February 09, 2005 | View Comments (8) | Category: Web Business
Summary: Why freelancers need to focus more on marketing.
Jason Santa Maria (aka Stan) has a nice little rant that concerns a company that has produced a flash-based application allowing anyone to create their own logo. Now I don't wish to get into the merits of quality-design vs. automated design, but I would like to touch base on one aspect of business that all of these type of companies do that trumps 99% of us out there: marketing.
I am assuming that many of you out there are freelancing or do some freelancing on the side. Many freelancers I have come across tend to rely on word-of-mouth and a little bit of local advertising to get themselves going. Why not approach your freelance job as a big-time company would their work? Why not get your name out all over the place?
Question: When a potential client visits your site do you have any method of drawing them back once they leave? How many freelancers have a mailing list option on their site? None that I can think of off the top of my head, but having one helps keep your services at the top of people's minds. Sending a monthly alert that keeps people updated goes a long way. Heck, it could even contain your most recent blog entries if you want. 37Signals has a mailing list and for good reason. I recommend Campaign Monitor.
Having a blog is a great marketing tool, but should it be your only one? If you are a freelancer and I am someone looking for a designer and I visit your blog, is it obvious where your portfolio is? Can I view your most recent work instantly or even know that you are a freelance designer?
Keep in mind that when many of us design our blogs we do for two sets of people, ourselves and the community. Try putting the potential client first.
It's easy to complain about the fact that many companies will use an automated/template service to create their logo or website, but if you put yourselves in the shoes of the potential client how are they supposed to be aware of any other option? Let's pretend I am starting a company and I come across a $99 logo design service. How do I know that it's better to go with you than the large company? How do I even know you exist? Why shouldn't I pay $99 vs. $2,000?
Looking at the current Business Logs website it seems that we do not follow any of the advice offered above and this is true, but we are working hard on a redesign that incorporates everything that I have mentioned. In all honesty when initially working on the design and layout we wanted something that impressed other designers and I think we achieved that. We put too much trust into the blog for our advertising without spreading the marketing juice to other areas as well (marketing, like revenue, should be diversified). Although the blog has worked wonders for us, we know we can do better and that involves looking at some areas we missed in the first design.
If you can't spend at least 30 minutes a day marketing your company in one form or another how important is it to you to make that company growth? That is something I need to ask myself because it is such a simple thing to do and can go a long way in the future. Try to keep it in mind.
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Those are some good points. I just launched my portfolio site and marketing is definitly a route I need to take. Sure, I built it with standards, made is SEO friendly, even added access keys and tab index for accessibility, but there is still more to do. Right now, I am doing word of mouth.
Sometimes, its who you know as well. If you know some important people and they use word of mouth, that can be very powerful.
Bryan (http://www.juicedthoughts.com)
I agree marketing is key. It doesn't matter if you are a freelancer, a small firm, or a large company, everyone needs to use marketing and public relations to get their name and services out to the public. Then you need a reason for people to continue to stay in touch with you. That can be through newsletters, direct-mail campaigns, blogs, offering resources, or the combination of all these tools and others to create a comprehensive marketing plan.
It is a great suggestion to take 30 minutes a day to figure out what marketing will give you the results you desire. Before deciding on your marketing initiatives I suggest asking yourself the following questions: How do you want your company to grow? Who do you want as clients? What are those clients reading? How do you get your name in-front of them on a consistent basis? What resources can you share with your potential clients and clients? Once you have the answers to these questions you should have a better idea of how you want to deliver your message. Figure out your destination before taking the drive.
Leslie (http://www.morellc.com)
Excellent post. As a small business owner, blogs are an effective medium for luring people to your business. If I offer helpful tips on my development blog, sometimes people contact me to see if I can review their code, their systems and offer some consultation. Once in a while, this leads to a larger project and keeps me business. SEO isn't something I am very familiar with, but I have targeted my specific market and am currently ranking in the top few hits on google for those keyword searches...and I know nothing about marketing..except that I need to keep it focused to my ideal target audience and try to think like I am that potential customer... what would I look at in a company if I need X,Y and Z?
Robby Russell (http://www.planetargon.com/)
Aiming to set aside some time each day is essential. However, sometimes it is difficult to pull yourself away from existing deadlines and think about where the next project might come from.
I agree with Leslie. There are a number of questions to ask. It is important to decide where you want be in one, two or five years time and set about preparing a plan to get there. That will be the marketing plan!
Nick (http://www.tinderhouse.com)
Lucky for me, my company has a marketing team who does this 10 hours a day so the designers,developers, and programmers don't have to...
oh wait, I guess that disqualifies me as a freelancer then, doesn't it. :p
Dustin Diaz (http://www.dustindiaz.com)
You make some excellent points. I am in the planning stage of freelancing more seriously. Thanks for sharing!
j. brotherlove (http://www.thebrotherlove.com)
I'm a web developer in the marketing department. I'm learning a lot if I ever want to go back into heavy freelancing. :)
And the reason people don't focus on clients when it comes to their blogs: most people tend to blog about the minutiae of their work/personal lives. It's easier to write up some new CSS trick than it is to write about how you're getting results for a client. If this is the case, the blog should not be a focal point of the site itself (or the blog should be totally separate from the portfolio/"hire me" site).
I agree that blogs can be a helpful marketing tool, but if all you're writing about is how you got those rounded corners on your site navigation or what you ate for dinner it's going to turn clients off pretty quickly. At best they'll gloss over your entries and head straight for the portfolio; at worst they'll leave your site and find someone they deem to be more professional.
Vinnie Garcia (http://ibebloggin.com/)
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#1
So very true - anyone interested in improving their marketing (particularly freelancers and independent workers) should definitely check out http://www.actionplan.com/ . It's great stuff.
Mathew (http://www.mrpatto.com)