The Content Byte

This week on the podcast, Lynne has been unwell so we thought it would be a great idea to re-release one of our favourite episodes from a few years ago. This episode, from June 2020 (so we chat about the pandemic a few times) is with content marketing queen Jennifer Goforth Gregory about moving from journalism to content marketing, why it's so important to have niches, positioning yourself to clients and agencies as a subject matter expert and her three-pronged approach to marketing yourself. She also shares a rough script on how to write an LOI (and why it's just a starting point and not the 'whole date').  Jennifer is one of the keynote speakers at the upcoming The Content Byte Summit - and this is a great way to hear her story and why we both find her inspiring.  Jennifer's website is here: https://www.jennifergregorywriter.com/ Connect with her Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelanceCMW  Find out more about our upcoming conference, The Content Byte Summit www.thecontentbytesummit.com.au     Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au     Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com     Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au  Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast, Lynne and Rachel chat with one of our digital heroes - Rebecca Lowrey Boyd. Rebecca is the digital managing editor of Better Homes and Gardens, Australia's leading homes website. She also founded Wee Birdy in 2007, a London-based blog devoted to London shopping and design, an innovative site in the heyday of blogging that we both loved.  Rebecca talks about working on the digital side of a large media brand and the move towards omnimedia channels of print, digital and TV - and how the print and digital teams now work together. She talks about her love of digital strategy and how working inhouse helps her to be at the forefront of the big projects. We loved hearing about how analytics informs the type of content these sites include and how SEO and EDMs still play a big part in driving organic traffic to the Better Homes website. Rebecca talks about some of the tools she uses and how that helps to keep the site top of mind - and on the front page of Google. It's a far-ranging and thoughtful discussion on the future of digital media. Connect with Rebecca via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-lowrey-boyd-84303698/  Find out more about our upcoming conference, The Content Byte Summit www.thecontentbytesummit.com.au    Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au    Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com    Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

Freelance writer Susan Horsburgh has an enviable CV and portfolio, writing for some of the country's most prestigious titles, including the Australian Women's Weekly, The Good Weekend (in the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age) and Qantas magazines. She has written more than 30 Two of Us columns for The Good Weekend, which we know is a highly read and sought-after commission for freelancers. In her chat with Rachel and Lynne this week, she talks about: Her career to date (lots of great stories!) What she loves about writing profiles How to interview subjects to get the best story How to pitch to editors How to survive financially as a freelance writer Susan's Authory profile is here: https://authory.com/SusanHorsburgh Connect with her on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-horsburgh-freelance-content-writer/  But wait, that's not all! Find out more about our upcoming conference, The Content Byte Summit www.thecontentbytesummit.com.au Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au   Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com    Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au  Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week, Rachel and Lynne are chatting to a different style of guest - Bec Derrington from Sourcebottle. Sourcebottle is a fabulous resource for journalists, writers and content creators and one we both use regularly.  Bec shares the story behind Sourcebottle - why she started it and how it works. During our wide-ranging chat we talk about: Her background in PR and how she saw the gap in the market The challenges in running a small business The changing media landscape How she connects journalists with sources and industry experts  Some of the weird and wonderful callout requests she's had How to craft a callout that will give you the experts you need for your story How she deals with the 'pick your brains' conversations The challenges of maintaining a huge mailout list Connect with Bec here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/becderrington/  Checkout Sourcebottle here: https://www.sourcebottle.com/  But wait, that's not all! Find out more about our upcoming conference, The Content Byte Summit www.thecontentbytesummit.com.au   Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au   Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com   Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au   Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week, we're chatting to Steve Colquhoun - a journo, editor and copywriter based in Geelong, Victoria. He started in media at the age of 17 after leaving school, cutting his teeth on mastheads such as The Age, Herald Sun and Cairns Post. He's also worked extensively as a motoring journalist - and since going freelance in 2016 has met the content needs of a variety of clients including Mercedes-Benz, Deakin University and NAB. We chat to Steve about... + what it's really like writing about the world of fast cars + the challenges that come with having motoring as a niche + how he finds clients and what a typical week looks like + setting boundaries when mixing journalism work with content + how to write effective pitches that are more likely to get the green light + his top tips on carving out a successful freelance career. Find out more about Steve: His website: stevecolquhoun.com  Connect with him on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stevecolquhoun  Read his ultimate guide to retainers on Rachel's List: www.rachelslist.com.au/blog/your-ultimate-guide-to-freelance-retainers  But wait, that's not all! Find out more about our upcoming conference, The Content Byte Summit thecontentbytesummit.com.au and sign up for updates >> subscribepage.io/IIvLBD  Find Rachel rachelsmith.com.au  Find Lynne lynnetestoni.com  Rachel's List rachelslist.com.au  Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Visit them here >> rounded.com.au  Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week, hosts Rachel and Lynne are responding to a question we had on Instagram from an entry-level writer asking how to get her first clients. So we are sharing our 12 tips (6 from each of us) on how to land your first freelance writing client when you have no experience.  We talk about:  Finding your niche Using that niche to target clients in that area Partnering with freelancers who are a little bit ahead of you and might be able to sub-contract to you, so you start to get some clippings How short-term contract work will help you build up contacts and clippings Why you should set up a website and optimise it for SEO How to write blogs that showcase your writing How to lean on your existing network.  Internships that enable you to write and promises you clips at the end of it How to get onto the jobs boards and create alerts for the types of jobs you’re looking for. Join free jobs emails like Rachel’s List’s entry level list How to optimise your LinkedIn page - and connect with thought-leaders in your niche(s).  How to make your email address a professional one - no gmail or hotmails  How to pitch to online publications that regularly use first-person pieces to help boost your portfolio Read Sophia Auld's blog post on moving from physiotherapy to health writing: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/blog/from-burnt-out-physio-to-booked-out-health-writer-how-i-did-it-and-how-you-can-too/  Read our blog post on building an online portfolio and the different platforms to choose https://www.rachelslist.com.au/blog/9-easy-ways-for-journalists-to-build-an-online-portfolio/  Read this post on what internships should look like: https://www.rachelslist.com.au/blog/what-i-think-internships-should-look-like/  Sign up to RL's FREE entry level list:  https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/327980/82606867567609082/share Young Australian Writers Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/youngauswriters  Find out more about The Content Byte Summit here (and sign up for updates): https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au/  Find us:  Rachel's website https://rachelsmith.com.au/  Lynne's website https://lynnetestoni.com/        Rachel's List https://rachelslist.com.au/ Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. See https://rounded.com.au  Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

The life of a freelance travel writer sounds like a dream gig (and one we have always wondered about) - so this week Rachel and Lynne are chatting with freelancer and columnist Dilvin Yasa. Dilvin talks about the reality of working as a travel writer. In our chat, Dilvin talks about: The challenge of getting your foot in the door if you live in the 'wrong postcode' How men's magazines taught her how to write well The reality of spending weeks on the road How she juggles the demands of a weekly column with family life  How and why she published her books The secret to getting a pitch across the line with editors Her tips for aspiring feature writers Connect with Dilvin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dilvinyasa/  Just a couple more days to secure the Early Bird prices for The Content Byte Summit so visit here (and sign up for updates): https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au/ Find us:  Rachel's website https://rachelsmith.com.au/ Lynne's website https://lynnetestoni.com/       Rachel's List https://rachelslist.com.au/ Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. See https://rounded.com.au   

This week, Rachel and Lynne welcome Jodie Spiteri-James from the Australian Society of Authors (ASA) to the podcast. Jodie is the Professional Development and Events Manager at the ASA and responsible for one of the society's most successful programs - Literary Speed Dating. With more than 20 years experience in publishing, Jodie talks about: The rise of e-books and audio books How the industry works How to get published  How the speed dating events work Mistakes prospective authors make Learn more about the ASA here: https://www.asauthors.org/  Connect with Jodie here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodiespiterijames/  Find out more about The Content Byte Summit (and sign up for updates) here: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au/       Find us:  Rachel's website https://rachelsmith.com.au/     Lynne's website https://lynnetestoni.com/       Rachel's List https://rachelslist.com.au/  Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. See https://rounded.com.au   

Magazine editor and writer Melanie Hansch joins Rachel and Lynne on the podcast this week talking about her work as deputy editor of the prestigious Food and Wine magazine in the US. Melanie shares her career journey, starting as a food writer and critic in Australia and being mentored by publishing legend Donna Hay before moving to the States. She shares her observations on the differences between magazines in each country, why print is not dead and what it was like proving herself all over again when she moved to the US. It's an inspiring story and one that proves the value of hard work and talent. Connect with Melanie on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/melhansche/?hl=en  Find out more about The Content Byte Summit (and sign up for updates) here: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au/      Find us:  Rachel's website https://rachelsmith.com.au/    Lynne's website https://lynnetestoni.com/      Rachel's List https://rachelslist.com.au/   Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. See https://rounded.com.au 

Despite the move to digital, there is still some allure about glossy magazines. This week Rachel and Lynne chat with Hannah James, the deputy editor of Country Style magazine about what print magazines look for from freelancers, how to pitch ideas and, importantly, what they pay. She also takes us through the workload of magazine staff, how it has changed over the years - and why many editors aren't great at answering their emails. It's an episode packed full of ideas on how to get your byline in a glossy! Connect with Hannah via LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannahjames2/  Find out more about The Content Byte Summit (and sign up for updates) here: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au/     Find us:  Rachel's website https://rachelsmith.com.au/  Lynne's website https://lynnetestoni.com/     Rachel's List https://rachelslist.com.au/    Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded, an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. See https://rounded.com.au