If you're a fresh freelancer looking for ways
to find new copywriting clients,
here are nine different approaches that actually work.
With personal stories and advice
directly from my Copy Posse students.
(bright upbeat music)
It's that all too familiar feeling of anxiety, overwhelm,
and sheer panic that all new copywriters feel
at the beginning of their freelancing journey.
Wait, how in the hell am I actually gonna find clients
that want to give me their money?
My DMs and inbox are always full of people asking me
for tips and advice on finding their very first client.
And yes, I also went through this struggle
and had all of these feelings too when I first started,
albeit it was 10 years ago,
but I can still remember the sense of panic I felt
wondering how I would make rent for the month
without any clients or income.
But like I said, that was 10 years ago.
So when the global Posse reaches out and asks me for advice
on how to find their first clients,
while I can and will give you the advice
that I followed myself 10 years ago,
I realize that it might not be relevant and current
to today's best practices and techniques.
So I thought, what if I could give you real time advice
from people who are actually in your shoes out there
searching, vetting, and landing clients as we speak?
So, I turned to my very own rad grads from season two
of my live eight week copywriting coaching program,
the Copy Posse Launchpad.
And in this video, I'm gonna share nine personal stories
directly from them, so that you can hear
exactly what they did to get their very first client.
Hey, Posse what's up?
It's Alex if you're new to the crew, welcome.
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Now, what I love about this video is that
it is literal proof that there's not one singular strategy
that works when it comes to getting clients.
Something different worked for every single one
of these students you're about to meet.
And good news, none of them involved cold outreach
because let's face it, cold outreach is hard.
They all used one of my four time tested methods
of finding clients, and you'll wanna stick around
to the end of this video
because you better believe I'm recapping them for you here.
All right now without further ado,
let's hear how these nine Copy Posse Launchpad grads
landed their very first client.
"I got my first client by putting myself out there
to my friends and family on my social media pages.
It's scary, it's daunting
to put yourself out there like that,
but people don't know you've got goods in the back
if you're not displaying anything in the shop window.
So as soon as I've put myself out there,
people then contacted me saying they need help.
And like Alex always said,
you don't need to wait for permission
to say you're a copywriter,
you just need to do it and just start somewhere."
"So, I got my first client by letting everyone I know
know that I was in a copywriting course,
The Launchpad Season Two.
And a friend of mine got back to me,
and is a marketing manager, and said they had put together
a website and could I critique it.
And I did.
And they liked my recommendations and became my client,
my first client.
So it was brilliant when I was in the course.
Thank you, bye."
"I got my first client by talking with my writer friends.
They knew I was starting this new freelance writing,
so they just gave me a reference
to one of their old clients."
"Hi, I got my first client
by following them on social media.
I had actually been following them for awhile.
And ironically, while taking Alex Cattoni's
copywriting course, they made a post
asking for copywriting help.
I reached out, we got on a call, and now I work with them.
So you never know who you're following on social media
right now or in the future
that will need your copywriting services."
"I got my first client by having a strong portfolio
and communicating the benefits I could bring
to the business.
Copywriting is something that every business needs.
And so by having a portfolio that demonstrated
my knowledge of the sales funnel, on top of telling them
how I could help them meet their business goals,
I think that really helped seal the deal.
And I found the opportunity
through my amazing network of copywriters.
So definitely tapping into the network to help
jumpstart the conversation helps as well."
"I got my first client by showing up on Instagram,
posting regularly, adding stories, showing my knowledge,
tips, tools, and thoughts
about copywriting and content writing.
And I wanted to inspire and show entrepreneurs
and personal brands what it's like
to have a copywriter on board, what the value it is,
and how this kind of person can help them build their brand
and shape the communication."
"So I got my first client through
some good old fashioned networking.
I was talking to a friend about my whole copywriting journey
and finding Alex and this amazing program.
And I told her all about it.
She said, I think that's great, go for it.
She gave me some advice
'cause she lives in the agency world.
And sure enough, within two weeks, a friend of hers
reached out looking for somebody with copy experience
and business experience, and guess who she referred?"
"I got my first client by being honest
with my current employer.
I told them that I was taking a copywriting course
and that my goal was to go into freelance copywriting.
And at first I thought that it would be
like seen as a bad thing, but my boss was really excited
and offered to give me any jobs as soon as I was ready."
"I got my first client through
authority building on LinkedIn.
So what I did was to create valuable content
to showcase my copywriting knowledge.
Eventually after three weeks, my friend, a copy strategist,
discovered my work and we talked about it.
And this is how I got the job."
"I love that, thanks guys.
Let's give a huge shout out to my students
for sharing their first client stories with us
by hitting the thumbs up button below.
Now as promised, here are my four time tested methods
for finding clients.
Method number one: Hunt.
This method is all about getting strategic
and searching for clients that are a fit for you.
Ask yourself, what brands do you admire?
And what products do you love?
Follow those brands on social media,
get on their email list, and watch what they are doing.
You can try reaching out to them directly
to help them solve problems, searching their job pages,
or waiting for job opportunities to pop up
that you can apply for, just like Chi and Camilla did.
Now with the hunt method, your biggest goal
is to get your foot in the door with a company
that you really wanna work with.
So it might start off with a smaller project
or maybe another role related to copywriting,
like social media, project management,
or community management.
But listen guys, once you are in,
it is a lot easier to then work your way up
to high paid copywriter status.
All right, method number two: Gather.
So this method is all about good old fashioned networking.
And it really starts with connecting with who you know.
So share what you're doing with the people who are
most likely to advocate for you and refer work to you,
that is friends, family, colleagues, and even bosses,
just like John, Michaela, Linda, Diana, and Evelyne did
to find their first clients.
Now on top of that, get out there
and actually meet people face to face.
Go to marketing seminars and workshops,
or local meetups in your area.
I met my very first high paying retainer client
at a marketing conference, and we started off as friends.
So remember, always go with the intention
of adding value first, ask questions,
and make genuine connections.
People wanna work with people
they know, like, and trust, period.
All right, method number three: Play.
I like to say be a B.A.E.-Be Active Everywhere.
So be on LinkedIn, be on Instagram, be on Facebook,
have an Upwork profile, and don't just be a ghost.
Engage, find the forums, find the groups, find the hashtags,
and truly connect and play.
Have fun with it, it doesn't have to be serious,
it doesn't have to be heavy.
Start by having conversations.
You're not going into these conversations
with the expectation of something in return.
You are truly just connecting with your ideal clients
on topics they care about.
And post relevant content and showcase your skills,
just like Paulina and Caine did to get their first clients.
And lastly, method number four, my favorite: Slay.
So be a boss and get referrals.
You guys, this is the single fastest way
to grow your business once you start getting clients.
So do what you do, do it well, stay in your lane,
get clear on what you offer,
never stop learning and improving, and always add value.
Take feedback well, and trust me, your clients will continue
to pay you again and again and again,
and refer you to other clients in your network.
And this is all I did you guys,
to take my business from low five figures
to multiple six figures as a freelancer,
back before I ever started creating content
or started the Copy Posse.
Remember, every single business
on the planet needs copywriters.
You just got to find out how to connect with the ones
that are actually looking for you,
and help them solve problems.
All right, I'm curious,
which method are you gonna try first?
Or if you're already working with clients,
how did you get your very first client?
Let me know in the comments below.
I'll see you next week.
Until then, I'm Alex.
Ciao for now.
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F the post and pray,
here is how you actually get copywriting clients.