How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Other Content Marketers (and Start Getting Better Clients)

People in your life mean well. They really do.

They want to protect you. They want you to have a “safe� career (aka, one they understand).

So, after you start your content marketing business, you’ll hear a lot of concerns when you mention your new venture.

I’ve been there. In 2008 when I started freelance writing and editing, no one I knew thought it was a good idea.

Believe me, I had my own fears about it, and the disapproval I received from others magnified those doubts. I looked at other working content marketers with popular blogs and wondered how I could compete.

One day, I had to make a choice.

I had to choose to build a business … strategically.

Which meant two things:

1. I had to invest in training that would help my company grow.
2. The writing and editing services I offered had to get business results for clients.

I couldn’t just sit back, browse low-paying job ads on freelancing sites, and hope I’d stay busy.

That was unsustainable, and the type of work I’d get on those sites would be soul-sucking and meaningless. I wanted to write for companies I believed in and help them reach their marketing goals.

But how was I going to get connected to those great clients? Didn’t they already work with other content writers?

Creativity is not a competition

While you do have to position yourself to stand out to your ideal prospects, creativity is not a competition.

I used all of the content marketing blogs I read as sources of motivation, rather than reasons to give up.

If other people were doing it, I was definitely capable of doing it too. My way.

There are limitless opportunities for you to offer unparalleled value, no matter how intriguing someone else’s services seem.

Another freelance writer can do their thing and you can do yours … remarkably.

You simply have to:

• Commit to offering premium services.
• Commit to charging premium prices.
• Commit to your vision of building a sustainable freelance writing business.

Sounds professional, but …

How do you actually do that?

When you’re ready to get serious about your writing services, you need a one-two punch of business and content strategy.

That’s where our Certified Content Marketer training program comes in.

It’s for writers who want to position their businesses for success and get results for their clients.

The program is your opportunity to attend our four-week content strategy course, taught by Brian Clark and Sonia Simone, and then submit your own work for Certification.

It’s important to know that not everyone who applies will receive Certification. There are plenty of programs out there that will give you a badge for completing a few multiple-choice quizzes. This isn’t one.

Each application is carefully reviewed by a member of the Copyblogger editorial team.

Writers who can show us a great writing voice combined with a demonstrated understanding of content strategy are added to our list of recommended writers on Copyblogger.com.

We’re saying, in effect, “We believe this writer is well qualified to produce terrific content marketing.�

If you want to be on that list, this is your moment! We typically open the program up once (twice at most) per year, to make sure all of our Certified Writers get the leads and attention they deserve.

So, if you’re ready to step up and get Certified, add your email address to the waitlist below to be the first to hear when we reopen the doors to new students.

We’re scheduled to open the course in the next couple of weeks, so you don’t have to wait long.