Your proof of concept

This is when everything starts moving [The Writer’ s Life]( August 9, 2022 "Hold on to your dreams of a better life and stay committed to striving to realize it." – Earl G. Graves, Sr. {NAME}, When you first discover the copywriting industry, a lot of questions pop up in your head … Is this real? Can a writer really make good money? Am I good enough to do it? You start to think about the future … something we call the writer's life … Where you're living on your own terms. Writing when you want, from anywhere in the world you choose. Where you're able to make the money you need … the money you want … and live a life of freedom … Something we at AWAI believe everyone deserves to live. But while the future view inspires and motivates us to try, it can also seem like a long journey to take. Self-doubt is powerful … and when we don't find ourselves with the proof needed to answer the questions above … it can hold us back from even getting started. Enter your personal proof of concept. While I get the idea of big future goals, in my experience, shorter-term goals are what keep a writer going — at least early on. And while I do believe in writing out your vision for the writer's life … after all, you want to know where you're headed … When you're starting out, I highly recommend setting a proof-of-concept goal, too. Let me explain … If you're not familiar with the phrase, proof of concept refers to the results from a smaller experiment or trial project, which demonstrates that a bigger concept is feasible. For example, before investing in a full-blown television series, the writers and producers put together a pilot episode to gauge whether or not viewers will be interested in the idea. Or, if you ever watch the ABC series, "Shark Tank," you'll notice that the "sharks" always ask, "How many have you sold?" They want that proof that a product can sell — and bring them returns — before they invest time and money in it. For new writers, the proof of concept typically is a paycheck … That's what proves to you — and anyone else who needs proof — that this is real, and you can get paid (real money) to write. From there things change … With your newfound confidence, you look at the opportunity differently. Rather than something you're "trying out," you see the real earning potential of this financially valuable skill (i.e. copywriting) … You think about what you need to make for copywriting to cover your expenses … and then what you want to make, for copywriting to also cover your lifestyle and financial future. You start moving forward, gaining momentum as you take on more projects and collect more paychecks, and find yourself with bigger and better opportunities as more and more doors open. I recently presented this idea to a group of new AWAI members looking to get started and asked everyone to write down their personal proof of concept. It was interesting to see the variety … For some it would simply take $200 to $300 dollars to prove they could do this. They just needed a paycheck in their hands as proof. Others had slightly larger goals of $1,000 to $2,000. Some took it a step further and said their proof of concept was two months back-to-back with that same monetary goal. And for others it was getting a repeat project from a client — proof that they were "good enough" to be hired again. But all of the answers were pretty easily attainable goals. In fact, most could be achieved within a month, if the writers stayed focused on launching (the goal of the training that day) and tried to land one simple project like [writing emails](. You can bill on average around $300 per email (and much higher in the business-to-business industry – B2B), and clients typically need LOTS of them. Plus, with emails, it's easy to recommend ideas or identify opportunities to companies, because you can sign up for their emails and see what they're mailing. The same goes for simple projects like blogs and e-newsletters. So many simple starter projects will get you there … The point is, if you're not yet making money … or even if you have made a few bucks but you're still not confident you can do this … I want you to define your proof of concept. What needs to happen to prove that YOU can do this? Give it some thought and write it down. Writing down goals ensures clarity and gives you the motivation to achieve them. Want to increase the impact? Share this short-term goal with someone … [Reply to this email with the answer or head over to our Facebook group and join in the conversation there.]( And if you REALLY want to get moving, do something this week that helps you achieve it. Like I said, lots of writing opportunities will get you there … You just need to pick one and move forward. If you're feeling stuck, [go with email](. It happens to be on sale this week (you can get started for only $59.40) and along with being a great way to get paid fast, will set you up for recurring work with clients so you can get future paychecks, too. [Check out the email writing opportunity here.]( And tomorrow I'll show you five ways you can use email to get paid, so you can see how one simple project can be used to start generating income and turn into so much more. Can't wait to see your proof of concept! [Rebecca Matter’ s signature] Rebecca Now Accepting New Writers If you want … - high-paying gigs, - predictable writing income, - greater flexibility … AND the satisfaction that comes with LOVING what you do for a living … Then getting accepted into our influential club of Barefoot Writers can set you up for everything you're looking for in a writing career. NOTE: Your acceptance window will be closing soon! [Apply Now]( What's Hot at AWAI … 👀 Today at 1 p.m. ET — Join us LIVE to hear how two copywriters built successful writing businesses during a recession! [Go here for a reminder.]( 👉 If I Had to Start Over as a Writer … [Here's What I Would Do](. 😄 Did you catch yesterday's Monday Morning Jumpstart? [You can still watch it here!]( 💰 LAST CHANCE: Want a chance to win $200? [Check out this month's writing contest!]( Making Calls and Booking Gigs [Social media post about calls with a client and a prospect] Nice job, as always, Steve! Keep 'em coming … we love hearing about your successes. Have your own story to share? Email us at mysuccess@awai.com, or [post it over in the Facebook group](, so we can celebrate your win too! URGENT: This Is Too BIG to Ignore! ALL copywriters need to hear this … Last year, companies spent a record $521 billion on digital marketing, driving demand for skilled copywriters through the roof. But that's just the start … By the end of 2022, they're projected to spend $81 billion MORE! How can you take advantage? By making sure you know what's working in the industry … the latest trends … and what marketers are hiring for today … And there's one place you can get it all … [Discover More Here]( Your ALL-ACCESS Key — Just $1! Get instant access to the exclusive B2B writing community and ALL their private resources, including … All the success roadmaps … All the writing templates … All the articles … All the how-to videos … All 150+ training webinars … The Forum, the Job Board, the tutorials, the tools … And much more! [Go Here For More Details]( Featured Writing Jobs Advertising Copywriter – Applicantz Contractor, Remote Your primary focus is on designing and executing ad copywriting strategies and tactics to support our various paid channel managers as well as email. --------------------------------------------------------------- Lead Editor/Copywriter – Snap Finance Full-time, Remote As a writer, you'll be expected to create effective marketing content using a variety of media that include – but are not limited to – ad copy, social media, sales enablement materials, email, landing pages, long-form content, as well as web and product copy and video. --------------------------------------------------------------- Copywriter – Aston Carter Contractor, Westlake, TX Great, conceptual thinker, has big ideas to tell stories in multiple ways, mediums, etc. (headlines, short body, long form, ie emails). --------------------------------------------------------------- You can find all of these jobs and thousands more on [WritersWanted.com](. 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