In the run up to my new e-course’s launch on Wednesday March 10th, I’ll be giving away 10 courses for free.

The offer is inclusive to fans of the Red Lemon Club Google+ Page

For a chance of getting hold of a free, instantly downloadable copy of the course: ‘The Freelancer’s Guide to Winning Incredible Clients through Google+ Mastery’ (and several bonuses), which shows freelancers, and entrepreneurs, everything you need to know to use Google+ for winning great, ongoing projects and clients, you need to do the following:

1. Log in or sign up for a Google+ account.

2. Go to the Red Lemon Club Google Page, and add us to one of your circles if you haven’t already.

3. Write a wall post or comment stating why you want the course.

..And that’s it!

The ten winners will be announced through the Google+ page, as well as the Red Lemon Club site on Tuesday Feb 6th.

Good luck!

My course for freelancers on using Google+ to win clients proudly launches on 7th February. To help me get the word out, I need some help from you guys.

For some of you who can help with a tweet or two on Twitter, I am giving away 5 free 60-day visible advertising spots right here on Red Lemon Club, as well as Ape on the Moon (100,000+ visits per month combined) and the RLC newsletter (4700+ subscribers). That’s worth $200 each! So you get plenty of promotion.

On top of that, I’ll send you a free copy of my new ebook ‘5 Steps to a Solid Twitter Network‘ worth $27, which shows you exactly how to build up a large and targeted network on Twitter.

These ads will be pushed up to the top so they’re nice and visible. I can personally help with banner design if you need it.

Just copy the following tweet into your Twitter ‘What’s Happening’ box for a chance to win:

Get ready for NEW e-course for freelancers from @redlemonclub on using Google+ to win great clients. Learn more: http://bit.ly/wlXZIR

Winners for the ad spots are announced here, on Sunday evening 5th February.

Best of luck!

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and ruin a smooth, positive and ultimately fruitful experience on social networks for yourself, as well as others through engaging in a heavy-handed way. From personal experience and having had a look around to see where people tend to be going wrong, I’ve compiled a little list of the big ones.

1. Being impersonal

I mean this in two ways. Firstly, incorporate some personality into your posts and your engagement. This doesn’t mean being bouncy and bubbly all the time, unless you want to and if that suits you, fine. It’s more about being human, and not appearing to be an automated robot churning out posts.

Secondly, I’m talking about when people substitute making a connection with a person for being more efficient. An example of this would be in copy and pasting the same message sent out to several people, or tagging many people in one message meant for all of them. This doesn’t show much care for an individual, and will most likely not mean much to them. So when you reach out to people, show them that the interaction is directed to them.

2. Always writing for yourself, not your audience

It’s ok to share things that interest you, but bear in mind, that, especially as you want to attract the attention of prospects and others, you want to be prioritising the sharing of information and updates that you know will be of interest to them. This is one of the major misunderstandings of social media. It doesn’t need to be about you all the time!

This is why circles on Google+ is so useful, because it allows you to share specific content to specific people.

3. Not interacting enough

Obviously if you have a large network with tonnes of people messaging you, responding to everything can be tricky. However, it’s important you maintain a good level of engagement with your connections, as well as responding to what people are saying, asking, commenting on, etc. Be the person who comments the most within your own discussion threads.

Showing that you care will demonstrate to others that you take your connections seriously and strengthen your network as a result.

4. Treating it as a space for advertising

You will vapourise your network by constantly promoting your services and products on G+.

Remember that it is a platform for building, expanding and maintaining relationships, so directly selling to people will distance yourself from them. Keep any ‘selling’ to about 10% and the rest to 90%.

5. Not listening

Social media is not a one-way system, so be aware of what people in your network, as well as those who could potentially be in your network are saying, what their needs are, what their feedback is, and what they are saying about you. I’m sure you’ve heard how listening is vital to any relationship!

6. Being brash, and marginalising people

Steer clear of sharing stuff that could be disagreeable, controversial or even offensive to people. You might feel passionate about something that stands you firmly in one group as opposed to another, such as a political camp, but be aware that you could be losing fans and followers this way, so better just stay away from anything that could be considered a ‘touchy‘ subject.

Further comments will win kudos and compliments from me!

If you don’t have Chrome, I suggest you download and use it. It does seem better and quicker to me, and it generally integrates better with all of Google’s services.

I’ve had a go on many of the available extensions, and have seen that some are useful, and others aren’t really worth it. Here are my top 8 in no order that are worth installing, especially for freelancers using Google+ professionally.

For each of the following, click the name of the extension to be taken to a page where you can click ‘+ Add to Chrome’ to install it.

1. SG Plus

This is useful for being able to see your Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and RSS streams inside your Google+ stream. The extension also provides options so that you can share your Google+ updates in Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Very useful.

2. Surplus

This is handy for displaying your notifications ‘red square’ in your browser from any web page, not just Google+.

It also allows you to create and respond to posts from within its popup, and read your notifications.

3. Replies and more for Google+

A nice tool that adds a ‘reply to author’ button underneath posts. This basically means it will tag the author of the post so that your comment goes directly to them.

4. Helper

With the ability to re-share posts to Twitter (as well as translate text, see desktop notifications, and bookmark to Delicious) this can be used as a handy ‘retweet’ tool.

5. Plus One Anything

This installs a ‘+1′ button next to the address bar in your Chrome browser, and means you can +1 any website (your seal of approval that can be seen by friends and contacts), even those whose webmaster hasn’t added one.

6. Photo Zoom

Take the strain out of your eyes by using this extension to enlarge photos just by hovering over them.

7. Usability Boost

This one improves the readability of posts and other sections in Google+ by defining edges more, as well as allowing you to star posts to read later. It just makes Google+ a little easier to use.

8. Google+ Directory

Here is a useful search directory for other Google+ users that you can add to your own circles, right from within your browser. You can specify quite focused search terms in finding people to network with, and be found by others.

As Google+ expands, and more people create more extensions, this list will be added to, and some extensions will probably fall off this list. I’d love you, the keen reader, to add any others you think help enhance your Google+ experience.

Thank you!

So much so, that I’ve compiled this handy little list, not intended to scare, just to get people thinking about what they might be missing out on by not throwing themselves into the Google+ social theatre. That includes you.

Here is that list:

1. Losing out on much better control

Google+ is just miles ahead when it comes to functionality. Every feature such as sharing posts, editing photos, and following feeds has a built in control that is very powerful, and puts you the user in control at every point during your Google+ experience.

Things like being able to share to certain circles, lock posts for re-sharing, view posts from particular geographic areas, dragging and dropping media into posts from elsewhere and more, allow you to really be on top of everything when it comes to managing how you engage with others, as well as your own content and data. This is important when it comes to using this for professional purposes and coming across as such.

One in depth example of the control you have with Google+ is through its picture tagging function. While Facebook doesn’t warn its users whenever a photo of one user is tagged in an album, Google+ deals with this by giving users the ability to choose which users that can tag you.

2. Not being part of a professional social environment

What is very evident from using Google+, is the sense of professionalism that the site creates in the way that its features and interface are designed, as well as in the attention to making things secure and private.

Google has made it easy to reduce clutter and noise on the platform through allowing users to restrict the content they see and take out elements within profiles themselves. This combined with the fact that the interface and overall design is cleaner and better designed, adds to the professionalism of it.

Google has been strict about security in order to reduce spammers and other unwanted characters that have a negative effect on the experience of its users. Facebook and Twitter have trouble with fake accounts and spamming, not to mention being overly busy (think endless farmville invites on Facebook) and this is something that Google is seeking to avoid.

Google is also proving to manage data much more effectively and has shown to in the past. Having also learnt from Facebook’s mistakes, Google+’s offering has shown itself to be very secure.

With the ‘Data Liberation’ tool, you can be very explicit about what gets shared, and where, as well as what doesn’t. There is total control for all your work, and all your information on Google+.

All of this combines to create an environment that is very preferential to professionals, including freelancers looking to engage with and build networks of great people.

3. Not targeting what you share to the right people

The ‘Circles’ function in Google+ is an excellent way of allowing you to share certain things with certain people that you have organised into specific labelled groups.

If you have had trouble with promoting your work on other social networks and elsewhere, much of it will be to do with the fact that you are sending out content to anyone and everyone without thinking about how something can be targeted. This is absolutely essential to promotion these days, and Google+ has cracked it in finding a way for you to do this.

Circles allows you to share work with people you want feedback from, for example, without concerning anyone else.

You might want to build up a circle of art director contacts, for example, and regularly show them updates of the work you have been creating, and engaging with only those people strategically.

4. Not taking advantage of better contact-building capabilities

Interacting with people is a crucial part of gathering support, fans, connections, exposure and ultimately paid work for freelancers. Doing so online to complement your engagement in the ‘real world’ can be very powerful if done correctly.

Google+ allows users to reach out to potential clients, key influencers and others who support your freelancing business in better and more effective ways.

Firstly, because the system allows you to follow the updates of people without them needing to accept a friend request, you are in a better position to attract connections by engaging with their content and mentioning their name appropriately through ‘+ tagging’, in a similar way to Twitter, so that you get on someone’s radar.

This means that people are more likely to begin to see your own value and add you to their circles. The open (yet secure) system also allows your updates to filter through the Google+ network (depending on who you want to share with) so that you pick up more fans and prospects as well.

Secondly, the circles tool allows you to share the right information with the relevant people, which allows for the sharing of content in a much more targeted way.

This is very powerful when we are talking about relationship- building. Thirdly, the highly superior search function inside Google+ makes searching for people, as well as content to share and engage with much easier.

This is not to mention the fact that profiles and brand pages, including yours will favourably appear in Google’s search engine results too. Fourthly, circles enables you to group your contacts easily and visibly, so that you can group people that need to be contacted, for example, or simply use circles to store contacts, like an address book.

The extended circles element will even allow you to share your updates with people you follow who haven’t followed you back yet.

5. Wasting valuable time by not using Google+ as your professional ‘social hub’

Google+ allows you to focus pretty much all of your professional promotion and engagement activity in one place.

For example, you can send updates that you post on Google+ automatically to Twitter and Facebook, so you never have to leave Google. Creative freelancers can use Google+ as their first port of call for showing prospects their secondary portfolio, as well as bio, collaborate through hangouts and grouped circles, and gain critical feedback on work, for example, all through the tools on Google+.

Being tied in to other Google products and services like documents and Gmail, means you can get a lot done from one place via the Google bar that shows up at the top of the screen.

What this all means is that you will be in a position to streamline your self promotion and engagement activities and bring a lot of your focus, including actually getting work done, into one place.

Many more features, including streamlining your network outside of Google+, will be revealed in our course on Google+ tailored especially for freelancing professionals.

6. Being forgotten by Google’s powerful search engine

Being associated with Google+ means that everything that originates from you, including your profile, and brand page, will attract preference from Google’s powerful, and well known, search engine, so that you, your brand and your shared content will be found more easily.

The value this presents for self-promotion is very evident.

Google is taking a very strong interest in material that is being shared socially, i.e. on Google+, and will make sure that socially-shared material gains priority through their engine.

Google’s recent introduction of the +1 button means that anything that receives a +1 (similar to Facebook’s ‘like’) will gain even more preference through Google search.

As everything shared in Google+, including images now, has a +1 button linked to it, there is a lot of scope for gaining huge exposure through this.

7. Failing to be part of Google+’s growth and integration

With 40 million users joining Google+ in its first four months of existence, there clearly will be no shortage of users that will serve to further drive and support it.

What you needn’t worry about is if Google+ failed to get anywhere close to Facebook numbers of users. It’s the quality of users it attracts that is important for freelancers, and with fewer users, the more you stand out as a professional in any case. Google+ has the benefit of being part of the Google family, and this means being able to integrate them into the system.

A lot is yet to come, but things like Google’s search engine, Gmail, Picasa for pictures, YouTube and Documents will bring big benefits to a presence on Google+.

As well as having an excellent mobile version of Google+, Google’s Android operating system is getting a lot of people very excited about the integration of app design within the Google+ system, so there’s plenty of opportunity there.

8. Missing out on Google+’s excellent collaboration tools

Collaboration, sharing and discussion is obviously a key requirement of a freelancing professional or independent worker.

Google+ provides a host of tools that allow this to be done smoothly and effectively. Adding people you want to collaborate with to a specific circle, if they do the same, allows you to send through updates that can be shared with the ‘team’ you are collaborating with.

Apart from chat, Google+ ‘Hangouts’ is another method for collaboration, which allows groups to discuss projects via a simple video feed. Many are saying that Google circles is just as effective a tool as Basecamp, a highly sophisticated project management and collaboration tool.

As Google+ is free, the benefits of this alone are clear.

Perhaps this little list has built up something of an appetite for wanting to try out Google+ for professional and fun reasons.

We’re about to launch a step-by-step course especially for freelancers on exactly how to use Google+ for winning clients and more. If you’d like more information on the course and to keep up with the launch, have a look here.

I’d love for you to share this post with your freelancer friends via the buttons below. That would be appreciated! Comments are welcome.

Surely having a presence on Facebook, blogs, LinkedIn, Twitter and more, is enough for sharing content and promoting ourselves! Facebook alone can prove to be an enormous time-burner.

I’ve spent a lot (I mean a lot) of time researching Google+ and I’ve had had plenty of experience on Facebook, including writing some guides on it. From this, I’ve discovered a wealth of great things that highlight Google’s new project. What Google has on offer is something that really will, and already is, shaking things up in a big way.

Even though Facebook has its uses, particularly in engaging with a source of already established friends, the benefits Google+ can provide for creative freelancers like us are really worth noting.

Here are 10 ways Google+ is better for creative freelancers than Facebook:

1. Better for a portfolio.

Google+ is ideal as a secondary portfolio for your work. Images can be presented with more variation and there are some great editing features through Google+’s Creative Kit to add further variety and tweaking. You can also have a set of 5 recent portfolio pieces right at the top of your profile.

Sharing your work is really good because you can choose exactly who sees your updates and various albums (art directors for example), and you can add Google’s ‘+1’ feature to images so that they can be bumped up to the top of image searches in Google, for added exposure.

For videos, as Google owns YouTube, videos can be integrated easily within Google+ too.

2. A better system for people actually looking for creatives.

Art buyers and others looking for talent will want access to a stream of new work from people they are interested in following. The ‘circles’ element of Google+ allows users to organise streams into various groups so that they don’t have to see every update from everyone. Buyers can filter through just ‘illustrators’ for example. This is what the creative industry needs.

3. More professional environment.

Google+ is attracting a more professional crowd, mainly for its features and benefits for businesses.

This is where creative freelancers need to be to make the most of a presence of other professionals that can work with them and provide work for them. For the time being, Google+’s user-base is smaller, which means being able to stand out more too.

Google has made it easy to reduce clutter and noise on Google+ through allowing users to restrict the content they see and take out elements within profiles themselves. This combined with the fact that the interface and overall design is cleaner and better designed, adds to the professionalism of it.

4. Integration with other Google products and services.

Google+ has the benefit of being part of the Google family, and this means being able to integrate them into the system. A lot is yet to come, but things like Google’s superior search engine, Gmail, Picasa for pictures, YouTube and Documents will bring big benefits to a presence on Google+.

5. Better security of personal data.

As well as allowing you better control over who you share things with, Google+ is much better for security than it’s less experienced Facebook.

With Google’s ‘Data Liberation’ tool, you can be very explicit about what gets shared, and where, as well as what doesn’t. There is total control for all your creative work, and all your information on Google+.

6. Have critique circles.

The circles feature in Google+ is great for being able to share certain updates with people you’d like to gain feedback from over your work. On Facebook, sharing work means all your friends see it, which is impractical.

7. Ability to bookmark.

Google+ allows you to bookmark content you like that come through your friend’s feeds, as well as your topic-specific Sparks feed from around the web. If you see something that inspires you that you want to keep, you can share it with one of your own circles, names something like ‘Creative Inspiration’ and be able to refer to it later.

8. Better for collaboration.

Adding people you want to collaborate with to a specific circle, if they to do the same, allows you to send through updates that can be shared with the ‘team’ you are collaborating with. This also allows you to manage projects with multiple people involved, in a similar way to Basecamp, but for free.

Apart from chat, Google+ ‘Hangouts’ is another method for collaboration, which allows groups to discuss projects via a simple video feed.

9. Better for building a focused professional network.

Because Google+ allows you to follow the updates of anyone, you are in a great position to build connections through being aware of people’s content, and then engaging with that content. Engagement is what builds relationships and builds networks.

This kind of interaction is restricted in Facebook through only allowing people to see the updates of people that have accepted them as a friend.

Google+ even allows you to share content with people who haven’t yet chosen to follow you. If they have selected ‘Incoming’ under their ‘Home’ page, this opens up their stream to people who have them in their circles. This is another way to get your work and your brand out there and build a network.

10. Great for getting inspired.

Google+ has some excellent features that allow you to specify certain topics you want to follow in real time from over the web, for one, in the form of the Sparks tool.

Use Google+ to follow well known creatives if you wish, to see their own streams of content, that you can categorise into specific circles.

The photos area in your profile allows you to see all the pictures coming through from you circles, which can provide for some very quick inspirational reference as well.

These aren’t the only cool elements on offer that I’ve seen, so have a look at Google+ yourself.

If you want in-depth guidance on using Google Plus properly, check out our new course on using Google+ tailored just for freelancers that we are launching…

What else do you think creatives can use Google+ to benefit from?

When I thought about it, I knew the reason why I wasn’t getting any commissions. Being away for a while meant I was not in any potential prospect’s field of vision (on their minds). Because I had not been talking with prospects or people in the industry for a while, and wasn’t updating my work and generally networking; online and offline. I was out of sync with my industry.

And this is more than likely the reason behind your ‘work slump’, or your ‘not getting any commissions’ phase. People just aren’t thinking of you. Horrible, isn’t it? If people aren’t thinking of you or talking about you, you are less likely to get commissioned, especially by previous clients. Simple as that.

Some of you guys might be guilty of spending too much time working creatively and wondering why you aren’t getting commissioned when you haven’t been out and about talking about your work.

Well, I’ve scraped together a few of the key methods you can use to get back in the minds of those that can hire you quickly, so that you can get back to working again!

- Begin pinging people. By this I mean reaching out to people to get back in their ‘headspace’, via phone or email or social media. This can just be a hello, without any mention of work. It can work wonders just to re-establish contact with someone, even if they’re not directly a potential client.
Continue the dialogue if the first ‘ping’ leads anywhere.

Ongoing dialogue with someone is a good thing when it comes to promoting yourself, especially when it gives you a chance to mention what you are working on and your availability.

- Start some online conversations. This could be through a social media status update that gets people engaged with you, which could lead to discussing your work and so on. Going to an online forum likely to attract prospects is another good place to start contributing.

Online conversation is good, because it allows you to expend your digital self on the world without exerting too much energy. In a world where physical energy is scarce, this is a good thing. Obviously real-life interaction takes precedence.

- Go to one or two events this week that centre around your industry/field. It doesn’t need to be a ‘networking’ event, just something that draws in people that share an interest that relates to the work you do. Get talking. Just take it step by step.

- Talk and share a little more about your work than usual with people. That’s right, you need to spend the next week sharing and talking about your stuff as much as you can without annoying others. We’re talking about getting back on track in terms of getting commissions as quick as possible, so this will help.

This also includes adding work updates to a set of creative sites for example, making a point of handing out your business card when you otherwise wouldn’t, and contacting new potential prospects and people indirectly linked to your industry like bloggers.

- Share your knowledge. Write a good blog post about something you know about and promote the heck out of it or write an article or two for some other sites, especially those that are well-visited.

It would be a good idea to start a bit of a dialogue with the owner of a better-known blog before you start offering your writing services. This will build your credibility as a creative pro and get your name and thus work out there.

Your comments and further ideas are encouraged!

This article should provide you with a large resource of software tools to help you block out distractions and get more done.

“Man must shape his tools lest they shape him.”

Arthur Miller

Keep in mind that these suggestions are not necessarily the solution to your lack of focus, but tools to help you build momentum in blocking out various distractions that can affect the quality of your work.

Here are 18 tools for beating distraction:

Mac

Freedom: An extreme tool, but an effective one that disables your entire Internet connection for a time period set by you. Perfect when you really need to focus for an hour or three at a time.

SelfControl: Disable access to mail servers and websites that distract you. For example, you could block access to Facebook, Gmail, Twitter, and your favorite blogs for 90 minutes, but still have access to the rest of the web. Once started, you can’t undo it until the timer runs out.

Concentrate: Create an activity (design, study, write, etc) and choose actions (launch or block websites, quit applications, speak a message, and more) to run every time you concentrate. When ready, just click “concentrate.” All your distractions will disappear and a timer will appear to help you stay focused.

WriteRoom: One of the best, distraction-free text editors. Goes full screen so all you have is your text. No formatting, just writing text. Beautiful program, copied by many others.

OmmWriter: A beautiful app just for writing. Has a serene backdrop with background music, perfect for creating the distraction-free writing environment (especially if you use headphones).

Ulysses or Scrivener: Two great programs for writers, many more features than WriteRoom but great for longer works such as novels, screenplays, academic papers and more. Both feature full-screen text editors.

Megazoomer: A cool little app that allows you to put almost any Mac program into full-screen mode (ala WriteRoom) using a system-wide keyboard command or menu item. Requires you to install SIMBL — both programs are free.

Think: Little utility that will fade out everything but the app you’re working on at the moment. Allows you to focus on one document at a time, clearing the distractions.

Browser Plugins/Extensions

Leechblock (Firefox): Specify what sites you want to block in Firefox, and when to block them.

StayFocusd (Chrome): Choose certain sites to block, and you get 10 minutes total (by default) per day to go on those time-wasting sites. You can change the time allotted for time-wasting sites, and you can also “nuke” (block) all sites for a time you specify.

Readability (bookmarklet, Chrome extension): clears the clutter on any web article or blog post you want to read. Removes everything — ads, icons, widgets, and more — and just leaves the content in a nice, uncluttered, readable design. Quietube does the same for videos.

Windows

Dark Room: A WriteRoom clone for Windows.

CreaWriter: Distaction-free writing tool inspired by OmmWriter (above), with a peaceful background, full-screen writing, soothing ambient sound, and not much else.

Q10: Full-screen text editor with a timer for focused writing, typewriter sounds as you type if you want them. Freeware.

WriteMonkey: A new entry into the full-screen editor field. In the words of the makers: “Zenware for full screen distraction free creative writing. No whistles and bells, just empty screen, you and your words. WriteMonkey is light, fast, and perfectly handy for those who enjoy the simplicity of a typewriter but live in modern times.”

Other

Emacs: One of the classic text editors (vim is a good alternative and we won’t into which is better here), Emacs runs on all platforms (PC, Mac, Linux) and can hid the menu bar (M-x menu-bar-mode) and tool bar (M-x tool-bar-mode) in any operating system, and can hide also the window title bar in most Linux window managers.

Typewriter: A minimalist text editor that runs in Java (which can run on most operating systems – Mac, Windows, Linux). All you can do is type in one direction. You can’t delete, you can’t copy, you can’t paste. You can save and print. And you can switch between black text on white and green on black; full screen and window. Perfect for writing without stopping, and getting out that first draft.

Many thanks to ‘Focus‘ author, Leo Babauta for these resources.

Any other ideas or suggestions? Comment below!

I’m pleased to say I’ve had nothing but very positive feedback from everyone. Some of the responses I’ve received recently by people who have read the book are below.

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‘An absolutely fantastic book, Alex has provided an invaluable resource for any aspiring or established professional creative.

I have been working as an illustrator for nearly five years. After purchasing Alex’s book, I discovered exactly what I was doing wrong in regards to promotion and exposure of my work.

In the space of a few weeks of using Alex’s methods, outlined in simple steps, I have generated a massive amount of interest and even gained more client work, especially good during the current economic climate. ’10 Steps’ has refreshed my excitement for my career and work.’

Phil Dunne, Illustrator

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‘Alex Mathers’ ’10 Steps’ was the perfect guide for me as I kick-started my illustration career. In art school, I learned about how to create my best work, but this book helped me figure out how to get it in front of the right people. It includes numerous creative and innovative ideas for self-promotion.’

Anna Raff, Illustrator

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‘It is the clarity of your book that I find to be it’s most inspiring aspect. In the world of self promotion, trying to figure out how to pull all of the possible avenues of exposure together and to prioritise them can be one of the most confusing and down right headache inducing tasks facing anybody in this industry.

You offer really clear and concise steps and guidance on how to go about tackling this. I found the sections on Networking and Bringing in Targeted Traffic to be especially enlightening, offering up areas of promotion that I had never considered before. Plus, your chapter on Direct Marketing has really assisted me with my current promotional activity.

The resources section is also fantastic, saving the reader literally days of trawling blogs, forums and directories.

All in all, your book is very clearly written and is a valuable tool to anyone making their way in this industry. What a wonderful resource.

Thank you.’

Tom Redfern, Illustrator and Designer

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‘As a complete beginner, 10 Steps has given me a good overview of the different types of online marketing, and moreover, a useful structure to fit them into. Without the book I’d be completely lost, but instead I’m focused and productive.’

Alexander Markham, Entrepreneur and Teacher

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‘I finished reading your book about 4 months ago, and I found so many useful tips. Focusing on exactly what I wanted to do, helped me develop in the areas I wanted, which is t-shirt design. I learned and networked with the right people and it helped me earn credibility and more popularity amongst my audience.

The book really help me re-focus on things I wasn’t aware of; it guided me, it did not tell me where to go, but it laid down all the available options.

Thanks Alex for this wonderful book, it was worth every dime.’

Mercedes Crespo, Designer

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‘Alex’s book is packed full of interesting advice and is a good point of reference for online marketing. It’s a huge guide but it also contains lots of smaller tips and tricks that are easy to implement. It’s probably worth the money just for the massive list of resources!’

Ian Ball, Animator and Illustrator

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‘I think your book is great, I tell everything that needs it to buy it.

My personal situation requires a little more time to apply all your ideas, but the most important thing that I realized is that a blog should be thought about very carefully. Your book is very useful for learning about social networks, which can be a very confusing place for me. Thanks a lot for sharing.’

Barbara Zonzin, Professional Photographer

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‘As a new member to the freelance creative world, this book has really helped me, not only understand the various general processes of self-promotion, but the specific means and steps by which to achieve them.

The book is full of links, examples and resources that comprise a complete know-all package for anyone trying to create a stronger online presence.’

Matt Wills, Designer

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‘I found Alex’s ebook to be most informative and very well thought out. The section that I personally found most beneficial was on advertising. As an event photographer, I am constantly looking for new ways in which to advertise & market myself online.

Alex provided the names of several online directories that I had not previously heard of, like Splut, Talk Photography and Guru.

I shall certainly be registering myself with these sites in order to meet potential new clients. In short, Alex’s ebook has proved to be an invaluable source of ideas!‘

Catherine Plant, Event Photographer

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Anyone else read the book? Please add your comments and views on it in the comments below.

Finding contacts on the Internet is a good way of building a network, and having a large and relevant online network is very useful. Taking this a step further and actually meeting some of these people is really valuable because it will cement relationships and trust with others even further.

Particularly for independent professionals like many of you, meeting new people and expanding your physical social network can be hard to do if you don’t know where to look.  Here are ten ways of finding, connecting with and arranging a meet up with people who can take your career to higher levels:

1. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is one of the major online networking tools for industry professionals, and used correctly, it can work in a very helpful way for you.  LinkedIn allows you to maintain a very decent level of privacy and emphasises the value of connecting with working professionals.

Using the site’s search tools can bring up a whole host of people to add to your network, who can turn out to be future clients, friends and colleagues. The messaging function on LinkedIn will enable you to talk to and build rapport with people that you could eventually meet further down the line. LinkedIn features job search options, tells you how many shared connections you have with people in different organizations and does all this while maintaining a very professional style.

2. MeetUp

MeetUp.com is a great online tool for any kind of social event planning, be it a business network or a friendly game of local tennis.  The site allows you to search by type of event and location.  A quick search tonight allowed me to find a plethora of activities from a “Free Networking Breakfast” in Chicago to a “Learning digital photography” social in London.

Pretty much anything you could be interested in, most anywhere in the world; you will find a group or event that fits the bill for you.

3. Facebook

Facebook is a great social tool, but many of us are only using it to keep in touch with our friends and not taking advantage of its many networking tools.  The Facebook search function is actually far more capable than you may realize, allowing you to search events and groups (the best networking tools on the site) by keywords.

Say, for example, you are a WordPress genius and you want to find online groups or physical events where you can meet other, likeminded WordPress-ites, a group search for “WordPress” leads you to a 4,000-strong group that discusses new plug-ins and themes while also promoting their services to other members.

A WordPress event search, on the other hand, helps me discover that there is a “Create a Free WordPress Site for Your Business” in Minneapolis, MN, that is totally free.  Perhaps offering a free course is the best way for you to promote your business and get new customers.

4. Trade Shows

Trade shows are happening all the time and they are a great opportunity for not only meeting people, but also for developing new ideas and finding new tools that will help you improve your business.  A trade show is your open invitation to introduce yourself to people who may well be in need of your services.

However, remember that trade show exhibitors are mainly looking to sell their services at trade shows, not to buy yours, so make sure you don’t take up too much of their valuable time: Simply walk up, introduce yourself, hand over a business card, explain your services and be on your way.

5. Twitter

Twitter is another brilliant networking tool if you are aware of the best methods to make full use of it, which is explained closely in my book on online self-promotion.  While you can set everything to post on your Twitter account automatically, I find that it’s the personal attention to Twitter that will see your Follower count skyrocket.  Find people with similar interests to you and start following them – they will often follow you back – and then start sharing news about your various activities with them and share useful links.

Then, here’s the most important part of Twitter, take advantage of the re-tweet options and create lists that include all your favorite friends or most relevant business connections – lists help you reach out to large groups without going public.

6. Stock Sites

For creative professionals especially, stock sites like iStockPhoto.com contain a wealth of creatives like photographers, illustrators and web designers that you could network with through the site’s message capability and forums. If you are a contributor, say of vector illustrations, you can find many other people who you share a commonality with. I know iStockphoto.com organise regular get-togethers for it’s photographer and artist contributors.

7. Gallery Openings, Launches and Exhibitions

A Google search will reveal plenty of gallery openings, exhibitions and other social events attended by creatives.  There are sites that exist like Artslant.com which provide information on various events like gallery openings that you could pencil into your diary and go to.

Facebook provides a particularly good source of exhibitions that are happening all over the world, and these can be searched for within the site. Exhibitions which showcase similar work to your own could attract the kinds of people you’ll want to meet, so go along with a friend, a business card or two and start up conversations with people.

8. Company Social Events

As an independent contractor or freelancer, you will not necessarily be invited to any of your own company socials, but if you can, try and get on a social level with the companies for whom you freelance, if they are local.

Do this by developing a strong relationship with them so they almost think of you as an associate.  You will also find good networking opportunities at company events of your friends and family, so if they’re looking for someone to accompany them to their social events, consider this a good opportunity.

9. Online Forums

Find a discussion board or forum online, such as DesignersTalk.com, and begin to engage in some of the discussions going on and make friends through there. You can nurture relationships here over time with other regular users of the forum and eventually arrange a meetup or social gathering. You can also use a forum to ask about events happening near you that others in your industry visit.

10. Business Networking Groups

A quick internet search will reveal plenty of networking groups in your area. Some will be industry- specific, like the many real estate networking events, while others will be more general. The great thing about networking events is that you know everyone is there for the same reason, so there’s no way you can be a nuisance, but you might find that there are too many freelancers like you and not enough clients to go around.

I know there are plenty of other resources that bring people together, so share those with us in the comments!