This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 14th, 2007 at 10:28 am and is filed under Hiring Consultants, Nonprofit Communications, Publication Management. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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Where Do You Find Freelance Writers?
This question came in to me recently on AskKivi.com:
“Do you have any referrals to non-profit/charity writers who can write brochures? I don’t want a full service firm, I want a consultant who has written copy for charities: direct mail, annual reports, brochures, promotional/fundraising pieces, etc.”
As a full-time freelance writer, I’ve found that most of my nonprofit clients find me either through word-of-mouth from people who know me (including other clients) or via online searches that lead to this blog or my other sites.
If your nonprofit is looking for a freelance writer, my advice is to take these three steps:
1) Ask around. Talk to other nonprofits in your geographic area or field of expertise about who they use. Personal recommendations are always extremely helpful when you are dealing with subjective work like writing, design, etc.
2) Search online. Type in some keywords related to the type of work you need done (e.g., brochures, annual reports), your subject area (e.g., mental health, environment, nonprofit) and the service needed (e.g., freelance writer, graphic designer), and see what comes up.
3) Consult directories. If your state has a nonprofit association (most do), ask them if they have any recommendations or service provider directories. Writing organizations also publish directories of their members.
Where do you find freelance writers when you need them? Please leave a comment on this post with your reply.
P.S. I’ve cut back on the number of hours I’m working with some existing clients to make room for some new faces on my client list. If you need help with your nonprofit communications work, please let me know. I’ll be happy to discuss your projects and provide free estimates. You can reach me at kivi *AT* writing911.com or 336-499-5816 (ET).
April 11th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
Good advice, Kivi! I think the #1 source is always going to be word of mouth. That’s what make social networking online so powerful. It combines the trust factor of word-of-mouth with the power of online networking.
And it’s interesting to hear that you have clients finding you through online searches. It gives the rest of us would-be freelancers hope (and incentive to keep up with our own blogs)!
Incidentally, I just found your site today, and you’re already in my Google reader! Great stuff.