This seems like a natural follow-up to my article on Using Writer’s Guidelines Effectively. Online job lists listing jobs for freelance writers, freelance copy editors, freelance reviewers, etc., abound–and there’s money to be made from those lists if one knows how to reply to those listings effectively. There are definite Do’s and Don’t’s when answering an online listing and I will cover the most important ones in this article.
Follow the instructions given in the listing to the letter. That’s the biggest mistake most new writers make; they don’t follow the instructions. More and more listings specify “No Attachments,” yet writers still send attachments along with their email applications. There’s a good reason why people state no attachments: attachments are the most common way of propogating computer viruses, spyware, and other malware. Given these facts, attachments go unopened and serve no purpose. Worse yet, to send attachments when you are told not to tells the editor or publisher that you don’t follow instructions and no editor or publisher wants to work with a writer who can’t or won’t follow instructions. If the listing tells you to paste everything into the body of the email, paste everything into the body of the email: cover letter, clips, etc. Some listings ask you to reply by snail mail; in that case never reply by email even if there’s an email address given. The editor has a reason for wanting snail mail, so use it even if it means including a Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope for his or her reply. Always include a SASE even if it’s not requested specifically; It could be the difference between getting the gig and not getting the gig. The SASE is the sign of the professional.
Following right on the heels of not following the directions given in the online ad is “asking for additional information.” Never ask for additional information, at least not in your initial contact with the editor or publisher or whomever is handling the hiring process. The ad/listing will provide you with all the information that you will need to determine whether you qualify for the position being offered. Asking for additional information in your first contact can assure you that your email or snail mail will not get a response. Why is that? You won’t get a response because enough people would have made an application as that first contact with the person making the decision to select one or more people to work with or to interview further; by the time your request is received, the position is filled.
Time is money. Don’t waste your time or anyone else’s by applying for a writing gig that you don’t have the qualifications to do. There are some writing gigs, like writing short article for SEO sites, that almost anyone with a good grasp of grammar and manuscript mechanics can do, but others, like writing “White Papers,” take special skills and techniques to do. Don’t exaggerate your writing skills and experience. You may be able to bluff your way into getting an assignment but when you fail miserably–and you probably will unless you know someone who has the skills and hire them to ghost write it for you–you will never get another shot with that customer. The publishing world is really a small world and editors and publishers are a tight-knit little group; and a writer’s reputation, good or bad, spreads like wildfire.
Keep in mind that the editor or publisher who placed the listing has a problem and it’s your job as a writer to solve that problem. In your initial contact with the person in charge of selecting the best writer to solve that problem you must show them that you know what the problem is and then sell yourself to them as being the best writer to solve that problem. Pay close attention to the tone used in the ad and then craft your response to match their tone.
The competition for good-paying gigs is fierce so the old expression, “the early bird gets the worm,” applies here. It’s best to answer a listing the same day it appears on the Internet because there will be hundreds, even thousands, of writers responding to it. After a couple of days, they will stop responding to applying writers.
Don’t expect to hear from them unless they are impressed with your application and with your qualifications. As a rule, unless they want to hire you they won’t contact you. It would be nice if they did let you know one way or the other, but it’s just not feasible or practical. At the same time, don’t write an editor or publisher off just because you didn’t get the gig you applied for. I’ve replied to online ads, never heard back, and then months later got an email from the same editor asking me if I would write an article on “such and such” for his or her site. Never burn your bridges.
