#11 Promote Yourself
The best way to get more work will be to network. Join Facebook or Telegram groups where freelance writers congregate. Make friends with them. Sometimes, one writer may not be able to take on a job, and they might ask you if you want to do it.
The more connections you have, the better it will be for you. You can not only share tips but also learn a lot by talking to your peers. Sometimes, industry-specific information will be shared and you’ll know about it sooner.
For example, if a freelancer platform is raising its fees or banning users because of a new rule, you can bet the freelancers in the groups you are in will be talking about it… and you’ll find out about it.
Besides networking with other writers, you’ll also want to join groups or attend marketing events that are related to your writing.
Joining a group about Kindle publishing will allow you to make connections and offer your writing services. Be subtle and DO NOT spam the group.
In the same vein, attending marketing events will allow you to network with other marketers who may be looking for content creators or writers who can do SEO writing. These are all potential opportunities for you.
Promote yourself regularly.
#12 Aim to Increase Your Income
There will come a point in time where you do like your job but you desire a higher income.
There are 3 ways you can do this:
- Increase your rates
- Take on more jobs
- Build a team of writers who work for you
The easiest way to earn more will be to charge more. This will be a process of trial and error. You may lose some clients, but the ones who do stay may be willing to pay you more. So, you’ll be working less and earning more.
Alternatively, you can take on more jobs. Just don’t overwhelm yourself. Raising your rates and finding new clients will dramatically increase your income.
The third method will involve you building a team of budding writers who charge less than you. Your job will be to get clients at higher rates and outsource these jobs to your team. Since you’re paying them less, you’ll be pocketing the difference without doing any writing yourself.
This is known as arbitrage and it’s legal. That said, you’ll need to go through the work your writers do so that you can maintain quality control. This is the tricky part about arbitrage.
Your writers will need to do a good job and meet the deadline. If they’re late or they don’t do a good job, you’ll be the one who has to deal with the client, so keep that in mind. It’s a bit tough to make arbitrage work, but if you can do it, you’ll boost your income tremendously and still have lots of time to take on other work which you’ll do yourself.
#13 Work in Spurts
There’s no denying the fact that writing is a tiring job. Sitting for hours tapping away on the keyboard can be mentally draining. It’s why even good writers procrastinate so often.
“It’s not the writing part that’s hard. What’s hard is sitting down to write.”
Steven Pressfield
The best way to avoid procrastination is to have a daily routine that you follow obsessively and down to the last second. You may wish to write in 2-hour blocks and have a 30-minute break after each writing block.
Find out what works for you and stick to it. Make writing a daily habit and you’ll be less likely to dread it or shirk it. You’ll still be tempted to procrastinate though, but you’ll be less likely to.