Category Archives: Business

Part 2 – Why Writers Don’t Need A Website

by Diane Holmes, (a) Chief Alchemist of Pitch University, (b) lover of learning, and (c) writer of fiction, non-fiction, and the occasional manifesto.

This is the second of 10 Reasons Writers Don’t Need A Website, poking little holes of honesty into the reasons writers are urged to “go get a website.”

Heck, I’ll probably even tell you the real reasons you should have one, the reasons that really matter.

you_are_here

Reason #2. There really are other ways to find you.

There’s a scare tactic that says, “If you don’t have a website, no one can find you!”  Even fiction writers are told this.

Let’s turn this around.  Is it impossible for those writers who don’t have a website to be found?  Totally impossible?

What about…

  • Reviews of Their Writing
  • Guest Articles
  • Interviews
  • Services and Professional Directories
  • Amazon Author Pages
  • Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, etc.)
  • Yelp and Other Review Sites
  • Yellow Pages, Google Search and Google Business, and Other Online Directories
  • Freelance Writing Bureaus
  • Societies, Organizations, and Associations
  • Publisher Sites

TRUTH FOR FREELANCE WRITERS AND EDITORS:

If you offer writing services, YES, you need to be listed correctly online in the key lookup directories.  And YES, a website is a good idea, but if you have bad reviews on review sites, your website may not matter.  (They’ll never click on it.) 

Plus you have many ways to get the word out if you don’t have a site.

TRUTH FOR BOOK WRITERS:

If your book isn’t available where they’re looking, such as a bookstore, that’s a problem.  That’s where they hope to find you, first of all.  And if they search on your name or title, they should find you at any number of online retailers.

SO WHAT’S THE REAL REASON YOU NEED A WEBSITE?

Because many of the other places where they can find you give very little information.  It’s like a 10 second pitch.

If you have your own website…

  1. You can be generous with the information you provide.
  2. You can speak directly to unasked questions and create an atmosphere of trust.
  3. You have time (spent reading multiple pages) to develop a sense of relationship between you and your website reader.
  4. You have the opportunity to surprise and delight your website visitors with non-fragmented information (unlike much of social media)  that you’ve designed especially for her or him.  It could be writing excerpts and samples, free guides, contests, or anything under the sun.

That’s a lot more than just “finding you.” 

I’d love to see writers get websites because of they will wield the mighty website power, not because they feel threatened and motivated by fear.  I’m officially opposed to subliminal blackmail sales techniques.

Long live the sword of website greatness!

TO BE CONTINUED

clip_image001[4]Diane writes two columns for Freelance-Zone: (1) Fiction-Zone: Leaps in Fiction Mastery and (2) Marketing-Zone: Marketing Yourself and Your Writing.

10 Reasons Writers Don’t Need A Website

by Diane Holmes, (a) Chief Alchemist of Pitch University, (b) lover of learning, and (c) writer of fiction, non-fiction, and the occasional manifesto.

website-building

Why I Have An Opinion About This

So, I’m starting a business where I (a writer) create websites for other writers.

(See, gone for months, yet we pick up exactly where we left off, talking marketing and writing.  That’s how you know we’re BFFs.)

But back to my new biz, Website Happiness.

The gist:  Super awesome sites for writers, no geek speak allowed,  just leading writers through bite-sized, easy peasy steps that accidentally help them with marketing and branding, while costing next to nothing.  Yeah, my slogan is kinda long, but “Just Do It” was taken.

So as I get ready to help some beta clients this weekend, this is a good time to tell you exactly why you don’t need a website.

Reason #1. Websites don’t really promote you (no matter what anyone else says).

Truth:  Websites sit there passively waiting for a human to show up.

cowboy with lassoThey are not a promotion machine with arms and legs, acting as your personal promoter, taking active steps on your behalf.  Nope.  They do not “get out there.”  They do not lasso docile readers or clients, create a stampede to your site, nor generate word-of-mouth by their very existence.

And that’s what a lot of writers seem to think (or hope).

“If I have a website (quality?  who cares!), I won’t have to work.  It will do the marketing for me!  That’s just the genius of web pages.  And I has them.

Soon (mwahahaha), everyone will know about me and all my literary goodness.  Excitement will build because I have an URL.  Finally, I am famous.”

Oh, and I can tell people I have a platform.  Sweet!

What’s that, you say?  It’s not passive?  It really does go out there with the power of Google!

Ah, no.  Getting your site listed in Google searches is also passive.  Google waits for a search to be entered, an invitation, a click.  And even then, seeing lists of sites is not the same as promotion.

Truth

When a reader (or client ) shows up at your website door, if you have an effective website with effective content, yes, it’s possible to educate and influence that reader… if they’re a good fit for you, your writing, or your services.

Your website will passively wait for your reader to decide if this is the case.

And if you really do an amazing job, your reader might tell her friends.  In fact, if you’re amazing, she might tell complete strangers at the grocery store.

So you can see there’s a lot of stuff you have to do right first.  And your website visitor gets to make every decision, starting with deciding to find your site.

That said, if someone does decide to look for you online, and if you’re not there, then you pretty much have zero chance of educating or influencing them at that moment in time.

Just saying.

TO BE CONTINUED….

clip_image001[4]Diane writes two columns for Freelance-Zone: (1) Fiction-Zone: Leaps in Fiction Mastery and (2) Marketing-Zone: Marketing Yourself and Your Writing.

What You Can Learn About Freelancing From Vinyl Records

Josie and the Pussycatsby Joe Wallace

When I am not freelancing, I sell vinyl records on Etsy, Discogs.com, and on my vinyl blog Turntabling. Vinyl records is a passion of mine and also an additional revenue stream for me, helping me stay in business as a freelancer and remain generally self-employed.

Believe it or not, the two worlds have a LOT in common. The whole reason I turned to vinyl in the first place, years ago, was because of the freelancer’s need for diverse income sources. Clients come, clients go. Some pay on time, some never do.

So diversifying the income portfolio, as it were, is a must–you want to eat every day? Make sure you have three or more checks arriving at various times in the month. Save up a cushion to deflect the problems created by those late-payers. That’s the message the freelance life has consistently given me since I started in 2002.

But the most fascinating things I’ve learned about freelancing from vinyl records can really be summed up by that Josie and the Pussycats vinyl record you see here. Look at this thing! You probably laughed when you spotted it, right? But here’s a fascinating little piece of data–that record is, at the time of this writing, up for sale on Ebay (not by me) for TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS.

It’s sealed, very hard to find, and somebody might actually pay that $200 to get it. MAYBE NOT–but there’s actually a chance, because of that tricky combination of nostalgia, impulse buying, and the near-eternal appeal of vinyl records for some.

The lessons I take away from this for the freelance life? Pretty simple but very important:

1. Like the vinyl record, your services are worth what people are willing to pay for them. I have been paid $200 an hour or more for my work. I’ve given it away for free, I’ve bartered, I’ve cut people deals. But at the end of the day, you get paid because a client was willing to pay and you were willing to do the work. It can be counter-productive–at least for me–to view freelance work in terms of fixed, unchanging price tags.

2. There is a market for expensive services, and it’s harder to find. In the vinyl market, I have customers willing to pay large dollars for rare, near impossible-to-find records. But I have just as many who simply want good, decently priced vinyl they don’t have to scour the earth to purchase. Balancing the high-paying hard-to-find commodities with lower-priced volume income is key. When it comes to my writing work, some writing has much greater inherent value, and therefore costs more. Some is intended to keep Google’s attention focused properly through steady posting and dependable content. This lower-priced work is not the same research-intensive stuff as the high-priced material, not should there be an expectation that it be anything more than what it is.

3. Go where the market is. I’ve tried selling on Amazon, at fan conventions, on Etsy, eBay, Bonanza, and many other places. When one avenue isn’t working over time, I ditch it and move on to something else. If you’re pounding your head against the proverbial wall in one area of your freelance career, it may be time to look elsewhere for better results. This is a notion that has served me very well since 2002.

There’s more, there’s SO much more…but the last lesson I can impart from my experience selling and collecting vinyl records is knowing when you’re in danger of overstaying your welcome.

Joe Wallace sells vinyl records, writes about military issues and finance, and runs several blogs and social media concerns. Since 2002, he’s written for acres for magazines and the Internet. His credits include American Fitness, Indie Slate, HorrorHound Magazine, and is one of the many essayists featured in a forthcoming book about obscure and under-appreciated horror films. You can reach him by email at jwallace242 @ gmail.

The New Hotness in Social Media: Twitter Vine

By Amanda Smyth Connorvine-twitter

My favorite pastime is researching and disregarding the new social media tools that pop up seemingly every day. More often than not, I find that they are re-purposed or re-skinned versions of tools I’m already using. I’ve got my social media favorites:

Hootsuite (for keeping all of my Twitter and Facebook accounts in one place.)

Radian6 (because I am a spoiled child who convinced her company to pay for this shiny and very expensive social media tool, although I maintain that this is Best in Class for social listening.)

SocialMention.com (It’s free and offers very quick sentiment analysis and mentions.)

But the latest hotness to come about is Twitter’s Vine app.

The new Vine app links directly to your Twitter account and creates a 6-second video, during which you can edit only so far as pausing the recording process. Check out some of the amazing videos users are posting already.

Why am I telling you about this new tool? Because this new social toy is becoming the new overnight hotness and much like Pinterest, it’s spreading like wildfire. If you are interested in furthering your social media involvement, or in adding a new line item to your resume of freelance skills, get creative and begin expanding your social media horizons with this new app.

Brands are already clamoring for ways in which they can engage users through this video feature. From stop-motion to straight videos, this is a landscape that companies are anxious to be a part of, so believe me when I say that it is in your best interest to, at the very LEAST, familiarize yourself with this awesome app. It’s going to be a great tool to have in your freelance toolkit.

 

Amanda Smyth Connor is a social media manager for a major publishing company and has managed online communities and content development for many start-up and Fortune 500 companies.  She has been a professional editor for more years than she can remember.

 

Add Value with Video

CelesteHeiterFZBioIn case you haven’t noticed…video is everywhere! With the abundance of affordable recording devices, from smartphones to digital cameras and mini-camcorders, there’s no end to the possibilities. And these days, nearly every OS includes basic video editing software.

If you want to go pro…there are dozens of options, including Adobe Creative Suite, which now includes Adobe Premiere, a full-scale digital video editing program with all the bells and whistles to enhance your raw footage and even create some amazing special effects. Best of all, the web is loaded with tutorials to help minimize the learning curve.

And when it comes to venues for your video creations, they run the gamut, from the free-for-all known as YouTube…to the news reels embedded in the lead stories of nearly every media website. So if you want to up the ante on your web-based freelance assignments, think video and start offering clips to sweeten the pot…and your paycheck!

Celeste Heiter is the author of Turn Your PC into a Lean Mean Freelancing Machine, the creator of the LoveBites Cookbook Series for Kindle Fire, and the author of Potty Pals , a potty-training book for children. She has also written ten books published by ThingsAsian Press; and spent eight years posting her recipes, food photographs, and film reviews on ChopstickCinema .

Visit her website, and her Amazon Author Page.

Stress Management or “How To Freak Out and Throw Things.”

lady-screams
A portrait of the author.

By Amanda Smyth Connor

We’ve all been there. Suddenly all of your deadline worlds collide, all of the stresses of the world unite and it all falls on your shoulders. No matter how carefully you maintain your deadlines, schedules and plans,  work stress can’t be helped.

I’m not talking about the day-to-day stress of maintaining your daily workload. I’m talking about the days when everything is on fire, all of the clients are calling and your inbox has hit its max. You find yourself spiraling out of control until you’re rocking in the corner and your productivity is shot.

Stress management is essential to the freelancer, particularly in an industry known for job flow that is feast-or-famine. As a freelancer, you may go weeks or, God forbid, months without a new client. This is a terrifying ordeal. What may be equally as terrifying is when all of the clients come calling at once.

There are only so many hours in a day and at least a precious few of those need to be dedicated to eating and sleeping (note: showering is always the first thing to go when the deadlines come calling.)

Stress management comes in various ways.

1. Prioritize the insanity to the best of your abilities. Is one project really on fire or is it merely smoldering? Can we de-prioritize it behind the project that is at “stage 5 inferno?” Which deadlines require immediate attention and which ones can be put off for a day with a simple email or phone call response.

2. You can’t work yourself to death. It’s counterproductive to be dead. When spiraling, I tend to forego sleep and I forget to eat regular meals. I run myself down quickly, I hit a wall and then I become useless to everyone.

Take breaks. Eat a meal during which you don’t check email, even if it’s for just 30-minutes. And try to get at least 6-hours of sleep, otherwise you’ll just crap out.

3. The worst thing you can do is to relieve stress by lashing out. Do not lash out at innocent bystanders who happen to get in the way of your rage-stroke. This won’t help you feel better.

 

How do you handle stress management when things get crazy? 

 

Amanda Smyth Connor is a social media manager for a major publishing company and has managed online communities and content development for many start-up and Fortune 500 companies.  She has been a professional editor for more years than she can remember.