Have you hit a plateau as a “solo” freelance writer? If you’d like to take your business to a higher level, why not team with a graphic designer?

According to Peter Bowerman, one of the nation’s top freelance writers, an expert writer/designer team gives clients what they’re really looking for. “Clients don’t want just a writer,” Bowerman explains. “They want you to be the expert who solves their problem.

“They want you to step into their world and quickly get up to speed on their project. While big companies likely have the design angle covered, many love the idea of bringing in a graphic designer to manage the whole thing from start to finish. This ’solution selling’ is especially appealing to smaller companies that don’t have substantial in-house creative resources.”

Work Smarter
Offering your team’s complete services helps clients, but how does it help the writer? Bowerman, author of the bestsellers The Well-Fed Writer and The Well-Fed Writer: Back for Seconds (www.wellfedwriter.com), says you can earn more by working smarter, not harder: ” Designers you work with may find work for themselves that brings work to you, the writer of the team, as well. You end up with projects that you didn’t have to work hard to get.

“And since the designer handles the production aspects of the piece from start to finish, the project is very simple for the writer—you just do the writing and the designer takes it from there.”

Bowerman adds that unlike relationships with writing clients, which tend to come and go, partnerships with designers can continue for a long time. He cites his productive, 14-year relationship with a top designer as a prime example.

Be Careful
If you intend to pursue this type of partnership, Bowerman advises to use tried-and-true networking techniques (search on Google, attend networking meetings, compare notes with other writers), but proceed with caution.

“Take your time when considering this relationship,” he says. “Look for a designer who is competent and has good references. Having a good personal connection with the designer is a must—you have to work well together.”

“If you get a good partnership going and you’re considering starting a two-person agency, you might not get the benefits you’re hoping for. Usually, there’s not much additional value to that-it’s better for both parties to do their own thing and collaborate when the right projects come along.”

Partnerships Are Possible
Forging a stable, productive partnership isn’t easy. Many good designers already have favorite writers and finding a designer whose personality meshes well with yours takes time. But Bowerman says if you’re an excellent writer and professional in every way, you’ve got a great chance of creating partnerships that will satisfy your clients and give your business a lift.

It also helps if you can deliver the goods. “If you’re creative in your thinking and your writing can make a designer’s work stand out so that it’s even more powerful,” Bowerman says, “what designer wouldn’t want to work with you?”

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 3rd, 2008 at 3:28 pm and is filed under Writing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.