Tools aren’t any good unless you know how to use them. It’s true for freelance writing as much as it is for hammering together a stool.
This came to mind recently when I got this comment from a writer who was wondering whether she should start using Twitter:
“I have heard from a few very successful folks that they have found Twitter very useful. How do you use it? Do I need to check it 15 times a day from a smartphone for it to be worthwhile?
“And what do you do with it? Do I need to be focused, strategic, and businesslike?”
As it happens, I’ve gotten some pretty amazing clients using social media marketing, including several Fortune 500 clients, one of which paid $2,000 an article. And I know I’m not the only one — several other writers have told me similar stories.
So — if you know what you’re doing on social media, it can really be worth spending a little time on there. Especially on LinkedIn and Twitter, in my opinion.
If you do it right, a lot of the time, you can even connect with great clients on there without doing anything. They’ll come to you. No kidding.
My sense from questions like the one above is that many writers are still in the dark about how to use social media to find gigs — especially, how to do that without having social media take up their every waking hour.
Social media bootcamp
That’s why my next Freelance Writers Den 4-week bootcamp is going to be all about this: How to Use Social Media to Get Freelance Gigs. It won’t be a bunch of high-flying social media “expert” types talking theory.
It’ll be me, Renegade Writer Linda Formichelli, and a surprise guest or two, sharing the concrete steps we’ve taken that got results, and that are proven to work for freelancers.
We’ll be talking about what you want to do in social media — and also what to be sure not to do.
It’ll be practical nuts and bolts, covering basics such as:
- How to set up social-media profiles that attract prospects
- How to get editors’ attention and pitch them without pissing them off
- How to connect with high-powered bloggers so you can pitch that guest post
To make sure this course covers everything writers need to know, I’ve set up a poll.
It’s your chance to tell me where you’re at in social media today – and to ask your social-media questions and let me know what you’d like to learn on this topic.
Just to make it worth your while, I’ll be giving out a free ticket to this $197 bootcamp to the writer who sends in the most interesting question. (If you’re a current Den member, I’d love your opinion too, but you’re already registered for the bootcamp!)
You should be seeing the survey just below here, from SurveyMonkey…but in case you can’t see it, you can also click here to take the survey.
This poll will be open until year-end. I’ll be announcing the results of the poll in a bit at a special free event — stay tuned for details on that.
Have you found clients using social media? Leave your stories of how you did it in the comments — and don’t forget to take the poll for your chance to win a trip to the bootcamp.
