Find work fast! 5 Top Marketing Tips for Freelance Mums

Statistics recently revealed by Intuit (published on the Enterprise Nation blog – click here for source article) reveal that the number one challenge for Freelancers is finding clients (41.8%), closely followed by project management (24.5%).

Yet, a whopping 64% would recommend Freelancing to a friend, with 50% stating they plan to carry on themselves.

The stats make interesting reading and indicate that despite the challenges, it is still considered to be a great career choice – especially for us mums.  The number one reason for Freelancing was to have a better work life balance.

So, the number one problem – finding clients! Not altogether surprising given that Freelancing figures continue to show a steady growth during these economically challenging times. (See PCG’s report, “UK Freelance Workforce” published for National Freelancer’s Day November 2011. http://www.pcg.org.uk/)

The Freelance market is fast becoming a saturated one and the only way to survive is to stay ahead of the game.  But as frantic Freelance mums juggling work and family, we barely have time to market ourselves properly and this is part of the problem. There’s a strong correlation between marketing and having plenty of clients to keep us going. Let your marketing slide and you’ll end up with peaks and troughs. Wouldn’t you prefer more work than you can handle?

Here are 5 top tips to get you started:

1.  Do your homework – know your customer: We’ve heard it all before, yet it is apparently the first mistake most of us make with selling our service. If your service doesn’t fit your client, they won’t buy. Who needs your services? What sector of the market are they? Have this clearly defined and you’ll have a better idea where to find them.

2.  Pick up the phone: This happens to be my favourite as it works for me as a writer. The ‘old fashioned’ approach of picking up the humble phone and courting your prospective clients is in my opinion by far the best approach. Few people like cold calling, but oddly enough, it works. And it works precisely because so few people bother to do it.

On the subject of approaching new prospects, Leif Kendall in his book “Brilliant Freelancer – Discover the power of your own success” suggests that the simple approach works best.  “Cold calling isn’t about being a hotshot sales person. It’s about making gentle introductions to new people who are likely to need your help.” \

Jot down who you would like to work for, and phone them. Karen Cornish (www.karencornish.co.uk ) freelance writer, editor and proofreader finds that the direct approach works best for her. “So far, all of my work has come via word of mouth and me phoning magazine editors directly”, she says. So give it a try. It won’t feel scary after the first time!

3.  Develop Credibility: Be known as the expert in your field. You can do this by guest blogging, writing articles for trade magazines, sending freebies to prospective clients, or why not go the whole hog and offer a one off presentation to show your prospects how your service should be done. People buy from whom they know and trust, so the quicker you can get your name out there and under their nose, the better.

4.  Be Different: Or in well-known marketing speak, be the “Purple Cow”. In an increasingly crowded market, the only way to survive is to carve a niche. I know of a Freelance Journalist who specialises in writing about dogs (Elaine Everest www.thewriteplace.org.uk ). It’s not the only thing she writes about, but she is well known for it. Or the Social Media Marketer who specialises in local food events and green issues (Twitter @DMinTransition). I don’t know if she considers herself a Freelancer, but it is an excellent example of a niche service.

5.  Collaborate: Who can you partner up with? Is there another Freelancer within the same field who could help you win a larger project? Sometimes partnering with others improves your credibility. But don’t partner up with anyone just for the sake of it. Think of this as forming strategic alliances to fulfill a common goal.

Small Business Mentor, Lorraine Allman (www.speedmentorcentral.co.uk), gives some excellent tips on this very subject. In her blog post “Collaborate to Accumulate”, she says, “be clear from the start about what you want from the collaboration in terms of furthering your own business objectives and make sure that these are complimentary (they don’t have to be the same) to the company you are partnering with. The whole point of collaboration is to achieve a very specific quantifiable goal (e.g. secure a public sector contract, increase client numbers) rather than just a general mutually agreeable relationship with no clear focus.”

While the temptation is to simply busy yourself with the busywork, these five simple yet effective marketing tips will help you hone your ability to find clients – fast.

Mary

Freelancing – how much should I charge?

It’s a common problem for us as Freelancers – at least when we first start out.  How much should I charge?

And sorry to break it to you ladies, but this is largely a girly problem.  Time and again, when comparisons are made, we tend to undercharge or give away too much of our time compared to our male counterparts.  (Perhaps it’s the Venutian in us. We favour nurturing and caring over the more practical, tinkering of our Martian mates).

If you have ever struggled with charging your true worth, you’ll know how debilitating it can be in business.  It is purportedly one of the main reasons why female owned businesses struggle (I emphasise one of the reasons, not THE reason).  It could be the death of your business if you don’t get a handle on it.  

So, are you new to Freelancing?  If you are, how much should you charge? 

Here are two very simple tips which can be applied to any sector of the Freelance market that you work in:

1. Be results orientated.

It is so important to be results orientated.   Your clients are not interested in the job that you are doing, but what you are achieving.  Essentially: 

• What’s in it for them and
• What problem are you solving for them.  

So, if you feel nervous about charging your true worth, create a long list of the results your clients get when they use your services.

Example:  You’re not simply a copywriter.  You produce exciting copy that leaps off the page.  Or you produce winning copy that converts to sales.  Or even better still, “By using my copywritng services, my clients doubled their response rates.”

Exanple:  You’re not just a Virtual Assistant.  What problem are you solving?  You’re  saving clients’ time.  Now try quantifying it.  How much time?  How much time each week?  How long have you been saving them that amount of time each week?  

Which statement do you think sounds more powerful?   “By using my services, 20 clients saved on average 100 hours each month”   or  “I’m a Virtual Assistant with 20 clients on my books”?   

2. Research, compare and add a bit more.

If you are new to the freelancing market, you may feel more comfortable charging roughly the same as others in your market or geographical area (and there really is no hard and fast rule about that).  But it is absolutely imperative that as you gain more experience, your rates move and grow with you.

Just think, what message are you giving by always charging the same? Indeed, by charging the same as everyone else, aren’t you simply saying that you are the same as everyone else?  Think niche.

Check what your competitors are charging.  Now go back to your list and determine what your niche is (and by the way, the value you are giving your clients + your unique take on it = your niche), then charge a bit more. You’re worth it! 

While you may be wary of inflating your worth, by charging more, you are making the statement that you are worth more.  People really do respect and value something when they have invested more in it.

Mary

Why not subscribe to our quarterly magazine, with more Freelance tips written by our experienced Freelance contributors.

Starting out in business? What help is available?

The government has recently announced a new initiative to help women business owners with free mentoring.  5,000 women are to be trained to become mentors along with a women’s business council.

We think this is great news for new female start-ups, particularly as it comes after news that the numer of women out of work is at a 23 year high!

We’ll keep our eyes peeled for further details so that we can post them here for you.

In the meantime, we thought we’d give you details of other start-up intiatives that we know of.

Young Mums

For anyone under the age of 30, Shell LiveWIRE supports young entrepreneurs with help, advice, monthly and yearly awards.  For further details, visit the website at www.shell.live-wire.org

The Prince’s Trust is another organisation which helps younger people (up to the age of 30).  They also offer downloadable packs from www.princestrust.org.uk

Older Workers

With redunandancy such a sad and common fact nowadays, many mature women are now faced with having to consider self-employment as a very real and viable option to trying to find another job.  Additionally, for many over 50, there is that nagging thought that once out of work, we’ll never find profitable employment again before we claim our pension!  So, for Olderpreneurs, PRIME, backed by Prince Charles, is the only organsation to help the over 50s set up in business for themsleves.  They have free workshops, networking events and accredited advisors.  They also run a loan scheme which helps those who cannot find help from the high street.  For more details, visit the website at www.prime.org.uk

SUBSCRIBE FOR FULL ARTICLE this is an edited version of the full article, featured in Work Your Way Magazine Issue 3.  To order a single copy or to ensure you never miss a copy by subscribing, please click on the subscribe link in the sidebar.

New research shows mum’s the word in Freelancing

Working mums are pouring into freelancing in their thousands, taking advantage of the flexibility that the sector offers, meaning for the first time 1 in 8 freelancers is a working mum.

According to a new study by Kingston University for PCG, the sector saw a 25% rise in working mums over the last three years with around 210,000 choosing the freelance path against 167,000 in 2008.

Other Freelancing facts!

• There are 1.56 million Freelancers in the UK
• The highest proportion of Freelancers work in Artistic, Literary and Media occupations
• Freelancers play 4 vital roles in the UK Economy:

1. Businesses are increasingly contracting out innovation and entrepreneurship activities to Freelancers.
2. In contrast to successful owner-managers/corporate entrepreneurs who are committed to one business for at least 5 years, Freelancers typically provide creative input to a number of different businesses within the same period.
3. The availability of Freelancers means that businesses can have The ‘A’ Team – a team fit for purpose – rather than trying to run with a Jack of all Trades.
4. Freelancers enable businesses to have innovation and competitive edge.

With thanks to PCG, The Voice of the Freelancer. “UK Freelance Workforce – A Special Research Report Produced For National Freelancers Day 2011,” Kingston University.

For more information, and to download your FREE definitive guide to Freelancing, please visit www.pcg.org.uk

Freelancers value good coffee over smart phone

Twitter, Skype and coffee beat smart-phone as items freelancers can’t live without

Research recently released by online accountants Crunch shows that smart-phones are rated only seventh in a list of the most important things UK freelancers can’t live without. The main computer, online communication, task management tools, networking events and coffee were all rated more highly.

Only 5% of freelancers rated the smart-phone as their most important tool at work, compared with 34% who chose their main computer and 21% who selected online communication tools, such as Twitter. Even coffee came in at fifth place with 8% of the vote.

Surprisingly, the research also found that male freelancers appear to be more social with 12% of men stating that they couldn’t live without social business support networks, compared to only 4% of women.

Owner and MD at Crunch, Darren Fell said:

“This research is fascinating. It seems to show that despite a push towards more mobile working, today’s freelancers are still tied to their desks. This is why we’re throwing them, many of whom are Crunch customers, a party in Brighton to mark National Freelancer Day on 23 November. Brighton has around double the national average of freelancers, so it’ll be a great opportunity for some networking over a well deserved drink, although we will need to make sure we have enough coffee!”

The most important thing (number one most important) in a freelancers’ working life according to new research from Crunch:

Crunch Accounting combines a team of expert accountants available on the phone with easy-to-use online accounting software.   More details www.crunch.co.uk