Minute 01: WIIFY and Sales Isn't Icky
Minute 01 published on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 and was 4 minute long.. The podcast can be found here.
This is the first blog post/show notes for Freelancer Minute.
The whole purpose of this blog and of the podcast is to look at sales tactics for freelancers, creatives, consultants, etc. Why?
There’s a lot on marketing out there (using social media and other platforms to “brand” and, essentially, generate leads/business), but there’s very little about engaging in sales. They are two very different, and very important, activities.
I see a lot of talented writers, artists, and other creatives out there who want to be spending more time, or even getting paid, to make things, and I’ve seen them engage in the marketing side of things but not the sales, and they haven’t been able to move forward toward that goal.
I genuinely want to see artists and creatives succeed because everyone deserves to be happy, and if I can help someone pursue that happiness, I want to help.
“Sales” can be a dirty word among creatives and freelancers for any number of reasons, and it can be an unfamiliar/uncomfortable hat to wear, and I want to do my part to help destigmatize that so they can see more success.
I need to keep myself honest about my own sales efforts to keep me on track with my voiceover work, and by blogging and podcasting about it, I (and possibly by extension, you) can hold myself more accountable for those activities.
As I mentioned in the podcast, in a previous life I was a sales manager, and I’ve been in sales or sales management in one regard or another for the better part of 15 years. (If you’re terribly interested in my whole background there, check out my LinkedIn profile, but otherwise I won’t bother with the gory details here.) I’ve learned a thing or two, and I feel compelled to share that with people.
OK, so enough of that, and in future posts I’ll be diving right into the details and show notes from the get-go.
What’s the difference between MARKETING and SALES?
They are related, and they are both important, but they are also different, and both are required.
Marketing is farming.
It’s planting seeds and nurturing them so that they will eventually grow into something big and beautiful and, hopefully, profitable. It’s using social platforms, email, postcards, videos, blog posts, television, radio, any and all of these things to convey a message.
What is that message? That you are the best in category, that you are awesome at what you do, that you being value. It’s branding, put simply. It’s getting people to know who you are and what you offer.
Ultimately, as a part of this larger conversation, it’s generating leads. (I know, one of those dirty sales words, but we’ll come back to that, stay with me.)
The Upside
The upside to marketing is that it, in the scheme of things, is relatively easy from a creative perspective. If you are already making things (pictures, videos, music, writings), you have already covered the most difficult part of marketing for most other people and companies: content creation. You are doing what others struggle with in terms of their marketing, and doing it as a matter of course.
The Downside
The downside to marketing is that it’s passive. It’s not doing more than putting content out into the universe and hoping that the right person sees it at the right time in the right context. If it hits, fantastic, but in the meantime, there’s a lot of “ifs” there in terms of turning marketing into revenue.
To continue the farming metaphor I used above, what happens if there is a drought? If there is a blight? If there’s too much rain? If your harvesting equipment breaks down? If you can’t get the grown goods to market fast enough, or if they arrive too early? Or if everyone else, all of your competitors, all planted the same crops this year? Or if…if…if…
…you can see where I’m going. It doesn’t mean to give up on marketing, it means that it’s best to add another set of tools to compliment your efforts.
Sales is hunting.
Sales is an active process. It’s deciding who you are going to go after, and taking steps to land them as a client.
The Upside
The upside to sales is that, if you take the time to do the activities related to it that it can mean you have a better handle on your revenue, and by extension, your fate, or future. Rather than waiting for someone to just decide to say “yes” to working with you, you are going out and finding that person.
Another upside to sales is that it is, in fact, a process, one that can be mapped out, charted, and duplicated. Sure, there’s a human element to it, just as anything else, but largely if you have a defined sales process, you’ve got a plan for success.
And guess what? It’s not icky. It doesn’t have to be a smarmy or high-pressure experience. It can really be about gathering information and finding out if the project/job/commission/contract would be a good fit for everyone.
And you know what? You may already be doing it. We’ll get to that in a second.
The Downside
Sales is harder than marketing. It takes a greater effort and more management. Where marketing can be (and I’m simplifying here) releasing content into the wild and seeing what bites, sales is a process that needs to be managed and nurtured, and requires more active communication.
It also puts people out of their comfort zone, especially if they are naturally introverted. Believe me, I get it…I’m pretty naturally introverted, so I can find things like networking events exhausting.
You are also going to hear “no” a lot, it’s just the nature of the game. The “nos” aren’t usually personal, but it can be frustrating, especially if you take them personally.
The Good News
There’s a couple of pieces here:
You’re already doing one of the hardest parts: prospecting. Your marketing, if you’re spending time with it, is going to help you out a lot here. It is essentially going to generate leads for you. I’ll be doing a future podcast with show notes on this specific topic, needn’t you worry.
You’re already doing doing most of the closing work. When someone does approach you about doing work and you hash out the details of the contract (the deliverables, the deadlines, licensing, creative direction, etc), you are doing one of the big parts of any sales process.
So what is sales? It’s filling in the space between the marketing you’re already doing and the closing that you’re already doing. And it’s not that far of a distance. I’m hoping I can help you with it.
New episode and show notes next Tuesday. If you need any help or have questions, or want to share some of the work that you are putting out there, please don’t hesitate to hit me up on Twitter.
Have a great week!
If you like Freelancer Minute, please make sure to give the podcast a great rating on the podcasting platform of your choice, and consider backing me on Patreon for $4/month.