I need to find customers for business writing services...

Hi, Magyar -

The first thing I can see is that you need to stop looking on job boards for clients - that's not the way to earn a living at this. Every now and then, you'll find a decent client that way, but more often you'll find the $5/post SEO junk content seekers there. You're far better off finding real, live businesses selling tangible goods or services in the real world.

You also have to vet your potential clients properly, to make sure they can and will pay professional rates. Two good websites for this are Manta.com and Hoovers.com -- search for the company and look for their annual revenue. It should be a bare *minimum* of $1 mil, and for higher-paying gigs you want them to be bringing in at least $5 mil. At this range, they'll not only be able to pay pro writer rates, but they'll also usually have ongoing work instead of one-off projects. Ongoing work from a few solid clients is how most of us earn a full-time living at this.

There could also be something about your approach that's not landing with clients. How are you contacting them? What are you saying? The best way to get a gig is to research the company you're considering pitching, find something they're missing in their marketing -- is their blog outdated or abandoned? Do they have strong website copy? Do they have free reports to help drive subscribers to their blog?

Once you've done that research, you write a letter of introduction to introduce yourself and offer your services. Writing this letter is an art form.

There are many books out there that can help you, but one I recommend is the Step by Step Guide to Freelance Writing Success. It's by Carol Tice of Make a Living Writing, and it outlines how to identify good clients, how to land your first few projects, and some good marketing practices to keep clients coming in.

Finally, what's on your website? I work for the Freelance Writers Den, and one of my duties is reviewing writer websites -- if you PM me your URL, I'd be happy to take a look. There may be things you can change on your site to make it more attractive to prospects.

Network, network, network. Attend small business events, local meetups, etc - but get engaged with the conversation, not just to try to sell your services.

You need to identify your target group - those folks who might have a need for the service you want to sell - and focus on finding them and starting up a conversation.

Cath said:

Network, network, network. Attend small business events, local meetups, etc - but get engaged with the conversation, not just to try to sell your services.

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This. I've tried various forms of marketing and promotion, but over 90% of my business in the past 15 years has come through referrals.

Networking can be great...if you find the right networking events. I went to a Chamber of Commerce event a couple of years back, and it was all mom and pop business owners -- nobody with enough revenue to pay a freelancer to create marketing materials. If you can find an event that attracts bigger businesses, then you might have better luck.

You'd be surprised - even major corporations with full marketing departments outsource some of their writing. You don't want to go after businesses that are too small to pay for your services.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, businesses making at least $1 mil a year in revenue are good places for a newer freelancer to start. As you build your portfolio, you can go after those bigger fish.

The_Happy_Magyar said:

I need some advice - how do I find customers for business writing services? I'm trying to get started in business & technical writing (see my other posts), but I'm having trouble even finding people who might be interested.

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What's your platform? Seriously, businesses hire writers who have a track record in writing the things they need written. It doesn't have to be paid either, do you have a business blog? Have you written for any business journals? Most smaller, regional business journals are easy to get an article into. Write about a local business who has success in a unique topic area. Or attend an event for businesses and write a report. Those bylines will get you the cred you need to attract paying gigs.

The best start is writing for your current employer. Self publishing a business how-to book or manual can work. Make sure you have a web site, Twitter account and FaceBook page, it can be as simple as linking your blog posts.

Write a piece about integrating home workers into your small business. Maybe one about maintaining email records in case of audits. How about figuring ROI on personal devices? Or the pros and cons of leasing versus purchasing for specific types of equipment? The seven best/worst things to lease. Ten ways to build a client list. Eight Simple Rules for Dating my Daugh... UM, that's been done.

Without a portfolio and track record, nobody wants to take a chance on you.

Jeff