50 Ways to Get a Freelance Gig

When freelance writers tell me they’re having trouble finding gigs, I often find what they really mean is “I’m sending out lots of resumes to online job ads I find on Craigslist and not getting any bites.”

But there are many, many other ways to land a freelance-writing job.

If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you are likely to get the same result you’re getting now. If you want to find more clients, it’s time to get proactive and try new marketing strategies.

Here are 50 suggestions for other ways to market your writing:

1. Ask friends if they know anyone looking for a writer
2. Ask former coworkers if they know anyone looking for a writer
3. Ask former bosses if they know anyone looking for a writer
4. Find former editors — reconnect and see if they have any current writing needs
5. Find former editors and ask them to refer you if they hear from other editors who need a writer
6. Call all your previous clients and see if they have any writing needs now
7. Check in with previous clients and ask them to refer you business
8. Ask current clients to refer you business
9. Ask current clients if they have any additional writing needs
10. Analyze what your current clients are doing and actively propose new projects
11. Bid for jobs on freelance bidding sites — especially on jobs that seem high-quality and have few bidders
12. Put your profile on freelance bidding sites, then just lurk and let clients find you
13. Have a profile on MediaBistro, the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors, or other professional sites prospects might check to find writers
14. Develop story ideas and send query letters
15. Make cold calls — identify prospects, call them on the phone and simply ask, “Do you use freelance writers?”
16. Send a direct mail pitch to prospective businesses
17. Drive the industrial parks of your town and write down business names — then check out their websites and call them.
18. Go to in-person networking events
19. Create a new in-person networking event and serve as the host
20. Go door to door on your main street and meet business owners
21. Send InMail on LinkedIn – they have a high average response rate, and LinkedIn now guarantees you’ll get a response
22. Troll the full-time jobs on LinkedIn and apply, asking if they might also need freelancers
23. Check “Who’s viewed my profile” on LinkedIn and reach out to people who’ve looked at your site
24. Hold a free or paid in-person class about how writers can help businesses succeed
25. Hold a free or paid webinar or teleclass for prospects
26. Do a podcast about the benefits of your type of writing to clients
27. Start a blog with tips for your target audience
28. Create a free ebook or report that can be downloaded or emailed to prospects
29. Make your website rank high on Google for key search terms, ie “freelance writer + your city”
30. Take out an ad online — on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, or a popular site for your niche
31. Take out a print ad in a publication your prospects read
32. Place ads on Craigslist (instead of just answering ads on Craigslist)
33. Find niche job boards with better-quality jobs you can apply for
34. Look at newspaper classified ads
35. Send an unsolicited article to a magazine or online publication
36. Inquire about guest posting on prominent blogs your prospects would read
37. Send an unsolicited guest blog post to a prominent site
38. Write promotional articles on Biznik with useful tips for your prospective audience (they can be emailed to everyone in your market) or offer a free or paid event for members only [NOTE: Biznik has closed.]
39. Refer other writers so that they in turn refer you
40. Tweet about the type of work you do
41. Look through the job offers on Twitter
42. Use the Writer’s Market online to identify new markets you could approach
43. Join business and writing organizations and take advantage of their events and forums to find new prospects
44. Call relevant organizations your prospects might belong to, and ask if you can be listed in their online resource guide for members
45. Join writing communities such as A-List Blogger Club, where lots of other writers will get to know you and might refer you
46. Put a bumper sticker or door sign on your car that says you’re a freelance writer
47. Wear a button everywhere you go that says you’re a freelance writer
48. Create business cards that make a special offer for prospects and hand them out everywhere you go
49. Put a tagline about your writing business in all your outgoing emails with a link to your URL
50. Write a substantial ebook or print-on-demand book that would build your authority as a pro writer

How do you find freelance writing clients? Leave a comment and let us know your approach.