Freelancers who are trying to build their portfolios occasionally asked me, "What can I do with good work that was never used?"

The good news is, you should use it in your portfolio, if it's work you're proud of. Marketing professionals are used to seeing work in all of its stages, and as long as your sample is "perfect," your prospect will see its potential and value.

There's a lot of overtly self-serving marketing taking place in the "new copywriter's space" of the Internet, and I don't want to add to that.

So permit me to give you my very considered perspective on the question "Can I transition into copywriting by moonlighting?"

I want to share with you the solution to a marketing problem recently expressed by three of my coaching students...and that is how to create a powerful online newsletter (ezine) for cultivating quality clients.

I realize this is not the only source of information you can find on how to write an effective ezine, but it follows my own successful formula, and it addresses mistakes I'm seeing repeatedly among my coaching students, whether new to the business or not.

I was recently approached by a copywriter who was confused about the proper use of copyright. He explained that the client had hired him for work, then canceled the job part way through, paying him for work done to date.

Perhaps because the work was unfinished, and thinking there may be some future use for it, the copywriter expressed that felt he should retain copyright, and was perplexed when the client got into a snit about it.

There are two financially ruinous negotiating tactics often made by beginning copywriters.

An example of financially ruinous negotiating tactic #1 comes from a successful book author who is adding copywriting to his writing skill set. Here, paraphrased, is a comment he made to me:

The USP tells your prospect what differentiates your product from everyone else's in your category. And it's the single most important reason your prospect will buy from you...or from someone else.

But did you know that you, as a freelancer, are a "product" too...and that you need a USP to differentiate you from all of the other business freelancers working in your field? The most successful copywriters can say why they're the best writer for the job. Can you?