Anyone who has taken a look through my portfolio will see that it’s pretty varied. My bread and butter is probably charities and arts organisations, but I also write on health, tech, business, finance and more. I’ve experience of travel journalism and events organisation. I’ve worked on campaigns for The National Lottery, and helped small start ups in architecture. I’m a copywriter, marketer, journalist and PR. All sorts.
Apparently, I’m doing it all wrong. What you should do (warning: should is a dangerous word) is niche down. Find one thing you like doing, in one sector, and become known for that. Usually this advice comes from people who are writing 3000 word white papers in some niche financial tech sector, or something similar. They are also charging a fortune for it.
I get the logic. It’s best to be a big fish in a small pond. But gosh, it sounds awfully dull.
I set up my own business because I love variety. I’m one of those people always out exploring more, learning new things, discovering how the world works. That innate curiosity is something I bring to my work, and I think it makes me better at it.
I’m good at asking questions, and getting under the skin of a new client. It doesn’t matter where they are from, or what they do, the skill of being able to draw out a story is key. My journalism training probably helps me here.
I also think that working on varied projects makes me more creative. I can have a great idea for one, and see how that approach can help me with another. I can learn something with one client, and see how that idea could be applied to another.
But as I said, apparently I’m doing it all wrong. I don’t know. I have a lively roster of clients and business seems to be doing well.
I set out to see what others thought of countering the perceived wisdom and not niching down – and found I wasn’t alone.
Georgie Darling agrees. She started out as a travel writer and now (mostly due to the current climate) broadened her services into copywriting, scriptwriting, social media content creation, basic graphic design and Pinterest pin design! She also went from working mostly with travel companies to working with coaches, makeup brands, agencies and more. ‘It’s been great for learning more skills, boosting my confidence and widening my portfolio as a freelancer,’ she says.
Bryony Bishop also says how Covid-19 has highlighted how important it is to not have all your eggs in one basket. ‘Covid-19 has shown that being adaptable, flexible and having a range of skills enables greater resilience. It also makes for varied and enriching work, in my experience. I definitely agree that finding clients that align with your values and where you can be an extension of their team, adapting to their needs, is vital.’
Carolyn Hughes is a PR consultant and chooses clients based on cultural and personality fit, rather than business sector. ‘I work with clients who I basically get on with really well. I want to be an extension of their team so it’s all about whether we align in personality, ways of working and objectives. My skills are totally transferable so the industry matters less.’ She also points out that focusing on one industry can limit you, as many clients wouldn’t want her to work with a direct competitor.
Jess Dunbar was a broadcast journalist for 10 years before happily falling into copywriting when she had her children. Like me, the bit she loves most about the job is the variety. ‘The job demands I can capture the essence of a business in a short time and accurately represent it. What could be more inspiring than the constantly changing variety of work? Plus the challenge of tackling industries I know nothing about.’ Having a fresh pair of eyes and an objective approach is useful for clients, as you can put yourself in the customer and client shoes without bias or opinion. She says that ‘I love not having a specialism and passionately believe it helps me give my customers an edge.’
That’s not to say don’t ever focus. When marketing yourself it is key to highlight what is relevant to that client or audience. Gemma Pettman is a communications specialist with 21 years of experience. ‘I would say I have a couple of specialisms but that doesn’t prevent me working in other spaces. I think this partly comes down to how you market yourself. When I talk to charities I talk about my non-profit experience, when I talk to policing organisations I focus on that.’
It’s important to do business in the way that works for you, says Hira Sahmed. ‘I think it is more about embracing the whole of us in our businesses and our lives! If we focus our energy of niching down it might feel like it not *you* And I am a big believer of doing our businesses our way, more in tune with who we are with all the quirks and strengths + in alignment with our values. So to put that in perspective- one of my value is curiosity and I love learning new things so I make space for new projects (mostly multi-disciplinary ones) in my creative work.’
We are all multifaceted beings. And our work can reflect that. ‘Society puts so much emphasis on committing to ONE interest. Heck, we’re even expected to pick a favourite colour!’ says Karli Drew, copywriter and disabled activist. ‘But letting go of niche pressure is a one-stop shop to career freedom. Instead, I choose clients based on brand values. It improves my performance and everyone leaves a winner.’
And that’s what clients want – to win. And that’s our job – to enable them to do so. Every client wants to feel special, so as long as you bring your skills and expertise to doing a damn good job for them, it really doesn’t matter if you work in one industry or ten, on one kind of work or multiple. It’s your business, You can do work that energises you and makes your clients happy. That’s the sweet spot we’re all searching for.