Читать книгу The Freelance Mum: A flexible career guide for better work-life balance - Annie Ridout - Страница 28

The above steps – announcing your business on social media, telling your friends and family about it, saying ‘yes’ to as much as possible – all take you towards securing your first clients. You are the best person to sell yourself: you know the ins and outs of your trade, and you are the face of your brand. From now on, you’ll be telling as many people as you can about your business, so you’ll need to refine your elevator pitch. This is a way of explaining who you are, what you do and what you can do for them – all in the time it takes to get from the ground floor to the fifth floor, when they will be (metaphorically) getting out.

As I mentioned earlier, my work has various branches. Let’s take one: I’m editor of The Early Hour. My elevator pitch, to a potential advertiser on my website – let’s say an organic kids’ food company – would be this:

I’m Annie Ridout, founder and editor of digital parenting and lifestyle magazine The Early Hour. I put out articles at 5 a.m., for parents who are up early. I’ve grown a loyal following of parents who love thoughtful, ethical products. Like yours.

She might then say: Oh really. I’d love to hear more about what you’d charge for advertising but I’m rushing to a meeting. Can I take your email address? THIS IS THE IMPORTANT BIT: say, how about I take yours? This way, you won’t risk her forgetting about you and never making contact. Once she’s out of the elevator, or has hopped off the train – wherever it is that you are – compose an email: was great meeting you, Laura. Would love to talk more about how we could work together. Let me know when’s good to chat.

Also, if you know people working in your industry, offer to take them for coffee, or lunch, as you’d love to hear more about what they do and how they do it. Then tell them about what you’re doing. Always ask lots of questions, people will be flattered if you’ve done your research and know about them and their work. Showing an interest will make them warm to you. Shouting about you and your own work won’t. And remember to be open-minded – when you meet clients in their office, be friendly to everyone you meet: there could be someone else within the company looking for your services at a later date.