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First
10 weeks of freelance: Autumn of2000
I thought
it would be interesting (to some) to log the highs and lows of freelance
work.
So here's the first 10 weeks of freelance work starting in September 2000.
Names clients and agencies haven't been mentioned to protect the guilty. But
it gives a flavour of the lifestyle to those who might be considering crossing
to this side of the fence. Read on... start at the bottom if you prefer
to experience time moving in the usual direction.
Week 1
Have 2 days a week on retainer. Setting up key people for Aurora Marketing Forum having been myself several years ago so experienced the melees first hand. Loads of markets to research and storylines to set up for half hour meetings. Midweek briefed by second client on tricky qual. + planning project for pitch. Took on a 3rd job at last minute switching stuff around so I could actually spend time with client. 4 days in and 3 clients already!! After 18 months AQR book I contributed chapter to is actually published. Great timing!!
Week 2
Aurora marathon on Monday, working till past 10 to get briefings out. Lunch on Tuesday with BBC journalist briefing out Henley stuff. Finished work with retained client Tuesday then went to run internal research group with another client round the corner. Wednesday groups in Edgware sweating it out because of petrol shortages would anyone come? Rerouted by police because of half mile queues for petrol. Guarding my own petrol very carefully in case I need to travel outside of London on research jobs. Very busy into weekend transcribing plus working on rush job on segmentation study. Early mornings and late nights. Abigail's party (daughter is 8) right in the middle. Wife immensely tolerant considering.
Week 3
Working on retained client Monday and Tuesday as per usual but on top had to debrief one client on weekend's work face to face rather than via emailed docs. Took telephone brief for digital quotes for groups at 10pm. Monday night. I record groups on minidisc these days because indexing is automatic, the sound crystal clear and can be edited and dropped into Powerpoint presentations. Grabbed quotes burned to CDROM ready for Tuesday. 1am job !! Delivered quotes to relevant IT bod end of play Tuesday clientside.
Got another potential client but actually no time to do the work. HATE turning things down especially with brand new client. Thursday evening driving to a practice with R&B band in Stevenage. Feel absolutely ecstatic. Unheard of to be able to practice with a band for 8pm in another town during the week. Gig on Sat 23rd and I've only been playing with the band since start of September. No pressure then...
Week 4
First invoice in - designed to match the website visual ID. Getting deeper into below the line strategic project. Lunch at London Rotary as guest of Times journalist so could brief her on the Henley material. Achieved a first working alongside my wife (marketer in residence) for first time in professional capacity. Half day working together with dotcom startup. After signing NDAs first of course! Went to networking party in Soho that lasted half the night. Hopefully will get work via two new sources.
Week 5
Busy week working on retained business, dotcom first round financing pitch document and presentation, and even had time to work on my own stuff as well (book about branding). Big debate Do I get a laptop so I can work wherever. Not until I need one says my wife who is wiser than I and understands the Tao of cashflow.
Best piece of service so far. Going from one agency to another and back in less than 5 minutes to get a relevant document off a floppy disk to save the client walking 2 floors in their own building!
Worst moment: document in wrong place at wrong time 20 miles away - took best part of a day to get it back and get the job done - valuable lesson learned. All the stuff on you at all times.
Week 6
Steady week. Got a chance to write a paper of my own I had given at an advertising symposium at the end of August but was only in note form. Getting "product" out don't half take a lot of time.
Week 7
Getting a bit quiet. Went to the Research Show which was dead as a dodo - I've never had the time to go before. By the look of it nor does anyone else. Redeemed the time by building up a series of shortlists of research agencies for types of internet research (to be posted shortly).
Went to the Millennium Dome for the day ..somebody has to.
Week 8
Starting to build a database of top 50 agencies in each of the major communication disciplines so I can promote myself at the touch of a button. No of course it isn't spam, its 1 to 1........
Went to the Birmingham Motor Show midweek. Reminded of the Pirsig quote in the Zen and the Art of motorcycle maintenance about a motorcycle being a bunch of concepts worked out in metal. So why is the focus so much on the metal? The market is oversupplied, the punters think the cars are too expensive so they're not buying, and ... well the brands are all talking the same old game.
Week 9
I've got an opportunity to present to an agency planning dept so am writing a presentation for that. Extra work for now but can be recycled and as ever place on the website. Website is also up for a major redesign that makes it less focussed on self and more on planning which ought to make it more interesting for people and more likely to attract participation of other freelances
Week 10
Lots bubbling around at the moment. Worked up a humungous upgrade contact strategy for a dot com looking to shift subscribers between sites. And no names but had another example of that old planning chestnut what do you do if you get a product with a passive brand image - get assumptive and slap something over the top or find a way to transform the passivity into something motivating. Oh and someone wants me to put some business casing how tos on the website. Give me half a mo...
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Freelance Diary