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Freelance market from James Moore's blog
LET’S DEFINE YOUR MARKET
Defining your market means answering the question, “Who is interested in investing in my creative services at my rates?” You will yield better results if you can define your market specifically. If you don’t define your market or know who your prospects are, you will either get no business at all or you’ll tap into the wrong market and waste your time.
One writer pitched herself as a generalist who could write sales letters. Because she did not bother to define her market, she blindly and precariously marketed her services to the wrong market. Instead of soliciting prospects who would have paid her $500 to write a three page sales letter or do my paper, she instead solicited prospects who wanted to pay her between $50 and $75 for the same job. You can avoid this pitfall by understanding the different “variables” that create the “right” market.
They are:
1) TYPE OF INDUSTRY. We can divide freelance writing -- especially freelance copywriting -- into different types of industries, such as health care, entertainment, pharmaceutical, technology, lifestyle, medical, high-tech, media, publishing, advertising, and so on. You do not necessarily have to select an industry, but it will help define your overall market.
2) TYPE OF CLIENTS. Different clients pay different rates -- and their needs can also be different. Some major clients include: corporations, ad agencies, graphic design firms, PR agencies, government agencies, the non-profit sector, Fortune 500 companies (including magazine publishing companies), etc. To which clients will you be pitching your services? Indeed, a client is a client, no matter if it’s a corporation or an ad agency or a magazine, but be aware which clients outsource work more regularly and which ones pay better.
3) MARKET SIZE. You must know whether this market needs this type of writing services, whatever it is. If the market for this writing service is narrow, it will be more difficult to get work. One type of narrow market is writing for the legalized gaming industry, yet it keeps growing in popularity and this market is steadily expanding with freelance writers. If the market is enormous, you will face lots of competition. One enormous market is SEO writing (search engine optimization writing). Competition in this market is fierce. The size of the market can affect your overall marketing strategies. You may need to decide on using different marketing techniques -- such as specializing in one area-- and using different marketing materials or website content to pitch yourself to these prospects.
4) LEVEL OF PAY. If you’re seeking corporations as potential clients and your pay rate is at the low end, you can forget about it. Corporations will overlook you as a low-pay, low-rate, bargain writer (or what’s called in the writing world, a “bottom fisher”). Your level of pay usually reflects the type of clients and the type of market you’re going after. So when you set your fees, adjust them accordingly to what the market will pay you.
5) YOUR INTERESTS/INSIGHTS. Your overall interests and insights can help define your own market, sometimes called a “niche.” Your own research into different types of industries and clients may uncover other types of markets to which you can pitch your writing services. If you have insight or an intuitive “feeling” that this type of market is perfect for what you do, then go pursue it. Do not limit yourself to raw facts and data -- your own interests, insights and intuitive feelings can be as powerful and rewarding.
The Wall