Interview with B2B Copywriter Christine Gomolka

Learn how Christine used LinkedIn to land clients – FAST.

Christine Gomolka B2B Copywriter

 

Christine guides new freelance copywriters on mastering the most important part of building a freelance business: finding clients. Burnt out from a 10-year career in software sales, she followed her gut and quit with no backup plan. Without any professional writing experience, she went all-in and became a full-time freelance copywriter. 

 

She now teaches the exact steps she took to break into copywriting and land high-paying clients in less than 30 days. She empowers copywriters to say no to saturated content mills and confidently pitch high-paying clients using LinkedIn. She helps new copywriters overcome the fears and insecurities that she too faced when starting out. Her mission is to teach aspiring freelancers a simple framework that enables them to find peace in their careers, finances, and lives.

 

Christine’s Story

 

Christine, welcome to the Show!

 

Thank you so much Amy, I’m so happy to be here!

 

Awesome, awesome. So, I read your story that you sent me, but I would love for you to tell us all your story in your own words, your professional background, and then what led you into the copywriting field.

 

Sure, so as you read, freelance copywriting saved me from a pretty toxic job situation. But before I got there, I feel like I kind of started off the way most writers do. I majored in English in college but I kind of had this idea, or maybe it was presented to me this way, that writers really didn’t make a lot of money or you were going to become a journalist or an academic, none of which I was interested in. So for ten years basically, I was in a completely unrelated (or so I thought) career field, which was sales. 

 

Sales is a career where people get into it because they don’t really know what they want to do and that was me. I kind of progressed on paying bills in one of the most expensive cities in the world, New York City. I had $20,000 worth of student loan debt and I kind of felt trapped. I felt trapped in my nine to five job because I had this debt to pay off. I was making really good money but as the years progressed, and as I progressed and I climbed that ladder, I became really really burnt out. I would say one of the breaking points was that I was being sexually harassed at one of my jobs. And Amy I have heard you speak about this as well. I think it’s something that a lot of people can relate to, working in very male dominated industries. I know you had a similar experience in a toxic work environment situation. 

 

Yep, absolutely.

 

So I quit with no back up plan because I simply could not take it anymore. And for anyone who is listening, maybe you don’t relate to being a female and being sexually harassed or whatever it is. But I think everyone can relate to being really miserable at their job but not feeling as though they have any other option. Whether it is that they are supporting a family, or making a ton of money, or they are told that they would be stupid to walk away from this opportunity, that’s kind of where I was at. And I was terrified to start from square one and start in a brand new career field. I knew I wanted to be a writer, I just didn’t think I could make a real living doing it. I just thought this is going to be a hobby and I’m going to have to have a real job – a real job that I probably hate. 

 

So after I did wind up quitting with no back up plan, I discovered copywriting, which is crazy because I really didn’t know this field existed. This very business and sales focused form of writing. It’s not necessarily a very artistic form of writing, it’s not writing novels, it’s not writing journalistic articles, and it just clicked for me because I had that sales background. I understood the psychology of persuasion and selling and I couldn’t believe that there was a way for me to actually do that without going into client’s offices and being face to face with them and putting myself in these vulnerable situations. 

 

So I went from not even knowing what copywriting was, to landing my first client in less than thirty days. The reason that was able to happen was not because I’m something special, I had no professional writing experience. It’s because I understood the sales process. I understood what cold outreach was because I had done it on all of these other companies’ behalf. And I was using LinkedIn to pitch clients, to get jobs, stuff like that. So when I became a copywriter and decided ok I know what this is and I want to do it. I hopped onto LinkedIn and started to pitch clients and I got up and running. So I was making a full time living within four months. And that’s my backstory in a nutshell.

 

Wow, that is really amazing that you just jumped in there. And I think that’s something to be said about sometimes we might feel that we aren’t far enough along or we are not doing something “right” but it’s just kind of the spiritual side of things that I like to put into everything. You are where you are supposed to be, even if it might be uncomfortable in the moment. But if you didn’t have all that sales experience, as $h*tty as it was in the moment. That still led you to this wealth of knowledge that you could translate into copywriting which I think is such a cool part of the industry and the profession. You could have such a varied background and then you discover copywriting and you’re like wow I can use what I went through, in a way that feels aligned with what I actually want to be doing and make good money, make my own schedule and have my own business. It’s just really inspirational and thank you for sharing that. And I’m sorry about your experience with sexual harassment, that’s horrible.

 

Amy I can’t agree more with you about everything being at the right timing and being on the right path because throughout my sales career I kept wondering why. Why does everybody else get to do something that they love for a living? I would go around asking people, “Do you like your job?” They would say, “Well, I like it, it’s fine.” And would be like why the hell do I hate it? I did so much mindset work about being grateful and trying to look at the positive. And I thought Oh my god, am I defective in some way? Am I just this person who hates working? And that was very challenging to think as well because I didn’t have a spouse or silver spoon. I knew I had to work for the most part. So if I don’t like working, this is not going to end well. 

 

Thoughts on Empathy

 

What you were saying before, just as a little tangent, when we were talking about empathy and copywriting. One of the things I did when I quit my job is I went and saw a career counselor. She had me take this personality assessment called The Clifton’s Strength test. Have you heard of it?

 

I haven’t actually.

 

It’s pretty popular in terms of personality tests but this is not really emotional or psychological. It was supposed to just be this career focused test to say here is what your skill level is and this is what type of career you should pursue. So I took this evaluation and paid for it. And the number one skill that it listed that I had was empathy.

 

Wow.

 

When I saw that was my result, I literally started crying! What in the hell am I going to do with empathy? How is that going to help me in my career? I already know that I’m overly sensitive and that I feel things really deeply and I have this hyper awareness that kind of relates to anxiety. And these are actually things that held me back in my sales career, because I was so aware of what other people were thinking. So when I saw that this evaluation said – oh your number one skill is empathy, it was devastating for me. And it turned out that, like you said, everything happens for a reason because getting into copywriting, I look at it as such a gift because it’s one of those careers, and there aren’t many, where being outwardly focused and having a high level of empathy makes you successful at this job. So throughout my life, empathy has kind of retagged in all these different ways. I have attracted really unreciprocal, toxic, narcissistic relationships. And then now I’m using this, what I thought was a character flaw, empathy, in my copywriting. It’s something that is allowing me to work on my own, as a freelancer, with no boss. So it’s my way of taking back my power and using my shadow to really thrive in this world in a way that I didn’t think was possible.

 

Right! That is so beautiful. That’s so funny too how at first when you said that you started crying, immediately I thought tears of joy. And then I was like no she was upset about this. 

 

Mindset Practices 

 

What kind of work do you do to keep that perspective? I know we can be confident and sit in that place of empowerment and all those things. But we are always tested and challenged, so I’m wondering what kind of, not self-care necessarily, but what practices do you do to keep that mindset where it needs to be to be your most successful self?

 

Throughout my journey of personal development, I feel like I have done pretty much everything. I have done personal development seminars, specifically my journey started with a course called The Landmark Forum Seminar. I’m sure some have heard of it, it’s all over the world. I have gone to therapy, I have gone to astrologers, I really have done so many different things, but if I had to sum up what makes the biggest difference for me in terms of my mindset, I would have to say mediation. 

 

I think my life really changed when I started meditating regularly, even if it’s for ten minutes a day. There is so much clutter in all of our minds that once we learn how to get still as a practice, life starts to reveal itself and you are able to kind of navigate your life without all of the crap clouding your judgement. It’s funny with that Clifton Strength test, everything that it told me, I already knew deep down. But when you have so much, whether it’s societal, whether anxiety or all these outside pressures, our vision gets clouded and we just don’t have a clear direction. But deep down we do know the right steps to take. We know what we are geared toward. We know what we like to do. And once you start meditating regularly, it becomes more clear. 

 

Yes, I couldn’t agree more. And that is something that is tangible. It’s free. There are apps and you can really start at any point and time in your life and just start. For me, I also do a daily practice and it just opens up so much and you’ll have revelations that you wouldn’t have ever come to if you didn’t take that time to just sit and be still. And it’s also called a practice for a reason I think because it’s hard to quiet those thoughts in your head and it does take practice. But once you figure out that tool, it’s really expansive. So, I really love that meditation is part of your practice as well. I can totally relate with that. 

 

LinkedIn Tips

 

So getting back to a little more tangible stuff, you mentioned LinkedIn and I hear a lot of success stories for copywriters finding clients and networking on LinkedIn. You obviously found major success pretty quickly on that platform, so I’m wondering if there are any tips or advice you can give to people who want to use LinkedIn to find clients? 

 

Yes, for sure. First I want to say that copywriters are not really taking advantage of LinkedIn and I believe there are a few reasons and maybe some will resonate with this. Number one is that they are intimidated or overwhelmed by this platform. Obviously new social media platforms can be complicated and overwhelming as it is but I think LinkedIn is specific because people think that this is such a professional network and I see all of these professionals on there. And copywriters don’t think of themselves as these very professional people. They don’t feel like they are enough to be on that platform. So I want to bust that myth right there because everybody deserves to be on that platform. 

 

Number two, they are afraid of being salesy. I think this is a number one thing copywriters do. Maybe they can wrap their head around cold emailing or they understand LOI’s (Letter of Introduction) but something about messaging on LinkedIn can be intimidating. 

 

The third thing is that they are told that they need to be posting original content on this platform. That is a ton of work, so I recommend something that busts all these myths. I’ll get to that. I just want to set the record clear, that you do have a right to cold message people on LinkedIn. And the reason I say that is because big companies are hiring huge sales teams sometimes and they use cold outreach to build these Fortune 500 companies. And I know because I was that sales rep that was hired time and time again to do that cold messaging. When I see freelancers being told not to cold pitch, I don’t know where this myth is coming from. I actually see this time and time again, don’t send cold messages on LinkedIn. It upsets me deeply because as freelancers, we should feel empowered to use the same business strategies that these big companies are using. 

 

Also, it’s not only ok to message on LinkedIn, but it is encouraged. That is what this platform is for. That’s why LinkedIn created this product called Sales Navigator. That’s why it exists in the first place. That’s why professionals are using this platform every single day to sell their goods and services.

 

And as far as the third thing, please do not think you have to post original content, have a content strategy, or gain followers, or try to get engagement to get this platform to work for you. I’ll tell you right now, if that was true, I would have never used this platform. I’m not a huge fan of social media. I strictly use this platform to get in touch, identify who at these companies I need to speak to, and directly message them. I’m pretty introverted, believe it or not, even though I was in a sales career. So if I was told that I had to write these original posts and post consistently, I just wouldn’t use it either. So that’s my myth busting session about LinkedIn.      

 

I love that. It’s that imposter syndrome that creeps in. Who am I to go on here, I’m just a one woman show writing copy. No one even knows what copy is. But I love that you are giving everyone permission to go on there because F*&K corporate, I’m sorry, it’s not for me, let’s just say. And I think we all can step into that corporate power, but remember also that what you are providing is helping so many people so maybe by holding back and not sending those cold messages you are actually deserving someone. If you have that people pleaser tendency, you might not want to be salesy or annoying. But what if you think of it as doing them a service you can provide and it’s going to really improve their business. So thank you for giving permission to get on LinkedIn. Also, great to know that you don’t have to produce tons of content. Because that, like you said, is a big roadblock for people. On Instagram and Facebook obviously you have to be producing, producing, producing or pay them a lot of money. Those are really great tips for LinkedIn, so thank you so much for that. 

 

Do you have any tips for optimizing your profile for copywriters?

 

Yes, for sure. This is the number one thing, other than actually messaging clients. This is what copywriters really need to take advantage of. Personalizing your profile in all the sections is important but the most important sections to optimize would have to be your headline. Next to your name, a headline will appear, and you can think of this as any hook or headline that you would write in your copywriting. It’s to capture attention. There is a character limit and you want to use that prime real estate to stuff that with as many keyword optimized words that make you stand out. It could be emojis, you could separate it and make it readable. But you want to tell people exactly what it is you do and why you are different. 

 

If you think of it from a hiring manager’s perspective, let’s say they are searching for a technology copywriter, they are typing in technology copywriter into their little recruiter search bar, and they get a list of copywriters that fall into the technology niche. But who is going to stand out most to them? And that is what you want to have to the mindset of. What about my writing style is special? What does my ideal client want to see? So if you do nothing else, the headline is super important.

 

The second most important, I would say, is your About section. That is what they call it on LinkedIn, an About section. It’s basically, I would say, like a cover letter for your LinkedIn profile. It’s your opportunity to describe who you are and what you do. It’s almost like the landing page of your writer’s website, which I always recommended that every copywriter have their own website. But you want to make that section copy, right? If there were ever an opportunity to showcase your copywriting abilities, you want to use it right there. And you want to tailor it to exactly what your ideal client is looking to see. So, understanding what your clients want in a copywriter is really important. If you don’t have that information, please try to reach out and find out. That’s how I did it. I literally said to a hiring manager, “What do you look for in copywriters?” and I tailored my bio to hit those points. 

 

That’s a great great tip. I love that. Getting in their head, thank you so much. Those are so actionable too. I love giving people advice that they can go and do today. I think that is really important. 

 

Hobbies Outside of Copywriting

 

So, outside of copywriting, I know we are well rounded humans. I am curious what you like to do for fun? What keeps you inspired? What are some of your favorite hobbies? I  know that bio photo you sent me has a sweet little doggie on there, so maybe you can tell us more about your life.

 

Yeah, so interesting because I lived in New York City for eight years, but actually deep down I’m a huge lazy beach person. I live by the beach now and I’m very chill, relaxed, don’t like big crowds or any of that stuff. My lifestyle has really been aided by freelance copywriting. The ability to stay indoors if I want and not be around people.

 

I have a rescue dog, she is from Texas and she is my child. I am obsessed with her and I’m obsessed with dog rescue. If I could ask anyone to do anything it would be please consider rescuing a dog versus purchasing one from a pet store. 

 

Also, something I do that I am really passionate about, if we are going to plug, is I volunteer for a group called Age Out Angels. What they do is they pair youth that are aging out of the foster care system, with mentors. This kind of feeds into what I’m doing now with mentoring other copywriters. It helps me build that skill. 

 

Basically when foster youth age out of the foster care system, they are about 18 years old and they lose all support in the blink of an eye as soon as they turn 18. As most people understand, you’re really not an adult at 18. You need so much more guidance, that these kids just don’t have. And they wind up in jail, they wind up in the streets, and it’s just not a good situation. So this organization pairs mentors with these youths so somebody can teach them how to budget, make sure they are not on the streets, somebody can make sure they are securing housing. It’s just something that I am really passionate about because I think the worst thing on Earth is being abandoned and unwanted and not having this guidance. If you can provide that for someone who needs it, it’s such an amazing thing. So that is a big part of what I do outside of work, and actually I started doing that after I left my full time career. I did so much soul searching and was trying to determine what my strengths were, and that was the biggest gift for me to get involved in.

 

That is wonderful, I love that so much. And we’ll put a link to that organization here too in case anyone wants to look into getting involved. 

 

The Love of Copywriting

 

What is something that you love most about copywriting that was kind of a surprise to you?

 

My favorite part of copywriting is understanding an audience. I think that is kind of the key to copywriting, is being very aware of what the customer wants. And what’s cool about that is that you go to work for a company, and for me I’m in the tech niche, so I work for start-up companies in the software space. They have this awesome idea for a product or for a solution, but what they are missing is a gauge on their audience and their customers. They are so focused on their own product, their own solutions, all the features, why it’s so cool and I founded this company and it’s so great. It’s really cool because as a copywriter you get to come in with this unbiased view basically, and say I know your product is cool and I know you want to get this out there to people, but we need to understand the people that are going to be buying this. What do they look like? Who are they? What are their fears? What are their political viewpoints? I’ve always been someone who is fascinated with understanding people and kind of putting them in certain categories.

 

I think that is why astrology is so fascinating to me because I’m like Oh yeah she’s a gemini, she fits that for sure. I have always loved these psychological tests and personality tests because of that. So when you get to do that for a company and say hey these are actually the three pain points, these are why people are buying your product, then you can create content around that, that speaks directly to them. And the cool thing is when people read copy that really is in tune with the audience, you don’t feel like you are reading marketing, you don’t know that you are even reading a sales page, you feel like oh my God this is talking to me. So as copywriters, we get to do that and that’s so freaking cool in my opinion.

 

Yeah, absolutely. How do you make sure that you are getting all of that information about the audience from your clients? Do you do the research or do you have them provide it? Or does it just kind of depend on who you are working with? And also, have you ever had a situation where they don’t really know who their audience is? And how have you navigated that?

 

Oh my gosh, yes. So it is a challenge because number one, even when they do have some preliminary information, it’s really not fleshed out. So when I have worked for some of the bigger companies, like an HP for example, they have put the time, money and resources into creating these customer personas. If I can work with that, that’s amazing. But I mostly work for start-up companies, so they don’t know that information. It is on me to do that research and something I do is just try, and I’m sure you do this too Amy, a lot of copywriters do, it’s not even understanding just their demographics, it’s understanding how they talk about their problems. So if I can go to a forum, whether it’s a software review site like Capterra, or maybe they are engaging in LinkedIn comments. I want to not only know what their problems are, but how they verbalize their problems. And you can actually use those keywords, or those words they are using, in copy. I call this process eavesdropping. You scour the internet to see where these people are venting their frustrations, and then you use that in your copy.

 

That is a great tip, I do that too. I call it stalking and it is such a great tip to get in that headspace again. So good. 

 

Advice for Beginning Copywriters

 

Is there something you wish you knew when you first got started, that you could share?

 

I just wish I wasn’t such a people pleaser in the beginning. And I know that a lot of people can relate to this, maybe you can relate to this Amy.

 

Oh one million thousand percent!

 

I just wanted to be the best and didn’t want to ruffle any feathers. I would say to anybody who is in that people pleaser mode, ask a lot of questions. If you don’t have enough information from your client, don’t be afraid to ask a million questions until you get to the bottom of what you need. I think one of the biggest problems in copywriting, is that these companies hire a contractor like us, and they just say ok here is the assignment, go run with it. They don’t give us enough information and it is to their detriment because if we don’t have enough knowledge about their company, product or audience, we can’t write good copy. I’ve been in those situations where they just refuse to give me the information I was looking for. Sometimes it’s just not a good fit because of that.

 

If there is one thing I wish I knew as well, is that it’s ok to not mesh with certain clients. That’s why I loved LinkedIn and that’s why I love the approach that I use to getting clients. Because when you have this abundance mindset, that there is always another client around the corner, you don’t put much stock into these relationships that aren’t working. I really let myself get treated like such a doormat in the beginning, with these quick turnaround times, and you should know this. I realize that is not necessary because it’s probably just not a good fit. Maybe somebody with a different experience set, or more experience, or somebody who is used to being abused like that, maybe that is a good fit for them but not a good fit for me. So no people pleasing and no scarcity mindset of holding onto clients who just aren’t a good fit for you. 

 

Yes, I couldn’t agree more. That is wonderful advice. And it’s easier said than done. If someone is going through that right now, understand that you can say and actually keep saying it. Affirm to yourself of where you want to be. I am a highly paid, well respected copywriter, I know what I’m doing. You have to repeat those things to yourself, at least I do, because it’s easy to get in that people pleasing mode when you are so used to it. But I couldn’t agree with you more on speaking up. There is always a better aligned client. And then by releasing the ones who aren’t aligned with you, you are opening up space to bring in the ones who are meant to be working with you, which is where we want to be. 

Recommended Resources

 

To wrap up, I’m wondering if you could share a podcast, a book, or some kind of resource for people. It doesn’t even have to be copy related. I know we mentioned your causes that you are really passionate about. So a recommendation and also where people can find you?

 

Sure, so I’m going to recommend two resources. It’s funny because a lot of beginner copywriters want to read books about copywriting but I actually think marketing books are so much more valuable. The two that I would recommend are Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller and The 1-Page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib. Building a Story Brand is an amazing book. You can get certified to be a story brand guide. It’s really just understanding how to utilize the elements of story and craft very effective content based on this framework. It’s awesome, awesome, awesome, for copywriters.

 

The second resource I want to recommend is my own. We are talking a lot about LinkedIn and cold messaging. Maybe people have gotten into the mindset that they can get on LinkedIn and send those messages. But then there is the question of what the hell do I say? What I have done, is I have created these free templates. And they are not just templates, they are actually screenshots that I used in the beginning to cold pitch clients on LinkedIn, book my clients calls with them, and have them become a client. I kind of break down like hey if you want to write an email to them responding to a job post, here is what you should say. If you want to send a connection invitation on LinkedIn, here is what it should say. And that should be a good starting point for people, they can personalize these templates and use them as their own. I’ll give you the link to those Amy so your audience can grab those for free. 

 

That is amazing. Thank you so much, what a great resource! Awesome, well Christine, thank you so much for taking time to chat with me today. There was so much value in the episode, it’s going to be life changing for some people out there. 

 

Connecting With Christine Gomolka

 

If we want to connect with you, would LinkedIn be the best place?

 

Actually no, the best place to connect with me is my website, which is https://www.paidcopywriter.com/ and all of my social media handles are paid copywriter. If you do go to my LinkedIn profile, it’s just going to be a boring profile of what I use to get my clients. But what I use to mentor copywriters, everything is on my paidcopywriter.com website.

 

Gotcha, ok we’ll make sure to link that as well.

 

If you want to learn more about Christine’s journey and how she guides new freelance copywriters to begin a successful career you can visit her site at: http://www.christinegomolka.com/.

 

Or connect with Christine on Instagram for more of her awesome actionable tips on how to land high-paying clients fast: @paidcopywriter.

 

You can also grab your FREE Cold Outreach Templates HERE.

 

Christine’s passion outside of copywriting, is this amazing program that helps support foster children when they age out of the foster care system. You can find more information on that HERE.

 

As for me, you can always connect with me on my Facebook Group called The Copywriting Girls Club HERE, where we dish about all these copy related and love digging into the energetics and mindset behind running a successful copywriting business. 

 

Come hang out with me on Instagram for more about my own copywriting journey HERE.

 

And don’t forget to grab a copy of my FREE content repurposing guide HERE for 20+ ways to repurpose your long form content and save yourself tons of time and energy.