Can I make 6 figures as a freelance copywriter??
What about 7-figures???
I often get asked this question from aspiring copywriters and my answer always remains the same…
YES.
You can earn 6 figures or more as a freelance copywriter.
HOWEVER:
You can also make less than a McDonald’s worker.
You see, as a freelance copywriter, you are a business owner.
And the amount of money you earn is directly tied to you. And how you run your freelance copywriting business.
My #1 tip for growing a successful freelance copywriting business is to provide your clients EXTREME VALUE.
To truly care about them.
And always look for ways to go above and beyond for them.
This relationship-first approach of treating your clients like royalty is the mindset you want to have at all times.
With that being said, I’m going to reveal the 3 quickest ways to grow your freelance copywriting business in 2024.
After reading this post, you’ll be ready to put these tips into action and start generating more clients and more sales… RIGHT AWAY.
These 3 insider secrets can potentially earn you MILLIONS.
But only if you apply them, consistently, throughout your freelance copywriting career.
They are long-term solutions to business growth (but you can experience shocking benefits within days).
But first…
Before we get into the good stuff...
Let’s cover some basics…
What is a Copywriting Business?
A copywriting business is simply any copywriter who works for themselves.
Aka:
A freelance copywriter.
Instead of working for a company (as their employee) – like an in-house copywriter or an agency copywriter – you are working for yourself and writing for your own clients.
You are the boss.
As a freelance copywriter, you have more responsibilities than simply writing copy.
A big chunk of your time will also be spent getting freelance clients and managing your finances (making sure you get paid from clients, managing your copywriting rates, expenses, taxes, etc.)
How to Start a Freelance Copywriting Business in 2024?
I’ve created a step-by-step crash course on how to quickly start a freelance copywriting business.
You can read all about it here.
I recommend ALL freelance copywriters to read this detailed post, from start to finish, because it covers the essential steps (from A to Z) you need to take to build a successful freelance copywriting business from scratch.
There are key building blocks you need to set in place in order to be successful.
If just ONE building block is missing, your freelance copywriting business will crumble, FAST.
Make sure you read this post ASAP to ensure your long-term success as a freelance copywriter.
Alright, now on to the good stuff…
3 Ways to Grow Your Freelance Copywriting Business to Reach “6 Figures” THIS YEAR (Or More)
These are 3 top secret ways to put your freelance business on steroids.
To scale your copywriting business faster than a bullet and put duffle bags of dead presidents in your bank account, month after month, year after year. Building more momentum with each day that passes.
Here’s the dog’s honest truth:
You can realistically grow a 6-figure copywriting business this year by applying just ONE of these business-growth tips.
Apply all 3… and the sky’s the limit to your earning potential.
Ready?
Let’s goooo….
#1 Referrals
Generating referrals is amongst the easiest, most cost-effective ways to gain new freelance copywriting clients and help you grow your copywriting business.
The best leads you can have, are leads who were referred to you by past clients.
Because they are sent to you on a silver platter by people who know, like and trust you and have already put in the good word for you.
How to get referrals:
Current clients
These are the fine folk you’re currently working with, right now… and past clients.
These people like, know and trust you and are red-hot sources to give you referrals.
It’s simple.
If you’ve provided them value and a good experience, then, you just have to ask for referrals.
If you are currently working with a copywriting client, especially on repeat work (so they’re already happy with the work you’ve done for them) ask them for a referral at the end of a call or whenever you talk to them next.
This is a very easy, simple and EFFECTIVE way to get more HIGH-QUALITY freelance copywriting clients.
Past clients
Anyone you’ve provided work for in the past (given it was a good experience) is a potential REFERRAL GOLD MINE.
If you’ve already provided a great experience for them, then they’re very likely to refer you to business owners they know, because they already like, know and trust you.
Simply reach out to any and all of your past copywriting clients and see how they’re doing.
After bonding with them, ask for referrals.
Or…
You can just ask them straight up for a referral.
Try both methods.
Note:
The more recent your client, the better. Because the tremendous experience you provided them is fresh in their brain.
Here’s a quick fill-in-the-blank template you can use when asking for referrals:
Hello {First name},
I hope you had a great weekend.
It’s been a pleasure working with {Company name} on {Project}.
I’m always looking to provide value to like-minded people, so if you know of anyone in the industry who could benefit from my services, please let me know.
Feel free to give them my email.
Thanks!
Best,
{Your name}
It can be this simple!
You’d be pleasantly surprised at how many clients will happily suggest your services to other business owners if they’ve had a positive experience working with you.
Networking contacts
Networking groups are a smart way of generating referrals because you are there to benefit each other.
Your objective of networking is to meet success-oriented people to exchange referrals with.
Tip:
Get your network buddy to contact the referrals, on their behalf, with a person who is in the market for your services and to vouch for you.
Also…
Make sure you provide them value FIRST.
Give them something valuable in return for the referral.
Find out what they want by ASKING them WHY they’re at the networking group in the first place and figure out a way to provide them value.
Additional tips for getting referrals:
Reward your referral sources
Always thank everyone who refers people to you. Send them gifts. REWARD their good behavior and ENCOURAGE them to keep doing so.
Events
Invite your past copywriting clients, who refer people to you, to a client appreciation event (can be as simple as taking them out for food & drinks or inviting them to a house party.)
Become a specialist
If you are seen as the go-to guy or gal for your niche, you will naturally attract a lot more referrals because your clients want to provide value to their company and professional network. And they will refer them to the specialist… over the generalist, EVERY TIME.
Superior service
An absolute must for getting referrals is to deliver great service to your clients. Constantly look for new ways to wow them by going above n beyond for them. When you provide exceptional service, not only will they be more likely to refer business to you when you ask, but they will also refer people to you automatically because you treated them so well.
#2 The REAL Money is In The Backend
The real money’s in the backend.
The most successful business owners and marketers understand this fundamental business truth - that the real money comes from their EXISTING CUSTOMERS.
The same is true with your past copywriting clients.
They are the most likely to buy from you again and refer business to you.
So, you should put them on a pedestal. Treat them like royalty.
Meaning:
ALWAYS maintain your relationship with them.
Stay in contact with them and provide them with superior service.
You want to always be on their minds and be seen as the go-to person they think of when they are in need of your copywriting services (or know someone who is).
Offer them upsells
Instead of 3 landing pages, offer to write 5 for a discount.
Instead of 10 emails, offer to write 15 for half the normal price.
And so on…
This allows you to make more money per service you provide.
Also…
Get them on retainers
The real wealth comes from subscriptions (aka retainers).
You want to get clients to have retainer contracts with you, where they pay you monthly for your copywriting services.
This way, you don’t have to pitch them again or get them on a sales call.
And…
Every month you automatically get more work and earn more money.
The good news is…
Tons of clients will need repeat services.
Very few copywriting services are one-and-done deals IF you do a great job.
Services that require retainers:
- Email sequences – rarely any business only sends out one (or a few) emails. Email is usually the easiest service to get retainers for.
- Blog posts
- Social media content
- Paid ads
Finding ways to add upsells to your current offers (related services that compliment what you offer and provide additional value) and getting as much retainer work as possible are 2 sure-fire ways to grow your copywriting business – FAST (and keep growing your copywriting business steady, over long-term).
#3 Content Marketing
If you’re just starting out…
You’ll need to pitch, apply and network to get clients.
It requires a lot of time and energy.
And you need to keep doing it until you get steady repeat business and referrals (which can take a while).
However…
While you do this work to get immediate clients, you should also invest some time and energy into content marketing.
This can include:
- Blog posts
- YouTube channel
- Podcast
- Social media: Facebook, Insta, twitter, TikTok
Benefits of content marketing:
- Passive income
- Generates clients while you sleep
- ATTRACT clients to you, without you doing any additional work. No hunting or pitching required (unlike with prospecting)
- Besides referrals, these are the most valuable clients
- The copywriting clients you get from content marketing are actively LOOKING for you and your copywriting services
However…
It takes a long time to notice any results from content marketing.
It’s a very effective long-term strategy to gain copywriting clients.
But once you DO build momentum…
It builds and builds and builds…
You can get so many clients over time that you’ll never need to send cold emails or apply for freelance gigs again.
(It’ll get to the point where you’ll even need to reject client requests because you’ve got so much work.)
Additional Content Marketing Tips
Choose a search-based platform
Start a blog or YouTube channel.
Why?
Because on these platforms, potential copywriting clients are SEARCHING for your services.
They are SEARCHING for solutions to their problems.
Plus, these platforms offer long-term momentum.
Blog posts and YouTube videos only grow over time.
And they can attract new copywriting clients for you for years to come (unlike a non-search-based platform like Instagram or TikTok.)
Choose 1 platform
I STRONLGY recommend choosing only ONE platform and sticking with this ONE platform for at least a year.
Why?
Because all platforms have best practices and different ways of using them to grow your freelance copywriting business. So…
Get good and master ONE before moving to another.
A blog or YouTube channel can bring you enough work for the rest of your life IF you do it correctly.
Choose the platform where your target audience spends the most time on.
For example:
If your target audience is 50-year-olds, don’t use TikTok or Insta.
Eventually…
After you create success on one platform...
You can easily turn a blog post into a script to film a YouTube video, and then, take the audio from that video to create a podcast.
Conclusion
You now have 3 of the most valuable secrets for growing your freelance copywriting business.
Use them to scale your business to 6-figures… 7-figures… and beyond!
If you’d like more insider secrets to quickly become a top-paid copywriter, enter your email below: