Freelance Switch

eBook Review: Freelancer’s Guide to Finding Clients

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 09:30 AM PST

Freelancer's Guide to Finding Clients

Whether a freelancer is going through a slump or just looking to diversify their client base, finding new clients is an ongoing process.

Martha Retallick's recent eBook the Freelancer's Guide to Finding Clients is here you help you get proactive in finding clients rather than waiting for them to come to you.

What's it about?

The eBook could probably be called the Freelancer's Guide to Cold Calling as it focuses almost primarily on this. Whether it is cold-calling or cold-emailing, Martha dispenses advice on how she does it and her experiences.

In the following pages, I'm going to show you an outreach system that consists of processes, templates, software, and scripts that you can use as-is. Or you can use my system as the basis for creating your own. It's up to you.

The eBook covers topics like how to make the initial contact and how to keep in touch with follow-up outreach programs that will hopefully turn a hot prospect into a long-term client.

Cold-calling = Kill me now

For most freelancers, myself included, cold-calling holds as much appeal as a being hit in the face with a bag of door knobs. It's probably the last thing in the world we want to do with our time.

We reason that cold-calling has a high annoyance level and a low return. And after all, won't it make us look desperate and slimy?

So why does Martha propose that cold-calling should be a part of every freelancers marketing efforts?

The simple truth is that you're a smart, talented freelancer. And more people need to know just how good you are. One of the easiest and fastest ways to tell them is to pick up the phone and start introducing yourself.

Chances are – no matter how good your marketing is – there are plenty of businesses in your area that have no idea who you are. And like it or not, calling them on the phone is an effective way to introduce yourself.

The problem is, when it comes to cold-calling, it's hard to do it well and even harder to make it enjoyable.

Getting real with your expectations

Martha speaks from experience and is realistic with her expectations when it comes to cold calling. She knows ahead of time that the majority of people are going to say no. Some will say it nicely whereas a small number may even be downright rude.

Matter of fact, there are days when I look at my phone and say, "It's time to get some 'No's.'" And I'll set a "No" quota and keep calling until I reach it.

Throughout her cold calling career she has tracked her success rate at about 3%. That means that after 100 calls she may only have 3 decent prospects. At first that may seem pretty low, but compared to an average direct mail success rate that hovers at about 0.2%, that's not bad.

It's is a numbers game. So, accept the fact that you're going to be making a lot of calls.

Back when I launched by Web Design business I decided to do some cold-calling to drum up some clients. I made a list of about 20 businesses I wanted to call and picked up the phone.

I did about ten calls and have never tried cold-calling again.

In retrospect – and according to Martha's advice – I should have never expected any interest in only ten calls. The reality was, it would have probably taken me about 100 calls to get a single prospect. For some that will feel like a lot of work for just one client. But you have to realize that one good client can be worth their weight in gold.

In my own business, cold calling has helped me find a much more interesting and better paying clientele than I've ever had before. So, if I can do it, you can too.

Conclusion

The eBook isn't long, only 50 pages, but if you are having trouble getting over a cold-call phobia, it can certainly help.

Martha goes through her five-step process from how to plan for the call to putting it all into action. Included are scripts and email templates to work from as well as techniques to making the calls and how overcome nervousness.

The eBook retails at $24.95 and is available from the Western Sky Communications website.

The Guide to Crazy Comment Personality Types – Part 1

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 05:30 AM PST

Monitor and keyboard
Nothing can bring so much joy and pain to the hearts of writers and bloggers like the Internet commenter. With our breath held we hover over the comment link and wage the internal battle of whether to click or not.

While good writers do not live and die by comment feedback, there are certainly times when we have wished that we never clicked that link.

The Psychology of Internet Feedback

Every writer throughout history has received bad feedback. Shakespeare had his critics, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had his hate mail, and Dave Barry has a sewage treatment plant named after him. People have their opinions, good or bad, and they love letting you hear about them.

With the advent of the Internet, however, we've started to develop some strange and troubling commenting personality types. While not all are necessarily bad, the combination of the Internet's accessibility and anonymity can make for some serious comment whack-a-doodles.

So in this series we will be looking at some of the strongest commenter personality types and how we can deal with them.

First! Freddy

First! Freddy
It seems only natural that we talk about this personality type first.

The First! Freddy loves to let the world know that for once in his miserable existence he was first at something.

Perhaps his life up to this point has been marred by a Rodney Dangerfield-esque lack of respect or by second place finishes in the standing long jump. Regardless, he's not going to be pushed around anymore!

When the Internet was in its infancy, these types of First! posts were fairly regular. But you would think that over time they would start to lose their popularity. Sadly, with the continued frequency of these types of posts one would think that babies will soon start arriving from the birth canal pumping their fist and raising their index finger to the sky. A new generation of First! Freddie's has begun.

What is so delightful about these comments is that they have absolutely nothing to do with the article. As far as I can tell, the purpose of these types of posts are simply to showcase the commenter's awesome ability to refresh a page and their lightning fast submit button finger. A worthy claim to fame if there ever was one.

How to deal with it:

The good news about dealing with First! Freddy is that the rest of your commenting audience hates these guys almost as much as you do. Watch as your regular commenters attack a First! post like a Zombie on a slow runner.

Even more enjoyable is to watch what happens when First! Freddie is too slow with his submit skills. Nothing deflates a First! post like when it's posted second.

So while you have the choice to delete every First! post, I say it's much more fun to leave them up as a little bit of sport for your other commenters. After all, even low hanging fruit can be fun to pluck and then pulverize into the ground.

Angry Andrew

The Angry Andrew personality type is what keeps writers awake at night. These commenters never have anything good to say and reading them is like writer's poison. I know several writers who no longer read their comments because they've gotten so sick of Angry Andrew.

Why Angry Andrew does the things he does is somewhat of a mystery. You would get the impression that he must live a dark and bitter existence where sunlight never shines and where sweet and soft bunny rabbits are turned into the killer rabbit of Caerbannog. The reality is he is probably an OK guy who just likes being a big fat jerk.

How to deal with it:

Constructive criticism is hard to take at the best of times. However, the Angry Andrew personality type likes to go beyond criticism into the realm of pure bile. This can be very difficult to understand and can leave you feeling like hanging up the keyboard and never writing again.

You have a few different options when faced with these types of Worst. Post. Ever. comments. You can either grow a thick skin or face the criticism head on.

While Angry Andrew certainly lacks any semblance of tact, there are times when he actually may have a point.

As a writer I like to think I always serve up the best fillet mignon, but the truth is, there are days when I put out the writers version of the cheesy-puff. It's times like this that Angry Andrew is there to call you out.

If I take an honest hard look at the piece I often have to agree, at least partially, with the angry commenter. While the article has probably not done more damage to the world than Hitler's Mein Kamph (like Angry Andrew would like you to think), maybe it's not your best work.

In the real world, comedians tell jokes that bomb and writers write poor pieces. People are allowed to have their opinions. Just remember, you're getting paid for yours.