them. If they scoff or say it’s too much, thank them for their time and wish them success. There are plenty of writers out there who are charging well below average market rates. Of course, you’ll probably have to fix the work they’ve done. The client that turned you down could come back to you!

Attract the clients you want

Jim Rohn said he didn’t know his personal philosophy which is why he was struggling to make ends meet. After receiving guidance from his mentor John Earl Shoaff, Jim turned his life around. Doors opened up for him that he could only imagine. This could happen to you. Perhaps you need a writing coach or mentor to show the way. Remember, when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

New freelance writers may be scared to turn down work. Let go of this thought. All it takes is one time and you’ll become a pro at it. Stop settling for clients who don’t pay, balk at your rates, or want 50 million revisions without paying for them! It’s not worth it. In fact, it’s your self-worth that’s attracting these clients to you. If you have a low self-worth, you’ll attract clients who are less than stellar. On the flip side, it could be a good lesson for you to learn. When clients don’t pay you, return your phone calls or emails, it will help you reexamine the types of clients you’ve been attracting to you. Get serious about your freelance writing once and for all and become the success you want to be. Good luck!

Rebecca

What types of clients have attracted to you? Share your experiences.

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This is Part I of a blog that will examine the types of clients you may be attracting to you. Do you attract clients that pay on time or don’t pay at all? Do you attract clients who don’t communicate well with you? Are you attracting clients who balk at your rates? If you’re not attracting the clients you want, you could have set an intention to “get burned” by clients or that you can’t make it as a freelance writer. Take a look inside of you to find the answers.

Before you embark on a freelance writing career understand that it’s a business. If you have no desire to run a small business, forgo freelance writing. In order to grow your business you must find clients that need you. That’s right — clients need you! Make sure you attract the right clients to you, otherwise you’ll be sorry.

What type of client do you want?

Make a list of the qualities you’re looking for in a client and make sure you match 99.9% of those qualities. Are they in a particular industry? Do they give you creative freedom to write what you want? Do they work with you to develop topics? How are their communication skills? Do they prefer phone or email? What do you prefer? Knowing who your client is before you begin freelance writing can save you from constant stress and worry. Speak to any freelance writer and they’ll tell you their “stories” about when they first started out. The lessons they learned were tough but it helped them become the success they are today.

It would behoove freelance writers to overcome the fear of saying “No!” If a client wants you to lower your price below market value, say “No!” If a client wants to negotiate a price and your “gut instinct” sends you a warning not to do it, say “No!” It’s better to lose a client than to start working a project that makes you miserable. Your health is as important as your salary — it’s probably more important!

How much do you charge?

You probably heard the saying, “…charge what you’re worth.” Some writers laugh at this because they’d charge $1,000,000 for a blog post or article. Wouldn’t it be amazing if a client paid this? Remember what Jim Rohn’s teacher told him, “…profits are better than wages.” Freelance writing is no different from other businesses. You’re in business to provide a valuable service, to market your business, and earn a profit. There’s nothing wrong with earning a profit from doing what you love to do.

This is it for Part I of What Types of Clients do You Attract. The second half will examine “Getting Paid” and “Attracting the Clients You Want to Write for.” Stop settling for second or third best. If you know you add value and have a lot of experience, start charging what you’re worth. You’ll be surprised how this “shift” will take you in the right direction.

Rebecca

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Hiring a ghostwriter can save you time and money. Perhaps you don’t enjoy writing or don’t have the research skills necessary for your book idea. Maybe you’d rather have someone else write the book so you can concentrate on your website and marketing endeavors for the book. Whatever the reason is hire a ghostwriter today and tomorrow wind up on the NY Best Sellers List!

You may think that hiring a ghostwriter is a hassle. Sometimes it can be if you hire someone who is not professional. Writers want to get paid for their work. Most of them will go above and beyond the call of the duty to ensure your book is completed on time and will be one of the best books on the market.

A ghostwriter is a great way to get your work published. Some ghostwriters may ask you to disclose that they wrote the material, others are happy to get paid. As the client, it’s up to you to whether or not you disclose that you used a ghostwriter. Make sure you tell your writer whether or not you’ll be disclosing the use of a ghostwriter. This will defuse any ego issues.

Develop a relationship with your ghostwriter. Working together will yield greater results. Working against each other will result in hurt feelings and animosity. The goal is to get your book published. The plan is to be cooperative with each other to ensure your book hits the internet and bookshelves in a timely manner.

Tips to hiring a ghostwriter

1. Visit the writer’s website.
2. Ask for samples of work.
3. Ask for references.
4. Make sure the writer understands the art of the disclosure. You may or may not disclose that you’re using a ghostwriter.
5. Get a proposal from the writer that outlines the scope of work.
6. Get all changes in writing.
7. Ask for weekly or bi-weekly updates via email.
8. Set a date and time to speak with your ghostwriter — once a week, twice a week, etc…

It’s best to hire a ghostwriter who is familiar with your subject matter because they’ll probably already have done some research and have books on the material. And, you’ll know that your ghostwriter will give more than 100% because they’re probably super passionate about the subject. On the flip side, you could hire a ghostwriter who is not familiar with your topic. As long as they have great research skills, you’ll be in good hands.

Working with a ghostwriter is a win-win situation. You get a book published and the writer receives the satisfaction of knowing they helped you become a published author. You can’t go wrong with a ghostwriter. Hire one today and watch as your book is the number one purchase on Amazon.com. Good luck!

Rebecca

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Life is full of twists and turns. Sometimes freelance writers take part-time or full-time jobs in addition to their freelance writing work. Sometimes business owners moonlight as well in order to pay the bills. Whatever your case is time management is crucial. You only have 24 hours in a day, make the most of them to complete your projects.

Time management is easy when you have tools to assist you. If you have a PC, use Windows calendar to schedule your work. If you have a Mac, use iCal to schedule your work or some other application for Mac. Once you create your schedule, you’ll know exactly what to do each day. Just be prepared for days when unexpected events come up which requires you to rearrange your schedule.

Freelance writers can benefit from a schedule. It’s a great way to ensure that all of your projects are completed on or ahead of time. Use whatever system works for you from an Excel spreadsheet to a bulletin board. This is useful if you’re a visual person.

You may think that you can keep track of time, but you’d be surprised how fast it goes. Before you know it, you’ll be half way through the day and may not even be close to completing projects. Check-in with yourself to see how well you’re doing. Make adjustments to your schedule when necessary.

Time management tips!

1. Answer important emails. Do not answer or look at your emails unless they’re from your clients. Look at your email twice a day: once in the morning and then at night.
2. Choose a time management system that works for you. Use Windows Calendar, an organizer, bulletin board, online system, or some other time management system.
3. Answer important phone calls. If it’s not an emergency or your clients, don’t answer the phone.

Don’t lose track of your projects because you could lose more than time — you could lose your clients! Clients are your “bread and butter” and without them your business will not survive. Choose a time management system that works for you and stick to it. Good luck!

Rebecca

What time management tools do you use? Share.

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When you speak, do you say what you mean and mean what you say? Nine times out of ten, most people talk in circles. It’s like listening to a politician answer a question about the state budget! Communication is the key in any business, especially freelance writing. If you don’t know how to communicate with people, your writing will suffer.

Freelance writing appeals to most people because they get to work from home. Make no mistake about it, this is a business. In order for you to grow your business, you must communicate with others. However, you must understand their communication style. Some people don’t like the phone and prefer text, email, or IM. How adaptable is your communication style? If you can’t adapt to your surroundings, you’ll die out.

How well do you listen? Do you even know how to listen? Many people don’t have great listening skills. This is due to our “me” society. It’s all about me! Wrong! It’s not about you; it’s about the people who are your potential clients. When you meet people, be quiet. Listen to everything they have to say. Be genuinely interested in what it is they’re saying and you’ll have no problem gaining clients.

You’d think freelance writers would have impeccable communication skills. Wrong again! Many of them are used to being cocooned are from people. They forget what it’s like to have an actual conversation with people. Here’s a tip: get out of the house. Attend a networking event or fundraiser. Mix and mingle with people to exercise your communication skills.

Knowing how to communicate with others is imperative. People are from different generations and have different communication styles and ways of learning. For example, some people are visual learners. Telling them about your business without giving them a website to look at may not yield the best results. Make sure your website is on your business card. This way they can “check you out” and get a sense if your services are a match.

Communication is about connecting with people. Become a great communicator by first listening to people and then interjecting at the appropriate time. Many people are tired of being sold to and frown upon dishonesty. Be open and honest about you and your business and you’ll gain clients. Avoid selling to people because it will only deter them from working with you. Learn to sell without selling because it will take you far. Go out there and be the best communicator you can be!

Rebecca

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Freelance writers will do well if they think outside of the box. Did you know that you could become a W-9 employee? The next time you receive a call from a company inquiring if you’d like to work full-time for them, ask if you could be listed as a W-9 employee. They may find this peculiar, but it will be to both of your advantages.

Being hired as a W-9 employee means a company will send you a 1099 which you’ll use when you file your taxes. This is a win-win situation for you and the company. First, you’ll receive tax benefits. Second, the company receives major benefits such as reduced health care and other costs. Finally, both you and the company’s management team will preserve the environment because you’ll work from home. Perhaps you’ll be expected to go to the office once a month, but that’s better than Monday-Friday.

Working as a W-9 gives you tax advantages. For example, you’ll be able to write-off a portion of your home when you have a home office, phone, computer, paper, and other write-offs. Consult with your accountant about the tax benefits of being paid as a W-9.

Freelance writers, you could gain clients by asking to be classified as a W-9. Point out how you can save the company money. Don’t be afraid to propose being given a W-9 because you may receive a “yes” instead of a no. You won’t know unless you try. All you have to do is ask!

Rebecca

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The new “buzz” word seems to be specialization. Everyone who’s anyone is a specialist. Doctors specialize in areas such as cardiac, pediatrics, neurology or some other type of speciality. Freelance writers can become specialists as well. You may believe you’re limiting yourself but you can actually make more as a specialist — just ask doctors!

Freelance writers could specialize in web copy, ad copy, ghostwriting, newsletters, blogs, or articles. You can drill this down by industry. Perhaps you have years of experience in the health and wellness industry, you could write exclusively for this industry. You could be a freelance writer who writes web copy for the health and wellness industry. This is a huge industry!

Some freelance writers may not specialize and this is all right for now. In time, businesses will look to writers who write for one particular area. For example, on LinkedIn HR professionals will post jobs for specific writing such as writing health and wellness articles targeted to HR personnel not employees. You could make decent money if you have experience in this area.

Tip: When you begin your freelance writing career, you’ll probably write a plethora of copy. After you find your “writing legs,” you can begin to diversify and specialize. Until then, sample from the writing buffet and apply for opportunities that will improve your writing skills.

The “specialty trend” will continue to grow. Freelance writing is a great way to make extra income and or transition out of a career that no longer interests you. If you’re a HR professional, consider writing articles for your career area. There are many businesses looking for information on how to strengthen their human resources department. You’ll get the job since you have firsthand experience.

Being a specialist is the same as drilling down your “niche” market. The only difference is that you’ll write specific copy for different industries or for one industry. It’s about being an expert in your field. Clients like to know they’re working with a freelance writer who’s an expert in a certain area. This will give you an advantage over other freelance writers.

If you’re not specializing today, you may tomorrow. The world changes daily and you must change with it. This includes updating your skills and approach to writing. Embrace change and go with the flow because you never know where it will lead you!

Rebecca

What are your freelance writing specialties? Share!

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Some people are natural procrastinators. Their motto is, “…tomorrow is another day.” Tomorrow turns into next week and next week turns into next month. Before you know it an entire year passes and you’re not even close to completing your freelance writing business goals. Procrastination is the number one killer of business and dreams.

Your freelance writing business will not grow itself — you must put some work into it. You can either be a generalist or specialist. In fact, most freelance writers begin as a generalist before they find their passion. Here’s a tip: we are becoming a “specialized” nation and world. Just ask any doctor what she practices. Chances are she’s an anesthesiologist, cardiologist, or some other specialist.

Tips to avoid procrastination

• 1. Create a writing schedule and stick to it.
• 2. Decide what you’d like to write and find writing opportunities. Advertise your services on Craigslist and other networks.
• 3. Join networking groups to promote your freelance writing business.
• 4. Ask for referrals.
• 5. Have someone hold you accountable for your goals. Hire a writing coach.

There are many reasons why freelance writers procrastinate. Maybe you have a fear of failure or success. Perhaps you believe your freelance writing business will take more time than you thought. Whatever the reason is, get over it. You will not know if you’ll succeed or fail if you don’t try.

Maybe you’re overwhelmed with the many facets of freelance writing. Consider a specialized freelance writing business. Perhaps you enjoy writing web copy, blogs, articles, ghostwriting, or ad copy. Any of these can be your specialties. You may narrow down your niche by industry. Maybe you’ll write for the health and wellness industry or pet industry. The choice is yours.

It’s up to you if your writing business grows. Make the decision today to avoid procrastination and do what you must to jump start your business. This includes networking, developing your website, ordering business cards, and asking for referrals. Remember the famous Nike slogan — just do it!

Rebecca

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Being a freelance writer has its ups and downs. You get to work from home or wherever you’re at in the world and have no dress code. The flip side is you’re “hooked up” to the laptop and internet; you could suffer from information overload. Sooner or later you become burned out if you don’t take precautions when you begin your career.

The key to freelance writing is to schedule your projects and ignore emails unless they’re from your clients. This may be difficult for some writers to do, but it will help your productivity. Being focused on projects is number one priority. Answering an email from your friend is not.

Tips for dealing with burnout

• Take breaks throughout the day.
• Get up and move — do stretching exercises.
• Stop and do some deep breathing exercises.
• Go for a walk at lunch.
• Connect with others through networking groups or social groups.
• Take a vacation.
• Schedule a day off; most people choose Friday!

Freelance writers hardly take breaks throughout the day. This is not healthy. In fact, some writers gain weight over time because they’re not moving. Take your half hour, 45-minute, or one hour lunch. Get up and move around to keep the circulation and writing juices flowing. Walk to the store or post office instead of driving — it will do the body good.

Take Friday off! Yep, some freelance writers start the weekend early. They don’t answer email, post on Twitter or Facebook, check LinkedIn, or use anything electronic. It’s a day to begin resting and relaxing. It’s no wonder that writers suffer from burnout because they don’t relax or don’t know how to relax. Scheduling a day off is a great way to rejuvenate your mind, body, and spirit. There’s no reason that you couldn’t take a day off if you’re meeting deadlines.

Freelance writers find a balance between work and play. All work and no play will make you one cranky writer! Take breaks throughout the day so you don’t feel overwhelmed. Stretch, go for a walk at lunch, or practice deep breathing exercises. It seems unimaginable that writers would get burned out from a career they love, but it happens. Be proactive before it’s too late!

Rebecca

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