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Hey Guys!
Today I want to write a quick post on how you can land freelance writing jobs without using job boards.
Now I know that I have told you before that paid job boards have been my #1 way of landing freelance writing jobs and that’s true..
However, pitching on job boards is a lot of freakin’ work and as soon as you stop pitching, the work dries up.
I found this amazing article by Carrie Smith of Careful Cents and she has a #nomorejobboards series going on where she teaches freelance writers how to get high-quality, high paying writing leads without using job boards.
Seeing as my entire freelance writing biz depends on job boards, I was intrigued!
In one of her latest blog posts, How to Get Clients: 7 Best Alternatives to Traditional Freelance Job Boards, Carrie talks about ways people can get writing clients without pitching every day.
Here are some of my fav strategies:
Craigslist
Craigslist is an easy way to get freelance writing clients and is something that I currently use to land gigs.
What makes Craigslist so easy to use is the fact that you can post ads advertising your writing services.
All you have to do is go to your local Craigslist, go to services at the bottom of the screen, then go to “write/ed/tr8”.
Here you can post your own ad for writing services. If you are diligent and re-post daily, you will have people in your inbox inquiring about your services in no time.
Also, be aware that you don’t have to post in your city–you can post in whatever city you like.
Just make sure that you’re posting in only one city because if Craigslist sees that you’re posting in two different locations, they will “ghost” your ad which means they’ll tell you that they posted your ad but no one else can see it but you.
For whatever reason, I post in Chicago even though I live in Atlanta and I get all of my Craigslist writing clients from there. I’ve also heard that cities like Los Angeles and New York City have higher paying writing clients on Craigslist. I guess it makes sense–these are bigger cities!
Carrie suggests that you sift through the ads to find gigs but if you do that then you’re essentially using a job board and this post is about finding writing gigs without using job boards.
However, if you do want to look through all of the writing gigs on Craigslist, use a tool like Search Tempest
Here are the tabs that I use to search for freelance writing gigs all over the country:
Preferences – Searching by US state or region
Category – Services
Sub-Category – write/edit/trans
Go back up to the first section to “where” and press “Ctrl + A” to select all, then click the little blue arrow to add them to the next side. Do the same with cities.
What – Put “writer wanted” or any variation of writing, writing jobs, etc.
Click search.
This will pull up all of the writers wanted ads on all of the craigslist sites all over the country. Pretty cool huh?
I think that filling out your LinkedIn profile is an excellent idea for attracting new writing clients to you without having to pitch people.
However, the key to doing this is to fill out your profile in it’s entirety. If you already have a professional profile for your job, create a separate account just for your writing.
Carrie says that whenever she works with a new client, she puts it on her LinkedIn profile and as a result, has 1-2 new potential clients emailing her.
Here are some examples of freelance writers who display their talent on their LinkedIn Profiles:
Get my list of Freelance Writing Job Boards that Pay $50-$100 per Article!
Facebook Groups
Facebook groups are an awesome way to find clients for any type of service. However, you really have to be an active member of certain groups and be on the lookout for these opportunities in order to snag them.
To begin, I would suggest that you let people know that you are a freelance writer or that you’re looking for clients.
One thing I’ve noticed in Facebook groups is that everyone generally wants to help. So if you post in Facebook groups that you’re trying to get clients and you would appreciate any referrals, you’ll be amazed at the response an authentic post like that would get.
Also, when you let people know what you do in these groups on a consistent basis, when they do have a friend or know someone who is looking for a writer, your name will be one of the first to come to mind!
I will say that I’ve never seen a need for freelance writers in the Facebook groups I’m a part of but I do see a need for VAs quite often.
I’m in a bunch of blogger groups so they don’t need any help with writing 🙂 .
Quick Tip: Make sure to niche yourself as a writer. Take an industry that you’ve been a part of for years and begin to write articles for that industry on your own website or writing portfolio.
You can even cold pitch companies in your professional industry or an industry you were once a part of and offer them your writing services.
Why is this cool? Because you already have experience in that industry. You know the lingo and you have the writing skills. If you’re a blogger, you probably have more digital media experience than anyone at that company. Use these skills to your advantage!
Tell me in the comments below, what are your experiences with getting new freelance writing clients?
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Louise Usher
May 28, 2016 at 12:42 pm (8 years ago)I love these tips. I’ve never used Craigs list but I must get to it now. I do get some sponsorship from Fiverr which is quite cool. Although not such great pay, they can be fairly easy jobs.
Thanks for sharing
proassistblog
May 31, 2016 at 2:01 pm (8 years ago)Thanks for stopping by Louise!
Daundra Becker
May 29, 2016 at 4:23 pm (8 years ago)Saving this one. I’ve pitched job boards like crazy with no luck. Now that our retail arbitrage business is going really well it’s time to start my freelance hustle.
proassistblog
May 29, 2016 at 9:51 pm (8 years ago)Thanks for stopping by Louise! I’ve found quite a few jobs on Craigslist and I highly suggest it. Just a little warning though–there are some scammers on Craigslist and some people try to pay really low. Just make sure to get payment before you give your work and you should be okay.
Shann
June 8, 2016 at 1:55 pm (8 years ago)These are such great tips! I never would have thought to use Craigslist for writing jobs. Thank you for all the information and Facebook group idea too.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:54 pm (8 years ago)No problem! Thanks for stopping by.
Cori
June 8, 2016 at 2:42 pm (8 years ago)Good resources! I should check these out just to see if freelance is something I want to pursue. I love to write, but am not sure about the freelance part.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:53 pm (8 years ago)It’s a great way to make money on the side, especially if you love to write.
Mai Lyn Ngo
June 8, 2016 at 2:45 pm (8 years ago)Great tips. I plan on looking into these when I go full time blogging.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:53 pm (8 years ago)It’s a great way to supplement your income while you’re blogging.
Jenn
June 8, 2016 at 2:51 pm (8 years ago)Really cool. I love your point about Facebook groups. Bookmarking to reread later too.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:53 pm (8 years ago)Thanks so much Jenn!
Dominique
June 8, 2016 at 3:30 pm (8 years ago)Whaaat!? How did I not know about all this!? I’m so shocked. Thank you so much for sharing these tips. I will definitely be checking out craigslist today to get this done.
http://www.writingmotherfashionista.com
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:52 pm (8 years ago)Yes please check it out!
Rica@Yoga Mat Monkey
June 8, 2016 at 4:39 pm (8 years ago)I know there are a ton of creepers and scammers on Craigslist, but I have found good clients there too. I’m glad you chose to list them. I’ve never used Search Tempest but I have had luck with using “Search All of Craigslist” (.org). Thanks for sharing your expertise.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:52 pm (8 years ago)Oo! I’ve never heard of that site before! Thank you for sharing Rica.
She's Cataleya's Mommy
June 8, 2016 at 8:11 pm (8 years ago)I”m going to look into Craigslist, I never thought flooding of writing gigs, but why not.
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:51 pm (8 years ago)Yes, definitely check it out. You can find some gems but I do warn you–make sure to get paid before you write anything!
Taria Shondell
June 9, 2016 at 2:40 am (8 years ago)Thank you for sharing these tips! I would have never thought of Craigslist!
proassistblog
June 9, 2016 at 1:50 pm (8 years ago)Yes! Check it out! Thanks for stopping by!
G. Hayden Forest
July 1, 2016 at 3:30 pm (8 years ago)This is great! I’m just getting started with my writing career (I’ve been in college for the past thousand years). I’ve written a fiction novel but I was hoping to dabble in freelance and wasn’t sure where to start. I Pinned this for the future. Thanks! And good luck reaching that six figure income! Woohoo 🙂
proassistblog
July 2, 2016 at 12:09 am (8 years ago)Yay! Go for it! As a novelist you’ll make an excellent freelance writer. Thank you so much. 🙂
Joleene Moody
December 19, 2016 at 1:02 pm (8 years ago)Hey there! Great post. Was happy to share it!
I have a quick question for you:
When you post on Craigslist, you say you re-post every day. Do you remove the post from the day before, too?
proassistblog
January 17, 2017 at 5:01 pm (8 years ago)Hey Joleene! Thanks for commenting. What I like to do is delete the post and then re-post the same post. It sends the post right to the top of the list for the day.