More Words on Marketing
Ok, we'll assume you now have a marketing package that reflects who you are, and that you've worked out all the amateurish glitches.
Now what?
Of all the areas in indexing, marketing seems to be the one the gives most people problems. While not true in all cases, the most problems stem from not having a solid foundation in marketing skills. Everyone thinks they have the skills, but if they truly did, marketing wouldn't be such a big issue with beginning indexers.
Many new indexers think there is a Magic Formula. There isn't one. The only Magic Formula is the one you create yourself (with a little help from marketing books).
Still, there MUST be a way to get started, right? In the spirit of just beginning, here's a few tips.
SPECIALIZE
First, who do you really want to index for? This involves what we talked about last month--not being desperate. Personal ethics also come into play. Is there material you do not want to index, such as names or genealogy publications, scientific or medical material, or religious publications?
One big mistake I see is the new indexer who tries to index every field they have ever had contact with. It smacks of being desperate--don't do it.
To begin with, focus on no more than one or two very specific fields. You will find when you specialize, you earn more money. Specialists, or experts, always do. You can branch out after you are established.
Next, review your chosen field's type of indexes, and practice creating indexes only for those special fields. You will have appropriate samples if you choose to send them in your marketing package. It's foolish to send a medical index to a publisher of computer books. The material is handled differently.
You will find this approach allows you to focus more clearly on your goal. You can "spread your marketing too thin" if you try a generalist approach. By specializing, you will only have to do one or two sample indexes instead of doing indexes in 15 different fields so you can have "something for everyone."
To sum up (in the beginning), specialize.
VOLUNTEER INDEXES
Many get their samples by doing volunteer indexes for various organizations. One of the most frequently heard is for genealogy or historical societies.
This is a great way to get started--if you want to index that type of material for your specialty. But, if you have no intention of dealing with names, nicknames, conflicting names (you get the point), then why volunteer for this?
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