Freelance Writing 101: Choosing the Type of Clients You Want to Work With as a Freelance Writer
In the early days of freelance writing, there were basically two kinds of writers. There were novelists and academics who wanted to supplement their incomes, and there were journalists and ghostwriters who wanted to get out of the newspaper or magazine grind.
Now, freelance writers have a lot more options. In addition to novelists, academics, journalists and ghostwriters, there are niches for all kinds of freelance writers. I don’t mean the industry you operate in or your freelance writing title (content writer vs ghostwriter vs freelance automotive blog writer).
No, I’m talking about the structure of your freelance writing business: who you work with and how you serve them.
What the Type of Clients You Want to Work With as a Freelance Writer?
In business, there are generally three types of customers: consumers, businesses, and publications. In the freelance writing world, there are similar categories:
- Consumers — Blog readers and the public. Your blog is an example of serving consumers directly. You can also work with other writers to serve consumers by ghostwriting articles or creating content for a client blog.
- Businesses — Restaurants, car repair shops, professional services firms, marketing agencies, even large enterprises. No, a personal trainer isn’t a small business in the traditional sense of the word, but she does need marketing materials such as a website, blog posts and social media profiles.
- Publications — Trade journals, magazines, and newspapers. There are tons of publications and websites that pay freelancers for guest articles, op eds, or reviews.
The great thing about freelancing is that there’s no one-size-fits-all structure. You get to choose your own adventure. That said, niching really help focus your marketing efforts and helps you position yourself as an attractive option for potential clients. That’s why I think it’s important that you find or create your ideal client persona.
Create Your Ideal Client Persona
Your ideal client is the person or business who fits your niche and will hire you to solve their business problems. For example, if you make money blogging, think about who your readers are:
- How old are they?
- Where do they live?
- Are they parents or dog-lovers?
- What motivates them? (time, money, or reputation)
- Why do they read your content? (escapism, entertainment, or education)
The more you know about your readers, the better you’re able to create content that attracts them.
Similarly, if you freelance for other small to medium businesses, craft a client persona to describe the ideal business. For instance, I like working with marketing agencies and writing services companies for three reasons:
- There’s a steady stream of work,
- They’re used to collaborating with remote workers,
- You can easily build long-term relationships.
However, perhaps you want to write blog and social media copy for law firms in your city. That’s awesome. Build a client profile that’s focused on the ideal content buyer.
Here are some questions to help you build a client profile if your target client is a business:
#1 What Type of Business Is It?
Law firms, tech start-ups, and plumbers are looking for different things in a freelance writer. They might also value different things. For example, tech start-ups may want to know about your existing network and how well you can seed their content on social media or discussion forums. A law firm might want evidence that you’re familiar with the legal industry.
#2 How Big Is the Company?
Going with the law firm example, you could work with smaller law firms that are really niche or midsized firm. There are pros and cons either way. For example, large law firms might have a well-oiled content marketing machine and just need someone to write for them. In that case, you’ll probably be targeting the firm’s creative director or marketing director. However, they’re also busier and might be more resistant to working with a newbie.
On the other hand, midsized or smaller firms may not have a full marketing team, so you might have a bigger, more strategic role.
It’s more about what you’re comfortable with and what makes sense for your business.
#3 What Motivates Them?
If you’re targeting businesses directly, you need to know why they’re doing this in the first place. How does your service as a writer fit into the bigger picture? What’s their goal? Are they looking for leads, branding, conversions, or awareness?
This is also a good time to think about what you’re trying to accomplish with your marketing materials.
#4 What Are Their Pain Points?
“Successful businesses solve problems.”
In a Business Insider article, Ramit Sethi talks about how “Successful businesses solve problems.” As a freelance writer, so do you. And no, needing content isn’t an issue, not being able to write isn’t the problem.
So, what are the concerns you solve for your readers and clients?
For example, do they struggle with getting their message out there? Do they lack the resources to hire a full-time content manager? Do they require help with SEO to attract leads? Whatever it is, think about how you can solve their issues beyond just creating content.
Something I’ve learned working with marketing agencies is that they juggle a lot of things and require someone to carry a part of that burden. So, if an agency owner can trust you to get stuff done properly and on time, you’re properly.
Whenever they don’t have to worry about whether the work you submit will be up to standard, that means more to your client than the content. Why? Because you are one less thing they have to worry about.
Choose the Right Customer Persona
The best way to write marketing materials that speak directly to your target customer is by focusing on them, not you. The faster you lock in that decision, the faster you can get to the business of writing. After three years of being a generalist and going with the flow, I finally made up my mind about whom I want to work with last August, and since then I’ve doubled my productivity and revenue. I’m not saying that my situation is the same as yours, but try it.
That said, remember to focus on the value you can offer. Once you’ve honed in on that, move to the next step: targeting your audience. But more on that next time.
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