How to make yourself instantly more valuable to your clients and demand higher fees as a freelance copywriter… Even if you’re just getting started and don’t even have a job under your belt, yet.

If you’re a new copywriter getting started in the world of freelancing… Or you’re an opportunity-seeker, considering mapping your way to success through freelance copywriting… this is an article you’d be glad you read.

Because it’ll help you avoid a sputtering start of feast and famine, as plenty of copywriters experience… Instead, you’d get straight into working with great clients or your own choosing, right from the start.

You can thank me later.

So, let’s get to it.

Every day more and more aspiring writers are achieving their writer’s dream through direct response copywriting.

But for me, my progress seemed to come along at a snail’s pace. Year after year I read success stories from other AWAI members who are achieving phenomenal success. You’ve probably also read of many who have won the annual 10k challenge.

My failure to make it big wasn’t for not trying… I had completed the “AWAI Accelerated course” and the “Master’s programme” as well.

I felt confident that I understood the concepts of copywriting. At this point I had written a couple of emails, articles, and landing pages for a few clients. I also use my copywriting skills in promoting some affiliate programs with some decent success. But I hadn’t yet hit the big time.

Dan Kennedy’s voice still rings in my head when he said he charges his copywriting clients $75,000 upfront plus a 4% royalty. And I remember Clayton Makepeace saying he charges about the same. Today, many know Clayton as the highest-paid copywriter in the business.

I had big dreams, big ambitions and an intense drive to become a great direct-response copywriter and marketer, in the ranks of Dan Kennedy and Clayton Makepeace just to name a few.

But success was still eluding me, and I didn’t understand why.

It was the summer of 2016; my childhood friend Vin came to visit me in London from Canada. He loved clubbing and wanted to experience the London club scene. So, I planned for us to help between my two best clubs in central London.

We visited my favourite club in Marble Arch and then bounced over to my favourite club in Leicester Square.

Now, my Friend Vin is built like a tank, he played for the CFL (Canadian Football League) for a stint. And he worked as a bouncer at nightclubs in Manitoba while at college. So, he was skilled at schmoozing the gatekeepers and bouncers at the door, getting us quick access into the clubs.

I hadn’t been to these clubs in a long while. But something really stood out to me after we left the Marble Arch club and headed to a second club in Leicester Square.

None of the clubs had the usual muscle men guarding the doors. Instead, they were mostly average looking guys. The one in Leicester square actually had two guys and two pint-sized ladies at the door. Vin at 6'4'’ towered over them all.

On leaving the club after a fun filled night… Vin, in a tone of admiration said — London club owners seem to be one of the smartest he’s come across.

“Why do you say that?” I enquired.

“They choose to use specialists to de-escalate confrontations, instead of hiring musclemen to man-handle troublemakers”, Vin replied.

“The first club had two MMA specialists, the second club had a Judoka, ju-jitsu practitioner, and two ladies that were highly skilled in street hypnosis and mind-bending communication” he continued.

“So, how does that make them so smart?”

“Every one of them are specialists in conflict de-escalation. And each of those ladies can talk you into, or out of doing anything, and you’d swear it was your choice, not theirs!”

And suddenly it hit me.

My copywriting career was not advancing as I had wished, because to my prospects I was like the intimidating musclemen who were fast disappearing from the gates and doors of London nightclubs.

His services are no longer required or valued by the nightclubs, because he’s a specialist in nothing they value.

In my case, my prospects had been seeing me as a new copywriter with no special experience in their industry. Nothing differentiated me from the multitude of other generalist copywriters. The few prospects that reached out to me were only curious about what a copywriter does.

Our interactions normally resemble an interrogation scene, like something you’ve seen on the popular detective TV series — CSI.

I was having to sell myself and defend my credibility over the telephone — on a first call. And if you know anything about selling, you know this is a very weak position to be in, and it seldom helps you.

It was dead obvious I needed to make a change, FAST! I had to choose a copywriting specialty… A niche I’d love to focus on.

I took the next couple of weeks to pick the niche I will focus my copywriting career on, for at least 3 to 5 years.

So, here is what I did and what I recommend you do as a copywriter if you want to stay focused and achieve success much quicker.

1) I made a list of different niches that interested me, then trimmed it down to just 3.

2) I use the Google keyword planner to analyse the searches and interest each of my short-listed niches were attracting.

3) I use Google to discover blogs, authority sites, and social media groups built around the niches of my interest. I did this to eavesdrop on my potential market, to see what was going on and what they were discussing. I also wanted to know if I’ll enjoy writing for the niche.

4) I followed my gut and decided on a niche.

5) I immediately started creating some short copy samples for my chosen niche. I wrote a couple short blog posts, articles, emails, and one lead capture page.

6) then I started working on my copywriter’s info packet, and my LinkedIn profile.

7) I use domainsbot.com to help me come up with a suitable domain name for a website.

I got my website built within four days and launched myself into the marketplace as an alternative health direct response copywriter.

Here are a few things I observed after re-launching myself as a niche specialist copywriter.

• I had clearer more focused thinking
• I started seeing myself as a true specialist who deserved healthy rewards and fees.
• My marketing cost me less because it was much more targeted.
• Because of my narrow-focused marketing messages, my lead generation landing page was converting at 40% +. And this is higher than anything I had ever experienced.
• I no longer felt the anxiety I used to feel when curious prospects called me unexpected, to enquire about my copywriting services.
• My reading and learning became more focused. I was no longer trying to learn everything about copywriting, instead I focus on learning things my clients in the health niche will consider valuable.

And you might like to know that within my first two weeks of launching I got my first interested enquiry of LinkedIn from a hypnotherapist and podcast personality. And this time around, I didn’t need to sell myself or defend my credibility.

By the way, I’m not saying choosing a niche will guarantee your success as a copywriter… You still need to learn how to write good copy and make your clients happy with results.

For me, specialising gave me more focus, more confidence, and more belief in my ability to achieve success as a freelance copywriter.

It reminds me of a quote I once heard from the world-renowned speaker and success coach, Bob Proctor: “energy flows where focus goes”.

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Donald C. Obii is an online conversion specialist and marketing strategist for eCommerce businesses in the food, nutrition, wellness, and alternative health space. He helps his clients drum up an avalanche of sales via his effortlessly persuasive email campaigns, which sell without hype or sleazy marketing speak. He also publishes weekly (sometimes daily) content on his medium page. His articles are laced with tantalizing allegories and never fail to deliver a one-two punch of profit-pulling marketing insights. If you want help with your next email campaign, email him at: donald[at]cultofconversions[dot]com
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