Crayon Writer

A while back I mentioned that I signed up for Facebook, a social network similar in concept to MySpace and Ning.

What I’ve found so far is that Facebook rules! If you haven’t joined, you really should. There is a huge potential for marketing your business on Facebook too.

So far I’ve befriended many of my former college acquaintances, and many of my high school folks. I’ve even found some old friend from elementary school.

My next “friending” project came about because I love games. There are several Facebook games that allow you to make new “friends,” and I set my privacy settings so they can only see what I allow.

But the real potential is in contacting your friends to let them know about your business. One friend of mine makes jewelry, and she created a group for her company. Every so often she sends out sales and announcements. While I’m not into jewelry, I know exactly where to go when I’m in the market.

Other’s mention their websites in their status, or have a “mirror blog” on their profile page so friends can see what you wrote in your blog.

Finally, I’m beginning to befriend people in my local area, which should come in handy for job searching and prospect building.

Are you using Facebook? Have you used it as a marketing tool? Look me up on Facebook and maybe we can chat…just be sure to let me know how you found me, because I don’t accept friends with no explanation.

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Just imagine…

You’ve heard about the blogging phenomena making the rounds lately.

And you’ve even though about setting up your own blog.

But perhaps the biggest question you’ve had so far is:

“What on earth shall I blog about?”

But don’t worry, you’re not alone.

And there’s some good news for you as well…

Not many people know what they want to blog about when they’re just getting started.

And that’s why Yaro Starak and Gideon Shalwick have just created a special X-Factor Strategy video that shows you how….

If you’re in any doubt as to what you should be blogging about, this X-Factor strategy video will get you off to a great start.

The video is an elaboration of one of the X-Factor strategies inside Yaro and Gideon’s report - The

Roadmap To Become A Blogger, which has already been downloaded 8,789 times in the last week!

It looks at a little-known feature of the social media giant Facebook, and shows you how to use it to your advantage and uncover multiple exploitable niche areas.

You can watch the whole video, without paying a cent or even giving away your details, over here:

X-Factor Facebook Video

Just go ahead and watch the video…

It really won’t cost you a thing, and it even comes with a full transcript that you can print out and follow along while you watch the video.

It’s a no-brainer - just go and watch it now:

X-Factor Facebook Video

If nothing else, you’ll get to know how to make friends with people from all over the world at the click of a button. And that could be very handy when you’re doing research for your new blog project.

I’ve watched it myself, and it’s really very straight forward and easy to understand. Let me know what you think.

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Subscribing to others’ blogs is a great way to keep up with your interests, make new online friends, and learn new things. I’m subscribed to several, but hadn’t made the time (until today) to read through them.

As I peruse my feeds, I’ll let you know when I find some interesting articles.

There’s a wonderful list of resources, for any type of entrepreneur, over at Cath Lawson’s Tips for Success in Business & Life. I’ll be regularly checking her blog, since I seem to need lots of motivation to get my business(es) off the ground.

Stay tuned for more!

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Okay, so after my last post, you’ve decided that blogging is your cup of tea. Perhaps you’re even serious about making your blog (future or present) into a money-making tool.

But one thing I’ve noticed in my short time blogging is that everyone has a blog now. There’re millions of them, about every conceivable topic. Along with tons of blogs, there are also lots of social media sites now. I’ve finally joined Facebook (look me up, add me, and make sure you tell me how I know you), and also Twitter. (I’ll put the appropriate links in my sidebar later.)

My point here is that there’s so much out there, it’s hard to figure out where to start if you want to carve out your piece of the blogging-for-money pie. And there’s a lot of competition. One thing that can work out for you, though, is that a lot of people give up on their blogs. I’ve had a few that have come and gone, for instance.

I just got my hands on a very detailed report about blogging. It’s a free download, The Roadmap to Become a Blogger, and the authors also have free videos to teach you various blogging tools. Whether you want to start a blog from scratch or take your current blog to the next level, take a look at the report or the videos and see what you get from them.

I learned that I have some soul-searching to do, and that I can use Facebook and Twitter to really skyrocket my blogging business. I don’t make a ton of money here at Crayon Writer, but it’s definitely a nice addition to my pocketbook.

If you’re serious about blogging, you have to keep learning or you’ll fall behind fast. Read everything you can and change with the times.

After you read the free report and/or watch the videos, leave a comment here to let the rest of us know what you thought.

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When you need to find out more about a business, you can almost always find their website online. But more and more companies are also starting blogs.

What’s best for your small business? A blog or a website?

First, let’s define the two types of online tools.

A blog is simply a type of website. Most have multiple posts or articles listed chronologically, with the most recent one on the front page. Most blogs also allow interaction with its readers, via comments.

So all blogs are websites, but not all websites are blogs.

There are some blogs where the front page is static, making them basically the same as traditional websites. That is, there isn’t a chronological list of posts.

So what’s best for you and your business?

I actually have both a blog and a regular website. My website is specifically about my writing business, Theda K. Communications, and it is the home of my portfolio. When I send out cold emails or make cold calls, I always refer the prospective client to my website.

My blog is more for fun, and is way less formal than my website. I have a link to it from my website (and vice versa, actually), but I spend more time marketing it. In effect, my blog is my marketing tool, and hope to lead buyers to my website.

Do you need to have your blog and website separate? You might, if you want to maintain a strictly professional online presence.

If you haven’t yet created your website, complete with your online portfolio. check out Homestead, which is where my website is hosted (yes, this is an affiliate link, so if you choose to use them, please go through my link). They have reasonable prices, and lots of templates to choose from, especially if you’re not ready to make your own website from scratch.

Do you have both a blog and a traditional website? Why or why not?

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A couple of weeks ago I shouted from the mountaintop that I had a goal and a plan for my freelance writing business. So how’ve I been doing?

Truthfully, I haven’t been as successful as I wanted. I couldn’t carve out 2 hours each day for making contacts, finding myself home only when me or my daughter was under the weather.

Am I giving up? NO!

Instead, I’m going to change my plans, though not my goal. It’s important to recognize when your plan may not work out. Otherwise you just spend day after day beating yourself up about your failure, and you find yourself no closer to the goal.

Imagine you’re taking a trip from your house to a nearby park. You plan to take a right on Main Street, a left on 2nd Avenue, a left on Park St., and then drive straight for about 10 miles. But you find construction at various points along the way, and realize there’s no way you can take that well-planned route. Do you just turn around and go back home, sulking while you eat a bag or two of chips? Of course not (I hope)!

You map out a new route and try again. It might take you longer, and you might get lost, but at least you’re still trying.

So, my new plan is to contact at least 10 prospects each day, via cold call or cold email. My goal is the same, though I realize it may take a little longer to get there. We’ll see.

Have you made changes in your entrepreneurial plan? Share your story with us!

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Thanksgiving is almost here, and this year we’re excited because we’ll have family in town. My aunts and cousin are coming to Arizona all the way from Michigan, and my daughter will finally get to meet more of her family.

The thing I like about Thanksgiving is that it gives us a chance to remember things that are going well in our lives. Being a grown-up isn’t a bed of roses, so sometimes it’s hard to recognize when things aren’t so bad. But sitting around a table full of food, in a room filled with family, it’s a little easier to count your blessings.

I’m still not ready to host dinner at my house yet, but it might be nice for me to bring some flowers or a centerpiece to my mother’s table. I’ve had good luck getting her flowers from 1-800-Flowers in the past, so I think their Thanksgiving flowers won’t disappoint either.

Our family has a special tradition we follow on each Thanksgiving. Before we eat, we go around the table and each person shares some reasons they are thankful. It can get pretty funny when kids get their turn, but it gives everyone a nice feeling. And hearing other people’s reasons can give you even more ideas.

What are you doing for Thanksgiving this year? Any special traditions that your family practices? How do you decorate your table?

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“I’m Barack Obama. I’m the President!” said my three-year-old daughter yesterday. Isn’t it wonderful that we can finally say that one day she actually could be president?

I was born in the early 70’s, and didn’t experience as much of the blatant racism my parents and others have, but I’ve seen my share.

My mother remembers traveling down south from Michigan when she was a teen, and having to eat unrefrigerated food because restaurants didn’t serve Blacks.

My grandmother, who looked white, was able to eat in a restaurant once, while her husband had to wait outside. I’m guessing he felt it more important that his wife be able to eat even if he couldn’t.

My mother also remembers not knowing the rules in the south, and having strangers (Black) pull her off the sidewalk when a white person approached. She and her sisters also had to use disgustingly dirty restrooms because, of course, they couldn’t use the white restrooms on their trip down south.

And for me, I remember being spit on by a white man when my parents pulled up next to his truck at a stoplight. That was in the 80s, in Michigan, when I was just a kid.

Just 2 years ago a stranger, a white man, asked me if my daughter’s father was Black too. When I told him Yes, he was so happy! He said something like, “Good! Too many people try to mix the races.” A complete stranger!

I say all this to say that I’m still in awe that this country will have a Black president in a very short time. It’s finally sinking in that this is real. That people were tortured and killed for this to happen. And amazed and humbled that my daughter will grow up in this (hopefully) new age.

I know that racism isn’t gone. Far from it. I live in a pretty racist town, which is part of the reason I believe I haven’t been able to find a decent job (along with this being a bad economy…it’s not all about race, I know). We still have work to do, and hopefully people won’t think this wipes the slate clean.

But for now I’m just so humbled and almost speechless at what his election has accomplished. I just wish Dr. King and others were here to witness this miracle. What a great time to be an American!

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Recently I wrote two posts, one about Barack Obama’s election, and the other about using holiday cards for marketing. Both mysteriously disappeared, and the only thing I fiddled with today was my Google Adsense.

Has this happened to you? Have I been hacked? Have you ever been hacked?

From now on I’m going to save all of my posts on my computer separately from my blog. Maybe we should all do the same.

Talk amongst yourselves while I try to sort this out.

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A couple of days ago I announced that I was setting a course for my freelance copywriting business’ success.

Rather than reveal my plan all at once (besides, it’s still a work in progress), I figured I’d just start with each baby step that I’m taking.

One thing I figured out is that it’s not feasible for me to jump in, head first, with all the other daily responsibilities I have. That’s a pretty important point for everyone. A plan, to be achievable, has to be realistic for your particular situation. It can’t be too pitiful, like paying just the minimum due on your credit card with the goal of paying it off anytime soon.

But goals also can’t be too farfetched, or you’ll never even try to reach them. Like, say, planning to make a million dollars on the first day.

Here’s my goal: Initially I will make at least $2000 per month from my writing activities, not counting expenses and such. My timeline for this is within 3 months from today.

There! I said it out loud. Whew! That was hard!

How do I plan to make this income? I am primarily a business copywriter, focusing on tasks like press releases, web/blog copy, ads, annual reports, sales letters, newsletters, and brochures. I also do proofreading and editing.

I know I mentioned magazine writing in a previous post, but after some research I realized magazine writing isn’t best the way (for me) to achieve my goal.

Now that I’ve revealed my goal, let me tell you my first couple of steps.

In order to write for companies, I have to contact them, right? And in order to contact them, I need to have their phone numbers and/or email addresses. So my starting point is to compile a list of prospective companies. I’m using a free database that lists pertinent information, oftentimes including key players in the company. It’s a bit time-consuming, but I’d like a hefty list so I have no excuses.

My next step is to start making cold calls to my prospects. Basically, I ask for the person or department that probably hires freelancers, and then I ask that person if they do, indeed, ever outsource. Sometimes I get to the key person, and sometimes I have to settle for voicemail. Invariably, I get an email address and send them my intro letter and a link to my online portfolio.

When I can’t make cold calls (like when it’s too late at night, for instance), I’ll still make good use of my time by cold emailing prospects. I may still call them at some point, but with working during the day I won’t always be able to make cold calls.

Because my days aren’t structured yet, it’s hard for me to give myself a set number of calls/emails to make each day. I’ll have to play this by ear, but I will commit to spending 2 hours each day making contacts. I might be able to set different goals for the different types of days I have (days where I work vs. days that I don’t), but I’ll get back to you on that. If 2 hours is too easy, I’ll increase it, of course.

So that’s it for now. I’ll be making a lot of calls this month. So far my list is over 2000 companies long, which will definitely keep me busy.

Now…how am I going to organize all of the information I get? Outlook’s contact management program? Excel? Index cards? Stay tuned, and feel free to offer your prospecting hints.

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