Tuesday, February 06, 2007

How to Use Your PayPal Money to Advance Your Freelance Writing Career

If you receive money from an online payment processor like PayPal, you probably use it as knockaround cash.

Usually, depending on where the funds came from, the amounts are nominal. Eg, $12 from a few articles written, $7 from an e-book sale, $20 from an item sold on eBay.

When it comes to money, most of us don't recognize the value of small amounts. Following are three things you can do to advance your freelance writing career from the money you make online.

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3 Tips for Using Your Online Money to Advance Your Freelance Writing Career

1. Advertising: If you want to make a serious go of freelancing, using the "nominal" amounts from your PayPal account can go a long way towards brining in clients.

Many popular writing e-zines and small business websites sell classified ads, eg, writing-world.com and PowerHomeBiz.com are two sites that come to mind. These sites reach thousands of targeted visitors for just a few dollars a month.

Compared to offline advertising, eg, post card mailings, this type of advertising is some of the most effective, cost-conscious advertising you can buy.

Most freelancers don't think about advertising when they start out. However, it's critical if you want to grow a business - which is what freelancing is. While free methods like article marketing should always be utilized, combining them with paid advertising will help you grow your freelance writing business that much quicker.

So, while your PayPal account is growing, scout out some cheap online outlets in which to advertise and when your account hits the magic amount, place that ad!

2. Increasing Your Skill Set: Take an online course, learn a new software, attend a seminar, etc. Whatever you consistently put off because you can't afford it, allocate your PayPal earnings to it and finally knock this goal out.

Increasing your skill set can garner you new clients and/or broaden the array of services you offer clients.

Assigning a purpose like this to your online earnings will usually push you to sell more, because you will want to reach your goal that much sooner.

3. Building a Website: Although this is a form of advertising, I separated it out because if you're serious about making a living from freelancing, having a website is no longer an option, it's a must.

Many freelance writers procrastinate on getting a website, either because they don't have the money, don't have the time to learn a software so that they can build it themselves, or a combination of both.

Many resort to the, "when I can afford it; when I get a big project; when my niece can build it for me" syndrome. In other words, they delay, delay, delay until . . .

If you consistently and effectively allocate your PayPal earnings to a specific growth-oriented goal, before long, it will hold big chunks of money - brought in from clients you've acquired through the judicious use of those small deposits.

Good luck!
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