The Skinny on Starting a Multi-Freelancer Writing Business

I’m kicking off the Businesses You Can Start From Home Interview Series with T.S. Redmond-Mize. She has worked her way up from starting at the content mills to contracting personal clients to now starting up a multi-freelancer writing business. (Sorry, folks. They aren’t hiring just yet. ) Here’s the skinny on her journey to the top, and what it takes to start up a multi-freelancer firm.

What was Your Background in Web Content Writing prior to Starting Your Business?

It’s actually kind of funny. I was pregnant and on bedrest. We were really hurting for money at the time, so, I thought maybe I’d see what kind of work I could do without having to get up. Three texting agencies, five psychic hotlines and a whole slew of almost-fell-for-the scam later, I found Textbroker. As I wrote for them, I thought, “Well, this is okay” but it seemed like an awful lot of work for very little money. Same can be said of pretty much any mill, so, I ventured into finding private clients. With the private clients, you find that many of them want you to ghost write their blogs or blogs for other people.

If you’re anything like me, as you do something like that, you can’t help but pick up on it. Most of the clients I had were SEO firms. The next thing I knew, I was getting questioned by more than one about how I felt about this trend and that. What did I think about this, did I feel like Google was going to do that- you get the idea. They were calling me brilliant, praising my instincts and still paying me very low wages. It was great for the ego, but not so great for the bank account. I look on it as a 6 year long paid internship, really.

Why Did You Decide to Go Into Business for Yourself?

People have been telling me to do it for a very long time. However, it’s a very intimidating prospect, really. The real kick in the pants came when I was messing around with social media, and I noticed this Yahoo news piece on Facebook. They asked about how people were getting by in the recession, dealing with unemployment. At first, I was just talking about how several friends of mine and I had done it. Then I read the comments. There was so much suffering, fear, so much worry. I started trying to encourage people to seek out freelance options, pointing them in the right direction.

An editor hit me up. I’m not sure what’s going on with that story, but when she did, I realized that it was time to organize. So, that’s what I did. I touched base with almost every freelance writer and web person I’d been working with for the last 6 years and I said, “Hey, here’s what’s going on, it’s time to get on it.” Some were excited, others just sort of blew it off. So far, the story’s not come out, there have been delays but really, it doesn’t matter. I’m going to do what I’m going to do, and that’s that, really.

What Startup Costs Were Involved?

I honestly cut quite a bit of my start up costs purely by knowing people and having helped others run various projects over the years. My immediate concerns were web design and hosting- but fortunately for me Sin Rabe over at Blue Aeon was very quick to volunteer. When it came to my secondary concerns, I thought about the organizational issues I’d seen in other small firms. Through Basecamp, I set up my project management, invoicing and handled a wealth of other issues before they could become a problem. I think I pay about $125.00 a month for all of that, in total. As we grow, there will be upgrades and Sin has already been talking about putting the project management on site.

I’ve done quite a bit of research and one of my biggest concerns is keeping overhead low so that I can pay everyone what they are worth. A big part of my five year goal is going to be to insure a core team, but again- knowing people helps. I have a very close friend who works pretty high up in an insurance company and she’s helped me navigate. Understanding the ins and outs there definitely helps prevent costly mistakes. I really do not think you have to have this massive capital to get started, particularly when you’re bootstrapping a business. Of all the start up costs you’re going to find, the one people don’t realize you’ll spend the most is time.

How do You Market Your Business to Obtain New Clients or Customers?

I would absolutely love to tell you that businesses appreciate the feeling that they get knowing they are supporting jobs creation and growth. Many do. However, I don’t really go in for the traditional marketing tactics. In a sense, I suppose I use them, but I’ve sort of hybridized it. I use sales’ emails, sure, but they’re not stock, I write them myself. I outline what it is that we can do, and follow up with a call, just like anyone else. Where I differ is that often, I’ll go over their social media programs myself, go over their site, their entire online presence and before I even sit down to write that email- I know exactly what we can do for them. Not only that, I can generally tell you what problems or issues they have with their online marketing campaigns and why.

Another area where Element Content differs from other companies that are similar is this: You will get what you pay for. People like that. All too often you’ve got this middle man firm and oh, you pay them, alright. You just don’t pay the writer at the lower level of the content creation process, therefor, you don’t get the level of quality you should be getting for the price. I’m really not afraid of calling it like it is, and again, that candor is something that businesses tend to appreciate. It’s true transparency and when you couple that with an extremely open line of communication- everybody wins.

We also recently partnered with The Umbrella Agency to provide a broader spectrum of services, but they aren’t our only partner. I think people are often pretty pleased to find that everything they need, they can get through us, and each partner business has the same ethics, same standard.

What Challenges Have You Faced in Your Business?

We are still very much in start up. As I said, I’m bootstrapping this from the ground up. What that means for me is I typically spend anywhere from about 5 hours a day working on business related issues. Marketing, networking, legal issues, sales, advertising, you name it, I’m doing it. Then, I spend about 4 more hours, writing to fund what I’m doing. That has been a bit exhausting and more than a little trying but I believe it’s one of those things that is definitely worth it.

Another challenge is that so many writers have been just completely exploited for so long, now. When I come at them with this seriously off the wall concept for a business, they tend to give me the stink eye. “Oh, right. Yeah, you’re going to be different. Sure.” I can definitely relate. However, what that means is that I cannot simply delegate tasks. I’ve got a couple of friends who help- but until we start seeing the kind of growth that the interest has already indicating, what can you do? I have quite a bit to prove, and that’s okay, really. I am extremely confident in my ability to rise to the challenge.

What Skills are Necessary to be Successful in Your Field?

Which one? Actually, that really doesn’t matter, the answer is going to be the same. Adaptability and a ready mind to learn all you can. If you have that, couple it with a strong drive and there you go. Everything else is really secondary.

What are the Top Resources for Gathering Information on, or Getting Started in Your Industry?

There are so many resources that it is incredibly hard to name just a couple. I really frequent so many forums and blogs that I’d feel terrible about listing only one or two. That’s a blog post in and of itself, really.

Where Can We Find You Online?

Element Content

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