What's next?

Welcome to Week 52 of my adventure of following the Start Up Grow Your Business Marketing Plan + Calendar and Week 14 as a member of the Marketing Plan Group. In my posts, I talk about my voyage down the road of self-employment as a website copywriter, my achievements and roadblocks along the way, and what I’m learning from my group experience.

In my last blog post, I recapped 2009 to see if my efforts paid off. Colleen commented on the post and asked, “What’s next?”

So I asked myself this question.

Here’s what I’m planning for 2010.

• Don’t sell myself short. Even if it means quoting what I think is “a ridiculous amount of money.”
• Less time for the (super) small stuff. I did a lot of jobs this year that were tiny, and probably were more work than they were worth. In 2010, I’m going to go after bigger jobs.
• Stop billing hourly. I started quoting by the project this year, but a few hourly projects did slip in. Billing by the project makes so much more sense, because like Ilise and Peleg said in the Designer’s Guide to Marketing and Pricing, it’s not just your time the client is paying for. It’s your brainpower! And because the better you get at something, the less time it should take you. So if you billed hourly, it would mean people are paying less for more experience, which makes zero sense. In 2010, no more hourly billing.
• Communicate more. I have found that success this year has happened because of communication. Picking up the phone, clearing things up, and keeping in touch all create success.
• Put things in the mail. I enjoy receiving things in the mail (i.e. handwritten thank you notes). This really makes an impression on me, so I’m going to make it a habit to do this for my clients and prospects.
• Email newsletter. Well, actually un-newsletter. I need to have some form of ongoing virtual communication with my clients and prospects, and now is the time.
• Picking up the phone. I started research calling this year, and I can tell it’s the key to getting new clients. This year, I’m going to really add it to my routine.
• Goals. In the year ahead, I plan to plan more. Implement more goals and be more serious about sticking to them. This will include a legitimate monthly financial goal.

I’m also going to continue to blog here at the Marketing Mix! And I’d love your input.

What do you like, which posts do you find useful, and what could I blog about in 2010 that would support you in your marketing efforts?

Happy New Year!

 

Comments

[TurtleBlueBird]

Talk about a happy New Year ... so glad to read you will still be a regular blogger here.

Looking forward to reading your posts alogn the way.

[Renee Blair]

I've enjoyed reading your posts as well, and could relate to many of your experiences. I look forward to hearing more from you throughout the upcoming year.