Wednesday, September 30, 2009

September Earnings

I’ve been inspired by Lori Widmer (whom I just adore by the way) to share my business; something I hardly ever do. And by business I mean My September earnings.


I’m not sure why I’ve never done it before, but her post today made me want to. Part of the reason is that I’m trying to organize my business better and I am attempting to market my services on a much more regular basis. This is a great way of tracking my results.


Print Publications


Although I had a couple of great ideas and planned to query a trade magazine, I didn’t. I did, however, finally get paid for four magazine articles I wrote back in May of this year. Turns out the publication is really struggling. I really do want to start writing for magazines again, but I can’t afford to rely on them as regular income since checks can come anytime.


Job Boards


In the past I’ve gotten some pretty good gigs from job boards, but damn, the pickings are getting kind of slim. Still, from time to time you can find a gem or two so I try to drop in to search through a few on a semi-regular basis.


I've actually found a couple of good opportunities and got three really interested reponses until I sent them my rates. Hmmm, must have been something I said…


Existing clients


Most of my existing clients have reduced the amount of work they send my way. Only one client is still using my services as before. I have been following up with clients I haven’t worked with in the last six months or so via email and mailed post cards.


Earnings


Let’s just say it’s a lot less than I expected. I started out with quite a few projects this month. Then three of my children came down with the flu, and then we had some unexpected flooding to take care of. I allowed those things to cut into my work time which meant less time for marketing and developing content for my own business.


Bottom Line


I need to get back to planning my work days and stick to the schedule. I must set aside time each day for marketing and reconnecting with previous clients. I need to establish some new systems to help me manage my time better.


I plan to attend a couple of conferences this month for more face-to-face networking. Like Lori, I will continue to fine tune my marketing efforts.

6 comments:

Lori said...

I adore you right back, Kim! Thanks. :)

Sounds like you and I are drinking from the same glass. Magazines aren't producing anything but awkward silence on my side. And I get the same response from those job postings! Funny that.... ;)

Wellington Grey said...

You're brave to talk about your earnings online -- it's not an easy thing to do.

I noticed at the bottom that you said you need help managing your time. Please feel free to get in touch, I can help you with that: http://SilverClipboard.com/coaching

Lori said...

Kim, good chum Lisa Gates holds a wonderful workshop - Craving Balance. I think you'd love it. I took it and it really does help you focus your time more wisely. Lisa's goal is to get you to balance your time so that you're doing what you want to do FIRST, not after everything else.

Kimberly Ben said...

@Lori: I REALLY have some great ideas for a couple of trade magazines I subscribe to, but I'm just not sure it's worth my time right now.

I remember you mentioning the Craving Balance workshops before. I think I should check it out.

@Wellington Grey: Thanks for stopping by to comment. I'm definitely struggling with time management issues right now. I'll have to check out your link.

Yuwanda Black said...

Kimberly:

First, as a mom, I don't know how you manage to do anything else . . . so my hat's off to you.

In all my years of freelancing, I have to say the number 1 thing I recommend to struggling freelance writers is to marketing -- CONSISTENTLY!

Even when you do, you will encounter dry spells, BUT, they will be few and far between if you've been doing it consistently. As you can see, when you don't, when the dry spells come, you may find that they last longer.

It's a pattern I only noticed about 5-7 years into my freelance writing career (yes, on some things I can be a little slow).

But I practically guarantee that if you consistently touch (market to) a sufficient number of prospects per day/week, you WILL get work.

Hang in there. It's going to work out.

Best,
Yuwanda

Kimberly Ben said...

Thanks, Yuwanda, for the kind words and AWESOME advice. I KNOW what you say about marketing is true.

 
Designed by Lena