There are over 467 million members on LinkedIn, this makes it a goldmine for finding freelance writing clients. The beauty of LinkedIn is that it’s very business-focused. People are actively looking to extend their networks and find new opportunities on the platform.
LinkedIn is a GREAT place for you to discover prospects who could use your services, connect with them, and start building relationships that lead to writing opportunities.
But with all the information out there on how to use LinkedIn, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. There are webinars, articles, courses and books laying out detailed strategies for connecting with and nurturing prospects.
This article is a little different. After much trial and error, I’ve discovered a simple system that works – a system that will help you find freelance writing clients on LinkedIn – fast.
By all means, read a few books and perfect your LinkedIn strategy over time, but there’s a lot to be gained now by jumping right in and using this system to get you up and running.
Here’s how it works …
Fill Out Your Profile to Reach All-Star Status
LinkedIn has a Profile Strength Meter on the right-hand side of your profile page. There are 5 levels, from Beginner to All-Star. You need to build an All-Star profile, or you’ll seriously limit your reach on LinkedIn.
How to achieve All-Star status? All you need to do is fill out the correct sections of your profile. Here’s what you need:
- A profile picture – choose a professional-looking head shot
- Your industry and location
- Your current position with a description
- At least 2 past positions – it’s fine to use freelance writing jobs here
- Your education details
- A minimum of 3 skills
- At least 50 connections
When you’re writing your profile, make sure you include keywords so you’re easily found when people search for freelance writers. Include links to your website and other social media profiles so people know how to contact you.
LinkedIn also allows you to add content like videos, images, and links to your articles – all great ways for you to showcase your skills and stand out.
Start Building Your LinkedIn Network
There are lots of possible ways to find freelance writing clients on LinkedIn. The most important thing to keep in mind is that your network should consist of relevant contacts.
Be selective when adding or accepting connections, you’ll find your network is a lot more valuable this way.
It’s beyond the scope of this article to discuss all the ways to find clients on LinkedIn – but look out for future articles on WriteWorldwide exploring these methods soon. For now, let’s look at 2 easy ways to start building your network:
Invite your email contacts to connect – this is really easy to do, and a fantastic way to connect with relevant contacts you’ve previously emailed.
If you’ve done any email marketing you’ll find this particularly useful. LinkedIn will find the profiles of people you’ve emailed and give you the chance to add them to your network.
To do this go to My Network on the top navigation bar, look for Add Personal Contacts in the left column, and click Get started. LinkedIn will show you the steps needed to finish the process.
Make sure you work through the contacts one by one so you avoid adding contacts that aren’t relevant. Add relevant contacts with the ‘People you may know’ feature – Linkedin’s ‘People you may know’ feature is a handy tool for quickly growing a relevant network.
All you need to do is click on My Network, then scroll down to the relevant section.
If you want to build your network fast, you can simply click Connect next to prospects who look like a good fit to work with.
Lots of people want to grow their network, and you’ll be surprised how many accept your invitation to connect. If you’ve got more time, try personalising the connection messages for even better results.
Reach out to Your New Connections
Now you’re building your network, it’s time to reach out to your new connections through LinkedIn’s built-in messaging platform. Here’s a script template that’s worked well for me:
Hi <first name>,
Thanks for connecting here on LinkedIn.
As a writer and marketer for <your industry>, I help <type of business> generate more leads and sales with quality content and marketing.
My work has been featured on sites such as <2-3 sites>.
Would you be available for a quick phone call next week to discuss how I can help with content and marketing at <company name>?
Let me know a day and a time that will work for you and we can jump on a quick call.
I look forward to hearing back from you.
Here are links to a few of my recent articles: <2-3 links>
Thanks in advance,
<your name>
This script works for a few reasons. It’s short and to the point, describes the benefits you can bring to the prospect’s business, displays social proof and includes a call-to-action to continue the discussion outside of LinkedIn.
After sending the first message, I usually wait a week before following up with a very simple note:
Hey <prospect name>,
Just following up on the last message I sent you.
Would love to get a call set up if you’re open to it.
Let me know!
<your name>
This second message keeps the tone casual and avoids hitting new connections with the hard sell.
My overall aim with this simple system has been to set up 2 or 3 phone calls each week – parts of the system could be tweaked and tested, such as the number of follow-ups and the wording of the message, but for now the system is allowing me to book the number of appointments I need.
My reasoning behind this is simple – I aim to work with a couple of new clients each month until I hit my income goals. With a pretty conservative estimate of 20% of my calls converting into sales, that means I must talk to 10 prospects per month to get 2 new clients.
One more thing … You may be thinking that it sounds like a lot of work to do all this consistently, or you don’t like the idea of talking to prospects on the phone (this is a super simple system, not a super easy system!)
It’s a lot of work, and it’s difficult to develop the skills to convert prospects into customers over the phone. Remember that you’re building a business here. You’ll have to work hard, and you need to build skills you may not be great at yet.
But isn’t it worth it to have a successful freelance writing business?
What do you think of this system? Will you be giving it a try? Let us know in the comments!
Great article, Richard. I hadn’t seen this when we talked on Saturday morning.
Thanks Steve,
Yes, this is the plan I’ve been using. It works well!
Great article on the power of a LinkedIn profile Richard, but I’ve got a few questions.
Most of my clients are outside Nigeria, besides that, the cost and the process of setting up a call is quite tasking.
Isn’t it possible for a contractual agreement with a client to be set-up through emails only?
And if this is possible, how do I go about it?
Not sure if you need extra answers but I wanted to add my 2 cents. It is very possible to set up agreements without having a telephone call. I’m UK based and a lot of the people I work with are outside the UK.
One of the things that people undervalue in themselves is that as much as you want that client, that client also has to want you over everyone else, even if the supply is high.
In addition to being an author, blogger and host of The Segilola Salami Show podcast, I am also a freelance writer. I love learning new things and that’s how I found this article. I have a long-term client that I write for and from the first day we connected until today, we have not spoken on the phone.
If your client feels that a personal touch is essential, then they too can be flexible. That’s why we have WhatsApp, Skype, Google Hangouts, even Zoom. You just need to negotiate on what works for both of you.
That said, I do agree with what Richard said below. You need to be willing to do what others won’t. Due to the time difference, I have had guests on my podcast stay up until midnight to enable us connect and record their episode. If they weren’t willing to sacrifice their time, they wouldn’t have been able to come on my show. I have also had to make myself available to accommodate some other guests too.
Hope this helps,
Segilola Salami
Host of The Segilola Salami Show podcast
Click here if you would like to appear as a guest on the show http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/podcast-segilola-salami/appear-as-a-guest/
Click here to listen to the show http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/podcast-segilola-salami/subscribe-to-podcast/
Hi Princewil,
In my experience it’s possible to close a deal via email, but it’s a lot more likely if you talk on the phone.
A lot of my clients are overseas too. I use a world timezone converter to arrange a choice of times for an appointment, and use a VOIP app on my mobile phone to call.
Honestly, it’s inconvenient to do this. I often have to call clients late at night or early in the morning. But that’s where you can gain an edge – do the things others won’t!
I’ll be writing about how important client phone calls are on the blog soon. Keep a look out for the post.
I hope this helped. Keep going!
Great advice that I will soon implement.
That’s what we like to hear, Jeniffer! Taking action is the very best thing you can do. Let us know if you have success with this method.
Great info Richard.For some time i haven’t been putting much effort in finding clients via linkedin .Little did i know that it’s a hidden gold mine. I have always been connecting with most of my clients through job boards. Hope this will work for me to double my clientele base .
Hi Godfrey,
I truly believe that LinkedIn is an absolute goldmine, and one of the best ways for freelance writers to quickly get work. Give this strategy a try for a few weeks and see what happens.
I think it’s superior to cold emailing for a couple of reasons – first, you can post updates and stay in front of prospects – be sure to post great content and position yourself as an expert.
Second, you don’t need a list! LinkedIn is your list – use the people search filters then send connection requests to people you think are a good fit to work with you. Personalised connection requests work best.
Let us know how you get on!
Hi Richard,
Your article is quite informative and inspiring. As a beginner i think it will assist me in getting clientele back up.I will keep in touch and consult where need arise.
Thanks John! I think you’ll have great success with this method. Let us know how it goes.
Thank you for a great article about Linkedin! I have been working on making Linkedin work for me and I haven’t been successful so far. I will be using your tips to see just how successful I can be with them. Thank you!
You’re very welcome, Lizzie! Glad you enjoyed the article. Keep on going with LinkedIn – it works with persistence.
Let us know how it turns out.
Hey Richard,
This is absolutely fantastic. You have simplified something that many don’t understand but can use. Thanks a lot for sharing
Thanks Elizabeth!
I’m really glad you enjoyed the post. I believe LinkedIn is a fantastic tool that every freelancer can benefit from!
Richard,
Thank you for this article. You’re right about making connections and then emailing them. I always wonder who do I cold email to? Recruiters? I did but most of them replied they would let me know when there is an opening.
I am a technical writer. Should I just find tech companies and cold email them? Please guide me. I don’t know how this cold pitching works.
Thanks a lot.
Hi Surabhi,
I recommend that you find the decision makers in companies e.g. marketing managers or CEOs, then reach out to them. Check out this link for more info on finding clients: https://writeworldwide.com/freelance-writing-clients/
Wow Richard, thank you for this awesome article! I just put this in Evernote to refer back to. I agree LinkedIn is very powerful, and I’ve been focusing more on it the last few days. Do you happen to have a template of what to send clients you want to connect with? I love your pitching template, and was just curious if you had advice on what to write when you first try to connect with them? Thanks!
Thanks Samantha! I do have a template you can use. Here it is:
Hi (name),
I noticed we share some connections here on LinkedIn and are both actively involved in the (niche e.g. health) industry.
It’s great to meet people within the industry, and I thought we could both benefit from connecting.
Thanks!
(your name) (your job title)
Good Luck using the template!
That’s perfect! Your advice that you offer here and on the Writing Revolt Facebook group page is so helpful. Thank you!
You’re very welcome! Let us know how things go for you.
Great article.In kenya i am writer too. Kindly need connections over the same.
Thanks Bonface! I suggest building up your network with prospects in your industry.
Your article is on-point, will definitely those tips
Thanks Robert, give these tips a go and please share your results!
I just read this article and applied the technique when creating my LinkedIn profile and bam!, I achieved the All-Star Status. It works.
Happy this helped, Nnamdi. Yep, that’s what we’re all about here at WriteWorldwide – showing you what works. How do we know? Because we’ve tested it all ourselves! Best of luck with your freelance writing career.
This article is Goldmine and for its contents to be shared at free cost its of much appreciation to both newbies and oldbies. Surely I will implement the strategy for benefits of my blog http://www.freelancermalawi.com
Hi Tobias,
I’m glad you found this article valuable. And yes, please do implement the techniques!
Best,
Nick