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How to Make Leads Ask to Work With
You… Even If You’re A Newbie With
No Connections or Track Record
By Alina Medina
“Cut-the-Crap” Copywriting
Cold-emailing.
They say it works, so I tried it…
My guru-of-choice said to compile a long list of companies, study each
company, and craft a 5 sentence cold email that was tailor-made for them.
It seemed simple… yet each 5 sentence email took me an hour to
construct.
I would sit back and gleam at my words.
My! Look how I fit that tiny detail and showed how carefully I read
their website… and how I tied that benefit perfectly with that tweet
they sent out… isn’t my service exactly what their business needs?
How can they not want to hire me right away?
I sent out 10 or 15 emails…
And got 1 response:
“Yes please.”
They’re interesting in setting up a phone call!
I gave them info for a phone appointment... and then…
Nothing.
So, I’d have to keep sending out my cold emails. After all, it’s a number
game… right?
Ain’t Nobody Got Time Fo’ This
Now, cold emailing can help you out. It certainly works for some, so it’s
worth trying…
However, it never worked for me.
Now, I’m not saying I sent out hundreds of emails. I’m sure if I had sent
out more, then I would’ve attracted my first few clients, and eventually a
steady stream of them…
I just got tired of it, you know?
I had 3 kids at the time that were all under age 4. (Well, they still are at
the time of this writing. That goes to show how quickly I found success
with this new strategy)
I only had time to devote to this in the early hours of the morning, in the
late hours at night, and any time I could squeeze in the day…
How long do I have to work (and look like) a peddling saleswoman?
Spending my time, my copywriting ability... for an email that only one
person will see at a time?
Bugging people that may or may not be interested? Or even qualified in the
first place?
We were millennial parents living in California (the most expensive place to
live in the US) with only one income coming in…
Yet I couldn’t show my desperation…
And I didn’t have the time to throw myself into the sea of other
“copywriters” on LinkedIn…
I needed to stand out. Fast.
No Credibility
I was writing for content mills. If you don’t know what a content mill is,
think of spending several days researching, sharing your knowledge,
coming up with playful phrases so it reads nicely, editing it to perfection…
and being paid $4-17 for it.
Yet in that time of our lives, even gas money was worth all that effort.
Anything that would bring in a little money to cover some payments.
I knew I needed to start earning more income… Yet when you’re on
content mills, you’re invisible.
So I had no testimonials. No contacts who could refer me.
I had no proof that my work could even produce results!
Cold emailing wasn’t working. Content mills were intellectual slavery.
I still remember all the times I would go to “bed” on the floor of a relative’s
living room, surrounded by my exhausted husband and our small children
asleep on the coaches.. and think to myself:
How am I ever going to get my first real client? In a way that makes
sense for me to repeat the process?
POWER UP with Transubstantiation
I’m sure you’ve heard to “pick a niche.”
Yes, picking a niche is important. Not enough newbies do it. The more you
delay in picking your niche, the more you’re going to struggle.
What I’m talking about is going a step beyond picking a niche.
If you’re a copywriter, perhaps you’re familiar with the term
transubstantiation.
This process made sense for me…
I’m an actress, and I did what I’ve done best my entire life…
I played the part.
When you pick a niche, it allows you to play the part. It gives you a
character to play.
That’s why it’s so easy to say “hey, I have a background in this.”
You’re already an expert.
On the internet... no one knows how many clients you have.
No one knows how many people are on your email list.
You can seem in-demand.
Transubstantiation is the act of turning something ordinary into something
extraordinary.
It’s an incredible tactic for copywriting, and it works with yourself as well.
How to Transubstantiate Your Online Presence
1. Think about a certain market that you’d love to serve,
preferably one that you already know like the back of your
hand.
If you’re saying: “Oh yeah... I know I should pick a niche. I’m just a
general copywriter right now. I’m just figuring it out.”
NO. Do it now.
I would say this too... until I started doing content mills.
I was able to select what articles I wanted to write for. I had to submit a lot
of work in order to get a decent amount of money, so I choose articles that
I didn’t have to spend a lot of time researching about.
The same goes with you. There’s a market where you know the lingo, the
desires, the problems, etc.
Every time you get a new assignment in this niche, this cuts down on your
research.
Plus when businesses see your portfolio, they automatically see that you’re
good… and they value it.
"What can you specialize in? Figure that out and 90% of the battle
is over, my friend.”
Ben Settle, Crackerjack Positioning: How to Control the Way People
Think About You in the Marketplace.
2. Think about a medium you are (or could get) really
good at.
You can become an expert in emails, sales letters, direct mail, lead
generation, etc.
For example, I have the advantage of being married to a cinematographer
so we could create videos. I have professional experience producing,
directing, acting, and voiceover.
We understand how to tell a story on camera so that it’s impactful. I
decided to position myself as a commercial copywriting expert.
3. Validate your idea.
Ask people who would be potential clients if this is something they would
pay for.
See if there’s competition that has a track record of serving clients.
If there is, good!
This validates your idea and gives you the opportunity to go to the next
step:
4. Find your USP
Examine your competition and see how you can offer a benefit that they
can’t.
For example, there’s a lot of videographers, film production companies, and
copywriters.
However, I’m a direct-response copywriter.
So together we create impactful, emotional direct-response commercials.
We also offer consulting to help you determine your overall marketing
strategy to keep your marketing cohesive.
5. Change your title from “Freelancer” to “Specialist”
How many ‘freelance copywriters’ or “direct-response copywriters” are
there on LinkedIn? Too many to count.
Level up your title with words like consultant, specialist, or auditor.
I decided on “Direct Response Video Consultant, Copywriter, & Producer”
When they search “direct response copywriter” or “video producer,” my title
stands out.
Suddenly, I’m not a typical freelancer. I look like an industry expert. I even
came up with the term “viewer psychology” and showed my expertise in
this subject throughout my profile.
6. Validate your idea again.
Ask people who would be potential clients if this is something they would
pay for.
No matter how sure you are that your idea will work!
You don’t want to come up with some title or niche that no one’s interested
in. This is YOU you’re branding. You have to do what you can to get it
right.
7. Bootstrap your own track record.
If you don’t have a portfolio for this niche, create some sample work. Pick
affiliate products from ClickBank or JVzoo so you can promote them. This
way, you’re able to show your work gets results.
8. Play the part.
Listen to me…
Never do things only job-seekers would do. Don’t cold email.
Don’t do work for free. Price your services at industry rates so it’s credible
to prospects.
Act like you have a steady stream of clients. Never act desperate.
9. Be a team of people.
For me, this was easy. My husband and I did lead teams of people. We had
contacts in the industry.
So I would refer to “My team” and “we”
Clients prefer to hire agencies over one freelancer. You also position
yourself as a higher-up.
See if you can refer to yourself as more than one person. I know
copywriters who do this, even if they only mean they’ll have other
copywriters help with assignments if they get too much work.
Want to Know More?
Keep following the lessons in “Cut-The-Crap” Copywriting Course.
In upcoming lessons, you’ll discover:
• How to SEO your LinkedIn profile
• How to transform your social media profiles into sales letters that sell
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24/7 for you
How to explode your network on LinkedIn so you can widen the reach
of people who find and refer you
How to not waste time with “tire kickers” or leads that can’t afford
your services… and profit from them instead
How to message people in a friendly matter that gets people eager to
hire you
And more!
Stay tuned…