Writers Worth: A Different Kind of Proposition

Today's guest post comes from the query free writer herself, Jennifer Mattern.

Writers: What's Your Value Proposition?

By Jennifer Mattern

In an earlier Writer's Worth post, Lori talked about how freelance writers need to accept their own worth in order to charge professional rates for their services. She talked about some of the ways you can realize your worth, such as knowing your competition and visualizing those low-balling clients trying to sell your loved ones on garbage gigs rather than you. Those are excellent ways to accept your worth internally. But there's something else I'd also recommend -- figuring out your value proposition.

You've probably heard terms like "value proposition" and "unique selling proposition (USP)" before in relation to marketing your services to buyers. But your value proposition can also help you realize your own worth first.

What is a Value Proposition?

Think of your value proposition as what you bring to the table.

If you think all you have to offer are articles, blog posts, white papers, or other finished products, you might not understand the full extent of what you really do for your clients -- the reasons they actually hire you. This is why I hear from content mill writers who say they're thrilled to get $15 per article. After all, they're just doing something they love, so they should be happy to get paid at all, right? Wrong.

What You Really Offer Clients

You don't simply offer words on a page. You offer that and so much more. Depending on the type of freelance writing you do, here are some examples of the real value you (and your words) provide:

• Credibility for your client
• An increased customer base
• Marketing, sales, or PR expertise
• Expert advice on your industry or your client's market
• More time and freedom for your client to pursue other lucrative aspects of their business
• And so much more!

Let's look at a more specific example. Say you write sales letters for clients trying to sell software. You don't just bring them text. You bring them increased sales (and therefore more money). You understand testing. You understand conversions. You understand the market. And you understand what makes your clients' customers tick.

You do more than write the actual copy. You're a marketing consultant. You're an advisor. You're the person clients go to because they don't have this kind of expertise themselves. They value your opinions. They want your feedback. Your job isn't just to say "tell me what you want and I'll write it all pretty-like." It's to act in an advisory capacity to help them expand their business through better writing. And you deserve to be paid well for that.

The same is true of any other type of freelance writer.

• Freelance bloggers free their clients up to focus on marketing and monetization while attracting a loyal readership.
• Freelance PR writers bring the expertise to help clients build earned media coverage, build industry recognition, and put out fires.
• Technical writers can take complicated information and weave it into easy-to-understand formats for laymen and industry insiders alike (which many companies struggle to do effectively on their own).  
• Magazine writers are the people who bring readers back every month and convince buyers to become subscribers, building the audience magazines then monetize.
• Even content mill writers offer more than they realize -- the serious ones at least. They bring the mill sites better search engine rankings, more traffic, and therefore more ad dollars. They also lend mills any sense of credibility they might have (which is why content mills have so desperately tried to escape the "shallow content" label over the last year -- they need your credibility to survive).

Think of everything you really bring to the table as a freelance writer. What goals do you help clients reach? How do you help their businesses or organizations thrive? What benefits do they enjoy by hiring you over the competition?

List everything you might use as a selling point when talking to a prospect. And then remind yourself of this value proposition the next time you wonder if you're worth the professional rates you want to charge. I'd bet for many of you, you're worth even more.

--

Jennifer Mattern is a professional blogger, freelance business writer, and e-book author. She owns 3 Beat Media, the company behind blogs like All Freelance Writing and BizAmmo. She plans to launch a new site for freelance writers, indie publishers, and professional bloggers during the summer of 2013 called All Indie Writers.

Writers Worth: Deliver Your Walking Papers

 
Writers Worth: In-house or Out the Door?

Today’s guest post is from the wonderfully insightful Cathy Miller. After you read this, be sure to check out her blogs – links can be found below.

Delivering Your Walking Papers

by Cathy Miller

There comes a time in every writer’s life when you must walk away. Your reason could be an oppressive boss or an escape from corporate life altogether. A client may send you on that solitary stroll. 

The first time seems like the proverbial walk on the plank. It’s scary. You don’t know what’s lurking in the murky water of your writing future. If you believe in your worth, you’ll learn to take that first step and never look back.

First Step

Consider your financial and spiritual health, the yin and yang of your writer’s worth.

A personal goal for me in my corporate life was reaching the magical six-figure salary. Several years after accomplishing that, I was in a miserable place. I tied my worth to a number that had nothing to do with my spiritual well-being.

When I walked away from over 30 years in the corporate world to start my business writing company, I restored my spiritual health. I was doing something I loved and on my terms.

There is nothing wrong with a six-figure salary goal. I made the mistake of ignoring what was important to me – freedom to live my life, my way. So, maybe I’m a bit of a control freak.

Discover what’s important to you and go for it. As adults, we get so hung up on the obstacles, we fail to take that first step. You’ll never reach your destination without your first step – even if it’s a baby step.

I have a favorite saying – okay, I have several. We are writers, after all.

Baby steps still move you forward.

Baby Steps

Have you ever witnessed a baby’s first step? The start may be a little shaky and end with a plop, but the baby looks at cheering adults like, “What’s the big deal?” No matter how many times babies land on their diapered rumps, they always get back up.

Imagine if babies allowed fear to keep them from their first step. Either the kneepad industry would soar from all the crawling adults or we’d have to rely on the few brave souls who learned to walk. If babies can take that first step, don’t you think you can, too?

Lori’s post, Writer’s Worth: Identifying Your Worth, offers practical tips for establishing your monetary worth for your writing. For me, that is the baby’s first step in establishing your worth as a writer.

Focus on your financial worth for planning future steps. Jennifer Mattern of All Freelance Writing offers a great Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator. What I like about it is the calculator considers your financial and spiritual health. No, it is not going to play Kumbaya while you enter your figures, but the calculation does consider your lifestyle needs in terms of the number of days you work, billable hours, and time off for vacation and holidays.

Your needs will be different from my needs. Take an honest assessment of both your financial and personal (spiritual) needs for your situation.

If you are considering freelancing or you are an established writer, review your results and ask the following,

·       Are you at the point when you can successfully launch your writing career?

·       Is it time to raise your fees?

Lori’s next post in the series, Writer’s Worth: Accepting Your Writing Value, is often the bigger hurdle. If you don’t accept your worth, you erect the biggest obstacle to your writing career. If writing is your destination, why compromise on something so vital?

·       If the numbers add up, deliver your walking papers to your employer

·       If your financial situation delays your writing career, consider freelancing part-time and save, save, save for your future launch

·       If a long-time client refuses to accept your new fees, walk away

A baby step starts your journey. Knowing when to walk away signals your worth as a writer. And that’s a wonderful place to be.

When have you found the need to walk away? Is there anything you would have done differently?

================

Cathy has a business writing blog at Simply stated business, a health care blog at Simply stated health care, and her personal bog, millercathy: A Baby Boomer's Second Life.

Writers Worth: Giving it Away?

Still out convalescing.

Today is a real treat. Paula Hendrickson, whose post appeared here Monday, alerted me to the following article, written by C. Hope Clark. I contacted Hope and explained my plight -- my ongoing plight to raise awareness one writer at a time. Hope graciously agreed to let us reprint her original article here. To Hope and all who are fighting the good fight to raise awareness, thank you.



GIVING IT AWAY - NOTHING FOR NOTHING

by C.Hope Clark

I'm going to take a stance here that may rub some of y'all raw.
Quit giving away your work.

It's an old mantra with me . . . one that FundsforWriters was founded upon. You cannot make a living giving yourself away. Doctors don't give away their expertise. Lawyers charge for their services. So do teachers, plumbers . . . even hookers do it.

But you need exposure, you may say. No you don't. Not that kind of exposure. Do you know what you look like when you pitch an editor or agent and the only items on your resume are:
1) Your serial novel on your blog;
2) Your articles on websites that do not pay;
3) Your poetry for free on your website;
4) Your free short stories on anyplace that will take them.

But you keep trying to sell your work and nobody buys it. So you figure you'll post it online and somebody might discover it. Here's the flaw in that logic.

LOGIC A.
The people hungry for your free work usually aren't the type willing to pay. Think about it. They're usually trolling for free work, and continually seek the good deal. They have no desire to pay full price
for a book or subscription, maybe not even one copy of a magazine where your work appears, because there's ample free material available.

LOGIC B.
Editors and agents do not visit those freebie places. Not unless you happen to be that one in a million writer who trends on Twitter or manages to garner tens of thousands of readers. Not hundreds...thousands. Your odds are better pitching to editors.

LOGIC C.
If you are publishing for free because you keep getting rejected, then your writing might need work. People willing to pay for writing expect  to receive a good return for their investment, so your work has to be
refined and polished to rate their hard-earned dollar.

LOGIC D.
If you are publishing for free because you don't want to learn the  ropes of how to submit to publishers and markets that pay, you might not be made of strong enough material to weather this business.
Argue with me. Go ahead. Then tell me how much money you've made from that "exposure." I'm all ears. I'm not trying to hurt your feelings. On the contrary. I want you to make a buck at this business. But too many writers think that giving their work away is "exposure" or a means to "getting discovered" when in reality,
they usually end up sitting in place and waiting for nothing...and doing it for a long time.

It's understandable you need to be proactive, but put that energy to good use in the right direction.
1) Improve your writing
2) Sell your work
3) Promote yourself.

You don't want to appear so desperate you give it away. In all aspects of your life, how much quality do you attribute to something that was given to you for free?

Hope

C. Hope Clark is a freelance writing expert and author of the Carolina Slade Mystery Series. Hope lives on the bank of Lake Murray near Chapin, SC, where she not only pens mysteries, but also manages FundsforWriters.com, a weekly newsletter service she founded that reaches 35,000+ writers to include university professors, professional journalists and published mystery authors. Writer’s Digest has recognized the site in its annual 101 Best Web Sites for Writers for a dozen years. She blogs at C. Hope Clark.

Writers Worth: How to Find Your Best Employee

Writers Worth: How to Find Your Best Employee

Today's guest post comes from Yolander Prinzel, a financial writer with some excellent, risk-free advice that any writer or freelancer would do well to heed. It's so simple there's no excuse for not giving it a try.

Writers: You Need to Get To Firin’

By Yolander Prinzel

Posts written for Writers Worth week, and so many others on freelancing and business advice blogs, often focus on the way we should act with our clients in order to convey our worth. We must charge enough. We must prevent scope creep. We must respect our personal values. We must establish boundaries. We must fire clients who abuse us. Sane, helpful advice, sure, but you know what we should do first? We should fire our worst employee. We should fire the person who doubts us, talks down to us, who forces us to work overlong hours, who disrespects our bodies by skipping exercise and forgoes good eating habits, who forbids us to have fun, who says the meanest things to us on a daily basis. Go grab a mirror, guys—that person is you.

No matter how well you control what others do to you, if you treat yourself like an unworthy underling who’s not worth money, time, and care, then you are doing yourself the biggest disservice of all.

Most of us have been there at one time or another. I've been freelancing since 2008. During the first three and a half years, I treated myself more poorly than any client could’ve ever dreamed. I forbade myself the simple pleasure of vacation, worked 12-hour days for weeks without a break. I ate crap that Morgan Spurlock wouldn't use for an Oscar-winning documentary, allowed myself to be sedentary for months ... okay, fine, years. I worked while sick, got depressed, and faced days when I was filled with so much self-mistrust that I swore everything I wrote was just random, senseless strings of letters. I’ve been foul, insecure, unappreciative, angry, sad, hopeless, and inferior. I’ve called myself stupid, deemed myself inadequate, and given up on myself more times than I can count. If you are guilty of any of these behaviors, it’s time to give yourself a pink slip and get someone else to take your place. A new and improved you.

Sometimes it takes finding an interest outside of writing to make you that whole, worthy, confident person you want to be. Sometimes it’s just a matter of making a conscious effort to change your attitude. Whatever it takes, in order to truly treat yourself as a writer who’s worthy, you must realize that you are a three-dimensional person. You’re not just a writer, just a freelancer, just a business owner. You are a complex human with varied interests, talents, and passions. You are someone with the capacity to be confident, to be happy, to be healthy, to be content. If you know that and live life as if those things are true, it will change you into something better. It will make you whole.

How’d it happen for me? One day, while sitting in a pool of my own flop sweat and fear, I realized I'd been ignoring these other parts of myself for years. My problem wasn't the clients. It wasn't that I wasn't assertive enough or that I gave too much of myself to my customers. My problem was that I was a terrible employee of Yo Incorporated. So I fired myself and got Yo 2.0—an employee who is positive and happy. One who motivates me and believes in me. One who appreciates my value and is kind. One who exercises regularly and eats as if she’s only been issued one body to use for the rest of her life and, therefore, must take care of it. One who relaxes, takes vacations and often sits outside in the sun. With sunscreen. Lots of sunscreen.

Yo Prinzel is her own most awesome employee. She’s awarded herself employee of the month for the past 18 months and has given herself the best parking space in the office.

Writers Worth: Editors, Review Your Rates

Welcome to Writers Worth Week!

For six years now, Writers Worth has become a mini-movement designed to help writers at all career stages find, and assert, their value in the marketplace. Over the years, it's gone from one day of my pushing and fussing to a week of advice and strategies, to last year's month-long celebration in which many of the best writers I know contributed their advice and support to those of you who struggle with what to charge.

This year is no different. While I had to whittle it back to a week or so thanks to surgeries and family issues, this year's Writers Worth is still a wealth of information and advice from people who have been where you are -- new or mid-career -- who need to embrace their worth and charge like professionals.

No matter what stage of your career you find yourself in, this week is for you.

You know how designers start their fashion shows with a strong piece at the beginning, or like how your hook in your story or article is used as a great place to set the tone for everything else? Consider this that show-stopper. Since Paula Hendrickson has been a supportive champion of the Writers Worth cause, I felt it only appropriate to start this week(s)-long celebration with her post.

Paula asks the question "When was the last time you gave your writers a raise?" It's not just a good question for editors, but for the writers who work for them.

When was the last time you gave your writers a raise?

by Paula Hendrickson 

Think about all of the magazine and newspaper subscriptions you’ve had over the years. Subscription rates don’t increase dramatically each year, but they gradually go up over time, as do cover prices.

It’s a pretty safe bet that most publications regularly adjust their ad rates, too. Do you really think a full-page ad in your favorite weekly magazine sells for the same price today as it did ten or fifteen years ago?

Yet how many publications have raised their freelance rates over the same period?

I’ve been a full-time freelancer for over 15 years, and it’s frightening to realize how stagnant most freelance rates are. About five years ago, one of my regular clients bumped its rates up an extra quarter per word. Then the economy tanked and they “temporarily” lowered it back to the original rate, where it remains today. That title has been sold and resold over the years, so the newest owner might honestly have no clue how much time has passed since its top-notch contributors were given a raise.

At the same time, readers’ attention spans are decreasing. Trades that assigned 3,000 word features ten years ago are probably assigning 1,500-2,000 word articles – with the same fee structure. One magazine cut its 500-600 word “shorts” down to 250-300 words. Thankfully the rates were adjusted enough that I make more writing several short articles for that magazine than I’d be paid if I turned in a feature with the same number of words.

Most periodicals have maintained the same freelance rates for at least a decade. When still writing for a former client, one of the editors — who started out freelancing for the company — mentioned the pay rate hadn’t changed since she first freelanced there twenty years earlier.

With increased ad rates and subscription fees, how can that be? Without well-written content there’s no reason for advertisers to buy ad space or subscribers to renew. It makes no sense that the people paid to create the content that generated a publication’s cashflow are generally the last to get a raise.

Sure, writers can seek out better-paying markets, but after attaining a certain level it’s difficult to find markets that pay higher rates.

In the spirit of Writers Worth Week, I’d like to encourage every editor and publisher to check their records and pinpoint the last time their freelancers got a raise.

Has it been five years? Ten? Twenty?

If it’s been more than five years, the time has come to increase your freelance rates a bit. If it’s been more than a decade since you’ve raised your rates, make it a hefty raise. We’re worth it.

Paula Hendrickson is a regular contributor to several national consumer and trade publications, ranging from EMMY MAGAZINE and VARIETY to AMERICAN BUNGALOW. When not writing, Paula is probably knitting, baking, crocheting or scouring antique malls and flea markets with her sister, seeking out funky, inexpensive vintage light fixtures.

Writers Worth: Winning Clients

Right now, I'm probably a groggy, foggy mess. My surgery was yesterday and I'm hoping I'm not aching, though I suspect I am. I'm told they'll get me up today to stand and get to a chair, so that sounds very promising. Since I'm writing this four days before, I can only guess that I'll be feeling like I mingled with a Mack truck and lost.

As mentioned on Wednesday, this is the month for understanding and appreciating one person -- you. It's about getting to know your worth, your market value, and asserting yourself as a serious business person. Part of that includes understanding how to approach clients.

Because I had a ton of work to clear up before surgery, I'm posting strategies that come straight from my Marketing 365 book. This one is something I practice with every client interaction. It's a simple, psychological shift that makes a ton of difference:

97. Treat them like they’re already clients.
Want to secure their business? Treat them like you already have it. When I have a client on the fence, I offer a free consultation. I use that opportunity to help them see the bigger picture – how I can improve their communications and help them reach their goals. The talk is generally of the “How can I help you get this done?” variety.
Conspire with potential clients as you would any paying client. Talk to them about industry issues, share links, and get into informal conversations with them. 

Sounds simple, right? It is. Talk with your clients like they're your friends. Remember when you were in that team at school or at work? Everyone was sharing ideas. Maybe you were the shy one, but consider that your "team" is full of people who need you to get the ball rolling. That's where your confidence should be.

Now that you've got that, here's where to go with it.

Offer "what if" scenarios. Clients who are talking with you want to hire you -- give them a reason. Partner with them in the way you talk about their projects. "What if we..." or "How about this idea..." goes miles beyond the hard sell. When you toss out scenarios and ideas, you're now on their side. You're rooting for them. They feel it and hear it in what you're saying.

Be the confidant. I had a client fire me recently only to hire me right back. We got to talking and I let the emotion that I could have felt go entirely. It was just business, so I asked if she was attending a particular conference. Twenty-five minutes later, she'd spilled her guts and offered to champion me to the boss. You can do something similar by listening and presenting a non-judgmental front when someone hints at discord or upset.

Ask what they'd like. I mention it in the strategy above, and it's an effective tool for creating a bond with a client. "How can I help you?" shows them you're now listening. Everyone wants to be heard, and by asking them to define what they need, you've found a way to get them thinking about you as a part of the solution before they even present the problem.

How has treating potential clients like they're already clients worked for you? What else works to instill confidence before you ask for the job?

Writers Worth: Accepting Your Writing Value

What I'm reading: The Johnstown Flood by David McCullough

Day after surgery. I guarantee you I won't be around today. I'll be concentrating on getting up and moving and healing. Not sure what shape I'm in as I'm writing this on Wednesday (my cursed punctuality gene is wedged on high), but I'd say blogging won't be top of mind.

I connected with another writer this week, and in my note to him, I mentioned that my goal during Writers Worth is to help you as a writer assert your price and own it. The first part is easy with practice.

It's that second part. Oh, that's tough.

One of the harder things you'll encounter as you build a writing business is the idea that your price isn't right. You'll hear it from some clients, but the person you'll hear it from most is....you.

You don't deserve to earn, or you can't possibly ask that kind of money, or a client would never pay that....that's you talking, not a client. In fact, you'll pretty much talk yourself out of earning a decent living if you don't recognize the behavior and put a halt to it.

Acceptance; it's a tough pill for writers to swallow, but we can. Here are some ways to teach yourself to accept your worth:

Partner in spirit with peers. Befriend those writers who have found their confidence and their business stride. These are the people who will serve as your unofficial mentors. When you're tempted to take that job that pays $20 an hour if you bust your hump, just look at your peers for real-life examples of what it's like to say no to lousy offers.

Use psychological inspiration. When I started, I had to remind myself every morning that I can write and I should be paid for it. Mine was a quote for a while, a psyche-out pep talk after that, and reminders that I'm already satisfying clients when those methods stopped being necessary. Tape that inspiration to your monitor or repeat it in the mirror -- I have skills and I'm worth what I charge.

Do a little research. Nothing brings reality to you faster than seeing people in your profession who are charging fees that are head-and-shoulders above yours. Check out what those around you are charging per hour. Sometimes a little wake-up call is all you need to accept your own personal worth.

Visualize your earnings as loved ones. Hear me out -- pretend your earnings aren't going to you, but toward feeding your children or pets or taking care of your spouse or favorite relative. Imagine someone saying "No, I can't pay your mother $100 an hour. I can pay only $25." Would you let your mother earn 75 percent less? Protect your earnings for yourself as though you were protecting them for someone you love.

Develop a bottom line. It's okay to negotiate your rate, if you want to (no client should assume your rate is theirs to negotiate -- that's completely your decision). So what is your bottom-line rate? What is the bare minimum you can or will work for? If you make $100 an hour, is your minimum then $70/hr? What if an offer for $50 comes in? Deciding is easier when you already know what you'll accept for certain kinds of work.

How do you accept your own worth? What was/is the hardest thing about acceptance for you?

Writers Worth: Identifying Your Worth

What's on the iPod: True Love by The Airborne Toxic Event

What a disjointed month this is turning out to be! I've talked with one client about work, am about to discuss projects with two more clients, my dear MIL is lying gravely ill in Phoenix, and I have this thing inside me that's about to be removed (tomorrow). How can anyone focus on value and worth given those parameters?

You just do. That's how.

I'm a practical person. I worry, but I don't allow worry to consume me. Life erupts in spurts. We deal with it. It's how we know we're still here. Amid it all, I work. I will convalesce at home after a stay in the hospital (maybe a week), but I know me. Once the exhaustion wears off, I'm going to be itching to do something.

So I'm lining up projects. That's my value. And worth? I know I'm worth what I charge. I make sure clients get what they pay for, which is my experience, my attention, and my skill.

No matter what stage of your career you're in, that goes for you, too. You'd no sooner shortchange a client on skill than you would agree to write say a medical white paper if your background is in autos.

So why would you agree to write for less than you deserve?

Because you don't know you deserve it, is my guess.

Consider this the start of our Writers Worth celebration. I've been holding this annual event every May for six years now in hopes of educating one more writer, giving one more person the awareness (and maybe courage) to say no to a lousy deal and get them to a point where they can ask for what they're price is.

Ah, the price. There's the rub.

Depending on how long you've been freelancing, that price (in your head) may vary. That's not to say it shouldn't vary somewhat in the real world, but probably nowhere near the level it does in your own head. So how do you know what you deserve as a writer?

Get a clear picture of your expenses. Start here. It's great to say "I want to make $50 an hour!" But if your expenses require you to make $100 an hour, you've just sold yourself short. Factor in your living expenses, your retirement contributions (you need to make those monthly or every check), your taxes (you're paying them now), and your savings. Figure a 15-percent tax off the top of each check, and settle on a percentage per check for both retirement and savings that you can live with -- I'd suggest at least 6 percent per. Write it down per month, if you can. With taxes and savings, if you don't have a track record, estimate them based on your intended earnings (you may have to decide what you want to earn a year first). Don't forget equipment you'll buy this year, if you can.

Ask yourself "What do I want to make this year?" Not what you need to make -- that won't leave you enough to have any fun. Need is what you just figured out above. This is the rest -- the movies, new car, college courses, trips, etc. What would it take for you to live decently? Pick a number -- say $50,000 as an example. This is your annual earnings goal.

Compare expenses and goal. Do the two totals, when subtracted, leave enough for you to live decently? If not, amend it right now. Aim higher in earnings.

Divide. I divide mine down monthly. How much is that annual earnings goal going to require me to make monthly? If you're aiming for $50,000, that means you need to net $4,166. That's what you need to pocket after taxes and retirement/savings. So it could be that your target isn't $4,166, but rather $4,500 or even $5,000 monthly. That's your monthly target.

Set your hourly rate off the monthly target. If you do the math directly, you're going to see a rather disturbing number -- $28 and some change per hour. However, we writers rarely get to charge 160 hours of time per month (basing this on a 40-hour work week). Instead, assume of the 40 hours you may/may not sit at the desk that maybe ten of it per week is billable. If you were to meet that goal, you have to come up with a figure that, when billing 40 hours a month would get you to that $4,500 goal.  My calculator says $112.50 per hour. Then again, this is just an example. I've not taken the time to figure the taxes and savings for you. That's up to you, so this figure will be different.

That's in line with what you should be charging.

Obviously, your rate is going to vary based on what you want to earn, what you need to earn, and what you're comfortable charging. Just be realistic in understanding that $29 an hour isn't going to get you there no matter how much work you think you can drum up.

What is your biggest roadblock toward embracing your worth?