Being a freelance writer is an incredibly rewarding career (I should know, I've been at it for 19 years). You spend your days doing something you enjoy, while also getting to explore a huge range of new ideas, all while getting paid for the privilege. Of course, though, in a business like this, it can be hard to know how you’re going to grow when the time comes. Getting more and more work will eventually stop being a good thing (been there!). Instead of being excited and happy, you become overwhelmed. To help you to avoid this sort of issue, this post will be exploring some of the best ways to further and improve a freelance writing career.
Start Outsourcing
When you have too much work to handle, one of the best options you have is outsourcing. Like you, other freelance writers will always be looking for work, and you can often take advantage of this nice and easily.
Of course, in most cases, you won’t earn as much using a method like this. Instead of doing the work, though, you'll be giving it to someone else, and this means that the money is effectively free.
Websites like Freelancer are great when you’re first starting out. As time goes on, though, you’ll probably want to consider finding some people who you will be able to work with for a long time.
Before outsourcing freelance work, be sure to look at your contract. Some contracts will specify that you are not allowed to outsource and all of the work must be done by you, only.
Get Yourself Published
Passing your work to someone else might not always be the answer you’re looking for. Instead of increasing the amount of work you can do, a lot of writers will look for better work that pays more for less effort.
Getting yourself published can be a huge step in the right direction when you’re trying to achieve a goal like this. Of course you need a great idea and time.
When you’re aiming for a deal for a book or other media method, you will have to go after companies with a lot of tenacity, as this market can be a very fierce one. Having a strong social media following can help you snag that book deal.
Or, you can self-publish using Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing. This is a free service and you have much more control over how your book is priced, how it is advertised and how much of a royalty you receive. This is the route I went with my book The Fluff-Free Freelance Writing Master Course.
Get Paid More
Part of getting paid more and working less is raising your rates. Granted, you'll lose some clients, but you will free yourself up to work with a higher level of clientele. This not only makes your bank account happy, but it will also raise your status as a writer.
Here's a sample email you can send your current clients when you plan on raising your rates:
The good news is my business is doing really well. The bad news is that I must raise my rates to accommodate my business' growth. So, I am letting you know that I will be raising my rates as of (date). Articles will now be (price) and blog posts will be (price). You are a valued customer to me, so I hope we can continue creating fantastic content together.
Thanks so much for your loyalty and business,
Name
Add A New Face
Finally, as the last option to help your freelance writing business grow, it’s time to think about professionalism. It can be very hard to respond to emails, answer calls, and deal with other customer requests when you’re very busy with work. To help you with this, it would be worth researching virtual offices and the next business revolution.
Hopefully, this post will inspire you to start working harder on the time you put into your writing career. Doing anything on a freelance basis will come with its challenges. When it comes time to grow, though, you have to make sure you’re prepared, or you could miss your chance at a better future.