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CREATIVE SMALL BIZ

Turn your talent into a flourishing business.

For freelance writers and other creative professionals.

Published monthly, on the 15th of each month.

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Issue 101: January 15, 2005

Read this issue online at:

http://www.digital-e.biz/newsletter.html


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**** NEW ***

NEW, DAILY WRITING NEWS, VIEWS AND TIPS:

Angela Booth's Writing Blog:

http://copywriter.typepad.com/copywriter/


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(For instructions to join or leave the ezine's mailing list,
scroll to the end.)
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In this issue:

* Editorial: Happy 2005!

* Article: In 2005, Commit to Daily Marketing

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=> Editorial: Happy 2005!

Here we are in 2005. We've got lots of plans for all our sites
this year. If you have a specific want or need, speak up. You can
contact us at any time and make your wishes known. If you have a
question, we’ll answer it, or point you to someone else who can.
If you'd like to see something discussed in CSB, we're happy to
do that too.

As you've noticed, if you're a longterm subscriber, we're
trimming down the ezines. Chiefly this is because of the amount
of sp#m around. The ezines get caught in traps, and don’t get
through to you.

The other primary reason is blogs and RSS --- Really Simply
Syndication. RSS and blogs help you to be an instant-publisher.
They get your information to the people who want it, when they
want it. Blogs emerged into the mainstream with the US election.
A blog is the fastest, easiest and cheapest way for you to
interact with your customers, because a blog is a conversation.

The material that I used to publish in Creative Small Biz and
Your EveryDay Write now appears in our primary blog, so for
ongoing DAILY writing and business tips, inspiration, motivation,
and information, I encourage you to visit Angela Booth's Writing
Blog daily, at:

http://copywriter.typepad.com/copywriter/


What's RSS?

RSS powers blogs. Or collates blogs. :-) To get up to speed on
RSS and instant-publishing, visit:

http://www.faganfinder.com/search/rss.shtml


My favourite newsfeed (RSS) aggregator is Bloglines ---

http://www.bloglines.com


Once you've signed up at Bloglines (it's free), you can add your
newsfeeds very easily. Just read the Help file.

WANT TO KNOW HOW TO GET STARTED BLOGGING?

Our latest Pro Write workshop, "Blog Your Writing", helps you to
get started blogging. The first lesson will be available on
January 15.

http://www.prowrite.biz/


The Internet is changing fast. Are you making the most of the
opportunities the brave new electronic world is bringing you? In
2005, I encourage you to THINK GLOBAL, no matter what kind of
small creative business you own. RSS and blogs will help you to
reach a global marketplace, as fast as you can type. What's not
to like? :-)

Wishing every success with your creative biz!

Angela Booth

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=> Earn as you learn with Digital-e! <=

Sick of your day job? If you'd rather stay home and write,
Digital-e's email writing courses will help you to become a
professional writer. Write when and where you want. The weekly
payment plans on our e-courses and coaching programs make it an
affordable option to earn as you learn. (You'll have Angela at
your side to cheer you on. :-)) You'll find the part-payment
buttons on the appropriate course pages. Not sure how it works,
or if it's right for you?

Info on Digital-e's courses:

http://www.digital-e.biz/ecourses.html

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=> PRO WRITE: January 2005 1st Birthday Special

CHARTER MEMBER OFFER REPEAT

http://www.digital-e.biz/specials.html

Wow, the Pro Write: Professional Writing Secrets site is a year
old. If you've been wondering whether membership is for you, you
can now take advantage of our birthday to find out. We're
repeating the Charter Membership offer with which we launched the
site --- a full year of Pro Write, at a very special price.

Your new career starts NOW. If you've always wanted to turn your
love of writing into a full-time career, YOU CAN.

Our 1st Birthday Repeat Charter Membership Special Offer gives
you a full year of Pro Write membership.

http://www.digital-e.biz/specials.html


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Article: In 2005, Commit to Daily Marketing


Copyright © 2005 by Angela Booth. All rights reserved.




Your creative small business success is built on marketing. Look
at any successful enterprise, from Pizza Hut to the solo home
business operator. They all market consistently. There's no way
they can survive without marketing.

If you've recently made the transition from paid employment to
your own business, you may find the marketing concept difficult
to get your head around. When you're working for someone else,
they handle all the marketing.

An employer's marketing efforts may be invisible to the staff.
The marketing may consist of: a yearly Yellow Pages ad, local
advertising, attendance at trade shows, private networking, and
outsourced telemarketing.

If you're a solo operator, at least 40 per cent of your working
time each week needs to be spent on marketing. You need to have
processes in place so that you can simply get it done without
thinking too much about it. If marketing is difficult for you,
it's because you don’t have the processes in place which make it
easy.

You can choose to spend half your daily working time marketing,
or you can devote a couple of days each week to marketing. Your
choice. But you must get it done.


==> What's best? Online or offline marketing?

That depends on your client base, and your own comfort level.
Where do your clients come from? If you've just started your own
small business, you may feel more comfortable dealing with local
businesses, by which I mean businesses within easy driving
distance. On the other hand, you may feel comfortable dealing
with national and international businesses from the start.

I'm happy dealing with international businesses, because I
started my professional writing career working with a British
publisher over 20 years ago. (I'm in Australia.) In those days,
international phone calls were an event, and if my editor and I
wanted to get in touch quickly, we sent telegrams.

Nowadays working with someone on the other side of the world is
just as easy as working with someone locally. Easier, in some
ways, because of the time difference. A US or UK client can email
me a brief, and I can usually have the work done for them by the
time they hit their office the next morning.

For most small creative businesses, I suggest a mix of both
online and offline marketing.

Here's a good starting place: combine intensive local
telemarketing (cold calls), with creating a quick blog (Web log).

Our latest Pro Write workshop is "Blog Your Writing", and will
get you up to speed on blogging.

http://www.prowrite.biz/


==> Remember the name-recognition factor

Nothing will derail your marketing efforts more quickly than
misunderstanding the marketing cycle. As a rule of thumb,
consider that it will take around three months for your initial
marketing efforts to parlay into a viable small business.
Therefore, if you're just starting out, make sure that you have
sufficient funds to keep you going for at least three months.

Your prospects need to see your name over and over again before
they buy your services. Make sure that when they want your
services, they recognize your name! Build the relationship.

You can get bored when you're doing the same thing over and over
and you get no result. You may have inserted a paid ad into your
local paper for eight weeks, with zero reaction. Place the ad for
another four weeks, please. It takes at least three months of
placing your ad for you to start getting business from it.

Making time to market every day builds your business. Your first
resolution for 2005 should be that you will market your business
every day ---- no matter what!

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Please note, we're having problems with sp#mmers spoofing our
digital-e email addresses. The easiest way to make contact with
us is to use the online feedback forms on Digital-e and Pro Write
until the situation resolves itself.

Please contact us at:

http://www.digital-e.biz/feedback.html

http://www.prowrite.biz/contact.htm

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Fr*ee resources, information and inspiration for writers--
You'll find them all at WriteSuccess, the site and ezine
dedicated to helping writers turn dreams into reality.
Sign up today and get motivated! http://writesuccess.com
 

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=> Coaching program: Market Your Writing

If you love writing, and wish that you could turn your hobby into
a well-paid career, you can. TODAY. Thousands of markets are
looking for YOUR work, right now.

When you sell your writing, you get more than money. You get
confidence, prestige, and validation. You're climbing the ladder
of a new career where the sky is the limit.

To be a selling writer, you need marketing skills. My brand-new
marketing coaching program gives you those skills.

My personal guarantee to you: if you begin this program, you WILL
SELL your work.

http://www.digital-e.biz/coaching.html


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Creative Small Biz: Copyright © 2005 by Angela Booth. All rights
reserved.


YOUR PRIVACY

Your privacy is important. You've signed on for this ezine in
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Creative Small Biz

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Para Hills SA 5096

Australia

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