Photo Credit: Hermes Rivera

Need more freelance clients? Book a speaking gig.

Austin L. Church
Aug 31, 2018 · 3 min read

You may or may not enjoy public speaking, but the fact is, giving a tactical talk about writing at local marketing or startup event can get you business.

For example, let’s say you contact the director of a startup accelerator in your city.

You’re more afraid of public speaking than death, but you decide to put together a free hands-on workshop about writing strong web content. You meet new people. You form new relationships.

You can subtly market your services to a dozen people all at once.

You have a captive audience, and you can build rapport quickly by creating an “A-ha!” moment.

I’ve given talks about Kickstarter campaigns and writing good web content, the importance of storytelling in writing and attracting better clients, eliminating toxic clients from your life and meeting goals.

Guess what happens afterward? I swap business cards with a few folks. I invite them out to lunch. I ask some of them if I can add them to my regular educational e-newsletter, and I get new clients.

My talks were far from perfect. I still feel anxious because I want to do well, but I take heart in what Tim Ferriss says: “It’s totally fine if you get nervous and stammer a bit, drop F-bombs where needed, or generally feel like a nervous wreck. If you give good actionable, clear advice, people will forgive it all.”

So what’s next?

This: Make a list of organizations in your city that put on regular learning-focused events — your chamber of commerce, startup ecosystem, local service clubs (e.g., Kiwanis, Lions Club, Chamber of Commerce, and Rotary), business networking group (e.g., BNI), conferences, and other meetups.

Reach out to the head of marketing or programming at each, and offer to give a talk or teach a workshop.

And don’t miss this great opportunity either…

If you’re highly motivated right now to grow your freelance business, then you should get my guide, “Get Better Freelance Clients.”

It’s got a 29-day action plan that will tell you exactly what to do, step by step.

I gathered up all of the strategies and tactics that helped me ramp up my freelance business and consistently earn $100,000+.

→ Then, I organized them all in roughly chronological order.

→ Then, I added clear instructions for each step.

→ Then, I added templates and other resources so that there’s zero guesswork.

When life is crazy — my wife and I have three kids, so yeah — you may realistically only be able to work on your business, not in your business, about 15 minutes per day.

You must make the most of that business development and marketing time!

So the key is focusing on what you can do (not on what you can’t) and finishing one small, specific action each day.

Today, that one specific action is getting Get Better Freelance Clients — 29-Day Action Plan.

Get the guide. →

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Austin L. Church

Written by

Husband & Father. Writer & Freelance Coach @ AustinLChurch.com. Brand Strategist @ Balernum.com. Love Jesus, Megan, Salem, Theo, Ellis & you. You’re ready. Go!

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