At WriteWorldwide, we’ve talked a lot about the creativity and freedom that comes with choosing freelance writing as your career path, and the benefits of starting a freelance writing business.
It’s amazing to be able to make a living on your own terms, from wherever you are in the world, and pick the writing projects you enjoy most so you can be fulfilled and inspired while earning good money.
But there’s another side to freelance writing that matters just as much as how good you are with words; can you actually build a business at the same time as selling yourself and your writing skills?
Being your own boss is a term that gets used a lot in relation to freelance writing – and it’s a great goal to strive for.
In reality, that means you need to treat your freelance writing career as a business from day one if you want to really succeed and sustain longevity in the writing industry.
Luckily for us, we live in a time where technology and ingenuity are more in sync than ever before, so today I’m looking at 7 web tools that’ll make starting a freelance writing business easy.
1. Expensebot
Expensebot is the perfect solution to the problem of tracking your expenses as a freelance writer. The intuitive software can help you track and categorise what you spend and how you spend it.
It offers integration with email and calendar, and also automatically handles currency conversions. If your freelance budgeting skills could do with a touch-up, Expensebot could be the way to go.
2. Quickbooks
It’s probably a fair bet to say that you didn’t get into starting a freelance writing business because you love numbers. But, even if you do, Quickbooks is worth looking into.
It’s accounting management software that makes it easy to analyse in detail where your business is going, and has sections for you to examine your taxes, learn insights about your strategies and connect all this information to your accountant if you have one.
You can even track your mileage if you need to arrange an in-person business trip with a client to close that deal.
3. Timely
To be a successful freelance writer you need to manage one thing very effectively: your time. Timely comes in handy and allows you to do just that, with the ability to easily track and manage projects, schedule succinctly and easily log your activities against the time spent doing them.
There are options to integrate time-sheets, add team members to a project and set your own hourly rates for each activity. If you need a simple, effective time management tool for starting a freelance writing business, Timely is a solid option.
You could also try Todoist (no, they’re not missing an L) or My Hours, which both offer similar services.
4. Zoho
Zoho brings together various aspects of business management into one easily accessible cloud-based interface. You can keep track of your time, clients, budgets and projects with this all-in-one solution.
For self-employed freelance writers, it’s important to feel like you’re building a business right from the start, and your mindset is key to adopting a trajectory for real and long-lasting success.
Zoho has you covered from all angles, with separate bundle options available for finance and accounting, CRM and workplace collaboration, and sales and marketing processes.
These options may seem overwhelming, but it’s worth investigating if you want to seriously invest in starting a freelance writing business from the ground up.
5. Square
Square is software that can help you with one of the most essential and rewarding aspects of freelance writing – getting paid! With Square’s free point-of-sale app, you can accept and manage payments across many devices.
It deals with invoicing and recurring payments, lets you track and look at sales patterns, and manage your inventory and receipts.
Payment can be a thorny issue for many freelance writers, but using an app like Square can remove the hassle of how and when you get your money, making it faster and easier to start making a viable living with your words.
6. Signable
If you’re a freelance writer, you’re going to need to use contracts. Contracts are an integral part of maintaining a successful self-employment career, ensuring legal safety for you and creating an atmosphere of implicit trust and professionalism between you and your clients.
Signable offers electronic contract and signature software that takes the hassle and legwork out of signing and sending contracts.
Important documents can be signed in seconds over email while maintaining their legally binding security, allowing you to skip the post office queues and spend more time finding new clients to strengthen your freelance writing business.
7. Time Doctor
It’s great to be able to effectively manage your own time – but what if you’re working on a larger scale freelance writing project and need to manage a whole team?
Time Doctor is a remote time tracking application built specifically to track remote employees’ productivity.
It lets you harvest time tracking data on your company’s work habits and then provides analytics to show key areas where improvements can be made.
With an interactive demo and no credit card required on sign up, Time Doctor is the perfect risk-free option to streamline your remote working environment and ensure everyone is playing to their strengths.
If you’re struggling with productivity then check out Richard’s post on the best online tools for keeping yourself on track and up to speed.
I hope this rundown has inspired you to really think about building a solid foundation for your freelance writing career from the moment you set out on your journey.
Got any stories about your own experiences starting a freelance writing business? Share them with us in the comments.
