High-Income Business Writing Podcast

Many of us have been brought up to believe that talent and hard work are the keys to success in business. But as competition stiffens and clients find it harder to distinguish freelancers from each other, you need a different strategy. You need to capitalize on (and communicate) your unique perspective and knowledge. My guest for this episode is Dorie Clark, author of two business books, a consultant and speaker. Dorie worked as a journalist, so she knows our world very well. When she lost her job in a round of layoffs, she had to reinvent herself. Since then, she's worked as a spokesperson for gubernatorial and presidential campaigns and executive director of a nonprofit. In this interview, she explains why hard work and talent are no longer enough. And how you can position yourself as a trusted expert to set yourself apart—even if you don't quite feel like an "expert" in your field.

There's plenty of advice about what you should do when starting and growing a freelance writing business. But not too many people are openly talking about things you should avoid at this critical early stage. My guest this week is Diana Scheidman, a freelance writer and researcher specializing in the insurance and asset management industries. Diana has developed a reputation for helping people who want to land well-paid freelance and consulting work quickly. And she recently wrote a book on the subject titled Real Skills, Real Income: A Proven Marketing System to Land Well-Paid Freelance and Consulting Work in 30 Days or Less. In this episode, Diana shares 10 things new freelance business writers must avoid if they want to get their freelance business off the ground faster.

One of the things that I've tried to be very mindful of is painting a very realistic picture of what it's like to launch and grow a freelance writing and copywriting business today. In fact, I take great pride in being transparent about the hard work required. You'll hear that in most of my interviews, as well as in shows such as: The Rock Star Myth Am I a Credible Source of Freelancing Advice? Should You Quit, or Should You Stick? How I Took My Writing Biz to the Six-Figure Level (Pt. 1 of 2) How I Took My Writing Biz to the Six-Figure Level (Pt. 2 of 2) Today is no exception. My guest is Mark Stone, a freelance writer from British Columbia, Canada. Mark is still in the early stages of growing his business, and he has an interesting story to tell about finding his way through this business. You're not going to hear a talk about rainbows and sunshine. Instead, you'll get more of a status report from Mark. You'll hear how Mark is landing progressively better and higher-paying clients. And how he's pushing past fears and insecurities to improve his business and his income. If you're just starting out or are in the first two or three years of your freelance venture, I think you'll get a lot out of this interview.

Just last week I received a call from a friend who owns a small marketing agency. She had recently lost three solid opportunities—deals she should have won. She couldn't figure out what went wrong. So she did what most of us do: assume it was her own fault. Maybe she said the wrong thing. Or her pricing was way off. Or she didn't have the experience the prospect wanted. But I've lost enough deals to know the truth. She was basing her conclusions on the wrong assumption. More specifically, she was assuming that every opportunity has the same chance of success. More than likely, it wasn't something she did or didn't do. It was simply that these opportunities weren't really "winnable." In this episode, I'll tell you what I shared with her ... and how that shift in thinking made an immediate impact on her business.

Over the past seven years, I've had hundreds of conversations with new and aspiring freelancers who are 55+. Perhaps the most common concern I hear from this group is, "I'm afraid that my age will prevent me from getting clients." I can understand this fear. Especially if you've experienced age discrimination in the workplace ... or been laid off or downsized because of your age (something an employer would never admit). Here's the good news—you have more to offer your clients than you realize. In fact, you have a serious competitive edge over younger freelancers — experience, wisdom and perspective. And that's not just me saying that. I've heard this from several freelancers who launched their solo business later in life. In fact, you'll hear from one of them in this week's episode. Her name is Katherine Andes, a California–based web content developer and SEO writer who went solo 12 years ago at the age of 54.

Today's show is about two topics that didn't warrant their own episodes: Why you must be careful when emulating the "rock stars" in our business Why you should NOT diversify too much in terms of the services you offer I'm also going to introduce a somewhat "silent" co-host of this show (someone you might have heard a few times before). I'll tell you about two upcoming industry events you may want to check out. And I'll explain how you can be a part of a future episode of this podcast.

Yes, I really believe freelancing or contingency work is the way of the future. But if you're fresh out of school and have no contacts and no relevant experience, how can you possibly get started as a freelancer? In this episode, I interview two young freelancers who faced the same dilemma just a few years ago.

Today we're talking about SEO copywriting. And to get the full scoop on what's happening with SEO these days, I've brought in one of the world's top authorities on the subject: Heather Lloyd Martin. Heather has been writing, studying and teaching SEO copywriting for years. In fact, she got started way before SEO copywriting went mainstream. In this interview, Heather is going to give us an overview of this opportunity, including: What SEO copywriting entails How it has changed over the past 10 years How Google's big changes have impacted our ability to optimize web page How you can manage clients' expectations in an environment of unscrupulous SEO practitioners? The best sources of information for SEO copywriters The best opportunities for SEO copywriters today And much more!

Fully 90% of my income these days comes from teaching, training and coaching freelancers to earn more in less time, doing work they love for better clients. But what does that say about me, when so little of my income comes from working directly with freelance writing clients? It's a great question. And in this week's episode, I address the issue head on.

It's hard NOT to be somewhat spiritual when you're self-employed. That's because so much of what we do as a freelancers is based on faith — faith that things will work out ... that another good client will come along ... that you're doing the right thing by raising your fees... In fact, I've learned to understand that thoughts DO become things. (Of course, you also have to take steady and deliberate action. That's the part many people conveniently forget about. ;-) But is this there science behind this idea? Can we really manifest a new client on command? Can we turn things around by "creating" them in our minds first and asking for them? The answer is "Yes!" And in this episode, international bestselling author Pam Grout explains why that's the case ... and how you can prove it to yourself, even if you're a skeptic.