Interview with
Eileen Coale
Interview by Jenna Glatzer
Eileen
lives in Annapolis, Maryland, with her husband and four children, and is the
owner of Coale Communications, a freelance commercial writing and editing firm.
She credits the Internet, the Crockpot, and Nickelodeon as the three key factors
to success in combining work and family.
You
wrote for magazines for about a year, even landing some national magazine
assignments, but you gave that up in favor of commercial writing. Why?
The process of magazine writing was incredibly frustrating to me. Editors
hold all the cards, in part because so many writers are willing to meet an
editor's unreasonable demands-- accepting low pay, writing on spec, and often
giving away all their rights. Most of the major women's magazines claim in their
guidelines that they'll respond to your queries within six to eight weeks.
I seldom heard back, if at all, for eight or nine months, despite sending the
obligatory SASE or pre-paid reply postcard. Twice I saw articles identical
to ones I'd proposed appear in those magazines a year later. And
meanwhile, they don't accept simultaneous submissions, so you have to sit and
wait and wait and wait and wait until they bother to get back to you.
Instead of starting with cold calls, you attended
networking events to start. What were these events like, and how did you
pitch your services?
The cornerstone of my networking strategy is our local Entrepreneurs Exchange (www.entrepreneursexchange.org).
Fifty to seventy individuals attend the monthly lunch meeting. Half my new
business comes from this group, through the repeated exposure. There's a
half an hour of networking time, then lunch. Over lunch, a microphone is
passed around the room and each person gets just 15 seconds to introduce
themselves and their business. Then there's more networking time, followed
by a speaker. The group is supportive, innovative, encouraging, and
professional. Last month, I gave out coupons for a free copy critique,
which brought in four inquiries and will probably result in one or two new
clients. Through the Entrepreneur's Exchange, I also get the scuttlebutt
on other low-cost or free networking events, and attend those as well. At
some point, I'll probably join the Chamber of Commerce. It's rare that I
attend a networking event and come away without two or three solid leads to
follow up on.
I also attended several different leads group meetings, the kind you pay dues
to. The timing isn't right for me to pursue that now, but a friend of mine
who is also in this business is having good success with that route.
Tell me what you mean by "warm calling."
The
thought of calling up someone with whom I have absolutely no connection just
terrifies me, and yet I can walk up and introduce myself in person to anyone and
be completely in my comfort zone. So I concentrate on meeting prospects at
networking events, and following up by phone later. I also define a warm
call as someone I know through church or my children's school, or a friend of a
friend, and feel comfortable approaching.
You work about 12-15 hours a week and make $1500-2200 a
month. What sort of work do you do and how do you charge for it?
I write "long form" collateral -- that is, brochures, web content,
articles (usually ghostwritten for someone else's byline), advertorials, direct
mail, and press releases. I've written a couple newsletters for free (for
school and my community association) and would love to get a steady paying
newsletter gig. I quote fees by the project, but they are roughly based on a
rate of $70 an hour. I began networking in the fall of 2002, and my first
few months earned about $400-$500 per month. Since January of this year,
I've averaged $1500 a month gross income, with my lowest month being $1000 and
my highest being $2350. As I head into the summer, I'm grappling with the
challenge of having my four young children out of school. I expect my
summertime average to dip a bit.
How did you learn how to write these various types of
projects? For example, how did you learn how to write business plans, and
did you learn this before pitching yourself, or did you learn each skill as it
was required of you?
The learning curve has never been steep for me. I've been writing all my
life, and in most jobs I held I always did some type of writing. My mentor
and friend Carolyn Woodie taught me a valuable lesson: "Know when you can
trust your resources." This means I don't have to know how to do
something, I just have to know I can learn it-- from a friend, a peer, a how-to
book or course, or by looking at examples. For instance, when I got my
first web content writing job, I placed a rush order at Amazon for Web Word
Wizardry by Rachel McAlpine, which helped me to look like I knew what I was
doing. I also have a good handle on what's within my general range of
ability and what isn't. My natural writing style is practical and direct,
which fortunately is what the business market usually requires. I also
enjoy writing direct mail, but I have a lot to learn before I can pull in the
big bucks on that. I know my limits; I'm not wildly creative. I
don't write ads (except in advertorial format), and I don't write fiction or
poetry.
In
the beginning, before you had samples and testimonials and references, how did
you land your first few jobs?
Two ways-- first, through family, and second, by bartering a direct mail letter
and brochure in exchange for fitness coaching from a personal trainer, who has
since become a friend.
When I was first getting started, I wrote an advertorial insert for a coupon
clipper magazine for my brother-in-law who owns a direct mail company. It
was a holiday gift guide, and I wrote about all the holiday gifts people would
find at six different stores. It's one of the prettiest pieces in my portfolio.
My second piece was a brochure for my sister-in-law, who is an independent
consultant. She was used to paying $85 an hour and up for writers, and saw
my then-$50 hourly rate as a bargain.
Do you ever have clients who balk when it comes time to
pay you? If so, what do you do?
Ugh,
yes! It's happened twice. In one case, I wrote a brochure for a new
entrepreneur who ultimately decided not to pursue her business. She paid me most
of what she owed me, but I'm still trying to get the last $90 out of her.
The second time, it was for someone who was dragging her feet on completing the
brochure. Like many new entrepreneurs, she was trying to get the most for
her money. I went above and beyond the call of duty, doing a simple layout for
free (even though I made it clear I was not a graphic designer, and was just
doing her a favor), scanning in photos at no charge, and so on. She kept
saying she wanted to do a few more revisions, but just wouldn't get around to
it. She asked for a rush master copy so she could make copies for our monthly
networking meeting, even though this wasn't the final version. In my
statement of terms, I tell clients that all revisions must be assigned within
two weeks or I treat the project as final and bill accordingly. After two
months of waiting, I finally put my foot down, and did get paid. I told
her the door was always open to complete the revisions at no additional charge,
but I have not heard from her since.
What
are your favorite and least favorite parts of your job?
I
love the networking, the schmoozing, and even the following up. I love
seeing how effectively written communications can change people's perceptions of
a business. I love seeing entrepreneurs walk a little taller when they can
articulate their message more clearly. My least favorite part of the job--
filing! I'm such a piler-upper, and a slob, but I need a streamlined
environment to work in. And lately, to be honest, I'm getting weary of
working with new small or home-based business owners. As a home-based
business owner myself, I'm sympathetic, but because they are on shoestring
budgets, they tend to obsess over every single penny, always asking for extras,
and often need lots of hand-holding.
If a client demands several rewrites, or changes the
direction of the project, do you just keep charging for it and do it? Do
you do rewrites for free? Do you ever say "enough is enough?"
My standard working terms state that my fee includes up to two rounds of
revisions. Actually, I'll go above and beyond that to please a reasonable
client, but I wanted to have a clear boundary to be able to point to and say,
"no more," in case of unreasonable demands. I have one client
who has changed the direction of the project several times, but he is very
respectful of the value of my time, and promptly pays all his invoices.
If I wanted to start my own commercial writing
business, what supplies would I need and what would my start-up costs be?
To start, your own workspace. My husband and I used to share an office, but that
just didn't work. I'm a slob, and he's a neatnik. When I got my own office
space (in the basement), my own filing cabinet ($25 from the classifieds), my
own computer (I got my husband's old Mac, and he got a new one), and my own
business telephone line, something happened in my head and I finally felt like a
pro. I waited a long time to buy a fax copier, and wish I had gotten it
sooner. They aren't too expensive-- I got mine for about $60 on sale.
Internet access is essential, for client contact and research. I turn in all my
assignments via e-mail attachments, and three of my clients are out of state.
I think web sites are a great way to show off your portfolio, but do as I say,
and not as I do. My web site, www.eileencoale.com,
is in desperate need of an overhaul. I pay $15 a month for a dial-up connection;
when my average income rises, I'll spring for the $50 monthly fee and upgrade to
DSL or cable modem.
I had cheap business cards made at Office Depot, but when I run out, I plan to
have some professionally designed. I also just got a toll-free number.
It's surprisingly inexpensive-- just $2.50 a month, plus 9¢ a minute. The
toll-free number gives me added credibility, and encourages out-of-area
prospects to contact me.
How do you move from local businesses to national
businesses and ad agencies?
For me, this isn't so much about writing ability as it is about confidence.
I avoided ad agencies for a long time because I had a perception of them as
brilliantly creative but temperamental geniuses. Now I know they're just
staffed with ordinary hard-working folks looking for dependable writers.
My most recent marketing project was to create a mailing list of ad agencies,
marketing firms, and graphic design firms in the three surrounding counties.
It was a labor-intensive project, but well worth it. I had colorful, jumbo
postcards printed (www.modernpostcard.com,
$218 for 500 postcards) with a catchy headline and my contact information. I sent out 96 postcards to
about 60 agencies (targeting multiple job titles), and got four responses on the
first mailing. At this writing, I've met with two of the agencies, and
have the other two scheduled. The first two agencies expect to have
assignments for me within the next few weeks.
I've only had one client so far with a national company, and he was introduced
to me through a mutual friend. But again, now that I've done it once, I'm
fully confident I can approach other large corporations. I'll probably
build a mailing list of national companies headquartered in my area, and send a
direct mail piece to the directors of communications and the marketing directors.
Anything else you'd like to add?
There
are plenty of resources out there, so aspiring freelancers should make the most
of them. My bookshelves are packed, and it seems I've always got a package
on my doorstep from Amazon. Nearest and dearest to my heart, however, is
Peter Bowerman's inspirational book, The
Well-Fed Writer. It was a turning point for me. And when I want nuts
and bolts, the first place I go is to one of the half-dozen books on my shelf
written by copywriting guru Robert Bly. I also rely on support from a
small group of writer and entrepreneur friends who meet monthly
I believe that one reason I'm doing so well is that unlike many writers, I enjoy
marketing myself. Persistence is crucial. After eight months in the
business, I'm starting to get clients who told me eight months ago they had no
plans ever to use a writer.
Visit Eileen's web site, which desperately needs an overhaul, at www.eileencoale.com,
or email her at eileen@eileencoale.com.
