Rebounding From 2008, Moving Forward In 2009

I like to use the first few business days of the new year to track my work’s progress, gauging how the previous year went and anticipating what the year ahead holds. Quite honestly, as a freelance writer I cannot offer a rock solid prediction of where I’m heading, but I must say that I’m much more confident about 2009 then I was about 2008.

The first five months of 2008 were a real struggle for me as I found demand for my work to be down. But, beginning in June things began to turn around so much so that for the remainder of the year every month beat my budgeted projection. This, despite a worsening recession, which saw a number of large businesses hit the skids and the federal government coming up with a cockamamy bail out plan.

My customer base remains unchanged from last summer though my work load has definitely shifted more to two clients from three. I still am writing for a pair of print publications as an automotive columnist and I do rely on some ad revenue thanks to AdSense and other arrangements. I am detecting that advertising is down because of the economy, so I certainly won’t rely on that during 2009.

I plan on using the first few weeks of the month to come up with a fresh marketing plan for my work. Not so much for promoting the many sites that I control, rather to solicit fresh business from quality clientele. I’ll probably be scaling back on some of my social media involvement while pitching my work to some interested parties.

During the Christmas break I received an inquiry about my work, but haven’t gotten back yet. With the kids being at home (they’re back in school today) I’ve been balancing my work with their needs while also finding it difficult to work when they’re in the house. Thankfully, my wife keeps them occupied, otherwise I would have gotten nothing done these past two weeks.

In 2008, I was able to take in a pair of auto shows, which are critical to my work. In January I made it to the Detroit show (North American International Auto Show) while in November I visited Los Angeles for that show. In February, I made a visit to Wilmington, NC to cover the Battleship U.S.S. North Carolina, notes of which are part of an unsold article I have developed.

I will not be attending the Detroit show this year, but I am registered for the Chicago Auto Show which will be held next month. However, because of the current state of the economy, I may skip Chicago and wait until April to attend the New York International Auto Show. That latter show is in the vicinity of family, so I have a place to stay. I also would like to go to Las Vegas in November for SEMA (no, not for betandwin or is it bet and win?) as I’m still writing quite a few articles for the specialty automotive market.

In between we have a family trip coming up and I hope to pull in a writing assignment while we’re away. I’ve gotten in the habit of bringing my laptop along with me and as long as I’m not engrossed in all things internet while we’re away, my family doesn’t mind. If they did, they’d tell me!

One area of writing that I would like to pursue in 2009 is a full feature gig with a national magazine or newspaper. This kind of writing is very research intensive, involves 3000-6000 words, and takes a significant amount of time to complete. But, the rewards in the form of pay and exposure are terrific, just the sort of breakthrough assignment that can change everything.

The Article Writer Mailbag, Take 15

Q. How did you preserve your existing client base when you increased your rate?

I’m writing at $.03 per word. I’d love to reach $.05, but I’m fearful that my clients will chase cheaper services.

Did you have this problem? Would you be able to give me any insight about how you avoided/resolved it?

A. First of all, let me congratulate you on your choice of profession. Freelance writing is an enjoyable (and rewarding) job choice, not for everyone, but something talented writers should consider.

Secondly, my most noticeable rate increase happened two years ago and it wasn’t without much difficulty. Essentially, I quit writing for all of my lowest-priced clients and began pursuing higher quality, more lucrative projects. One very large, on-going project had recently ended while two others were done, but I knew they’d be interested in using me again in the near future. However, I was no longer interested in writing for them and quit accepting new work when offered.

Of course, if you want to keep your current clients and raise your rates, you can always ask them to pay you at the new, higher rate. However, since your current clients are looking for a bargain (and at .03 per word, that is what you are offering), they’ll probably look at the change to .05 per word as a 60% price increase and resist. In this case you have three choices:

1. Keep working for less money.
2. Drop your current customers.
3. Keep your customers until better paying opportunities come along.

I did lose quite a bit of money until I was able to make the adjustment, but I’ve managed to land several better paying opportunities, including a pair of ongoing magazine gigs which is the direction I planned on going eventually. I’ve been writing about my favorite topics, cars, a lot lately which also helps because I’m excited about my work instead of feeling as if I have to produce work on subjects which aren’t of much interest to me.

Finally, when you do get to the point of having a name for yourself, you’ll be able to cherry-pick projects as they come along. Sure, I work my tail off for my customers, but I also want to produce work that satisfies me. It has taken me three years to get to this point, but I like the direction that I am going.

Best wishes to you in all of your pursuits.