seeplusplus
Power Member
- Aug 18, 2008
- 525
- 179
Just over two months ago I made a thread looking for advice on how to sell my writing services (HERE).
Well I just wanted to give you guys an update and share my findings with you.
Since November I have been continuing to try and find clients and by far oDesk has given me the best results.
I started by making myself a decent profile and was sure I took a handful of the tests they offer which were relevant and that I could achieve a high score on, which I did.
Now it was a little difficult to get clients at first since I had zero feedback, but was lucky enough to find one person who needed 20 articles re-writing, so I said I would do one as a trial, made sure I did it well (and quickly) and this resulted in my getting some great feedback comments.
As of this week I now have 4 regular clients who are ordering in blocks of 10 - 20 at a time, and I've also now upped my rates to $1.25 per 100 words.
To help me with applications I set-up my own website and put some samples on there. I don't have any money for SEO tools, so that isn't getting me any orders, but it does help me when I apply for jobs.
In fact I now have enough jobs to keep me busy and this is quickly becoming a full-time job and hopefully over the next couple of months I'll be able to find more clients who need regular work. I'm now getting at least one or two people approaching me to see if I will write for them. I'm only dealing with those who have a history of hiring 10 people or more to avoid the scammers.
Here are some tips:
1) First write a good profile and take the tests which are relevant, but don't screw them up as you have to wait a month before you can take them again.
2) Apply for as many jobs as you can to start with. They say don't copy and paste your applications but I do, I have just wrote an application which needs only a couple of changes to match the job type. It would take too long to write a fresh application for each job, it seems only 1 in 10 ever get back to you anyway.
3) When looking for a job to apply to always look for those clients who are in affluent countries, US, Canada, UK etc. They often quote a price of say $20 for 10 articles, but you can see if they spend a lot on oDesk, so I just go right in with my my full price. It rarely puts them off.
4) When you message them it sends them an email, so every time I complete an article I upload it so that they can see from their emails that I have been working all day on their project. They like this.
5) Always exceed their expectations, my first client I have now wrote over 50 articles for, I'm his "go to guy".
6) Treat each job as an opportunity to work with them on a more regular basis. That is my intention when I take on a new client, to provide work that is so good that they come back and become regular clients. I want to blast all of their other writers out of the water!!
7) Don't take on any jobs unless:
A) You can do it well and exceed their expectations.
B) It's worth your time. If it's going to take you forever then your time is better spent creating more samples which you can include in your future applications.
Summary
Yes writing does suck a bit, I have a Software Engineering degree and feel it's a little wasted, but just two weeks ago I was stuck in my house with no money to go out on New Year's Eve with, but now I'm able to at least cover my bills. lol.
So it's a start, and one I'm feeling positive about
Hopefully in a couple of months I'll be able to afford VIP status here and open my own BST thread, I think there's a market for those charging more than the typical $1 per 100 words rate, especially if you do provide good quality work. But that's something I'm keeping in mind for the future.
Anyhow gotta go, got another 5 articles to write today, but if anyone has any questions feel free to ask!
Well I just wanted to give you guys an update and share my findings with you.
Since November I have been continuing to try and find clients and by far oDesk has given me the best results.
I started by making myself a decent profile and was sure I took a handful of the tests they offer which were relevant and that I could achieve a high score on, which I did.
Now it was a little difficult to get clients at first since I had zero feedback, but was lucky enough to find one person who needed 20 articles re-writing, so I said I would do one as a trial, made sure I did it well (and quickly) and this resulted in my getting some great feedback comments.
As of this week I now have 4 regular clients who are ordering in blocks of 10 - 20 at a time, and I've also now upped my rates to $1.25 per 100 words.
To help me with applications I set-up my own website and put some samples on there. I don't have any money for SEO tools, so that isn't getting me any orders, but it does help me when I apply for jobs.
In fact I now have enough jobs to keep me busy and this is quickly becoming a full-time job and hopefully over the next couple of months I'll be able to find more clients who need regular work. I'm now getting at least one or two people approaching me to see if I will write for them. I'm only dealing with those who have a history of hiring 10 people or more to avoid the scammers.
Here are some tips:
1) First write a good profile and take the tests which are relevant, but don't screw them up as you have to wait a month before you can take them again.
2) Apply for as many jobs as you can to start with. They say don't copy and paste your applications but I do, I have just wrote an application which needs only a couple of changes to match the job type. It would take too long to write a fresh application for each job, it seems only 1 in 10 ever get back to you anyway.
3) When looking for a job to apply to always look for those clients who are in affluent countries, US, Canada, UK etc. They often quote a price of say $20 for 10 articles, but you can see if they spend a lot on oDesk, so I just go right in with my my full price. It rarely puts them off.
4) When you message them it sends them an email, so every time I complete an article I upload it so that they can see from their emails that I have been working all day on their project. They like this.
5) Always exceed their expectations, my first client I have now wrote over 50 articles for, I'm his "go to guy".
6) Treat each job as an opportunity to work with them on a more regular basis. That is my intention when I take on a new client, to provide work that is so good that they come back and become regular clients. I want to blast all of their other writers out of the water!!
7) Don't take on any jobs unless:
A) You can do it well and exceed their expectations.
B) It's worth your time. If it's going to take you forever then your time is better spent creating more samples which you can include in your future applications.
Summary
Yes writing does suck a bit, I have a Software Engineering degree and feel it's a little wasted, but just two weeks ago I was stuck in my house with no money to go out on New Year's Eve with, but now I'm able to at least cover my bills. lol.
So it's a start, and one I'm feeling positive about
Hopefully in a couple of months I'll be able to afford VIP status here and open my own BST thread, I think there's a market for those charging more than the typical $1 per 100 words rate, especially if you do provide good quality work. But that's something I'm keeping in mind for the future.Anyhow gotta go, got another 5 articles to write today, but if anyone has any questions feel free to ask!
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