He doesn’t pay me a lot compared to some of the one-off  projects I accept.

But he pays me on time every single month based on a percentage share of his monthly gross revenue. Even better, he’s a low-maintenance client who’s super easy to get along with.

Some clients will blame you when things don’t turn out quite like you expect. Not Bob. He has a very realistic view of a copywriter’s role — and ability.

If a letter doesn’t pull, he’ll blame it on the list… or the state of the market… before he’ll ever blame me.

Recently, I did a project for a different client. Working with this client is more bureaucratic, and everybody wants to give me their opinions. Plus, they push back at most of my suggestions. (“What? You want to send an email every day??“)

Well, after much arm-twisting, the management team finally bought into my plan to drive sales. At first, sales weren’t that great. Naturally, having already opposed my plans, the “I told you so” came out quick; they pointed their fingers at me.

But a funny thing happened. Because sales started to build and really take off.

All of a sudden, my client’s tune changed. Except for it wasn’t congratulations to me — it was “Go team!”

This in spite of the fact I had done 90% or more of the work required to make the sales.

Funny how that works, isn’t it?

If you fail, it’s your fault. If you succeed, the team gets the credit.

That’s why I like “dream client” Bob. He knows markets and lists affect sales FAR more than sales copy. And yet he still recognizes the value of having a veteran copywriter like me in his hip pocket.

Oh, and did I mention that he pays on time?

The only difference between you and a regular salesperson is you do your selling in print instead of in person.

And to make sales — either for yourself or for a client — all you need is a product or service to sell.

This makes copywriters well-suited for:

• Client work
• Affiliate sales
• Or, best of all, selling your own products.

Many of the best copywriters in history have sworn off client work and devoted themselves to selling their own products and building their own businesses.

Eventually, nearly every copywriter realizes they’d be better off working for themselves than working for clients.

The trick is making the transition. How do you find time to create and sell your own products if you’re busy doing client work?

Catch-22, but not impossible.

If you’ve already made the transition, please do share. How did you do it?

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She’s got the audience all worked up — even though I don’t know what the hell she’s talking about.

Then, off the cuff, she says, “Anybody who leaves a comment on my blog will get a free consultation with me.”

Brilliant. Really fucking brilliant.

Do you know how many people are on this call? Like 200, or close to it.

Next thing you know, she’s got nearly a hundred comments on her blog.

Of course, she comes to me all in a panic and wanting to know what to do.

The Copywriting Fool: “Well, ummm, I’d suggest givin’ ‘em their free consults.”

The Client: “But I can’t. It would take too much time. We have to do something else.”

The Copywriting Fool: “Oh, I get it. So you want me to figure out a way to tell everybody you lied without making you look bad.”

Hey, I got a better idea! Why not deliver what you promised?

Ah, the life of a copywriting fool. Ain’t it great?

More specifically, I write sales letters, emails, space ads, and blog posts for clients.

I realize my copy makes my clients more money than it makes me. Which makes me a fool.

I would write copy for myself… for my own products… but for some strange reason I haven’t figured out how not to be a hired gun.

I’m working on that.

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