Today I am going to continue with our plan to elaborate on the Ten Reasons Businesses Fail with information on number three, Competition. Originally, I intended to write this article earlier, but I have been having a hard time finding the best way to approach the subject. Most of these setbacks are due to the profound sense of community that I have gained through participation in this blog. 

Perhaps the best way to explain it is to direct you to one of my favorite mom blogs I’m Somebody’s Mother?   In this particular entry, Chelsea discusses how angry it makes her when mothers pass judgment on one another for ridiculous differences of opinion, when, in reality, we are all trying to accomplish the same goal of loving and raising our children. She ends by saying “I wish moms could just support each other and recognize that at the end of the day, we’re all on the same team.” Change the word “moms” in that sentence to “freelancers,” and you’ve got my sentiments on competition.  

I know that freelance writing is a business and that it is a fiercely competitive business to boot. I know that in order for Lorna and me to be able to make our business goals become realities, we have to research our competition and provide something above and beyond said competition. Playing the nicey-nicey game all day long might be emotionally fulfilling, but it is no way to market or run a successful business venture. My husband, our marketing expert, continually tells me to find out what other freelancers are doing. Where are they finding their clients? What are their rates? How do they structure their websites? What can we offer that they can’t? How can we get their clients without sacrificing our pricing? 

These are all good questions, and they are issues that we are trying to address not only in our overall business plan, but in our daily activities as well. Unfortunately, many of the common job posting sites (freelance blogs, Craig’s List, Guru, Elance) are already bombarded with interested parties. There are so many prospective writers, each representing a huge variety of skill levels and prices. Employers can find dirt cheap writers who will under-price us every time. They can also find writers who have been in the game longer than we have, with impressive portfolios to prove it. 

This isn’t all. The truth of it is, many of you readers are our competition as well. That is what makes this kind of complicated. Because I want your jobs and your clients. And I will do anything I can to get them.  

At the same time, I want your support and your advice (especially if you know how to get all the good jobs), and I appreciate all the great feedback of this community. Most freelancers know that word-of-mouth and networking are some of the best ways to get new clients, so I also want you to recommend me to everyone you can. 

I’m going to use this line of thinking as a platform to once again promote the concept of building a niche. By forcing yourself to specialize in a specific area, you will drastically cut down on competitors. You will be able to command higher prices for your expertise. Even more importantly, you will find that other freelancers—even other freelance writers—will recommend you for jobs that they know they aren’t qualified to address. This kind of community building can be huge; I have no problems suggesting other writers in my network if I know they will return the favor. 

The fact of the matter is, we’re all on the same team. We’re all parents (or parents-to-be!) trying to find ways to reconcile being at home with financial and intellectual security. Although I’d love to crush every one of you to the ground and take those high-paying, loyal clients you have hiding in your email address books, I know that what I would really like is to see us all succeeding in the areas that make us the happiest.

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