Good morning once again on this 6th day of June, 2013. I hope this missive finds you feeling successful.
Today we are going to talk about the ugly “M” word….Marketing.
Let’s start out with some background. I have a degree in Marketing and I actually taught it in high school my first two years of teaching. I have owned and operated four businesses over the years….and….I am incredibly shy and humble.
I cannot cold-call. I’ve tried for years, but the very thought of walking into a business establishment and asking them to let me write for them makes me break out in a cold sweat.
I get it….truly!
Still, I also understand that marketing is the key to success in any business, and writing is a business. As much as we would love to while away our days just writing and not promoting, we will not get very far using that approach.
What product are you selling? YOU! Never forget that basic fact….you are the product and not your writing. You are the face of your business and not your writing. As such, you need to promote you, but you need to do it in a way that does not compromise your principles and does not make you feel like a ten-dollar whore in a coastal town.
Well, the good news is that there are ways to do that. The bad news is that it is all up to you to get it done.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.”
Peter Drucker
This is such an important point to understand in marketing. What do you have to offer that the customer needs? Put it another way: what does the customer need and how can your talents meet that need?
When I approach a potential customer, I first think about their business….how can my writing increase their business? When I approach a magazine editor with an article, the question becomes how will my article increase their readership?
Give it some thought!
TIP OF THE DAY
Well, you have already received quite a few tips already, haven’t you? Here is one more:
Make a list of potential businesses you would like to write for, or make a list of the potential magazines you would like to write for. Start local and move up the food chain.
Last year I decided I wanted to write for real estate companies. I made a list of twenty companies in our city and I sent emails to all of the agents in those twenty companies. I landed two blog jobs that I still have. The effort took me one afternoon of emailing and now I get steady income from it.
Magazines….always start local, and when you approach them with an email make sure they know you are a local writer.
PROMPT OF THE DAY
I’ve already give you quite a bit to chew on, so here is your prompt and then I’ll say goodbye for today. Do you see anything in this picture worth writing about?
SITE OF THE DAY
Whenever I’m looking for a little extra freelance cash, I turn to this site, Freelancer, and in particular the Craigslist writing job listings. You can find them here.
MORE ON FRIDAY
That’s all I have time for today my friends. I hope I’ve given you something to think about as you go about your day. Believe this: I want you all to succeed. You are not my competitors but rather my peers, and I want us all, five years from now, to meet in Miami Beach and talk about our successes.
Have your people call my people and we’ll set it up. J
Bill
“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”
Billybuc
Artistry With Words 