I’ve worked with hundreds of successful freelance writers over my 16 years as Executive Director of American Writers & Artists Inc. One thing these success stories have in common is the importance of focusing on a specific industry or niche.
Pam Foster is the perfect example of this. After a few years of being a freelance copywriter, she decided to specialize in the Pet Copywriting industry. And this is when her career really started to take off. Today she’s one of the top copywriters in the pet industry and she’s considered an expert marketer in her field.
Here are a few of her tips. 
First, ask yourself these questions:
- Why did you pursue freelance copywriting as a business path?
- Who would you most like to help with your copywriting skills?
- What does your ideal client look like?
- Do you want to travel for business or work strictly from home?
- What financial goals do you have in the next 12 months for your copywriting business?
- What lifestyle goals do you have for your copywriting business?
- What markets have you worked for in the past that you liked?
- What hobbies do you enjoy?
By the time you’re done answering these questions you should have some idea of what niche you’d like to focus on.
But keep an open mind …
Because you still have work to do.
You’ll need to make sure the niche market you’re interested in is worth pursuing.
Make sure it’s a thriving, growing market, with plenty of mid-sized and larger companies that are willing to pay for your skills.
In other words, you’ll want to find a niche market that uses copywriters … and values them.
If you’re still at a loss of what niche you’d like to specialize in, Pam put together this list with ideas to get you started:
Copywriting niches:
- Data
- Video Games
- Manufacturing
- Trusts & Estates
- Beauty and cosmetics
- Search Engines
- Online retail
- Recycling Facilities
- Beverages
- Land Development
- Health
- Social games
- Vending companies
- Virtual data rooms/office space
- Customer service
- Food, especially specialty foods
- Lending
- Generic Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
- Candy
- Solar Panel Manufacturing
- Apps
- For-Profit Universities
- Healthcare technology
- Pilates & Yoga Studios
- Beer, wine and liquor
- Self-Tanning Product Manufacturing
- Software services
- 3D Printer Manufacturing
- Home health care
- Social Network Game Development
- Yoga products and services
- Hot Sauce Production
- Technical and trade schools
- Green & Sustainable Building Construction
- Fast casual dining
- Online Eyeglasses & Contact Lens Sales
- Green construction
- Adaptive living
- Education technology
- Accountants/accounting firms
- Temporary staffing
- Lawyers/law firms
- Accounting
- Dentists, medical offices
- Repair services
- Diet centers, Botox clinics, hairdressers
- Self improvement
- Voice Over Internet Protocol Providers
- Energy
- Companies marketing to teens and youth
- Babies
- Summer camps, student travel programs
- Retirement & Pension Plans
- Dentists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, eye care
- Biotechnology
- Gaming
- e-Commerce & Online Auctions
- Credit Unions
Excerpt from “How to Choose Your Writing Niche” by Pam Foster
Great list, right?
Hopefully it helps you decide on a niche market. And now you just need to make your decision. Declare your niche market by saying out loud:
Okay? Feeling good? I hope so!
There’s nothing more LIBERATING and
BENEFICIAL than declaring a niche market focus.
Why?
Because now you know exactly…
- Who you want to attract through all your marketing efforts;
- What those clients need from you that they’re not finding now;
- What their customers want—what’s the biggest need you can help your clients solve for their customers;
- What you can do to help clients attract more customers; and
- Why you’re in business.
Once you’ve decided on your niche, you’ll need to get to work.
Here are just a few of the things that you can add to your to-do list.
- Prepare a Business Focus Document
- Create your “Why Hire Me?” page
- Get to know your prospect
- Brand your Business
- Create your freelance website
- Put together a portfolio
- Optimize your website
- Get referrals!
- Create a blog
- Set up social media accounts
- Join trade associations
- Form alliances with experts in the industry
- Advertise
- Set up e-newsletters and auto-responders
Now just work on keeping the momentum going.
Create a calendar with deadlines and to-do lists. Begin working on your portfolio, start networking with potential prospects. Do something to move your business forward each and every day.
About the author:
Katie Yeakle has spent over 20 years in the world of direct marketing and publishing in the roles of copy editor, editorial coordinator, product manager, fulfillment supervisor, marketing manager and publisher. Recognizing the industry-wide need for talented copywriters who can deliver copy that sells, she helped establish American Writers & Artists Inc. (AWAI) with co-founders Paul Hollingshead and Don Mahoney in 1997. Today, as Executive Director, Katie oversees AWAI’s 100+ programs designed to help people turn their passions into careers.
