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Tag: freelance writing rates

  • Here’s a Better Way to Set Your Freelance Writing Rates

    Here’s a Better Way to Set Your Freelance Writing Rates

    When you first set out to become a freelance writer, you charge whatever you think is “normal.”

    In the process of determining that rate, you consider the pay scale of jobs you’ve worked in the past, consult industry pricing sheets, and read every “How much should I charge?” resource you can get your hands on.

    And after reading all of those blogs and getting pep talks from the best writers out there… you still turn around and charge $15 or $20 an hour for all kinds of writing services.

    I know why you do it. I was there. I started my writing business charging $35 an hour and I felt pretty darn lucky to get the business that came in (and, truth be told, I was indeed lucky to get it because I was just getting started).

    Because no matter how many articles I read telling me to charge more, I never quite understood why I should charge more, or how I should go about it.

    Well, new writers, your day has come! Here’s a look at the real consequences of charging $20 an hour to write and how to make the switch to a more profitable rate you deserve.

    What’s a good hourly rate for a freelance writer?

    The truth of the matter is that a minimum writing rate is however low you’ll go when you need money.

    It’s important to know that number for business purposes, but using that number to guide your pricing is a huge mistake. It points the nose of your plane at the ground and limits your ability to earn from the get-go.

    For some, it’s thrilling to surpass the minimum wage at $15 per hour, and it beats unemployment. Many others, including myself, realize after a few months that charging this low rate is not the equivalent of a full-time writing job, and is simply not sustainable.

    Beyond the threat of going out of business because you aren’t making enough, charging too little makes freelancing stressful and hard. It makes you work overtime, and on projects (and with people) who don’t feed your love of writing.

    If you love freelancing and you are getting great feedback from your clients, the time has come to raise your rate. But trust me, if you go from $20 to $100 an hour, you’ll lose all your clients.

    So how do you do it without alienating the people you want to work with?

    What’s better than hourly freelance writing rates?

    Here’s the rub: Raising your prices when you work hourly is extremely difficult. Going from $20 an hour to $50 an hour will feel like an unwarranted hike for your clients and you’ll feel the need to justify every dollar of that increase.

    And worse yet? It still won’t help you achieve the freedom you want to achieve. Even charging $100 per hour (which few clients will pay for writing) won’t disengage you from the need to be active in your business 40 hours per week, because of all the unpaid time spent invoicing, marketing, paying taxes, and hunting down new work.

    All hourly pricing turns your time into a commodity. Instead, you need to shift to the most profitable way of charging for you and the most convenient form of billing for your clients: Project or value-based pricing.

    Transitioning to Project Pricing

    When switching your current clients from a low hourly rate to an equivalent project rate, you don’t have to make it a huge deal.

    Simply translate how much you’re billing your client hourly right now and match it with the tasks you’re performing. Then round up to get a “project rate” for the assignment.

    For example, let’s say you’ve been writing four blog posts for a company at $20 an hour and you’ve been invoicing four-to-six hours each month for the past few months for a total invoice of $120. Simply take the six-hour rate ($120) and turn it into a per-post rate of $40 for each of the four posts.

    Boom, you have a project rate.

    Here’s a simple email template you can use to switch your clients to a project rate in that scenario:

    Hello Client,

    Thank you so much for paying [most recent invoice]! I really enjoyed working on this project, and I can’t wait to get started on [next assignment].

    Regarding my future invoicing, I am shifting my business to a project rate model. This won’t affect our relationship very much — in fact, this will make it easier for you to predict your invoice each month and we won’t have to track pesky hours all the time.

    Instead of charging $20 per hour, I’ve analyzed the data from our invoices the past few months and set an equivalent project rate of $40 per post. Moving forward, I’ll bill at this itemized rate so you can know exactly what you’re getting into with each new project.

    Let me know if you have any questions — I’ll be happy to discuss this with you over the phone!

    Sincerely,

    [You]

    Now that you have this project rate established, you can start implementing the secrets all high-earning freelance writers use to maximize their income: Learn to write faster (thereby increasing your hourly income) and (over time, of course) raise your project rate so you make more with each project.

    You can also pitch new kinds of more valuable work (ghostwriting jobs, email copywriting, white papers, and website copywriting) at a higher project rate, thereby avoiding the discussion of hourly rates altogether as you grow your business.

    Why should people pay writers this much?

    One of the deepest issues writers have with charging a high rate is confidence in what you do. You naturally love to write, after all, so who are you to charge for something that comes easily to you?

    I cry baloney!

    Listen: Businesses make money selling ideas to their customers. Those ideas are expressed in words on their marketing material, websites, blogs, and product descriptions. Therefore, the only way any of these businesses ever makes money is…

    You got it. Through the words they use.

    If a business is successful or unsuccessful, it’s because it is communicating its value — with words — to clients who agree to buy. If you’re a part of that process, you’re a valuable business asset that is worth investing in — and paying more than $20 an hour.

    And if you can help a business understand this process by pricing your rates according to the value you bring, they will begin to understand why investing in the best writer for the job at a market project rate is in their best interest.

    Do you absolutely have to stop charging $20 per hour for your writing? Only if you want to stay in business.

    Take this post as an opportunity to sit down and think through your pricing strategy so you can get on track to succeed as a freelance writer today.

    What strategies have you used to determine or raise your freelance writing rates?

    This is an updated version of a story that was previously published. We update our posts as often as possible to ensure they’re useful for our readers.

    Photo via JKstock / Shutterstock 

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    • Pitch Your Dream Clients: October Income Report from Nicole Dieker

      Pitch Your Dream Clients: October Income Report from Nicole Dieker

      When you started freelancing, did you have a vision of where you wanted your career to go?

      Does your current career match that vision?

      Today, we’ll look at a reader’s question about pitching “vision clients” and discuss why your freelancing vision might change over time.

      First, my numbers for October:

      Completed pieces: 61

      Work billed: $11,734.33

      Income received: $11,774.81

      In October, I earned over $10,000 in freelance income — a new milestone — and I should earn over $10,000 in November as well.

      These earnings are due in part to a large project that’s scheduled to complete by the end of the year, so I don’t anticipate $10K monthly earnings being “the new normal.” However, it’s a nice temporary normal.

      What am I doing with these high earnings? I’ve paid off my last outstanding debts, I’m putting aside a little extra for taxes and I’m saving as much as I can for the future. Freelancing is unpredictable, so I want to be prepared for income downturns, as well as upswings. It’s what the financial advisors would recommend, right?

      Advice on pitching higher-paying clients

      On the subject of advice: A reader recently asked if I’d give some advice on pitching higher-paying clients as well as pitching what she called “vision clients:” the clients or publications that represent where you want your career to go in the future.

      I have a lot of advice on pitching, so I’ll start with two links. If you’re looking for advice on how to write a pitch, please check out my Write Life “Pitch Fix” series, where I workshop real pitches from writers and make those pitches stronger.

      If you’re looking for a specific and actionable guide on getting better clients and earning more money, I wrote an ebook for The Write Life called “Get Better Clients and Earn More Money.”

      (Seriously. It’s worth reading.)  

      But let’s look closely at this reader’s questions: how do you pitch higher-paying clients, and how do you go after those clients that represent the next stage of your career?

      The short answer is that you pitch higher-paying clients the same way you’re pitching your current clients. You craft smart, tailored pitches that focus on how your skills and ideas can benefit that client’s audience. You also highlight your previous work to prove that you can deliver a quality product.

      I often reference Shane Snow’s video “Hacking the Freelance Ladder” for a great analysis of how a writer can use the clips and connections they build with their current clients to move “up the ladder” to better-paying clients. (Watch the video. It’s so good.)

      From my experience, the first steps on the ladder are close together, and don’t always represent a significant increase in pay; I remember feeling like it was a huge deal to go from 3 cents a word to 5 cents a word, for example. As you continue to build your freelance career, the steps on the ladder might feel more like jumps; instead of getting $100 more per piece, you might get offered $500 or $1,000 more per piece.

      As I moved up in my freelance career, I spent less time pitching potential clients and more time working with clients who had contacted me. When you’re pitching a client, they have most of the leverage; although you can negotiate, you often have to take or leave what they’re offering. When a client reaches out to you, you’re the one with the leverage and they’re the ones who have to take or leave your rates.

      Finding your “vision clients”

      Which brings me to those “vision clients.”

      Here’s one of the hardest truths about freelancing: you might have a vision of where you want your career to go, but there’s going to be a lot that you can’t predict. I would never have guessed that my primary freelance beat would end up being personal finance, or that I would become an editor, as well as a writer. I didn’t plan to earn much of my income through content marketing, either; when I started freelancing, I didn’t even know what that term meant.

      If you had asked me who my “vision clients” were four years ago, I probably would have named a few highbrow publications that focused on intellectual and cultural commentary. As it turns out, my greatest freelance success has come from the areas where my skills match a client’s vision; in my case, my willingness to be open about my finances and my earnings, or my ability to quickly research and analyze a subject in a way that is interesting to a client’s target audience.

      So here’s my advice: if there’s a client or publication that represents where you want  your career to go, absolutely pitch them. But pay attention to the clients and publications that are interested in you, even if they might be taking you in a slightly different direction. Sometimes your career might not match your vision — and that’s a good thing.

      Four years ago, I couldn’t have imagined the career I have now. I didn’t know the freelancing industry well enough to know which opportunities were available to writers, or which opportunities might be the best match for my skills. But I kept climbing the ladder, paying attention to which clients were most interested in my work, and my vision changed as my career grew.

      Expect your vision to change as well. That’s the best advice I can give.

      What was your first “freelancing vision?” How close or far away are you from that original idea?

    • Choosing SMART Goals: September Income Report from Nicole Dieker

      Choosing SMART Goals: September Income Report from Nicole Dieker

      Do you set freelance goals? How do you create those goals, and how do you know if your goals are any good?

      This month, I ask freelancer — and freelancing expert — Gina Horkey how to set smart goals for 2017, as well as how to take those first steps towards achieving them.

      First, the numbers for September:

      Completed pieces: 65

      Work billed: $9,751.83

      Income received: $9,628.65

      This is the highest income I’ve ever billed or received as a freelancer. I’m still putting in roughly the same hours, writing (and revising) a relatively steady 40,000-50,000 words every month, but I’m earning twice as much as I was when I started tracking my income on The Write Life two years ago.

      How did this income boost happen?

      Part of it was luck — one of my clients was able to offer me a large, high-paying project — and part of it came from consistent work, strong client relationships and steadily increasing rates.

      In my very first income report, I set myself the goal of earning $5,000 per month. Now that I’ve more than achieved that milestone, it’s time to think about my next big goals — and seek advice from an expert who knows a thing or two about setting goals.

      Talking to Gina Horkey about developing smart goals

      Last month, I wrote about planning for 2017, including preparing my finances for a potential drop in income and transferring my freelance tracking system to a software program like FreshBooks, Harvest or QuickBooks (which my CPA recommends). Since I’m in the middle of a large project right now, I haven’t had time to test out any of these new programs yet. I don’t expect to get to spend time with them until December.

      However, thinking about what I want to do in 2017 is the first step in figuring out how to get there, and “test small business software” is on my to-do list.

      One of my 2016 goals, as you might remember, was to turn this column into a collaboration — so I reached out to Gina Horkey, a freelance writer and webpreneur who has developed many courses and resources for freelancers, including the Write Life-recommended 30 Days to Freelance Writing Success.

      I wanted to talk to Horkey about how she develops business goals, and what advice she has for freelancers who are planning for 2017.

      “I’m of similar belief that you should get started before the actual year starts, ,” Horkey told me. “Even though I’m not ignoring the rest of 2016, we need to get started on 2017.”

      Like me, Horkey often focuses her goals on metrics.

      “I’m a fan of minimum and stretch goals,” she said. ” Horkey looks at the money she’s earned in the previous year, calculates where she thinks her business might go in the next year and asks herself, “Do I want to do the bare minimum and work less, or do I want to grow?”

      A successful business, as Horkey told me, isn’t always about the money. Having financial security is important, but so is having a solid work-life balance.

      Freelancers who are thinking about how they want to grow their business in 2017 should ask themselves what financial goal they hope to achieve: “Is it to leave work behind and replace their salary, or is it just to add some extra income to the household so things aren’t as tight or maybe [to] pay off debt?”

      You can ask that question at every stage of your freelancing career, whether you’re just getting started or whether you’re in your fourth year as a full-time freelancer (like me!).

      Understanding what you hope to achieve as a freelancer can help you set goals that will help you get there.

      Measurable milestones and simple steps

      For me, a minimum goal for 2017 might be to continue earning $5,000 per month, since that’s an income level I’ve proven I can consistently achieve — and an income that comfortably covers my expenses.

      A stretch goal for 2017 would be to earn $100,000 for the year, or a little over $8,300 every month. Since I’ve increased my income by about $20,000 every year for the past two years, this goal feels reasonable — but it will also take work, good client relationships and a little bit of luck to get there.

      “I try to follow the SMART goal philosophy,” Horkey explained. “Specific, Measureable, Actionable, Realistic and Time-Sensitive.” She asks herself what end result she wants to achieve, and starts breaking that result down into measurable milestones and simple steps.

      “Every goal has multiple steps. I’m a fan of breaking things down into their simplest form: what’s that first, smallest action I can take right now to get me closer to that bigger goal?”

      For me, the first, smallest action I can take to get me to next year’s income goal is to renegotiate my current rates. I can’t control whether or not an individual client will be able to do a rate increase for 2017, but I do know that having this conversation with all of my clients is likely to increase my overall income — without increasing my workload. Renegotiating my rates will also help buffer against the potential drop in income after my large project ends.

      Horkey also stressed the importance of flexibility: “If I’m trying something and it’s not working, I need to shift my plan. I don’t usually get too disheartened, I just try something different in order to make progress.”

      I don’t know yet what will happen in 2017, but I know that if I want to both increase my income and streamline my small business tracking and accounting, I need to start with small steps and be ready to make changes if the steps I take don’t actually lead me to my goal.

      In both cases, I can get started on my 2017 goals in 2016 by testing software programs and setting up rate negotiation conversations. Once I’ve completed those tasks, I’ll be ready to take the next small steps — and be one step closer to achieving my goals.

      Are you ready to set some smart freelancing goals? Share your goals and the next steps you can take to achieve them!

      This post contains affiliate links. That means if you purchase through our links, you’re supporting The Write Life — and we thank you for that!

    • Tracking Freelance Earnings: May Income Report From Nicole Dieker

      Tracking Freelance Earnings: May Income Report From Nicole Dieker

      We’re getting close to the halfway point of the year, which makes it a good time to check in with our freelancing goals and see whether we’re on target. This month, I take a look at my progress and ask freelancer Jessie Kwak to share hers.

       

      First, my numbers for May:

      Completed pieces: 64

      Work billed: $7,074.31

      Earnings received: $9,463.57

      Between January 1 and May 31, I’ve billed $28,701.68 worth of work and received $27,674.24 in freelance checks. That’s well over my $5,000/month income goal — I’m averaging about $5,700 a month in billings — and I have enough work already booked that I can predict I’ll continue to hit and/or exceed my income target.

      Nothing is guaranteed in freelancing — my client relationships could change at any time, just like they’ve changed in the past — but I’m very happy with my 2016 earnings, both current and projected.

      I also set a goal to keep my workload manageable. I haven’t been as successful with this goal as I have with the income goal; you might remember me writing about working long hours in April. However, May was a much better month for keeping reasonable hours, taking lunch breaks, and ending work by 6:30 p.m. — and it looks like June will be the same.

      Lastly, I set a goal to make this column a collaboration. With that in mind, I’d like to introduce another freelancer and her set of 2016 goals, as well as her progress towards achieving them.

      Q&A with Jessie Kwak

      Jessie Kwak is a freelance writer and author who writes everything from B2B marketing copy to short stories and novellas.

      I interviewed Kwak in February to learn more about her 2016 freelance goals. I haven’t had the chance to share this interview with you yet, so read it below and then keep reading to learn about Kwak’s progress.

      ND: What is your current freelance life like?

      JK: Right now I work for about five-six clients, with some recurring blogging deadlines every week, and some [clients] giving me projects just as they come up. I’m definitely getting better at understanding my workload and scheduling out my deadlines so that I don’t get as overwhelmed — but of course it still happens sometimes that several clients need something all at once.  

      Along with my freelance client work, I also write fiction. I try to get at least an hour or two on the schedule every day for fiction writing and marketing, but paying client work always takes priority for me. Most of my day is spent in my home office writing and researching, though I do sometimes have phone interviews and meetings scheduled in there, too.

      And some days, when I get everything done early, I like to cut out in the afternoon and hit the climbing gym or go mountain biking. It’s nice being your own boss!

      What would you like to improve about your freelancing career?

      Right now I’m working on becoming more efficient in my writing. I’m getting good rates from my clients, but if I squander my time dithering on research or puttering around when I should be writing, my hourly rate totally tanks! I’m pretty happy with my clients and workload, though I’d like to narrow down on my niche even further.

      What steps are you taking to help you get there? Have you had success so far?

      This is my third year of freelancing, and it seems like each year has had a theme. Year 1 was, “Say yes any time someone offers you money for words.” Year 2 was, “Come up with standards in terms of types of clients and pay rates, and only say yes to those people.” Year 3 has been all about narrowing that focus even farther, and being really ruthless about saying no to clients that don’t fit into my niche.

      For me, [that niche is] B2B software companies who want to hire me for ongoing content marketing work (blogging, case studies, white papers, special reports, etc.) I’ve had to let go of some clients I enjoyed, but it’s been worth it in terms of sanity.

      I’m also starting to say “no” to one-off projects, because the amount of time spent onboarding and getting to know a new client just isn’t worth it if all I’m going to do is a single article or brochure and never hear from them again.

      Do you have an income goal for 2016?

      In 2015 my freelancing income surpassed that of the desk job I left to start freelancing, even after accounting for the higher rate at which that income is taxed. It felt amazing to realize that! In 2016, I’m less interested in growing my income, and more interested in growing my free time so I can spend that time writing fiction.

      That said, I’d love to boost my income to $70,000 this year, but I view writing fiction as an investment in future earnings, so I’m OK with some stagnancy so long as I can become more efficient with my time and carve out those hours for fiction.

      What steps are you taking to hit your income goal? Have you had success so far?

      The mechanics of boosting income and free time are the same: take on better-paying projects from better clients, and learn to work faster. The biggest thing I’m doing this year to boost my income/free time is to narrow down on the type of clients I work with. Since I’ve started specializing in working with B2B software companies, it’s been easier for me to charge higher rates. And since I’ve got a full client list already, it’s been really easy to quote higher rates to potential clients.

      That’s a catch-22 of freelancing. The more booked up you are, the more confidence you have to ask for the rate you want. When I was first starting out, I’d say yes to a $50 article that required two interviews because I needed to pay rent. Now there’s no way I’d take a project like that!

      The last time a potential new client contacted me, I quoted them almost twice what I currently charge my lowest-paying client, and they said yes. I was blown away — both at my audacity and by their agreement. I never would have had the guts to quote so high if I was desperately relying on winning them as a client.

      What is the hardest part of freelancing for you?

      Despite all my big talk about rates above, negotiating and talking about money is the hardest part for me. I’m pretty shy, and building up the confidence to believe that I’m worth what I’m charging has been tough. I just keep going back at it, and the more I do it, the better I get.

      That’s one of the great things about freelancing — you can learn a lot through trial and error. If you do your best but still screw up, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve had awkward client breakups, but I went on to work with clients who really loved me. I’ve definitely quoted too low, but then I went on to quote higher to the next client. You can constantly experiment and get better at your craft and more confident as a negotiator each time.

      What do you feel like you do really well as a freelancer?

      I’m great at research and getting to know a new product or industry, which is a huge selling point. Most of my clients are in really esoteric fields, and they honestly aren’t expecting to find someone who’s an expert and also a good writer — they just want a good writer who’s knowledgeable about B2B sales and willing to research the hell out of their industry.

      I’m also really organized and really reliable. If I say I’ll have something to you on Monday, I’ll have it. This sadly seems to surprise some of my clients, which makes me think that if you want to make it as a freelancer, the ability to nail deadlines is almost better than being a good writer. Apparently a lot of people are flaky out there.

      Basically, I try to make myself as easy to work with as possible. After the first few assignments are turned in, my clients generally start to trust that I’ll work reliably with minimal hand-holding, and that’s a huge relief to them. They want to hire freelancers who make their jobs easier, not who require tons of micromanagement and editing!

      What advice do you have for other freelancers?

      First up, you need to treat your business as a business. Expect to hustle, and work evenings and weekends sometimes. Expect to invest time and money in equipment and marketing and a kick-ass website. Expect to have lean months and abundant months, and budget accordingly. Expect to keep track of your finances. Expect to deliver exceptional customer service. You wouldn’t open a coffee shop without these expectations — why start a writing business without them?

      Next, don’t sit around waiting for the right opportunity to come along — just get started, and experiment as you go. I’ve had friends tell me they don’t have the experience to get hired as a freelancer, they’ve only written a bunch of press releases (or something like that). It blows my mind — that’s experience, and they’re completely discounting it! You don’t need a degree, or someone to tell you it’s OK to start freelancing. If you really want to start freelancing, you’ll do it. But it’s also OK to realize that you although you like the idea of it, you don’t really want to be a freelancer. It’s not for everyone.

      Lastly, when you’re getting started, cast your net wide — but always be looking toward niching down into an industry or a type of writing. You might be surprised at what you like to do! If you’d told me two years ago that I’d specialize in content marketing for B2B software-as-a-service companies, I’d have said, “What the hell does that mean?” But by trial and experimentation, I’ve found a niche I like, I’m good at, and pays well.

      May 2016 update from Jessie Kwak

      Last month, I got in touch with Kwak and asked if she had any updates to share on her freelancing goals.

      ND: I’m curious if you wanted to share a quick update on how your goals were going. I really liked your interview and I’d love to share how your year has gone so far.

      JK: It was really fascinating to read through that interview and check in with my goals. Here’s an update:

      One of my big goals at the beginning of the year was to narrow down my niche and start taking on bigger projects. I was doing a lot of blogging, and the constant deadlines were starting to wear me out! As of April, I dropped all my pure blogging clients, and have been starting to land some bigger projects, like white papers and an ebook. Right now, the bulk of my work is for three clients: copywriting for a big local website agency, writing regular reported articles for a B2B software company, and doing a variety of work for an editorial consultant who works with education technology companies. I still take on random projects for other people from time to time, but I’m not planning on picking up any more regular blogging contracts.

      One thing this has done is created space in my schedule for writing fiction. I’m able to take at least one day off a week to work on fiction, which is letting me get so much done! Just this month I published a novella, Starfall, and turned in a draft of a novel set in the same world, which is coming out with a small press next year. I’ve worked hard over the last few years to level up my freelance career in order to balance it with fiction, and I’m excited to be closer to that goal.

      How has your freelancing year been so far? If you set freelancing goals at the beginning of the year, have you met those goals? Did anything unexpected happen? I want to hear your updates!

      Also: I’m looking for volunteers for my Pitch Fix column. If you have a pitch that’s striking out, email me at dieker.nicole@gmail.com.

    • Tracking Freelance Earnings: February Income Report From Nicole Dieker

      Tracking Freelance Earnings: February Income Report From Nicole Dieker

      Do you work on freelancing projects that take more than a month to complete? As longer projects become a more significant part of my freelance workload, I’m rethinking how I track my income against my monthly earning goals.

      Here are my February numbers:

      Completed pieces: 55

      Work billed: $4,670.93

      Earnings received: $3,330.38

      I wrote nearly 56,000 words in February, with an average per-piece earning of $85. I didn’t hit my $5,000-a-month income goal in February, but I didn’t expect to. Every February, I take a week off to attend the JoCo Cruise, so I knew my “work billed” number would probably come up a little short. (The cruise is totally worth it.)

      On the subject of “work billed”: It’s a little complicated this month. If I were to calculate all of the fully completed and billed work, February’s number would only be $3,420. I spent most of February doing work on projects that will be complete in March, so I’m listing the $4,670.93 number because it more accurately reflects the amount of work I got done this month — and helps me determine how close I am to my $5,000 income goal.

      Taking on larger — and longer — projects

      My income tracking is becoming more challenging because I’m taking on bigger projects that can’t be completed in a month. When I got started as a freelancer, I wrote six short pieces a day for content farms; now I’m working on pieces that require significant research and take several weeks to complete.

      The longer a piece takes to complete, by the way, the more likely the deadline will shift at some point during the process. This has less to do with the dreaded “scope creep” than it does with the idea that it’s difficult to plan out all the details of a complicated project in advance.

      As my clients and I begin working on these projects, we often find we need to go after an additional source or spend an extra day looking for answers to a question — which in turn pushes back the deadline.

      What does that mean for me? Well, it’s harder to accurately track how much money I earn every month, for starters. If I spend two months working on a project, it isn’t useful to me to say “In February I earned nothing on this project, and in March I earned $4,000.” When I make my freelance spreadsheet, I need to prorate that $4,000 over the length of the project so I know that $2,000 counts for February and $2,000 counts for March — and I still need to earn $3,000 extra each month to hit my income goal.

      In case you’re an accountant: This is my informal income-tracking spreadsheet that helps make sure I’m on target, not the spreadsheet I use to do my taxes! That’s a different system, and tracks income in the month it was earned.

      It’s also harder to plan my workload, since I have to include overflow time for deadline changes, last-minute revision requests, and other tasks. This month, I’ve tried to solve this problem by turning Mondays into “buffer days” — instead of scheduling other work for Mondays, I’ll keep them open and flexible for whatever needs to be done. I’ll let you know how it goes!

      It’s one more thing you might have to figure out, as you move up in your freelance career: How to track long-term projects against your monthly goals, and how to manage a workload that might include shifting deadlines.

      Let’s switch focus and look at a freelancer who is just starting out. What are his freelancing goals, and what steps is he taking to achieve them?

      Q&A with Robert Lynch

      Robert Lynch is a freelance writer in Adelaide, South Australia. He recently started working as a freelancer, and has already picked up a weekly contract. He’s also making smart choices — like negotiating better rates, investing in his business and improving his pitches — to help build his career and grow his income.

      ND: What is your current freelance life like?

      RL: I’ve just finished university and finally have the time to pursue a writing career. At this point I’ve been freelancing for only three and a half months. In that time I’ve had some significant breakthroughs. I’ve sold one-off pieces and I picked up a regular weekly contract copyediting, which paid $170 a week. After two months at $170 per week I successfully negotiated with the client to increase my workload to [earn] $300 a week.

      What would you like to improve about your freelancing career?

      At the moment copyediting is my only freelance income. I’d like to build up other income streams to support me. I’ve written short stories, some accepted and some rejected. I’d like to be able to know whether what I’m writing is a good fit for a publication, so that I decrease the chance of rejection. This is something I’m sure I will get better at with time and practice.

      What steps are you taking to help you get there? Have you had success so far?

      I try to send one piece of fiction work away each week for consideration to be published. I write sci-fi mostly. This kind of freelancing has an 8-12 week lag from sending in the work to getting feedback, so if I send in work regularly after that initial lag I will get feedback regularly. At this point, I haven’t received feedback for the first piece that I sent away, so I have no idea whether this has had success or failure yet.

      I’m also trying to view freelancing as a small business, so there are business aspects that I have focused on. I’ve dedicated a lot of time in the last 14 weeks to building a writing platform. Getting my website/personal blog (www.robert-lynch.com) built and published; building a twitter following (@BobLynchBSc); and to a lesser extent commenting and replying to content that other people have produced.

      Success in this endeavour is hard to measure. People have come to my website and have read the content I have posted there. That’s good. I have no comparison on whether those numbers are high or low for a blog about a writer’s journey. I’m happy with what I have so far and I look forward to growing that following by producing content that helps other writers with their own journeys.

      Do you have an income goal for 2016?

      My income goal is to earn more than $500 [AUD] a week, which amounts to earning more than $26,000 in 2016. This is the minimum I can earn where I can then devote myself to writing full time. This is the number in which I get freedom from looking for work elsewhere. At the moment I’m working as a barman to make ends meet and I’d rather spend those hours writing.

      What steps are you taking to hit that income goal? Have you had success so far?

      I’m trying to get a few blogs published off of my site. From there I intend to start pitching regular blogging series to websites. I have already learnt a lot from your Pitch Fix series, so hopefully I will have some success. Some of these pitches will be to writing sites like The Write Life, but also some specifically science-based blogs. I have a science degree after all and since scientists are not known for their creative writing skills, I’m hoping to be able to help bridge the gap between real science and the general population. I don’t think that I’m going to build up these relationships overnight, but if I can, I see a future where I’m regularly earning as much from blogging as I am from copyediting.

      Another revenue stream I see as achievable this year is to be regularly selling fiction. I have found a number of magazines and websites that will pay for fiction. By sending in regular stories for consideration for publication I’m hoping to better my writing and be regularly aligning with editor’s needs by the end of the year.

      There are a few other revenue streams I’d like to try, but their ability to earn scales directly with the size of my writing platform, so they aren’t viable in the short term.

      With the $300 a week I already have coming in, I think that from just blogs and stories it’s more than achievable to be earning above that $500-a-week goal.

      What is the hardest part of freelancing for you?

      Fitting everything in. I want to transition to writing full time this year. At the moment I’m working 15 hours a week copyediting, trying to learn the writing business, trying to write 1,000 fiction words every day, keeping an active Twitter presence, trying to start blogging, running my own website and blog (which includes fortnightly videos on YouTube), working in a bar, still looking for work that I might get using my degree, volunteering as head medical trainer at my local football club and acting as the chairperson of my local writing group. After all of these things I still need to find time to spend with my girlfriend.

      Generally, I can’t fit everything in. That means that I have to prioritise those things that pay me money right now and some of the long-term business stuff suffers for it.

      In order to get better at this, I’ve mapped out a time management plan. If I stick to it then I think I’ll be able to fit everything in. I don’t have a history of sticking to routines though.

      What do you feel like you do really well as a freelancer?

      I have a strong work ethic and I’m actively pursuing feedback or advice to improve myself.

      Neil Gaiman did a commencement speech a couple of years ago where he said that to be a successful freelancer you need to do three things: Submit work on time, do good work, and be nice to work with. I am completely in control of whether the work is done on time, so I make sure that I don’t miss deadlines. Whether my work is good or not I can only know if I get unbiased feedback, so I actively seek it out. And I try to build good business relationships, which so far has got me repeat work and better pay.

      What advice do you have for other freelancers?

      In the short time I have been freelancing, all of my successes have come from taking risks and trying new things. In every case the worst thing that could have happened was that people didn’t like what I was doing or contractors just said no to my proposals.

      If there is anything that I have learned so far, it’s that you have to take a risk to get anywhere. If you never try, you’ll never have any success.

      What advice would you offer Robert Lynch? Also, what advice would you offer me, as I start working on longer projects? Share your thoughts in the comments.

    • 4 Reasons Your Low Freelance Writing Rates are a Terrible Idea

      4 Reasons Your Low Freelance Writing Rates are a Terrible Idea

      When you begin your freelance writing career, it can be difficult to set yourself apart and build your book of clients.

      Your desire to get started and earn a steady stream of income can be overwhelming, which leads many freelancers to fall into a costly trap: Competing for business based on price.

      It’s true that some of the most powerful businesses in the world make their bread and butter by competing on price. Think of Walmart, or Amazon, or McDonald’s. But these are major corporations that can turn pennies into billions of dollars based on sales volume.

      As a single freelancer, there are only so many hours in the day you can work.

      You don’t have the luxury of turning small profits on a huge volume of jobs. You want large profits on a low volume of projects.

      You need to build a business that competes on quality instead of price.

      But why is it so dangerous to focus on a low price? After all, offering quality work at a low rate can make you extremely popular with clients, the same way that quality cars sold at a low price will draw in customers.

      Here are four pricing issues to watch out for as you build your freelance writing career.

      1. You can’t always be “on”

      The biggest reason why don’t want to compete on price is simple arithmetic.

      If you work 40 hours at $20 an hour, you earn $800. If you work for $50 an hour, you only have to 16 hours to earn the same amount.

      Sometimes freelancers don’t realize how consuming your work can become. At a typical office job, you leave your work at the office and have a clear delineation between work and home.

      For freelancers, that line blurs. Can’t sleep at night? May as well work on that project. Need to run to the grocery store in the middle of the day? You’ll just catch up on work this evening.

      The result is an “always on” mentality for freelancers where you’re never off the clock. But if you charge more, then you don’t have to work the traditional 40-hour (or 50-60 hour) workweek.

      Instead, you can have the freedom of lifestyle that draws many people to freelancing in the first place.

      2. You are worth more than you think

      It’s not just a self-esteem booster: You are worth more than you think.

      Consider a company that wants a copywriter to write a new ebook. It has two routes to take. It can either make a new permanent hire, or can hire a freelancer for the project.

      A new hire comes with the costs of a salary, health insurance, a 401(k), Social Security, paid vacation, office space, a computer, training and even a Christmas gift at the company party.

      Freelancers come with none of the extra baggage. So when you’re bidding on a job, think of those expenses to the company. After all, you have to pay for those things. You should be bidding an amount that covers all your expenses, plus an extra charge for the convenience of the company not having to bring on a full-time employee.

      Don’t be shy about your prices. Remember, people are willing to pay for what they value.

      3. You’ll never win the low-price game

      The ugly truth about competing on price is that you will never, ever win. There will always be someone willing to do the job for cheaper than you.

      A person pitching in New York can be underbid by someone in Kansas. Someone in Kansas can be underbid by someone overseas. And someone overseas can be underbid by a person willing to do the project for free because they want the experience.

      That’s not to say you won’t ever get a job. You will. In fact, you’ll find plenty of work. But over time, you’ll find yourself in a spiral of continually having to lower the price you’re willing to take if you compete on this end of the spectrum. Instead, you want to set your prices based on the value you bring to the job.

      4. Your cheap clients won’t be worth your time

      We’ve all had difficult clients: Those people who don’t clearly articulate what they want, but know what you produced isn’t it.

      There’s no evidence that clients who pay less are more trouble than those that pay higher rates. But it’s simple logic that those clients paying less are worth much less of your time when they do cause issues.

      Any bid you make on a project should be done so with the knowledge that you will have to go back and tweak things. The catch is that if you compete on price, those revisions eat into your already thin margins.

      It’s easy to see that getting materials just right for a client and ensuring they are happy is no longer worth your time. You want to build a client base where no matter how much you have to adjust, tweak or revise your work, it will still be wildly profitable for you to work with them.

      Have you learned similar lessons trying to compete on price? How did you adjust your business model?

    • 3 Ways You’re Probably Sabotaging Your Freelance Writing Business

      3 Ways You’re Probably Sabotaging Your Freelance Writing Business

      In freelancing, all your fears come true.

      Afraid you won’t be able to command high rates for your work? You’re right. Worried that you won’t get paid on time (or ever)? Right again. Think there’s a shortage of good clients? Correct-a-mundo.

      But… none of this happens for the reasons you think.

      Actually, your brain causes these challenges.

      No, I’m not talking about some mysterious, law-of-attraction-type power. I’m talking about the old self-fulfilling prophecy. That dang connection between our beliefs, our behavior, and the results we get in life and business.

      Let me reiterate: There is nothing mystical about this. Nothing whatsoever.

      Quite the opposite, actually. It’s just plain logic.

      Here are three huge self-fulfilling prophecies that can hold you back from freelance financial success and professional growth.

      Self-fulfilling prophecy 1: “Clients want low prices”

      You become doggedly convinced (often through peer pressure) that all clients are actually Terminator-style cyborgs on a mission to grind your freelance rates into post-apocalyptic dust.

      To compensate for this perceived threat, you quote (and even brag about) “competitive” prices in an effort to avoid scaring anyone off.

      This approach repels the best clients, who are as attracted to low prices as vegans are to steakhouses. Ironically, it does succeed in reeling in budget-conscious clients in droves.

      Result: You end up with nothing but low-paying clients, and a reinforced belief that there’s nothing you can do about it.

      The fix

      Realize that clients do not all own the cheapest computers, desks, or chairs. In fact, if they really wanted to save money at all costs, why even have a desk at all, when they could just work on the floor instead?

      People are willing to pay for things they value. Period.

      Self-fulfilling prophecy 2: “Clients won’t pay me on time (or at all)”

      You suspect that most clients will happily take advantage of you, if given the chance.

      To counter this dark human tendency, you concoct complicated and draconian payment terms, including contracts, fine print, and strict penalties. And you make sure to dangle these in front of prospective clients right up front to “weed out the deadbeats.”

      Unfortunately, the best clients (who pay all of their bills promptly anyway) routinely respond to complexity, red tape and paranoia with “No, thank you.”

      Result: Once again, you’ve managed to screen out the exact type of client you want most, while drawing in the hard-payers, who are used to this sort of treatment.

      The fix

      Understand that you can cover yourself without putting up a wall between you and potential clients.

      Simple payment terms can be just as effective as complex ones. And in any case, they should be the last thing you discuss with prospects, not the first.

      Self-fulfilling prophecy 3: “There aren’t enough good clients”

      You worry all the good clients in the world will get snatched up by your competitors.

      To combat this misguided scarcity, you take any job that comes your way because “it’s a paycheck.” You also cling to each client for dear life, willing to drop your prices at any hint of resistance.

      Result: You end up mired in unrewarding work that doesn’t pay well, which holds you back from professional growth. In other words, you do indeed experience a shortage of good clients — but, yet again, it’s a self-imposed shortage as a result of your own limited beliefs.

      The fix

      Think bigger. There are literally tens of millions of businesses in the U.S. alone. In 2014, I worked with 20 clients who were all happy to pay upwards of $100 per hour. I promise you these were not the only 20 “good clients” on earth.

      Are you ready to charge what you’re worth?

      If you’re new to freelancing, awareness of these limiting beliefs will help you avoid some of the biggest traps that keep writers from breaking through to the next level.

      And if you’ve been freelancing for a while, it’s never too late to break free of these (and other) self-fulfilling prophecies and start earning what you want and deserve.

      Have you been held back by self-limiting beliefs like the ones I’ve just described? What are you going to do to break the cycle going forward?

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