how to succeed in business…successfully (and like a real person)

Hi! My name is Al Aboutme from the Al Aboutme Print Shop! We print everything. Even holiday cards. Have any of those? ‘Cause I’ll print ‘em! What? You have cats? We print cat posters too! Come on down and visit us. Come to our website, www.printhereorelse.com. I need business and I want yours. What? You never print things? Sure you do, come on down, we’ll find something you can print…blah blah, blah blah, blah blah.

Gross. Don’t be like Al Aboutme.

To build your business, you have to network and you have to work with other people. You need to talk to them, collaborate, do business - but you don’t have to do it like Al, and you shouldn’t. Why? Because it isn’t comfortable for you or for the people around you…oh, and it doesn’t work.

Think about this: when a company comes at you via email, a social network, on the phone or by direct mail, you typically cringe at the sight or sound. You sense the ambush, you know they want something from you. But, when a person approaches you via email, a social network, on the phone or by direct mail, you wonder who they are, you look forward to making a connection, you engage in conversation.

Please be a person all the time:

• Listen to what people need.
• Listen more than you talk.
• Give more than you take.
• Be generous with your time & information.
• Be in places where your clients will be.
• Realize potential clients are everywhere.
• Be kind.
• Be your most authentic self.
• Stay true to your goals and mission.
• Check in with yourself & make sure your actions/words feel comfortable as they happen.
• Be honest about what you can and can not deliver.
• Have the resources to help your clients with the things you can’t supply.
• Grow with your industry & the world’s needs.

Check the tag - you’re it.

Last week, I got tagged. One of the coolest chics around, Jennifer Smith, who runs Eco-Office Gals, a virtual assistant company with a solidly green touch, tagged me - which means that she called me out! Basically, I have to tell you several things about myself that you couldn’t possibly know and then I’ll tag some of my favorite bloggers.

And, as much as I admire, enjoy and respect Jennifer, I couldn’t help but think that this sounded an awful lot like a chain letter. But there is something about blogs (good, real ones) that trumps the chain letter. And then, I saw this incredible post by another favorite of mine, Ann Handley where she was wildly creative and literary about her tag assignment, and it sealed the deal. Besides that? It’s Friday…so what the heck.

Therefore, here I am. And here are seven things that you can’t tell by looking:

1. I was a cheerleader in high school for about 5 minutes.
2. I got kicked off the squad for getting into a fist fight with one of my close girlfriends (over a boy).
3. I ended up on the field hockey team where I belonged. (#13)
4. I went to an girls summer camp in northern Minnesota for 9 years. Spent 2 months of my summer with my best friends in the entire world - absolute best time of my life. My nickname was (and still is to my camp friends) Fish.
5. I broke my arm 4 times before my 12th birthday (each arm twice). The last time was at 11pm during a slumber party, and, my mom (who is a very dear and sweet person) set me up in bed with some tylenol and ice and told me I could wait until morning to go to the doctor. And, I’ve never let her live that one down!
6. I’m allergic to Chicago. Seriously. After getting the stomach flu consistently every time I went there for several years as a child, I stopped going. Which is why BlogHer having its second conference in 3 years there is really causing me some trouble.
7. I know this is on my About page, but I love butter. It’s my favorite food. I put it on everything. But, I mean really put it on everything. Peanut butter or cream cheese to some people’s bread is what my butter is to my bread - thick. People think I’ve got cheese squares, but no - it’s hunks of butter. I even eat hunks of butter with my steak. Surprisingly, I’m not overweight - my insides are too greased up to hold onto any excess, I suppose.

Now, I’ll be passing this along to some blogging comrades who will also have to play this little game or else their pinky toenail will fall off…just kidding!

Here are some favs:

Gwen Bell (there simply aren’t words to describe)

Lisa Poisso (because this blog is incredible and so full of GREAT information)

Genia Stevens (because she is so badass)

Trees Instead (because I want them to have a blog and I’d be happy to write it for them)

Genuine (because men blog too)

raw authenticity and a huge mirror

Last week, I went to my monthly women’s networking event. Because I so love what I do, I enjoy these events thoroughly (really, can you believe I never tire of talking about myself?) This particular event was called ’speed networking’ - a whirlwind of loudness as we all shouted our greatest hits to each other within the allotted 5 minutes. That said, I made several strong contacts…one in particular.

She’s in the business of Innovative Entertainment Marketing (independent, cause-themed films), and as we talked, we realized we had some very strong outside links to each other that ended up making our tête-à-tête more of a reunion than a first meet. We also have a mutual close friend that has been talking us up to each other for months, so we already felt like we knew each other.

Raw Authenticity

Anyway, when she found out what I do (copywriting, marketing, blogging, social media - in case you forgot), she said immediately, “I need to hire you. I hire bloggers/writers for every film.”

And then, I hugged her.

At the time it was a totally natural response, raw authenticity. Our conversation had been one big love fest. She hugged me back, we were all giddy, the conversation continued.

But, when I got into bed later that night…it started to nag torment me. Why did I hug her? What was I thinking? The voice over of the video playing repeatedly in my head (what I imagined the recipient of my hug must have been thinking): ‘Julie Roads is so desperate for work she actually hugs people that consider hiring her.’

Let’s have a realty recap: 1. I almost have more business than I can handle - but, hey - nice insecurity, Julie! 2. I was hugging her because it was my reaction to another notch in our ‘look at all that we have in common’ belt. 3. She hugged me back and kept on talking about the work.

A Huge Mirror

I woke up the next morning to a new voicemail, not from my huggee, but from a woman that I had serendipitously met a week earlier. Long story short: her family was playing on our community playset, we started talking, she got very excited when she heard about my work, took my card.

Her voicemail message was a bit of a love letter: “…have read your site and your blog, everything is so amazing, can’t wait to work with you, we met at exactly the right time…” We talked a few hours later and the love fest continued. In fact, she told me she had a crush on me and the idea of all that we would do together.

Now that is raw authenticity. No holds barred. She didn’t mean that she literally wanted me. Just that everything was converging in her life, I was a final piece, she couldn’t get over the synchronicity - her glee felt like a crush. More or less, she leapt through the phone and gave me a hug.

And as the reciever of this hug, it felt great. I found myself admiring her ability to be so authentic, not thinking she was a desparate, psychotic freak.

And then, I got it. There is it was, like a big, huge mirror right in front of my face.

So? I embraced my hug from the night before, and then, I let it go. It was just being me, after all.

bridging the web 2.0 gap: when social networking means different things to different people

As you all know, I enjoy me some online social networking. I like my Facebook, my Twitter, my LinkedIn in particular. But, lately, I’m noticing this clash of the generations (or sensibilities, perhaps?).

Basically, people are using these networks for one of three reasons:

1.  business activities

2. personal activities

3. a mixture of the two

But what happens when these groups bump into each other?

Sometimes it’s okay. For instance,  I do love catching up with my high school friends on Facebook, and when I market my business and my blog there, they’re potential clients…it is a network, you know. And at least they all have jobs(ish) and understand that I’m making a living.

But then, my nieces friend me and they’re 13 and they put up ridiculous pictures of me from family gatherings. And my sister-in-law writes ’stuff’ on my wall that I don’t want anyone else to see because she’s 23 and using Facebook in its original configuration - as an online yearbook of sorts for the college set.

None of this is a huge deal - I can delete and manage my page…but I find it fascinating to watch as Facebook grows and builds into something more professional and business networky than it once was. And, I’m enthralled by the friend numbers that the younger folk have - think of the network at their fingertips when they grow up and have something really important to share. Hmmm, guess I shouldn’t delete them as friends, they’re holding some prime real estate…oh, and I love them, they’re family after all.

how to become a freelance copywriter: NETWORKING

Networking, word of mouth and relationships have been the greatest marketing tools for my business. While I had to have the skill, know-how, tools, etc. in order to actually do any networking, my business was built on and continues to be sustained by this growing, active network and my participation in it.

1. Join a networking group or 5. I was a member of my local BNI chapter back in Northampton, MA where my business was born. You could also join your local chamber but most people find that it isn’t as effective for relationship building as BNI. Another smart choice is to find online, local if possible, groups that support each other. I’m part of a group called Hidden-Tech where jobs are posted, questions are asked and answered, information is shared, relationships grow and people collaborate every single day. You can find groups that directly relate any profession. BNI has been the most supportive of my business, however. I find it to be brilliant in several ways:

• a weekly meeting of a committed group of professionals with open networking, educational information, self-promotion requirements and shenanigans at 7am
• one seat is allowed for each profession - one writer, one graphic designer, one CPA
• you have the chance to tell your group all about your business and educate them about what you do every week
• everyone is there to network and help each other
• your chapter is your marketing team - they learn about you and your business and spread the word on a daily basis
• good chapters pass millions of dollars each year

2. You’ve heard me say it before, but I believe that every situation is a networking opportunity. Without being obnoxious (really), I talk to people about what they do and about what I do all the time. It’s seed planting and you never know where it will lead. Sometimes the rewards are instantaneous…and priceless.

3. Web 2.0, social networking, social bookmarking, blogging. Participate online. The internet was created to share information and to communicate. If you are just focusing on your local clientele, you are missing out on an entire world of opportunity. Participate by

• blogging and sharing information
• reading other blogs
• commenting on other blogs
• responding to comments on your blog
• bookmarking blogs, sites and articles on sites such as Digg, Hugg, Technorati, etc.
• actively networking on sites such as Facebook, Myspace, Squidoo, etc.
• being respectful and unspamlike at all times

how to become a freelance copywriter: FIND YOUR NICHE

A woman contacted me because she wanted to know how to become a freelance writer. She was caught off guard when I started quizzing her about her background and her passions. She was a trained dancer, steeped in the academic theater/dance world. So I told her to contact dance and theater schools, programs and camps, theaters, dance studios, dance and acting teachers, agents and coaches, costume shops, make-up artists…and on and on. When you look at it this way, a whole world of people that need marketing and copywriting opens up and there is an immediate bond, or trust, that is formed because of your common backgrounds, interest, skill, language.

In the big, wide world of copywriting and marketing, there is something to be said for finding a niche:

1. It will help you stand out from the crowd. And the crowd is big.

2. It will instantly endear you to an industry and/or community. People like people who understand them and share their passions. Birds of a feather…

3. It builds on your strengths and a language that you already know. You’re starting something new - why wouldn’t you want to start at the top of the content-familiar learning curve? When you do the job well, you’ve secured a reference, portfolio content and, hopefully, some word of mouth referrals.

4. It lends credibility when you’re self-promoting. They want to work with someone who they won’t have to teach or train 100%. So, if you don’t have a ton of professional writing experience (or a big portfolio), this can pretty much negate that handicap.

5. It instantly creates your first ‘audience’ for your marketing efforts. For instance, if you’re doing direct mail or cold calling, some of that blind date feel is removed.

6. When your focus is something you love and feel comfortable with, it will show in your work. If someone asked me to write a texbook about physics, I’d cry. It wouldn’t be fun and the work wouldn’t be as good as if you asked me to write an essay on, say, the delights of butter. I’ve managed to attract projects that are interesting to me and letter-worthy (in my mind, anyway) by showcasing who I am and my personality through my website, blog, other marketing materials and my interactions with clients who give referrals.

7. You may already have contacts who will be thrilled to hear from you. When you call your old dance teacher and tell her that you’ve started a business to help promote the importance of dance for kids, she’ll hire you in a second. Or, she may have some solid connections and be thrilled to make some calls and/or provide a testimonial.

What’s your niche???

how could i forget!

Ahhhhh! I forgot a biggie on the list of how to become a freelance copywriter:

Network: Joining one or more groups like BNI, your local Chamber of Commerce or online support and networking groups is critical. They provide you with the opportunity to get out there and meet people, learn how to network and build a referral team. And don’t forget to be an active participant on Web 2.0

networking tips ‘o the day

#1. Never leave home without your business cards…you never know who you will run into or what you’ll talk about and where that conversation might lead.

#2. Always talk to people. About the day, their life, their work, your work. Make connections wherever you go. Don’t make assumptions about who could be a potential client. How do you know that the guy who pumps your gas every week isn’t a wildly skilled artist who makes brilliant weathervanes from old plumbing parts? How do you know that he isn’t looking for a full line of marketing materials and a marketing strategy?

Card design by Elizabeth Whelan - an incredibly talented illustrator and designer (and one smart cookie).

Networking all the time…

We were up in Boston this weekend - and I purposefully and painfully left my computer at home with the intention of not working. But people looking for marketing and websites and blogs just appear before me…it’s fantastic.

The truth is that these potential clients ‘just appear’ for everyone, all the time. But, you have to be looking, or at least you have to have your eyes open. I didn’t think I was finding them on purpose, but then I thought about it a little more, and realized that I am doing some things…here they are:

1. Ask. Whenever I meet someone new, I ask them questions. ‘What do you do?’ is most often the first and it leads to many others, ‘how do you market that?’, ‘do you have a website?’, ‘do you spend time on the internet?’ Find out who this person is business-wise and beyond.

2. Listen. You won’t get anywhere if you don’t listen to their answers. The connection between you and them exists in their answers, when they tell you what they want, when they tell you what never works.

3. Talk. When you ask someone what they do, they’re going to ask you the same thing. Be ready to tell them exactly what you do in a compelling and concise way. An ‘elevator speech’ if you will. The chances of you talking to someone in your exact profession are slim, so they will probably be intrigued that you can do something they can’t - like writing and navigating the web, in my case.

4. Friends and Family. Interesting, but true. I get a lot of business because my friends and family are good at singing my praises. When one of them hears of someone looking for writing, a website or any sort of marketing, they have no qualms about thrusting me in front of the person shouting, “Julie does that! You have to talk to HER!”

5. Love What You Do. I’m told that my passion and excitement for writing, web networking and marketing are magnetic. This thrills me because my work thrills me. Every person and potential client is a master puzzle waiting for the greatest solution. Too much fun.

Using your colleagues…in a good way

What is the most important lesson I’ve learned in this business? If I had to narrow it down to one, I couldn’t. But this morsel is in the top 5.

Know what you know and don’t know what you don’t know.

In other words, be the expert in your niche/field/industry, but it there are things that you don’t know - be totally honest about them. If you pretend to know things that you don’t, you’ll only get trouble. This is really about honesty. It’s also about integrity and good business.

When I don’t know something, I say that I don’t know it, and I say that I will find out. And here comes the colleagues piece. I am very fortunate to have a few brilliant colleagues to whom I can take these questions, to whom I can show my lack of knowledge. We talk to each other and we share information. We understand that we can’t possibly know everything and that the true sign of our professional IQ is our ability to ask the questions and admit that we can’t possibly know it all. Even when I think I know, I ask - because the more information, the better.

Know what you know. Don’t know what you don’t know. (and nurture your relationships with your trusted colleagues.)