Comments on: How to Have Your Most Productive Summer Ever

By: Ed Gandia, Editor

Ed Gandia, Editor — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:50:34 +0000

Traci – That’s a good point. Most of us resort to the same marketing tactics year after year. It’s worth taking a risk every once in a while and trying something new. It could make all the difference in your income this year.

My only suggestion would be to make sure there’s solid reasoning behind the decision. For instance, advertising in a local creative directory just because many other freelancers are doing it is not a great reason for making that investment. Neither is unfocused direct mail, speaking to a group that’s not rich with prospects, or spending hours on Facebook without a plan.

By: Traci Feit Love

Traci Feit Love — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 14:56:55 +0000

Thanks for the great suggestions. I think another great thing to focus on during downtime is marketing. Maybe try something new while you have the time – speaking at local events, creating a newsletter, participating in online forums, or even some targeted advertising.

By: Michael Temple

Michael Temple — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:09:04 +0000

This is the first summer in probably the last 4 years that my summer hasn’t been slammed. My business is typically slow around the holidays and into early February and as the year rolled on I became more and more busy right into summer. This busy period extended right up to the end of the year. Usually when the holidays hit I was ready to take time off and therefore did not really accomplish much during my slow time.

This summer I am taking time to enjoy the family, develop a new line of information products and build up my marketing materials as well as doing some more reading. I also managed to squeeze my first vacation in already last week, hopefully get at least one more in before the end of the summer.

By: Pete Savage, Editor

Pete Savage, Editor — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:41:50 +0000

Sharon — you’ll be sleeping outside? You mean like camping out in the backyard? Cool. I’d like to do that with my little guy this summer. (He’s almost 3!)

Me… I’ll be getting up earlier so I can finish an hour earlier each day and enjoy some sunshine and outdoor fun with my family. Im also planning a targeted direct mail campaign of my own, and I’m writing a book! Gonna be busy, but fun.

Thanks for sharing your summer plans!

By: Ed Gandia, Editor

Ed Gandia, Editor — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 21:57:48 +0000

@Marie-Claude: That’s great news! Glad you mentioned your other website project, because my point was really about creating other income-generating projects, not necessarily creating an e-book. Vacation out of the house? What a novel idea! I’m dying to do the same. Waiting for my wife to confirm some dates so I can begin planning a REAL vacation (you know, the type where you’re not more tired when you get back than you were going in). Have a great summer!

@Sharon: Man, bike rides in the early AM sound great about now! We’ve been having such nice weather over here. Looking to buy a bike this month. Haven’t had one in 15 years! Here’s another one for your list: concerts in the park with a nice light meal and a bottle of chilled New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Yummy! Doing that tomorrow night. Enjoy your summer!

By: Sharon

Sharon — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:49:42 +0000

I plan on planning. But it’s also such a wonderful time of the year to be out on the bike, sleeping nights outside, reading what you didn’t get read and hanging out with friends. I still want to get more in the day than is possible.

By: Marie-Claude Ethier

Marie-Claude Ethier — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:45:21 +0000

Lots of good tips there Ed, thanks. I’m planning on creating my first e-book this summer and starting work on a website project that will hopefully become another income stream. Oh, yes, almost forgot – and take an actual vacation out of the house!

By: Aprill Jones

Aprill Jones — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 17:41:39 +0000

I also plan to keep developing business and developing how I develop business!