Agency Experience

Quite often, when I’m browsing through ads for copywriters, I see that employers are looking for copywriters with ‘agency experience’. Having never worked for an agency, I always thought that I was missing something and felt almost a bit of a fraud. However, having looked into it in a bit more detail, I’ve discovered that I needn’t have worried.

It would seem that all that working for an agency provides you with is an ability to work to budgets and deadlines and experience working as part of a team. So you know how to work effectively with artists and designers and marketing people as well as being able to manage costs and time . Things that any writer working in industry will have experienced anyway. Certainly, as a technical author, I’ve had to work with a wide range of people, including printers, designers, engineers, sales staff, projects staff, administrators etc. etc.

So nothing to get het up about? Not quite. Unfortunately, it would seem that there’s an element of snobbery when it comes to taking on copywriters and that means those without agency experience are at a disadvantage. It’s a tough world. So if you are like me and don’t have agency experience, I suggest you really highlight all of the skills and experience you do have that match those that you would have learned in an agency environment.

Reminds me, must get back to that CV.

Hourly Rate or Pay Per Page

Up until recently, I have avoided the temptation to charge by the hour or to provide a day rate. My reason for this is that I don’t think working to the clock is in anyone’s best interests – coming up with ideas and writing the best copy for the page takes time, and sometimes, it is just a case of waiting for the right idea and words to click into place. So while a page may take an hour to write, it could take days for the right idea to germinate in my little peanut brain. In that situation, how am I supposed to charge by the hour?!! If I charge for all of the time I spend on a project, chances are that clients will be suspicious that a single page took in excess of two hours…but that happens on a regular basis.

So what’s the problem with charging per project? For the most part, it means I end up working for much less than I can afford to. I have a habit of saying ‘oh that will only take an hour or so’ when in reality, it takes four or five.

Can I carry on working with set fees rather than hourly rates? I’d like to, but maybe it’ll need more realistic estimates…something I’m not great at!

Paying Off?

The cut price gamble seems to be paying off. In the last week, I’ve quoted my lower prices for three jobs and all have come back favourably. In fact, I’ve just completed one of the jobs and should have another completed by the end of the week.

So it is starting to work already. Lower prices means I have to work more for the money, but I’ll have more projects to work on. I suppose that is the nature of the beast. As long as I’m not working for nothing, I’ll be happy.

Some other good news is that some poems, possibly a comic strip and a short fictional piece I wrote are to be included in a new underground magazine based in Bristol. It was a non-paying gig, but might lead to something else in the future. Who knows?

I’ve also been busy passing on good karma, despite my increasingly filthy moods of late. Managed to put an illustrator friend in touch with an agency looking for some artwork, so hopefully she’ll get the job.

The Cut Price Gamble

With business very slow at the moment, I’ve decided to offer cut-price rates come the launch of my new web site in May. For one month only,  I am going to offer half price copywriter and technical author services in the hope of winning new custom and keeping my idle hands busy.

I already have one project lined up and have started to put the word out that May is bargain copywriting month. But then I thought, what if it really takes off? Could I possibly continue to operate with such low fees? The sad answer is no, because no matter how much demand there is, there’s only so much writing I can do in a day. But perhaps, just perhaps, I might be able to work for a bit less than I normally charge. If lower fees meant more work and a larger income in the long term, then perhaps that would be for the best.

It has got to be worth a try.

Website SEO Woe.

This Google ranking malarky doesn’t get any easier does it? While I’m waiting for my new website to be completed, I’ve decided to try and find out what the best, free and low maintenance methods are for getting a better Google ranking. As suspected, it is all down to incoming links.

Over the years,I’ve joined forums on all sorts of subjects, from audio-visual equipment to Batman and I’ve known for a while that the more links to your website you can get out there, the better it is for your site. So there are links to www.straygoat.com on forums all over the place. Of course, these don’t help as much as relevant links, such as those from other copywriters or copywriting related businesses, but they still help a little bit. But today I learned that one of the best incoming links you can get is from that old favourite – Ebay.

I didn’t know about this, but apparently you can set up an About Me page that lets you include a link to your website (with certain conditions, but knowing how slack Ebay have become regarding the enforcement of policies, you could probably get away with breaking the rules anyway). So now my Ebay account boasts a link to www.straygoat.com and my other sites: www.technicalauthorforhire.co.uk and www.webcontentwriter.co.uk. Hopefully, this will help to boost my ranking a little bit more.

I’ve also been busy setting up profiles on social networking sites and joining Yahoo clubs…let’s just hope this all pays off because I could do with getting some more work in. Sharpish.

Today I am down in the dumps about Liverpool beating Arsenal in the Champions League. I don’t support Arsenal, but wanted them to win because they play good football as opposed to Liverpool’s anti-football. Now Liverpool or Chelsea will be in the final, both displaying their dreary brand of the beautiful game.

Arsenal were robbed too. Shocking refereeing decisions.

THINGS I LIKE ABOUT ARSENAL: Approach to the game, William Gallas’ haircut.
THINGS I HATE ABOUT LIVERPOOL: Approach to the game, Stevie Gerrard (most overrated, big-headed player in the country).

March Equinox…a Time to Feel Like Shit!

Over the years, I’ve had quite a lot of problems with my skin. From impetigo as a child, to teenage acne, to adult acne, to alcohol fuelled boils and cysts, back to impetigo, and then an unfortunate eruption of a cold sore on my forehead. Yep, I’ve had them all. For the most part, my teetotal, healthier way of living these days means I can enjoy relatively normal skin with the odd flare up. Except in March that is.

Years ago, when I was really at a low ebb about the persistent boils I suffered from, I noticed that at certain times of the year, other people’s skin was also quite bad. It wasn’t until I met my wife a few years back that I learned about the March equinox, where your body naturally detoxifies from the fat storing months of the winter. So no matter what type of ailments you suffer from, they will get worse around March 21st. Something to look forward to isn’t it?

It is my birthday on April 12th, so hopefully, I will have seen out the worst of it by then. So far, I’ve had a cold sore and a painful rash, all on my forehead and also a flare up of hair infections on my legs. I suppose I should be glad that all the crap is coming out of me rather than staying in, but it is hard to think like that when your head looks like it is sprouting christmas lights. And all because of the bleeding March Equinox.

Or maybe it was all those Easter eggs I scoffed.

So what’s this got to do with copywriting or technical authoring? Absolutely nowt. Which is exaclty what I have been doing over the last week or so…with the new website almost complete and the wife’s holiday plans in full flow, I better start getting some more work in.

New StrayGoat Copywriting Website Underway

Finally, I’ve agreed a price for a website redesign. Having paid 50% deposit to Suffolk Computer Services, I’m now waiting for the first design. Hopefully, it will be up and running in a temp location soon so that I can run my eye over it before going live. Of course, there’s the small matter of rewriting all the copy for the site and shifting a lot of my old stuff onto a personal site or somewhere else. But that shouldn’t be too much of a problem – I am a copywriter afterall! It’d be a poor show if I couldn’t write decent copy for my own site.

With the wife’s birthday looming ominously in the third quarter along with her planned excursion to Las Vegas and New Mexico, I’d better get some funds together and sharpish. Since February, my copywriter skills have been in less demand, with only a few small copywriting projects on the go. Not enough to pay the bills and certainly not enough to pay for the ‘greedy gifts’ my wife has demanded. Hopefully, the new website will improve my google ranking enough to get more interest, and now that I am also offering technical author services, that should help too. Fingers crossed anyway.

The Polish Invasion and Sellafield

In the last 6 months, I have been asked if I am Polish on two occassions. Maybe it is my slightly slanted eyes, boney cheekbones, or general expression of desperation (they must be desperate if they choose to live in the UK…if it weren’t for family, I would have been off by now), I don’t know, but there must be something of the central European about me. But last week was a first – I was asked to provide copywriter services to a Polish business owner who sells amaranth seeds and leaves online. I suppose it was only a matter of time given the recent influx of Poles into the UK. I’m not sure if I will get the ‘gig’, but I was glad to provide a quote and also get a price for the installation of a secure payment page.

I quite like the Polish – you can’t knock them for their attitude to hard work, that’s for sure. I’ve always fancied a trip to Poland too…a few people I know have been out there and have really liked it. Might have to add it to my Holiday list.

I received a call from BNFL today. Apparently, they are looking for a technical author. Now, the alarm bells had already started ringing when the caller mentionedBNFL…I knew I had heard that term before and I knew it was something rather ominous. Then the caller mentioned Sellafield and it all clicked into place. BNFL was mentioned frequently at university, when we were discussing professional ethics…it was all to do with British Nuclear Fuels. Before I could say a word, the caller asked if I was interested in a role at Sellafield. I’ve rarely said ‘No’ so quick. Not because of the connection with nuclear power…it is Manchester that puts me off

Will a New Website Mean an Increase in Business?

Having spent the last two weeks getting quotes from web designers and SEO specialists, I’ve finally decided on a designer for my new website. With such a tight budget, the choice was limited and in the end, I opted for less SEO and more design because if I can get the content just right (coding and presentation) then that should help my rankings anyway. I’m just coming in on page 2 on Google searches for copywriter, so that’s not too bad. Hopefully, the redesign will help to boost me a few places, but we will have to wait and see.

Getting more relevant inbound links seems to be the key. That is something I’m really going to have to pay serious attention to as soon as the site redesign is complete.

With the Easter break out of the way, I’m starting to feel a bit re-energised and I get the feeling that something’s about to change. Last month, I applied for another job, got it, then turned it down. Now I have seen another job that looks quite appealing, so I am going to apply for that too. Hopefully, they will be flexible enough to offer a 3 day week so that I can continue to work as a freelance copywriter. If not, then maybe I will have to look elsewhere.

But then, perhaps this website redesign will create enough interest to allow me to go 100% freelance. That would be a good feeling. To be completely self-sufficient and self-employed.

Website Design and the Mysteries of Google

Having seen my website steadily slip down the rankings in Google, I decided it was time for a redesign of my site and some much needed SEO (Search Engine Optimisation….or Optimization if you are American). I’m not happy with the existing site design either as it is too cluttered and contains way too much info, including personal stuff.

So I put out a tender for a few quotes.

The response was terrifying. I never realised how expensive it would be, but then, it is to be expected really as getting high rankings can make or break an online business.

With such a meagre budget, I’ve decided to get the site redesigned so that it is more Google-friendly. I can write SEO content myself, so once the design is in place, I will have to rewrite the copy for the whole site…not something I am looking forward to as I might be good at blowing other people’s trumpets, but I don’t like blowing my own. That sounds filthy, doesn’t it?

Hopefully, the existence of a blog and the new site design will help boost me up in the rankings again. The strange thing is, a web designer I got in touch with told me that I am ranked on page 2 in Google.com for ‘UK copywriter’ and yet I am on page 3 in Google.co.uk for the same term. Who knows how Google works things out? It is a black art and one that I’m not even going to attempt to understand. If I want to muddle my already suspect brain with that sort of jibberish, I’ll read some Stephen Hawkins.

So look out for a new look website soon. It’ll probably be on page 650 on Google!

Straygoat Copywriting