Copywriters - how do you get work?

[schmalex]

Through your website, contacts from previous job, networking, cold calling, etc?
I am a journalist trying to branch out into copywriting. I've got a bit of work through luck but I'm now trying to work out where I should be focussing my efforts...

Contacts and networking. Don't even have a website. (Well, I do but there's nothing on it!).

Some other writers use people per hour and similar job sites but I think there's so much dross on them you have to be prepared to spend a lot of time filtering, which I don't have.

If you're going to cold-call, start narrow - don't just call every company in the phone book, take your specialism as a journo and work outwards from there. So if you are a health writer, phone healthcare companies. (I know that sounds really obvious!). There's a lot of copywriting communities on LinkedIn too, I haven't got any direct work but there's often good advice to be had on threads there about rates, sources of work, etc.

Thanks Wilson. I think the pay on people per hour, etc is pretty bad. Hopefully I won't have to resort to that.
I'll have a look on LinkedIn.

Networking has really worked well for me. I find an informal approach is best - suggesting meeting for coffee to pick people's brains about the industry, can then lead to offers of work. It's just about letting people know you are available and what your speciality is.

I was in the same position as you a few years ago. I volunteered to rewrite a friend of a friend's website and then used that as the basis of my portfolio.

I advertised on Gumtree - you will be amazed at what you can uncover there!

I would advise looking up SEO writing as if you're writing for the web that will be very important to your clients.

I've been a freelance copywriter for seven years, the last four working from home around childcare/school. I now get most of my work through word of mouth, though I also list my services on a couple of sites too.

My best tool is my website - new clients always want to know a bit more about you and your work. Personally cold calling (or emailing) has never worked for me. I focus on always giving my clients a great service, and growing my relationships with them - so they use me again and recommend me.

You can read some good tips here too:

www.talentedladiesclub.com/all-help/where-to-find-work-as-a-freelancer/

Another good place to look for work are blog agencies. These are companies that provide blogs or unique content for sites to help their SEO. They don't pay as well as regular copywriting, but if you're fast and can find companies needing blogs on subjects you enjoy can be a good, regualr stream of income.

As a general comment, as already advised, being really knowledgeable about SEO (if you're not already) is a big plus! Good luck :)

How about design agencies. They often don't specialise in Copywriting and will look to outsource their work