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"The Edge- 5-12-09 e-zine- The Edge: Voice Mail for Business-Building; New Benefit & New Expert

The Edge

Success Strategies for People Who Work With Words



The EDGE

Success Strategies
for People Who Work With Words

12 May 2009

In This Issue

  • Director's Spotlight: Marketing, Certification Benefit, and New Expert on the Board

  • Featured Success Strategy: "Use Voice Mail as a Marketing Tool"

  • Announcements

  • Subscription Management (If you need to change your e-mail preferences, here are instructions.)

Director's Spotlight

Janice Campbell, Director of NAIWE
Dear [[firstname]],
 
Welcome once again to the new NAIWE members and e-zine subscribers! We're delighted to have you.
 
When we surveyed freelance writers and editors in February, we discovered that most freelancers wanted more information on the topic of marketing. Marketing is the lifeblood of any small business, and it's essential that you have a working knowledge of what to do and how to do it. 
 
We've talked about the importance of having a website that serves as 24/7 marketing tool, and about different ways you can utilize your NAIWE member site. Today, we have an article from marketing expert Fabienne Frederickson with a simple, effective, and cost-free business-building idea that you can put in place today.
 
New Benefit! Another area of concern for freelance writers and editors is establishing credibility.  In addition to your membership in a professional association, what can you do to convey integrity and professionalism to potential clients? One very helpful thing you can do is obtain certification in your specialty. NAIWE has partnered with a company that has a certification program for copyeditors, and we've negotiated a 25% discount on each training/testing module for our members. I'm testing the links and the service, and it will be available to you by June 1. 
 
Finally, we have a new NAIWE Expert on our Board-- Claudia Suzanne, The Ghostwriting Expert. She's the author of The Business of Books: A Complete Overview of the Industry from Concept Through Sales and the forthcoming Secrets of a Ghostwriter. She'll be offering a members-only teleseminar this summer on getting started in ghostwriting. 
 
To your growing success,
 
Janice Campbell
Director, NAIWE

Featured Success Strategy

Use Voice Mail as a Marketing Tool
Fabienne Frederickson
 
Does Your Voicemail Get You Clients? Time to Change That!
 
If you're serious about attracting clients consistently, I believe you should use every single piece of marketing "real estate" you can. Whether you've been in business for one year or 22 years, when you're marketing your business, you want to have systems in place that PULL in clients without you having to do much to make it happen.
 
It can even be as "little" as using your outgoing voice mail as a Client Attraction tool. One of the key things you can do to PULL people in that most people in business do not do, especially when they're working from home, is have an outgoing message on your voice mail or answering machine that describes exactly what you do, for whom, and what results they can expect.
 
The idea here is to have your voice mail explain what you do and how to give you referrals. So, instead of saying, "Hello, it's Mary, leave a message," you can say, "Hello, it's Mary of so-and-so business, helping (insert target audience) who struggle with (insert common problem) achieve more (desired outcome)."

Once they know exactly what you do and for whom, don't forget to list the best ways to reach you (other than phone): your e-mail, your website, and your tag line. Oh, and don't forget to include a call to action, like inviting them to visit your website and signing up for something. There are lots of different ways you can use your voice mail outgoing message as a way to get new clients. Remember to keep it pretty short or people will not want to call back.
Here's one version of mine, as an example:
"Hello you've reached Fabienne Fredrickson, creator of the Client Attraction System and ClientAttraction.com, where we teach self employed professionals and small businesses to attract more clients, in record time, every time. For more information or to grab your free Audio CD and get weekly Client Attraction articles, visit ClientAttraction.com. Please leave a message and I'll call you back."
You'd be surprised how many people over the years became my client, when all they had originally was my phone number. As a result of the voicemail, they all told me they went onto the website, signed up for the ezine, attended teleclasses, and after a while, wrote in to say they were ready to work with me. Not bad for a simple voicemail message!
 
My motto around marketing real estate? "If you've got it anyway, use it to attract clients!"

YOUR ASSIGNMENT
 
Create an outgoing message that can also act as a marketing tool, if it is brief. Include your tagline and e-mail address if it is easy to remember, direct callers to your website, and make sure to tell them about your newsletter or list any upcoming workshops you are promoting. You'll not only impress callers, you might just get a few new clients out of it.
 
(c) 2009 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System?, the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time...guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your income, visit www.ClientAttraction.com.

Announcements

If you haven't visited the interview with our May Member of the Month, Phil Ransom , you can see it in print and podcast at the NewsWire blog. Phil will be able to use his interview and podcast, along with his NAIWE website as a 24/7 introduction to his services. It's just another way your membership can help you build your business.

Members-Only Q&A call for May is scheduled for 3:30p.m. Wednesday, 20 May 2009. All members will receive an e-mail with the telephone number and call information a few days before the call. If you have any specific questions you'd like addressed, you may e-mail them before the day of the call to janice@naiwe.com, and I'll answer them first.

Remember, members are welcome to submit items for the NewsWire blog, including news about books completed or published, interesting projects, industry news, links to resources and articles of interest, funny writing mistakes you spot in public places, etc. Just e-mail your submission to editor @ naiwe.com
 
If you're on Facebook , LinkedIn , or Twitter , you're welcome to send a friend request and I'll accept.  
Reminder 
If your member website is ready, and you'd like to be considered for a future Member of the Month interview, please e-mail me at janice@naiwe.com. Being featured as a Member of the Month is news that you can share with your current and former clients as a subtle promotional tool. The information in the interview can help you begin to establish relationship marketing ties that can make a difference in how well your clients and readers remember you.
 
The next available interview will be for the June newsletter, so you have plenty of time to post a professional profile and other information to your website. If you're not yet a member, there's plenty of time to go to the "Join NAIWE " page, become a member, and post your information so that you, too, can be a Member of the Month.
Copyright 2009 by Everyday Education, LLC.
This issue of The Edge is brought to you by the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors. If you're not a member, we invite you to join us , and experience all our success and support benefits!
 
You're welcome to forward this e-zine in its entirety to others who may be interested in building their word-oriented business. Please be sure to include a personal note, so they'll know whom to thank!