The Cover/Interview Letter
I’ve been doing some thinking about cover letters for freelancers and how the hiring process can be different from getting a job in the brick-and-mortar world. Some clients do through an interview process, either by phone or e-mail, before they decide whether to hire you, but for others, the way you present yourself in your cover letter is your only opportunity to provide the answer to the question, “Why should I hire you?”
To be honest, I’m not disappointed to skip the interview process. I don’t miss having to answer questions like “What is your biggest strength?” (I work hard) and “What is your greatest weakness?” (I work too hard.) If you are going to be working off site, you also don’t run into a situation where in answer to the question, “Don’t you want to ask me something about my qualifications?”, the answer is “With your legs, I don’t need to.” (No, that didn’t happen to me, but it did happen to someone I went to college with when she was interviewing for her first job after graduation.)
Given that finding freelance writing work is different, I’d like to suggest an alternative to the traditional cover letter: the Cover/Interview Letter.
It would include the elements of a traditional cover letter but with more detail about who you are and what level of service the client will get if they hire you. You could add a paragraph or two talking about your:
- Ability to follow instructions
- Eye for detail
- Flexibility Reliability
- Work ethic in general
This may be your only chance to dazzle the prospective client. If there is something you can share that you think would be relevant to the client, add it. I don’t mean hit them over the head with how great a candidate you are (unless the Cave Man approach happens to fit in with your personal style), but picture what you would like to say to the prospective client if you had the chance to sit down in a room with him or her. Whatever your answer is, include it in your cover letter. That way, you know you have covered all your bases when looking for freelance writing work.
Have you beefed up your cover letter to include extra information for your client? How did this strategy work for you?
How Important is a Resume for Freelance Writers?
I guess the short answer to that question is that it depends who you ask. Some potential clients ask to see it, and if they do, I would recommend that you submit one. There are other people who are more interested in seeing your samples and getting an idea of your writing “voice” than reading more paper.
It’s a good idea to have a resume ready to show to a potential client if they would like to see it. If you are new to writing and you don’t think you have a lot of experience to share, take some time to think about the jobs you have held in the past and how the skills that you used can benefit a potential client.
- Can you listen carefully and follow instructions?
- Can you communicate clearly?
- Do you have good research skills?
- Can you take the information you have gathered and pull out the most important points?
- Are you genuinely interested in your clients’ business?
While some people will go ahead and hire you without looking at your resume, there are some people who want to get an idea of who you are and what other kinds of work you have done. If you are a little light in the writing experience department (so far), then put your focus on your transferable skills. Present yourself in the best possible way, and the client understands what kind of a person they are getting if they decide to work with you.
Do you think having a resume is important or would most clients prefer to see writing samples only?
Summer’s Here…Get Your Job Search in Gear!
Summer is finally here. I count the first day of summer as the day that school finishes, not the date on the calendar. When the weather is warm and kids are home, it may be tempting to put your search for freelance writing work on the back burner, too. There are good reasons for continuing to apply for gigs and pitch potential clients at this time of year, though.
Less Competition for Available Gigs
Some writers are taking time off or adopting a lighter work schedule during the summer, and this may mean few applicants for available writing gigs.
You Impress Potential Clients
While many brick-and-mortar businesses adopt summer hours during the warmer months, they don’t close down entirely during this time. When you continue to respond to ads and approach potential clients, you are showing them that you are a diligent professional writer – exactly the kind of person they want to hire.
You Get Your Name in Front of Clients for Future Hiring Needs
A potential client may not be ready to hire at this time, but if you get your name in front of them and follow up periodically, you have a better chance of being hired when they are ready to start new projects. It saves them the time and trouble of placing an ad and weeding through a ton of applications.
Do you keep applying for gigs during the summer or do you back off until the fall?
Do You Ask for the Gig?
Successful salespeople know that at a certain point when they are talking to a potential customer, they need to “ask for the order.” Rather than make their presentation and let the prospect say something along the lines of, “I’ll think about it and get back to you,” they ask the prospect whether they are ready to buy today.
Freelancers can use this tactic when talking to a potential client. If you are talking to someone about their writing needs, there is nothing wrong with asking for the gig. If your personal style doesn’t let you feel comfortable with saying, “Hey I think you and I would work well together. How many pages/articles would you like me to start with?”, that’s OK. I don’t think I could be that bold, either.
If the discussion is going well, there is nothing wrong with summarizing what you and the client have talked about so far and stating exactly how you can provide the writing services they need. Then ask, “Where would you like to go from here?” And then wait for an answer.
With this strategy, you are asking the potential client to make a decision about whether to go ahead and hire you without being overly aggressive about it. Since you have just explained to the client that you understand what they need and that you can provide them with the writing services they are looking for, why would they need to talk to anyone else? All they have to do is give you the green light and they can get on with other things that they need to look after. Both parties get what they want.
How do you ask for the gig?
Rejection: A Fact of Freelance Writing Life
No one likes hearing the word “No” when they are looking for work, and freelance writers are no exception. Part of doing this kind of work means that you are constantly talking to potential clients about your services, and you won’t get hired every time you answer an ad, submit a query, or send a pitch to someone you are interested in working with. Dealing with rejection is not always easy, and there are times when it can be very disappointing when you don’t get a gig that you felt you were a good fit for.
I have heard other people state that you need a thick skin if you are going to last in this business, but I don’t agree. I don’t know where I was when the thick skins were being handed out, but I don’t have one. It’s OK to let yourself feel disappointed if you don’t get hired, but…I’ve learned that it’s important to move on to the next item on your marketing list quickly.
Taking some kind of positive action to help your business grow means that you are less tempted to let a rejection discourage you from continuing in your efforts to get work. If you were looking for a job in the 9-5 cubicle world, you would probably apply for numerous jobs before getting hired, and it’s the same thing in the freelance writing world.
It’s Not You….
When you apply for something and you don’t get it, the rejection doesn’t mean that you aren’t good at what you do or that no one will ever hire you again. The word “No” is not meant to reject you personally. It just means that this potential client didn’t choose to work with you this time. That’s all.
If I get a response and the answer is “No,” I take the time to thank the person for letting me know and for having considered me. I let them know that they should feel free to get in touch if their needs change in the future. And then I move on and find something that will be a better fit for both parties.
How do you handle rejection?
Sharpen Your Listening Skills for Freelance Success
When you work as a freelance writer, the actual writing is only part of what you do. Yes, you provide writing services, but I would argue that being a good listener is at least as important in this line of work as your ability to put words together effectively.
When you are making contact with a potential client (whether you are responding to an ad or approaching them yourself), you want to impress upon that person that you understand their business and what they are trying to accomplish. The job you are talking about may be writing some SEO articles, but the articles are more than just using some keywords a certain number of times. This is a strategy that the site owner is using to drive traffic to promote their product or service. You may have written hundreds of SEO articles before, and while it may be tempting to treat this as just one more writing gig, it isn’t.
If you can establish a relationship with your client and impress upon them the fact that you are interested in their business, you will have a better working relationship and they are more likely to contact you for their writing needs in the future. Look at it from the client’s point of view: wouldn’t you rather work with someone who “gets” what you are trying to accomplish?
When you get to the stage where you are discussing the details of the project, take some time to ask your client who their target market is and how your work will help them to accomplish their goals. These questions help to establish you as more of a team member than someone who is hired to simply do a single assignment. Ask some questions and find out what your client needs as opposed to just what the job entails.
How do you use your listening skills to establish a relationship with a new client?
Non-Paying Work and Your Resume
When you are preparing your writing resume, do you include work that you have done for free? You should!
The purpose of sending a prospective client your resume is to share some information about your background, education, and work experience. All the writing you have done, whether you have been paid for it or not, is part of your experience, and you should add it to your resume. When someone is considering whether they want to work with you, they care about your experience, not whether you actually got paid.
If you had to write papers in college, then that is writing experience. Many jobs have some element of writing in them, and this is also experience that you can put on a resume. You may have been responsible for contributing to a newsletter for your church or another organization on a volunteer basis, and that counts as writing experience too.
Your resume is not a static document that you prepare once and then you’re done. (Yes, I can hear the collective groan as you read this.) Every so often, you need to review it and make changes as necessary. As you gain experience and have more information to add to the resume, you can update it to focus on your more recent work.
When I was starting out, I wrote for a couple of web sites on a volunteer basis. The experience gave me some samples to show to prospective clients. I still list them on my resume and no one has asked whether (or how much) I got paid for writing them.
Do you include paid and non-paid writing on your resume or do you list paid work only?
Have You Googled Yourself Lately?
Every now and then, it’s a good idea to type your own name into the search box on Google and check out the results. You may be surprised by the type and amount of information about you that is readily available online. Why should you take this step and what does it have to do with looking for freelance writing work?
It’s quite simple: A current or potential client who wants to know more about you may decide to check you out online. I have been contacted by two clients who have done so. In one case, someone I had just started working with sent me a writer’s profile from a site I used to work for and asked if I was the same person. In the other situation, a client who wanted to find somewhere to post a job ad found FWJ (and me) as a result of his online search.
Both situations had a positive outcome, but I admit that I am very careful about what I put out in cyberspace. Not only do search engines index work that I have done under my own name, but they also pick up comments made on web sites and blogs. Do you use Twitter? Your tweets can show up in an online search. Same with your LinkedIn and Facebook pages.
Just as an experiment, I Googled my own name recently. Someone who wants to find out about me can see the items I just mentioned, as well as find out my age, where I went to high school, and what year I graduated. None of these factors should make any difference in whether I can do a job or not, but they do provide information about who I am.
It was an interesting exercise and one that I will keep in mind if I ever get the urge to go on a major rant online. As it is, if I wouldn’t want my mother or my children to read it, I don’t post it. Keeping it PG works for me.
Have you ever had a client check you out online (that you know of)? Do you look up your own name to see what comes up in the results?
How Much Does Talent Matter?
I had a great conversation recently with someone I was interviewing, and we got on the subject of talent when it comes to freelance writers. We were discussing how much “talent” matters in the equation of what makes someone a successful freelancer. I’ve been giving the matter some thought, and here’s my take on it:
Talent is Only a Small Part of Freelance Success
Yes, having a certain amount of raw talent is required. You need to be able to write well. Good grammar is a skill that you can improve with time. Spelling is something that a lot of people need help with, at least some of the time (me included). I use Spellcheck on my WP program, and I check my dictionary and thesaurus regularly.
There are a lot of talented people around, but talent alone is no guarantee of freelance success. You need to take whatever level of talent you have and combine it with other skills if you are going to do well in this business.
- Develop your Listening Skills
Get in the habit of really listening to your clients. Let them tell you what they need, and fulfill that need. You will quickly get a reputation as being someone who is easy to deal with and who cares about their clients. This strategy will lead to repeat business.
- Follow Instructions Carefully
You might have seen dozens, or hundreds of similar assignments in the past. That doesn’t mean that you can just dive into the one right in front of you without reading the instructions carefully first. If your client wants a particular font used or has asked that you double space between paragraphs, then it’s for a reason. Give them what they want.
- Treat your Clients Well
My clients are not interruptions from whatever else I’m doing during my day. They are the reason I have a business, and I treat them accordingly. I make a point of making them feel welcome when they get in touch with me, whether it’s about their writing needs or just to say hello.
Talent is a good thing when it comes to freelance writing, to be sure, but it’s not enough. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you are difficult to work with, your clients will move on to someone who they find easier to deal with. That’s just the way it is.
How important do you think raw talent is to freelance writing success?
When is a Freelance Writing Gig Really a Gig?
Do you get excited when you get a “nibble” back from a potential client? I admit that I do. What’s a nibble, you ask? Well, it’s when you’ve applied for a writing gig or made a pitch to a potential client and they have responded in a way that indicates they are interested in discussing the idea of your working together.
