Okay, I know a huge portion of your job as a writer is the writing (and writing-related tasks). Obviously, when you market yourself as a writer, people want to know about your writing and focus on the writing services you provide. So when you go to meetings you talk a lot about the projects you’ve completed, written work you’re proud of and how your writing benefits the potential client.
That’s all fantastic.
But as a writer, you’re not just providing the client with written materials. You’re also giving them–not to make this sound too cliched, but let’s just go with it–the gift of time. Because every word you write is a word the client isn’t agonizing over. Every minute you spend on reports is time they can spend in other activities, such as choosing a long-distance carrier or hiring an administrative assistant. Every grant proposal you write is one they don’t have to, giving them the time to oversee important fundraising events, like whatever run is going on this week (seriously, there is A LOT of running for charity going on).
Why is this important? Because when you market yourself to a client, the focus is often on the final product and the client will–understandably–put a dollar value on that product and then determine whether your cost is worth that value. But they forget about all the time, hassle and annoyance they face if they were to write the document themselves. When they view it in that light, your writing suddenly seems a lot more valuable.
Take the case of grant writing. I wrote a post about it almost two years ago, but since that time, I’ve further refined my thinking on the subject.
Some organizations want grant writers to provide their services but only get paid if the grant application is successful. On the surface, this seems fair (although you should reread my post to see all the reasons why it isn’t fair). But, if you’re only focused on the document provided, then the success of that document–whether or not it obtains the grant–determines the writers’ value to the organization.
But that perspective completely ignores that the writer, by writing the application, has now freed up the organization’s staff to focus on other, equally important tasks. The organization has not only benefited by having the application written, it has benefitted by having man-hours freed up.
To put it another way: If the organization’s staff person had written the grant application, she would (she SHOULD–I can’t speak for organizations that expect their staff to work for free, and for salaried people grant writing should appear in their job description) be paid for her hours, regardless of whether or not the application was successful. And even with a staff person writing the application, there is no guarantee that the application will be successful. But the expectation is still that the staff person would be paid for time spent writing the application. Therefore, you should be paid, too.
Another example: when you ghost-write a blog post for a small business, you’re not just providing the owner with 500 words about the secret to successful marketing. You’re making it so the business owner has more time (and energy) to devote to other aspects of his business, such as meeting with potential clients, working on a project or choosing suppliers. And, because you’re a writer, you’re probably still getting the blog post done in a fraction of the time it would take him.
When companies and organizations determine if a cost is worth their money, they often consider only the final product being offered. It’s natural that the client would say, “Well, that blog post didn’t bring in a lot of customers and I’m sure I could do it myself, so maybe I don’t need you.” It’s important to remind them that you’re not just providing written materials, you’re also freeing up their time to focus on other things–things they’re good at and enjoy.
