So in the last post, Self-Employment: Do You Have What It Takes? I introduced the topic and discussed a bit about what it really takes to be a successful entrepreneur. Now here are 8 traits that many of those who are successfully self-employed share in common… let’s see how you rank. Make sure to leave your comments in the box below and subscribe to my RSS feed to keep up with new posts.
8 Traits of Successful Entrepreneurs:
Sure, self-employment sounds glamorous. You envision working for yourself, ditching the grind of a J.O.B., making oodles of cash, and doing it all in just one day a week! But the reality isn’t quite so glamorous, nor is it achieved in working just one day a week. At least not when you start out at any rate! Unless you’ve had a different experience than me? If so do share! 🙂
The reality is that being self-employed really takes a special kind of person. It takes someone who is dedicated, motivated, and disciplined or is at least is all three of those things the majority of the time.
Pass out flyers at your local mall.
3. Place your biz cards under windshield wipers at your local Walmart.
4. Pass out business ‘buttons’ to everyone you meet.
5. Hand out pens to people you meet.
6. Create simple welcome gifts to give to newcomers with your
Coffee and Convo… Let’s Chat!
I created this post because, let’s face it… you really can’t get to know someone in a 140 characters or less. And that’s kind of crappy because the point of Twitter is to connect, get to know people, and build relationships! So to that end, I thought I’d post a little about me so that you can dig around and see a bit of what makes me tic.
Your next freelance copywriting client could be worth $1,000 to you. Or it could be worth $10,000 or more.
It’s up to you.
No, it isn’t the luck of the draw. No, it isn’t about the economy. No it isn’t about competition from other freelancers.
If you think the value of your next freelance assignment is determined by external factors, you’re just making excuses. It is determined by you.
Alpha freelancers have a plan. They know where they are going. They have a goal and a set of waypoints to reach between where they are now, and where they want to get to.
Having a plan, and a goal in mind, means that every action they take is considered and deliberate. They don’t accept assignments that happen to come along. They seek out assignments that will help them achieve their goals.
If you’re a small business or providing a service, then in reality Wal-Mart is the antithesis of what you should be doing. Think about it. Wal-Mart doesn’t stay in business by providing quality services or even by keeping the customer happy.
If you’re a small biz owner struggling to make a profit, you know that competing with the big dogs is usually a no-win situation. Wal-Mart has an obvious advantage over your local ma and pop shops. The huge chain gets drastic discounts from vendors, can afford to sell for little to zero markup and makes their money based purely on volume.
This applies to online businesses as well. If you are selling any merchandise online you are going to have to contend with giants like Amazon and Ebay whether you like it or not.
If you own a website or blog, you probably already know that the bulk of your visitors have the attention span of a gnat. Unfortunately that’s just the way it is. So if you are creating content, and you want them to stick around and read some of it, it’s got to be engaging. So here are 21 easy ways you can spruce up your content and make it more engaging and interesting to your readers.
As a freelancer you are the ‘Big Cheese’ when it comes to your business. You are ‘Head Honcho’ and your brand is YOU. So it’s important to keep that in mind when going into business for yourself.
* You are responsible for the world’s perception of you and your services.
* You are responsible for marketing yourself and creating a name for yourself.
* You are responsible for following-up on leads and responding to client inquiries.
* You are responsible for making your clients happy and delivering on time.
See the trend here? It’s all about you and what you have to offer as a business or service provider. How you position yourself will determine how successful you are.
One of the best ways I know of to position yourself properly is by setting up your own website with your own blog attached and utilizing social media to spread the word and send eyes to your web content.
When I first started as a ghostwriter I didn’t know anything about marketing or positioning. I set up a website with a few samples of work and rates and then posted in forums that I would write $6 dollar articles in exchange for testimonials.
Over time I learned that I had talent, was working like a horse for very little pay and getting burned out. So I raised my rates to $10 articles, and learned about marketing and positioning by reading a ton of books and following successful marketers like Chris Brogan and my good friend Jenn Dize.
Fast forward a few months and I had set up my own blog and started writing on a topic I am passionate about (copywriting). I began to brand myself as an expert in my field. As I went I gathered testimonials from some of the big names in Internet marketing and began upping my rates again.
If you are running a small business, YOU are the business. Even if you’re actually selling a product, what you’re really selling is yourself and your service. So how do you sell yourself? Legally that is? 🙂
First of all, be accessible. Set up your business so that your clients can contact you, personally. Doesn’t have to be a phone number, but email access is great. Have a website, check (and respond to) e-mail, create a Facebook page and a Twitter account.
Given the inherently impersonal nature of the Internet, it is even more important to give your clients legitimate ways to reach you since the likelihood is high that you will never meet face to face. Let your online persona match your business, but also let it match your real-life personality. Skype is also an excellent method of contact, and building out your LinkedIn profile increases your credibility as well.
