Welcome to another awesome Student Success Story here at Horkey HandBook! In this post we’re chatting with Patti Haus, she’s a conversion copywriter who’s made huge leaps in her business and an alumni of 30 Days or Less to Freelance Writing Success.
Patti left corporate America to build her writing business and has never looked back. Her passion for her clients and the results she delivers is truly inspiring, and so is the way she’s used her writing skills to market herself!
Name: Patti Haus
Short bio: Conversion copywriter who helps businesses and solopreneurs sell more with kick-ass messaging
Location: Saskatchewan (Canada)
Website: www.pattihaus.com
Date hired by first client: November 2016
Return on course investment: Within the first month
Average hours worked per week: 50-60
Average monthly income: I prefer not to disclose that 🙂
Services offered: Conversion copywriting
Hi, Patti! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your business?
I’m a conversion copywriter who helps businesses sell more through great messaging.
My business is helping small to medium sized businesses reach their goals through non-aggressive marketing and great strategy. I set myself apart by being a strategic copywriter rather than a creative writer and I use research and science to get results for my clients.
Why did you decide to start a writing business?
I started a blog several years ago because I loved writing and while promoting it, I found Gina’s course 30 Days or Less to Freelance Writing Success. I checked it out and realized there was a whole world out there of people who need writing done. So I bought the course.
Once in the course, I began noticing how many people need someone to write for them. It was a revelation that eventually led me to quitting my corporate job to work for myself full time.
What was holding you back from starting your business?
Despite doing copywriting in my corporate job, I wasn’t sure I could earn a living from it. I was under the impression that many people who are writers are starving, unable to earn a living.
I’m happy to say I was completely wrong about that!
What was the most challenging part as you got started?
Finding good leads. Initially, I found a lot of people who wanted to hire a writer, but who had a very limited budget.
How did you overcome that?
I did several things to overcome that.
First, I honed my skills so I could set myself apart from other writers. I studied conversion copywriting, which is a mixture of psychology, science, and writing, and started getting great results for my clients.
Those results set me apart from other writers and allow me to get more referrals and returning clients.
Second, I got better at LinkedIn. I used my copy skills to craft a better headline and profile and I use my writing skills to regularly show prospective clients how much they need someone like me. Now I regularly get good leads from LinkedIn.
What has been your biggest success since you’ve started?
When I actually quit my corporate job after working for many years, I felt like pinching myself.
I couldn’t believe I was living this life where I was an entrepreneur. And while it hasn’t been all roses and sunshine, the experience has been something that has allowed me to grow as a person and as a writer, and I can’t imagine doing anything else.
Can you tell us about your favorite client or project?
The first time I got a celebratory email from a client saying that the copy I’d written was getting her higher sales was a day I remember very well. She was in an industry that’s highly competitive, so it was vital that the sales copy was targeted to her ideal clients. I did a ton of research and interviews to ensure I knew exactly what motivated them before I wrote any of the copy and then tailored the copy to the things that motivated her ideal clients.
We still regularly work together whenever she’s launching and I am happy to say she continues to get great results.
How are you working on growing your business currently?
I am very active on LinkedIn. I’m in a copy mastermind with my idol, Joanna Wiebe, the founder of Copyhackers. And I am producing copy that gets results for my clients. All of these things are making my business explode.
As a service provider, you can’t ever really sit back and wait for clients to find you, so even when I am busy with client work, I constantly remind myself to market myself.
What are you most looking forward to over the next 12 months?
I am looking forward to continuing to get results for my clients and to getting leads more easily. I’ve worked hard on my processes to simplify client onboarding and that should free up some time. Maybe I can find a little more time to travel.
I’m also planning on attending at least one conference, so that will be fun.
Patti is a conversion copywriter who is happiest when her clients are getting great results from the copy she’s written for them. A hater of super aggressive marketing tactics, she believes it IS possible to get lasting results from non-aggressive marketing – something she tests out regularly with her clients. You can get in touch with Patti via her website or follow along on Instagram.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us, Patti!
