5 Responses

1. promoting freelance trainers
   Hi Matthew
   this week I have a checklist published here on TZ – https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=193683 which will give a few ideas.
   The key thing here is to push your message and have a cohesive strategy. Sites like http://www.getseenontheweb.co.uk provide some useful starting points.

   Look at LinkedIn and search groups for “trainers” – i.e. http://www.linkedin.com/groupRegistration?gid=123608&trk=anetsrch_join&goback=%2Egdr_1234259272409_1

   Look at Twitter and of course sites like TrainerBase.

   All of these provide channels to market and it is about making sure you have a cohesive offer.

   One of the problems with websites is how do you get found? many people have sites but get very few visitors (check your statistics) I am now getting over 50,000 unique visits per months – like any marketing effort it is a number game, you can only expect <1% of visitors to interact with you, less purchase, so developing a strategy which raises your profile is vital.

   Mike

2. Suggestion ..
   Hi Matthew, good luck with your venture into self-employment, I hope it brings you everything you hope for! Have you tried any local services to support self employed people? They often run free workshops which look at the best ways of marketing your services and possible pitfalls. Not to mention some recommendations on specific marketing services at competitive rates. Worth investigating ..

3. How to Get Help Starting Out
   Hi Matthew,

   Congratulations on your decision to go freelance. I’m sure you’ll find it really rewarding – it’s a challenge but most freelancers I know have never looked back. 3 tips for your first month: 1. Identify and make contact with training companies who need trainers with your skill set 2. Identify who your potential clients are and investigate where they hang out -if you are going to spend time networking you need to ensure it’s with the right people 3. Think who do you know already – contact them and tell them what you are doing, then set up a system to maintain regular contact with them.

   As well as Mike’s excellent checklist there is advice and information at http://www.thetrainerstrainingcompany.co.uk

   Good Luck!

   Sharon

4. Cast the net wide
   Matthew,

   Good luck on going self-employed! I’ve been doing it for almost 3 years, and have to say that it’s worked out quite well. I pretty much had to start from scratch, due to maternity leave and restrictions from a previous employment, but I have 3 key tips…

   1. Get yourself on trainerbase.co.uk. for the fee, it is an excellent investment.

   2. Identify training consultancies that you would like to work with, and contact them directly with what you can offer – you only need one or two to take you on to supply a small but steady stream of work.

   3. Network like mad! This is a longer-term one, and I’ve only started to see the benefits in the last 6 months, but nothing beats a referral for a great piece of work!

   Hope it works out for you,

5. Sell yourself and your offering
   Matthew

   I started my own training business 8 years ago and was given some good advice by a trainer I knew:

   1 Keep your fees high
   2 Don’t expect people to return your calls

   I would also add from my own experience:
   1 Decide how you want to position your offering (your target market)and stick largely to your area of expertise. Don’t worry if it is a crowded segment. Companies often look for new trainers.
   2 Spend every minute you are not preparing or delivering on the phone to potential customers. Develop your database and keep records of your customer contacts
   3 Leave clear messages about the benefits you offer on answerphones – this is a free advert
   4 Don’t rely on other companies to give you work but do network and always ask for business
   5 Don’t expect people to reply to your emails – always follow up with a call
   6 Learn how to identify your customers’ needs, listen and customise your programmes to meet their needs. Always close with a commitment for another meeting or some work.
   7 If you get 1 appointment in 40+ phone calls you are doing well
   8 When you are face to face with a client you should win the business more than 50% of the time if you do no.6
   9 Don’t expect your website to attract a lot of business – it is a busy market with lots of competition
   10 Enjoy the selling process – you will probably spend a lot of time doing it. And don’t give up on a client even if they don’t give you any business over many years. One day they might or they might know someone who wants your services.

   Good luck and enjoy yourself