integrated marketing strategy

Integrated Marketing Strategy for Consultants or Micro Business Owners

Originally written for our PowerofWords.com.au blog, this article uses the overarching marketing principles of bigger companies to help smaller businesses grow and thrive. When you have an integrated marketing strategy, you can drive a marketing program with confidence. That means both planning and keeping track in order to measure and improve. What do the experts say integrated marketing is?Integrated Marketing is a strategic approach to integrating communications and interactive experiences targeting defined audiences and individuals which coordinates all aspects of marketing of a brand… — SmartInsights blogWe want to use internally-directed marketing strategies based on audience research and knowledge, rather than be:Driven by others’ marketing based on ‘hot trends’–and these may not work for your audience or offeringConfusing strategy with tactics, e.g. posting on Facebook (which is a tactic)Unsure whether content marketing and social media sharing is really working.Starting with Value for the ClientIt all starts with knowing your…
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time trackers clockify

Two Ways to Track Time and Be More Productive

Working from home comes with its rewards and challenges. There’s more scope… for slacking off! So these two time tracking productivity apps and one way to build a writing habit might be just the ticket to be more productive, including getting more writing done. Clockify Time Tracker If you need to track time so that you can bill your service or assess your project rewards, then free time tracker Clockify is just great. I paid for Harvest tracker & invoicing for six years, but once implementing Quickbooks I needed a solution that did not also charge. I’ve been tracking time spent on projects (billable or fixed/non-billable) successfully this year, with zero outlay. If you want Premium (paid), besides branded timesheets, there is a feature called ‘Focus Time’, where you can click it to just focus on one project. No more…
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freelancers what to charge

What to Charge: Pricing Strategies for Freelancers and Consultants – Book Review

by Laurie Lewis Outskirts Press, 2011, 2nd edition. In What to Charge: Pricing Strategies for Freelancers & Consultants, there is ample advice which will stop your flight into lassez-faire freelancing (or consulting) in its tracks.  By the end of chapter 1, you’ll already be challenging your assumptions about pricing on a simple client brief. I find the way Laurie uses an actual example of the advice in practice 10 times better than a simple model or explanation. Sometimes it’s hers, and sometimes it’s another consultant’s unfortunate experience. It’s really hard to obey the first rule of pricing and that is why this information is so valuable to me. So many clients just want to know the end price up-front based on some sketchy details about a project, but if you stick your neck out and price right away, you know…
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Writing Habits with AI
Freelance Business

Freelancing in Australia – infographic

I’ve compiled this ‘freelancing in Australia infographic’ from statistics found at professional freelancing sites, like Kate Toon’s ‘Clever Copywriting School’ and InsiderGuides.com.au. Please link back here if using the image. (C) 2017 Jennifer Lancaster. How to Start a Freelance Business is a concise guide for those interested in starting any freelance endeavour in Australia, including how to set up a micro business properly. Full Statistic and Source Links: 32% of Australian workers had freelanced (2014/5) (InsiderGuides.com.au) The most common freelance roles are copywriting, freelance writing, graphic design, photography, web design, tutoring, and account management. (Money Connexion) 65.9% of freelancers work part-time (21-30 hrs); 34% work full-time (CleverCopywritingSchool 2017) Aussie copywriters tend to charge $61-90 per hour(41%). Just 4.5% charge over $120 per hour. (CleverCopywritingSchool 2017). 72% of Editors earning $50,000 or less from editing in 2015–16. (IPEd National Survey of Editors,…
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freelancers be your own agency
Freelance Business

Freelancers: Be Your Own Agency

Freelancers, you could be limiting yourself (and your income) if you try to only score work in one skill area and only through your own marketing. Yes, you can get known for excellence in a niche skill, but if you want to score big projects (e.g. tenders on TenderLink or consulting projects on Expert360), then Mark Fromson from LocalSolo has some advice for freelancers. We have a saying at LocalSolo that we try and impart to our freelancers: “You’re already your own agency.”   What this means is that we encourage our freelancers to go after full client projects where multiple team members with different skill sets are needed to execute. Don’t just focus on finding work for only your particular skillset.   Try to be the sales person and project manager for your client, and assemble your own team of freelancers to do the work.  If you’re…
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Tools of the Freelance Trade
Freelance Business

Tools of the Freelance Trade

Whether you consult or freelance full-time or part-time as I do, certain freelance business tools can help to keep you on track. But which tools (i.e. software)? After eight years of freelancing, several software applications became my ‘go to’ apps. Now that I’m expanding my business to include author training courses, books, and book support services, it’s even more important to pick the best tools of today.   My Six Best Freelancer Tools and Why Harvest Chosen by The Freelance Collective members as the time tracker of choice, I have used Harvest as an invoicing tool and tracker for five years. It offers project time control with inbuilt reminders. In settings, you’ll find and tick “Estimates” – for years I didn’t know this existed, but it’s helpful for turning a quick quote into a deposit invoice. Price: 1 user, 2 projects…
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