{"id":132,"date":"2013-11-19T01:40:00","date_gmt":"2013-11-19T05:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/?p=132"},"modified":"2021-10-22T18:15:09","modified_gmt":"2021-10-22T22:15:09","slug":"freelancer-spotlight-felicia-spahr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/freelancer-spotlight-felicia-spahr\/","title":{"rendered":"Freelancer Spotlight: Felicia Spahr"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Meet Felicia Spahr. A direct-response copywriter and communication consultant who believes that selling and asking for what we want is more than a transaction\u2013it\u2019s about relationships, understanding people, and inspiring action that changes lives.\u00a0Fel and I connected through some blogs we both follow. I then saw the lovely project she did,\u00a0Rebels With a Cause<\/a>, which she calls a \u201cplaybook for doing what you damn well please\u201d. It\u2019s a free download ebook with contributors like Chris Guillebeau, Paul Jarvis, Alexandra Frazen and more. I highly recommend you check it out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today Fel gives us a great breakdown of her first year as a freelancer,  sprinkled with loads of wisdom for others making the jump into freelancing full-time. I asked Fel to expand on what exactly a copywriter does and why you should definitely hire one for your own freelancing business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introducing Felicia!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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HOW DID YOU GET STARTED FREELANCING?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what happened:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dec 2012:<\/strong> Quit job in advertising with no plan. Except that I was getting a personal training certification and traveling around the US.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jan \u201813:<\/strong> Living at my boyfriends\u2019 parents. Making up \u2018what I was doing\u2019 every day. Knew I didn\u2019t want to be a personal trainer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feb:<\/strong> Started teaching a short story class and coaching people on creativing writing on the side (I\u2019m a screenwriter\/fiction writer by trade). Had SOME money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

March:<\/strong> Lost a client. Didn\u2019t know how to do this sustainable business thing. Then got another client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

April:<\/strong> My class ended\u2013great experience. Client relationship ended\u2013had no income or direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

May:<\/strong> Hired a business coach. Suggested I do copywriting. Stopped listening to crappy advice about getting clients and started pitching people. BLING! Clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

June-August:<\/strong> Finally bringing money in. Kept refining my process. Came to the realization that I knew how to be a great copywriter all along, except was deluded into thinking that the writing had to be cute, clever, and sexy. (Bad for conversions, BTW).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sept-Nov:<\/strong> Profits doubled. Focused on getting better results for clients\u2013that happened. Invested more in educating myself (not on copywriting) but sales, persuasion, psychology\u2013all of the things I\u2019ve LOVED forever but had no idea how they \u2018fit\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So\u2013I didn\u2019t really \u2018decide\u2019 to do anything. But I did decide that I was going to do this, and make it successful no matter what.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s what happened. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT EXACTLY IS A COPYWRITER AND WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT FOR FREELANCERS TO HIRE THEM OR LEARN ABOUT COPYWRITING FOR THEIR ONLINE PRESENCE?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This is such an important and great question. I\u2019d love to break it down:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A copywriter is: Someone who gets inside other people\u2019s heads to get a full understanding of what they want, and then goes and writes something designed to inform, persuade, or convince a particular group of people about a product or service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, we are actors, psychologists, and salesmen\/women, all wrapped into one. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The kind of copywriting you see on billboards, in magazines, and the like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s called \u2018brand awareness\u2019. Meaning, those ads aren\u2019t designed to get you to go and buy something right away. While some stuff is \u2018clever\u2019, you should notice that the best taglines and one-liners are strategic\u2013meaning they allow for growth of the business and are easy to understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why that kind of writing isn\u2019t something a freelancer like you should worry about investing in:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No immediate ROI. Brand awareness copywriting is designed to change people\u2019s perception about a brand or company over long periods of time. Unless you have extra money to throw around, that kind of writing is best for more established companies who want to reach a massive audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The kind of copywriting I do:<\/strong><\/em> Direct-response copywriting is designed to get people to click, buy, and DO something about what they\u2019ve just read (sign-up, fill out a form, et). It doesn\u2019t really matter much whether a copywriter is \u2018direct-response\u2019 or not, but what you want to look for is how that copy has gotten people results (given that the client has enough traffic and a marketing strategy in place).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why THAT copy is important:<\/em> <\/strong>Copywriting is salesmanship in print, as one of my advertising heros, Claude Hopkins, has said. It\u2019s one of the single best ways to grow your business, because copy is also the emails you write, your sales pitch, how you get people interested in what you\u2019re doing, how you pitch yourself, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How you should hire a copywriter:<\/em><\/strong> Vet their results. Ask other people about them who\u2019ve worked with them. Sign-up for their email list, or just send them an email to get a sense for who they are as a human. And have a clear idea of what you want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example: A sales page for your service or the launch of your info product. A new about page to reflect what you do and why people should fall in love with YOU. A new landing page that will help get people onto your email list (if having subscribers and turning them into customers is a part of your strategy).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A great copywriter will not mind letting you reach out to people they\u2019ve worked with and working towards nailing down exactly what you need before they book you and will do a lot of research and info-gathering before they start writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ARE YOU FREELANCING FULL-TIME OR ON THE SIDE? WHAT IS YOUR TYPICAL DAY LIKE?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m full-time! I don\u2019t have a \u2018typical day\u2019 because I hate schedules (unless I\u2019m with a client).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here\u2019s a snapshot of a client day (I only do 1 client a week):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wake up 2 hours before client call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do yoga. Munch. Shower. Have a dance party. Lately it\u2019s been squeezing in an episode of Mad Men to get me going. Review client notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chat with client for 2 hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go into writing hibernation and churn out their copy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somewhere in there is a break that might be me going for a walk, going on a shopping spree at whole foods, or practicing a handstand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deliver the copy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The end.<\/strong> (Revisions, etc happen the following days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And a non-client day:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are my \u201cR+D\u201d days. I\u2019m teaching myself things that usually have a lot to do with helping me help my clients\u2013lately I\u2019ve been diving into doing more A\/B testing, conversion tactics, and advanced marketing strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or I\u2019m reading a new book, or sending thank you notes (though that can happen any day), teaching workshops, and doing something called \u2018Fel\u2019s Office Hours\u2019 on Fridays where I help people for free. Sometimes it\u2019s just a Skype call, or others it\u2019s an in-person meeting. This past Friday I was advising an SF start-up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HOW LONG DID YOU FREELANCE ON THE SIDE BEFORE YOU MADE THE JUMP?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I jumped before I had a plan, but I had a special situation. I was living with my boyfriends\u2019 parents, so I wasn\u2019t worried about making money right away. Not a strategy I would suggest, but it worked for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF WORKING FOR YOURSELF?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I was always one of those people secretly tallying up all the ways my bosses could have done a better job, and now I get to be that critical with myself! Ha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The truth is I have pretty high standards, and I like meeting them and then setting the bar higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And also, having found meaning my work (by creating it) is very satisfying. I always know why I\u2019m doing what I\u2019m doing, rather than people creating that meaning for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE YOU\u2019VE HAD TO OVERCOME IN WORKING FOR YOURSELF?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll give you one specific incident and point out all of my flaws:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the most part, I was getting clients on a relatively consistent basis. Either from my pitching, or getting referrals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in August of this year, I didn\u2019t get one. single. client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which was scary, considering I live in San Francisco. (Enough said).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I kept wondering: Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was being proactive and pitching, I was connecting with people\u2013what was the problem?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First flaw of mine:<\/strong><\/em> I didn\u2019t want to ask for help yet. Probably because I wasn\u2019t sure what the problem was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second flaw:<\/strong><\/em> I had changed my services a bit geared towards a market that I wasn\u2019t ready for, and who wouldn\u2019t actually need what I was offering. (Proof that you can be a great writer, and not make sales because you\u2019re not offering people something they want).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Third flaw:<\/strong><\/em> Way too much in my head! You can go down a million roads of oh, it\u2019s because it\u2019s \u2018August\u2019 and that means no one is buying. (Not true). Or oh, \u2018The Universe\u2019 must be sending me a sign. (Stop that).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ETC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solution: At the very end of the month (like Aug 30\u2013I was stubborn) I sat down with my boyfriend (who\u2019s a consultant) and I was like: Look. I need your objective and logical point of view on something. I\u2019m going to tell you everything I did this month, and after that, I\u2019d like to have a conversation and figure out what the problem is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I told him everything I\u2019d been doing, and finally, after about an hour he goes: Fel\u2026don\u2019t you think that the people you\u2019re reaching out to don\u2019t need what you\u2019re selling and that (x market) does?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AH.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, I changed my service and within a day I had a client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So while I name a few challenges above (I.e.\u2013What happens if you don\u2019t make money one month?) another one can be not having a sounding board\u2013it\u2019s important to be around people who are willing to tell you the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE A FEW STEPS BEHIND YOU IN THEIR FREELANCING ENTREPRENEURIAL JOURNEY?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Seek out and learn from the best\u2013even if it\u2019s just a book by someone you trust and who has gotten other people great results or has a proven track record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it\u2019s much too easy to be deluded here online. Remember that you can\u2019t see what goes on behind the scenes. Someone may \u2018look\u2019 successful, but they\u2019re selling nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trust me\u2013this is a thing. I\u2019ve been behind many scenes, and I get appalled when I see someone trying to project an image I know is not true. Beware of people who \u2018yell\u2019 online and call themselves experts and don\u2019t have proof. Beware of crappy copy, too. The more cute and annoying something sounds, the farther away you should go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A great place to start, too, is to learn from Ramit Sethi. If he seems aggressive to you, try and strip that away. He has specific, awesome advice for freelancers just like you who want to make money on the side:\u00a0www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks Fel!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When not writing sales copy and the like for private clients, Fel teaches workshops to entrepreneurs about how to write their own effective sales copy and write persuasive emails to grow their business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start a conversation with her on Twitter:\u00a0@felspahr<\/a>\u00a0or go over to her site\u00a0www.feliciaspahr.com<\/a>\u00a0to learn more about how to communicate effectively or hire her for your copywriting needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Meet Felicia Spahr. A direct-response copywriter and communication consultant who believes that selling and asking for what we want is more than a transaction\u2013it\u2019s about relationships, understanding people, and inspiring action that changes lives.\u00a0Fel and I connected through some blogs we both follow. I then saw the lovely project she did,\u00a0Rebels With a Cause, which … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freelancetofreedomproject.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}