The Content Byte

This week Rachel and Lynne are chatting with Lizzie Mulherin, a freelance writer, brand strategist, and travel author. Lizzie shares her career journey and chats about:

• Having a business mindset when it comes to freelancing
• How to mix content work and journalism
• How to boost your confidence as a freelancer
• Whether you need to build a personal brand to make good money
• Common mistakes she sees writers making
• How to get the most out of AI
• Whether it is possible to make a good living through Substack

Connect with Lizzie via her website: https://www.lizzie-mulherin.com/ 

or through Substack on https://createyourliving.substack.com/ 

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au   

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com   

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast, Rachel and Lynne are chatting with freelance writer, journalist, consultant and media trainer Sue White. As a highly successful freelancer, Sue is all about knowing your own worth and charging accordingly. She shares her career journey, why it's important to grow and adapt as time goes on and why you should never accept underpaid jobs.

She talks about:

• Where and how she finds her clients
• Why journalists need to do copywriting and content to make a good living
• How she secured a long-running column in prestigious newspapers
• Whether securing retainers works for freelancers
• How she set up a media training business with fellow journalist Ginger Gorman
• The systems and processes that work for her

Connect with Sue (and all the many freelance hats she wears) via her website: https://www.suewhite.com.au/

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au  Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com  Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week, Rachel and Lynne chat with B2B writer and coach Sarah Greesonbach. We reached out to her after seeing her great comments and funny posts on LinkedIn and we love her approach to freelance writing. We should point out that Lynne had some Internet issues near the end and had to drop out. Luckily Rachel and Sarah were able to complete the chat!

During our chat we talk about:

• Why she loves B2B content work
• How she came back from burning out
• Why you need to master three parts of the client-getting process
• How writers can use LinkedIn better (without posting all the time)
• How to charge more without freaking out
• Some clever tech tips that help her be more productive

Connect with Sarah at B2B Content Studio: https://b2bcontentstudio.com/

or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahgreesonbach/

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au  Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com  Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast Rachel and Lynne are talking about how to grow your businesses with Jenn Donovan. Jenn is passionate about small businesses (which is what a freelance career essentially is) and she talks about how you can use community to find clients and get support from your peers.

In our discussion we cover:

• Her interesting career story, from lawyer to retailer to marketer
• Why she loves working in rural and regional communities
• How the power of community keeps small businesses alive
• How AI can save you hours of time, so you can focus on doing what you love
• How podcasts can be a powerful marketing tool
• The tech tools she uses every day

Find Jenn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenn-donovan/

Her Small Business Made Simple podcast is here: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/small-business-made-simple-podcast/id1448007188 

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected]  for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

And we are back! After a short post-Summit haitus, Lynne and Rachel are back with a new season and a great guest. And it's all about personality-driven email newsletters. Emails are having their moment in the sun right now - they don't rely on algorithyms that could change quickly or at the whim of a social media mogul and, when done well, can create a powerful conversation between companies and their clients. This week, journalist and content creator Steven Lewis talks all about creating email newsletters for yourself or clients. He talks about:

• Moving from editorial work to copywriting
• Bringing your own voice to your emails
• How to add personality to emails and why it matters
• How to get those first 10 words on the page
• Effective business processes, including onboarding and contracts
• Why he loves creating courses for writers and copywriters
• How to use AI to save time and be more efficient

Connect with Steven at taleist.agency and find the special download for our listeners on how to grow your mailing list at taleist.agency/byte

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au  Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com  Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected]  for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

It's just a few days before the biggest event of the year (in our calendars anyway!). It's time for The Content Byte Summit. Hosts Rachel & Lynne talk about the impressive line-up of speakers and all the panels and presentations they are looking forward to seeing this year. 

Some of the presentations include how to:

→ find new high-paying clients in your niche → hear how to tweak your website to make it work better for you → find out what editors want (and meet three who commission!) → create digital products for an extra income stream → map out a freelance marketing plan you CAN stick to → write sales pages (and charge serious money) → hone your interviewing / storytelling skills (in an AI world) → shore up your systems and processes (SAVING you big $$$) → get all the pricing + money tips from two of the best in the biz

AND SO MUCH MORE.

And we might both be biased, but it's probably the best thing you'll do for your business this year.

The Content Byte Summit starts on Thursday 12 September, continuing to Saturday 14 September. Snap up one of the last remaining tickets (in person or virtual) at our website: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au 

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

Communications professional and content strategist Cameron Pegg is Rachel & Lynne's guest this week. Cameron talks about how his time at university helped him create better stories and what his early career in corporate communications taught him. 

Cameron talks about:

• The value of storytelling to create content
• Securing bylines while still at uni
• What he learned from working in radio
• Developing courses with Communication and Public Relations Australia
• How offering content strategy helps you charge more
• What data journalism means and how statistics and infographics make for better storytelling
• Working with graphic designers

Connect with Cameron on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronpegg/

or via his website: https://cameronpegg.com.au/ 

Don't forget it's the last couple of weeks to buy tickets for The Content Byte Summit, where you can learn about future-proofing your freelance business, from September 12-14, 2024 in Sydney. Sign up for updates for the Summit (or snap up tickets) at our website: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au  

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au  Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com     Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au  

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast, Rachel is unwell, so Lynne is on her own talking with new author and court reporter Lucia Osborne-Crowley. Lucia's latest book, The Lasting Harm, Witnessing the Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, is a powerful examination of the trial of Maxwell and all the behind-the-scenes machinations with the victims and the lawyers. We talk about:

• How Lucia's background as a lawyer prepared her for this work
• How she worked with Maxwell's victims and shared their story
• The legal hoops she had to jump through to publish the book
• The frustrations involved when she can't tell the whole story because of legal issues
• How she looks after herself despite writing about trauma 

Connect with Lucia via her website: https://luciaosbornecrowley.com/

or on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luciaoc/

Don't forget it's the last couple of weeks to buy tickets for The Content Byte Summit, where you can learn about future-proofing your freelance business, from September 12-14, 2024 in Sydney. Sign up for updates for the Summit (or snap up tickets) at our website: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au 

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com   

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details. 

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast, Rachel and Lynne are chatting with Paul Merrill, a former editor in chief of weekly magazines, who established his own freelance content business five years ago. Paul talks about his early career in the golden era of magazines, the pressure of being a publisher in Australia and then how he set up his own business. Our chat covers:

• Finding work when you are starting out
• How his background in journalism helps him create interesting content
• His newly established niche of award writing and how it has brought in a new income stream
• Working with corporate clients
• Offering a wide range of content services
• Enjoying work/life balance
• Managing the ups and downs of freelancing
• Where he finds his clients

Connect with Paul and find out more about his work at his website: https://www.paulmerrill.com.au/ 

Don't forget it's the last couple of weeks to buy tickets for The Content Byte Summit, where you can learn about future-proofing your freelance business, from September 12-14, 2024 in Sydney. Sign up for updates for the Summit (or snap up tickets) at our website: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au  

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au     Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com  Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co 

This week on the podcast, Rachel and Lynne have a special guest - voice actor Sarah Aubrey. A long-time actor, voice actor and freelancer, Sarah shares her career journey and how she found her niche in voice acting and voiceovers.

She talks about:

• Training at NIDA and working as an actor
• Discovering her talent for voice work
• Managing the ups and downs of freelance life
• Coping with erratic cash flow
• How her agent makes her life easier - and does the hustling for her
• Setting up her own soundproof studio and how it brought her work
• Her fascinating new side hustle as an 'influencer' (and how she hates that word)

Connect with Sarah and her voice work at her website: https://www.sarahaubrey.com/

See her work in the electification/sustainability space through Electrify This: https://www.electrifythis.com.au/ 

Don't forget it's the last couple of weeks to buy tickets for The Content Byte Summit, where ou can learn about future-proofing your freelance business, from September 12-14, 2024 in Sydney. Sign up for updates for the Summit (or snap up tickets) at our website: https://thecontentbytesummit.com.au 

Find Rachel www.rachelsmith.com.au   

Find Lynne www.lynnetestoni.com

Rachel's List www.rachelslist.com.au 

Thanks (as always) to our sponsors Rounded (www.rounded.com.au), an easy invoicing and accounting solution that helps freelancers run their businesses with confidence. Looking to take advantage of the discount for Rachel's List Gold Members? Email us at: [email protected] for the details.

Episode edited by Marker Creative Co www.markercreative.co