Welcome to THE WELL-FED E-PUB!
Serving up food for thought and tasty tips for the prospering FLCW* writer. Come
on in, sit anywhere and bring your appetite!
*FLCW, peppered throughout the ezine, stands for “Freelance Commercial Writer” – the designation for anyone who freelances for businesses (as opposed to writing magazine articles, short stories, poetry, etc.), and typically earns $50-125+ an hour.
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VOLUME 7, ISSUE 3 – MARCH 2008
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Attn: ATLANTA! WAITING FOR THE NEXT “WELL-FED WRITER” SEMINAR?
It’s coming – Friday, March 28, 9-4. Commercial writing & self-publishing seminar (pick either subject or both!) Details in “COFFEE, MINTS AND TOOTHPICKS” and at http://www.anvilpub.net/spring_seminar_3.htm.
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NEW! “The BODACIOUS Banquet” – Issues 1-52 of The EPUB! Just $10.95!
Details: Dessert and http://wellfedwriter.com/thebodabanq.shtml.
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SLAUNWHITE & STELZNER TELECLASS ON PRICING YOUR SERVICES!
Steve Slaunwhite, author/copywriting guru, joins white paper authority, Michael Stelzner for a 3/19/08 teleclass: “Pricing Your Services as a Freelance Writer (Earning What You're Worth!)” Details: http://www.whitepapersource.com/cmd.php?Clk=2295584
and in “Coffee, Mints, and Toothpicks” below.
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MISSED MY TELECLASS? “Thriving as a Freelance Commercial Writer”
38-PAGE instant download just $12! www.wellfedwriter.com/jan07tstranscript.shtml.
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I. APPETIZER: WHAT’S YOUR HOURLY RATE? KEEP IT A SECRET!
Seeing Client Vanish After Sharing Hourly Rate Highlights Downsides to Strategy
II. CRISP “FIELD” GREENS: When It’s Time to Stop Thinking Small
AR Writer Finds HER Reason to Value Herself More as a Writer. What’s Yours?
III. MAIN COURSE: GET PAID FASTER & WITH LESS ANXIETY!
ONTARIO FLCW Changes Invoicing Verbiage, Speeds Up Receivables!
IV. DESSERT: Sweet Success Stories and Tips
India Outsourcing Tip (02/08) Spawns More Success Stories/Tips on Staying Local!
TIP: LA FLCW Reminds: For More Engaging Writing, “Start the Story in the Middle”!
V. COFFEE, MINTS AND TOOTHPICKS
- ATTN: ATLANTA! “The Well-Fed Writer” Seminar Coming March 28!
- Slaunwhite & Stelzner Teleclass (3/19/08) on “Pricing Your Services”!
- NEW! The BODACIOUS Banquet – Issues 1-52 of the EPUB; Just $10.95
- MISSED MY TELECLASS? Full 38-PAGE e-Transcript – Just $12!
- AWAI Copywriting (& Other) Courses: Register Here, Get 2 Bonuses (no charge!)
- Well-Fed E-Pub Needs All Courses!
- How Can My Mentoring Service Serve You?
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I. APPETIZER: WHAT’S YOUR HOURLY RATE? KEEP IT A SECRET!
Seeing Client Vanish After Sharing Hourly Rate Highlights Downsides to Strategy
Had an experience recently that had me rethink something I talk about in TWFW: that you need to know what your hourly rate is (true), because clients will always ask and you need to be prepared to tell them (maybe not true). A few months back, I got an email from a marketing director of a big well-known homebuilder in Atlanta. He said he’d visited my site, liked my work, and would like to talk to me about helping them with a whole series of marketing materials. And, by the way, what was my hourly rate? I replied that I’d be happy to work with them, and that my hourly rate was $125. I never heard from him again. I emailed him several times, called a few more. Nada. Silence.
Some would say, fine, if he got scared off, he needed to be. Perhaps, but here's another angle to consider: sometimes, you need to meet people where they are. Meaning, that had I said instead, “I quote by the job, and I'd be happy to give you a flat fee on any upcoming project,” we might still be talking. He might still have held my feet to the fire on an actual rate, but maybe not. And here's the thing: an hourly rate doesn't mean much without the context of an actual job that that rate is being applied to.
Let's say a client asks me to quote a small brochure that I think will take me eight to ten hours. So, I say $1000-1250. If that's about what he was thinking, we're in business. But had I said $125 an hour, he might have wigged out, imagining a 15-to-20-hour "runaway train." While some might come back and ask me to quantify that, many others will just go screaming into the night, never to be heard from again. Like I suspect this guy did.
So, I’m becoming a convert to the “Don’t Quote Hourly Rates” school – unless someone puts your feet to the fire. In which case, if you know you work fast, make a point to say, “Because I work fast, an hourly rate can be misleading; I’d appreciate the chance to bid on a particular project. I’m guessing you’d be pleasantly surprised.” Unless you’re charging $10 an hour (if you are, don’t email me unless you want an earful), I don’t think there’s much upside to sharing an hourly rate, and plenty of potential downside.
P.S. I recently read that this company’s stock nosedived in the wake of the sub-prime meltdown/housing slowdown, so maybe he WAS looking for that $10-an-hour writer. My email probably gave him a good belly laugh. Happy to be of service. Let’s eat!
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II. CRISP “FIELD” GREENS: When It’s Time to Stop Thinking Small
AR Writer Finds HER Reason to Value Herself More as a Writer. What’s Yours?
Angie Dixon of Little Rock, AR, (angied@angiedixon.com, www.angiedixon.com) sent me this cool “mind-shift” piece about coming to realize her worth. Her experiences also underscore the pitfalls of sites like Elance.com, where often, rates are low, and respect even lower. Even those of us further along the writing spectrum than her can benefit from her words (yours truly included). Where are YOU giving it away too cheaply?
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Recently, I got “fired” by an Elance client, who said the draft I’d sent him was “rushed and sloppy.” He was willing to lose his upfront deposit, but refused to pay the balance. A couple of things were both peculiar and familiar about this. He’d previously written me about the draft saying it looked good and that I was on track – similar to another client who’d approved outlines and early content, going so far as to say it was “superb.”
But like this second client, the first client had changed his tune as well, ALSO saying in my feedback that the work was “obviously rushed and sloppy,” ALSO not asking for his deposit back, and ALSO not paying the balance. Okay, I’m not stupid. I know when someone decided to lie and cheat rather than pay the amount they agreed to pay.
I’ve always had excuses for not making much money as a writer: I’ve been writing a long time, and I don’t mind not making money at it; I’d do it for nothing; My experience speaks for itself; It’s fun; I know I’m a professional, I don’t care what I get paid; I took some time off to recover from an illness, raise kids and go to grad school. Who would pay me well when I haven’t worked in years? I don’t really mind.
Well, now I mind. And I mind for several reasons. It’s not just how I’m treated. There’s another reason, an even more important one. When I think small, and allow myself to be “treated small,” I’m teaching my kids something. When I think big and teach them to think big, I’m helping build something important.
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III. MAIN COURSE: GET PAID FASTER & WITH LESS ANXIETY!
ONTARIO FLCW Changes Invoicing Verbiage, Speeds Up Receivables!
Got this great idea from London, Ontario-based FLCW Pete Savage (pete@petesavage.com; www.petesavage.com) for speeding up your accounts receivables – and adding a measure of certainty to the process (always welcome when it comes to money, no?). Following Pete’s idea are a few notes of my own about when to be flexible, and suggestions for using this same technique in other ways. Check it out.
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Hi Peter: Back in January 2007, I instituted a required 50% deposit on all project work. It worked quite well, but I felt that it came across as a little heavy, like the client might feel like they were given no choice. So I made an adjustment. At the end of the agreement, just above the line that indicates where the client is to sign off, I have two check boxes, with accompanying copy that reads: “For your convenience, two methods of invoicing are available. Please choose your preferred option:
Option A: Invoice us in two installments. 50% of the total project fee is invoiced now. The remaining balance will be invoiced upon project completion or 30 days from project start date (whichever comes first) and is payable net 15 days. Work for this project begins upon my receipt of this initial deposit check.
Option B: Invoice us once. 100% of the Total Project Fees amount is invoiced now, payable in 30 days.
The result? It works like a charm, and has sped up my receivables cycle tremendously. With two invoicing options, the client feels they have a choice in the matter, but both options are great for our cash flow! A true win-win. To my surprise, some clients choose Option B. It’s great to get permission to send an invoice for work you haven’t even started! And I get checks from “Option-B” clients for the whole amount for projects that aren’t even complete! Anyone who’s done work for large firms knows that some can take forever to process invoices. Use this technique to get your invoice into their payables stream an extra 15 to 30 days early, depending on how you’re currently invoicing.
PB NOTE: Two comments on the above:
1) GREAT stuff! AND, an FYI about the final line of Option A above: “Work for this project begins upon my receipt of this initial deposit check.” In my experience, large companies aren’t generally set up to cut checks fast, so be flexible on this point. If the company is big and reputable (i.e., you KNOW you’ll get paid), you can likely get started safely without check in hand. For smaller, lesser-known firms, get your upfront deposit (AND typically, their accounting systems can more feasibly generate a check quickly – and often on the spot!)
1) The “choice of two positives” concept isn’t a new one (see p. 24 of TWFW: Back For Seconds). Professional salespeople have employed it forever because it works. Other places it could work for us: meetings and project launches. Instead of asking, “So, would you like to get together to meet to show you my work?” how about, “Would Tuesday or Thursday be better for you to have me swing by and share my portfolio?” Or in place of “So, are you ready to get going on this project?” try “Which piece of the campaign is more important – the press releases, or the brochure?”
By contrast, yes/no questions put a client on the spot and invite no’s. The strategy may not always work, and you may not feel entirely comfortable using it verbally (in writing, as Pete shares, is easy), but the quicker you can move the prospect along with a series of small decisions, the sooner you can get to the yes that really matters.
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IV. DESSERT: Sweet Success Stories and Tips
India Outsourcing Tip (02/08) Spawns More Success Stories/Tips on Staying Local!
TIP: LA FLCW Reminds: For More Engaging Writing, “Start the Story in the Middle”!
Laurie Schmidt (schmidt_laurie@msn.com), a Colorado-based science and technology writer, replied to the tip last month (http://wellfedwriter.com/ezine/feb2008.html) about outsourcing different labor- or technology-intensive tasks to India. Laurie shares this:
For any FLCWs who happen to live near a university, there are plenty of student employees to be found! I am still working part-time at a university while getting my business going, and we hired a student to be our editorial assistant for $10.00/hour. She’s happy to do the "mundane" tasks we don't want to do or have time for. University student employee offices will typically let local businesses post ads on their web site.
PB Note: In TWFW Back For Seconds (p. 228), in Philly-based Kennerly Clay’s profile, she wrote about how she was using an intern to work a lot smarter:
“I’ve found that internal administrative tasks – database calling, various marketing tasks, Web site updates, etc. – can really pull energy and focus away from jobs I’m working on and new work coming in. I found a fantastic intern who came to work with such enthusiasm and willingness to learn, I can’t imagine how I got along without her before.
“She manages my contacts (using a script similar to the one I borrowed from TWFW). She writes headlines and copy for my postcard mailers. She’s written several ads for my business and placed them in a local paper, plus she tracks all my marketing efforts. She even re-wrote my web content and developed my new tagline. I’ve also made a point of giving her opportunities, to write articles for one of my clients, for example. Her contribution is invaluable and I recently hired her for eight hours a week (she was previously unpaid). We’re both delighted.”
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Good friend and LA-based FLCW Dave Tandet (http://davidtandet.com/) sends this observation/tip about my writing suggestion (also in TWFW Back For Seconds; p. 181) to “Start in the Middle.” He writes:
I was looking at websites of the presidential candidates. SO many of them – both parties – are SO lackluster. Sure, the more a person’s accomplished, the more you’re tempted to just start putting down a laundry list of achievements. But your advice about starting in the middle of a story is great; it’s about making your prose that much more lively. And I’ve been applying it in the rewriting of a local city council member’s bio.
There’s such a difference between starting: “Joe Shmoe was born in ______” or even “Joe Shmoe believes we should all be able to_________” and “The lesson I learned the SECOND time that baseball came towards me in little league that day is why I keep a catcher’s mitt in my senate office.”
PB Note: So, where can “Starting in the Middle” of a story – dropping the reader into the thick of a narrative, and THEN going back and establishing the basics – make a project more interesting and engaging? How about in newsletters, brochures, trade articles, case studies, and executive profiles? For starters!
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V. COFFEE, MINTS AND TOOTHPICKS
- ATTN: ATLANTA! “The Well-Fed Writer” Seminar Coming March 28!
- NEW! The BODACIOUS Banquet – Issues 1-52 of the EPUB; Just $10.95
- MISSED MY TELECLASS? Full 38-PAGE e-Transcript – Just $12!
- AWAI Copywriting (& Other) Courses: Register Here, Get 2 Bonuses (no charge!)
- Well-Fed E-Pub Needs All Courses!
- How Can My Mentoring Service Serve You?
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ATTN: ATLANTA! Commercial Writing & Self-Publishing Seminar Coming in March!
Been wanting to catch a Well-Fed Writer seminar? Here’s your chance! On Friday 3/28/08, I’ll be a co-presenter at an all-day conference on commercial writing and self-publishing. Attend just morning, just afternoon (my part) or both for a budget-friendly price. Details and to enroll: http://www.anvilpub.net/spring_seminar_3.htm.
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SLAUNWHITE & STELZNER TELECLASS ON PRICING YOUR SERVICES!
Do you wrestle with how to price your services AND getting what you know you deserve? Join copywriting icon Steve Slaunwhite and host Michael Stelzner for a 3/19/08 teleclass: “Pricing Your Services as a Freelance Writer (Earning What You're Worth!)” Details: http://www.whitepapersource.com/cmd.php?Clk=2295584.
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NEW! The BODACIOUS Banquet – ISSUES 1-52 of the EPUB; Just $10.95!!
Every strategy, technique, tip, and success story from 5/02 to 8/06 in one KILLER easy-to-use 280-page ebook resource! http://wellfedwriter.com/thebodabanq.shtml.
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MISSED MY TELECLASS? “Thriving as a Freelance Commercial Writer”
38-PAGE e-Transcript! $12: www.wellfedwriter.com/jan07tstranscript.shtml.
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AWAI COPYWRITING (& OTHER) COURSES: Register Here, Get 2 Extra Bonuses!
Six-Figure Copywriting, Graphic Design, Internet Writing, Fundraising, Health Market and more! TWO Bonus CDS: http://www.wellfedwriter.com/awai.shtml.
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WELL-FED E-PUB Needs ALL COURSES!
“GREENS” (200-300 words), MAIN COURSES (400-500; query first), TIPS (150-200) and SUCCESS STORIES (200-300) to peter@wellfedwriter.com.
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HOW CAN MY MENTORING SERVICE SERVE YOU?
For details and testimonials, visit www.wellfedwriter.com/Mentoring.shtml.
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