Re: Finding Initial Freelance Contracts

[Barb Philbrick <caslonsvcs -at- IBM -dot- NET>]

>"I got my first contract by..."
Leaving my employer and working for someone else. They called a year
later, by which time I was completely disgusted with the new employer,
and said, "We never replaced you, and we have this project. Could you
do it on the side?" Never being one to take the easy road when I can
make life difficult for myself, I decided to quit my job on the
strength of this one small contract and another nebulous one (which
never panned out).

I desperately needed to find work and didn't yet have a strong
network. Cold calling was my only fast option. It's not fun, but can
be interesting. Fortunately, I haven't had to do it since.

This is how I did it:

1. Called up, asked for technical writing manager, introduced myself,
gave my spiel.
2. After several cold calls, I found I was answering the same
questions over and over. I created a one-page sheet that addressed the
common concerns (area of expertise, software packages used, level of
experience, and so on).
3. I went to the library and got names of many of the companies in the
area that seemed like they could use my expertise.
4. I sent mailings to those firms. My first mailing was about one
hundred pieces.
5.  I called the companies I sent mailings to. The mailing made
lead-ins a lot easier. I could say, "Hi, I'm Barb from Caslon
Services. I sent a mailing the other day and wanted to make sure you
received it." Most people were quite polite, but you do get the
runaround from receptionists (it's part of their job - don't take it
personally).

That first mailing resulted in four good leads, two of which turned
into contracts. I did another mailing, but didn't do follow-up calls,
and got two leads and one contract.

I still get calls from that initial effort (just got one last week, in
fact), even though it was four years ago. Now, though, most of my work
comes from referrals and my STC contacts.

Barb
Barbara Philbrick, Caslon Services Inc.
Technical Writing

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