I read online articles written by different freelance writing experts about how to get clients. I’m however a bit of an unusual kind of freelance writer.

[NB: I’d planned to auto schedule this post to appear on Saturday, in line with the normal schedule, but I’m getting an error message. Since I’m travelling, I’ve decided to publish now, as connectivity is not too reliable where I’m headed.]

For one thing, I have a multidisciplinary bias. In addition, I actively use my online writing to sell different products and services both on and off the web. I’ve been doing this for many years now. And it often works quite well – profitably I mean – for me.

Here’s One Recent Example...

I was introduced to the owner of an Integrated Farm some time ago. Within an hour of discussing my Pineapple peel based drink, we’d hit it off in terms of a mutual area of interest. He gave me some tips about how to progress my Pineapple peels based drinks idea – including possible strategic partners.

Then he took me up on a side comment I made about how he could save money e.g. by using earthworm farming to generate quality protein meat for fish reared on his farm.

I told him I’d also written articles on rearing of Daphnia in glass cultures to feed catfish fingerlings. This would eliminate the need to spend money on the expensive packaged Artemia.

At a point, we went online to review a few websites of companies rearing earthworms. He saw, and believed.

Then he showed me his website – the one put up for the farm by a young relative. It was static html based. The content was all text, and sparse.

It did not in any way do justice to the advanced farming setup he’d shown me in pictures and videos on his I-pad.

I had to tell him the website design and content needed overhaul.

I did so because I cared, and felt the website would better generate sales leads for him, if he corrected that defect.

To explain, I showed him a “Jooma!” website I’d built for a new client here in Cotonou. I noted the fact that the content was written – and setup – to be response generating.

Then I added that his needed to be so treated, if he was to get optimal value from his online presence.

I also showed him pages on my Farm Business Website where I’d used slideshow galleries to present information in a visually engaging manner to visitors. Then we looked at the embedded You tube videos, and descriptions weaved around them on my website.

24 hours later, he’d given me an advance payment cheque to do something similar for him

That project was completed over 2 weeks ago.

Just yesterday, after days of discussion, I showed his a draft for an Information Product I proposed to author in his name, for sale on his farm – and website.

That discussion ended with him saying he would like to have me complete the product. To sell the idea successfully, I simply pointed out that his farm already did what was to be documented in the book.

And he, as an expert, was already competent.

In effect, by letting me create the Information Product, it could be used to attract buyers, and others interested in being trained or accessing consultation with him.

That would create passive income generation opportunities, to complement what the farm already generates.

And to prove that this idea would work, I simply showed him how my popular Feed Formulation Handbook, and its accompanying software page.

I explained that despite NOT having a farm of my own, the products continue to generate income for me.

My relentless web marketing gets my sales pages found via Google and other search engines.

Prospects send in email requests for payment details. Then they deposit/transfer between N8, 000 to N20, 500 depending on what they want.

After that, I customize the products and email to them. A simple and straight forward process!

He liked the sound of that, saw that it was a viable idea, and told me he wanted it.

All I’ve described above was mainly due to my online writing – which I use for marketing.

I do not contribute to offline magazines, newspapers or journals (yet).

Everything I do is online. But I’ve learnt to use what I have online to build credibility and win sales offline.

If I can do it, you can too.