When you are a freelancer, it can sometimes be hard to earn the money you feel you deserve. Do you ever see yourself working harder and longer hours than most of your freelancing competition? Whether you are a seasoned freelancer or brand new to the game, these five strategies are sure to bring you more money than expected while freelancing.
1. Choose In-Demand Projects
It’s very easy for freelance writers to gravitate towards creative essay writing, or for freelance website developers to take on projects for non-profit organizations. These tasks might come effortlessly, and they might make you feel good because you get to do something you enjoy, but they rarely make you a sizable income.
If your primary goal is to earn money, you have to think about projects within the scope of your freelancing skill that will allow you to make a living wage. This could require a bit of research on your part in order to find the most profitable niche options, but it is time well spent. In return, you would potentially be able to earn twice or three times the amount of many than other freelancers.
2. Network in Your Community and Online
Networking is a no-brainer strategy, of course. You must reach out to others to let them know what you do professionally. Your online presence is vital for gaining customers from all over your country—and even all over the world. First establish yourself as a professional freelancer with your social media outlets. Utilize LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to the best of your ability.
Networking within your community is just as important. The majority of freelancers who do not travel long-term, but instead are based in one town, often fail to reach out to businesses around them. However, since freelancing is still an up-and-coming trend amongst professionals, few businesses even have knowledge of freelancers who provide equivalent skills to that of competitive companies. Start handing out business cards to certain establishments with a lot of traffic. Create posters to stick on bulletin boards in public places. You would be surprised with the amount of business you can generate from small businesses and individuals—which ultimately translates to money in your pocket.
3. Develop a Professional Online Portfolio
In order to network with others, whether online or in-person, you should have a place that potential clients can easily reference for your sample work, rates, and contact information. The main page could be where you introduce yourself as a freelancer, giving background information of your education, where you are located, your professional experience, and how you first came to be a freelancer.
Make no mistake, this is not a place to list the skills from your resume. Your introduction is more conversational so that people can get to know you as a professional and individual. With sample work, it’s best to designate an entire page to short clips of your finest pieces. If you have a standard contract you like to use with all of your clients, make that available for people to see as well. You don’t have to go into too much detail with rates if you prefer, but you should have your contact information displayed so that clients can easily inquire about your services.
4. Treat Freelancing Like a Business
This strategy is often overlooked. You may just be focused on earning money and consider freelancing to be a “side job”. However, if you want to truly earn income from your freelancing skill, you have to devote the time to organize your system of earning as if you were a business. Think of yourself as a self-employed business owner, while your clients are customers. The steps you should take for basic business transactions are as follows:
- Create a standard list of your services and rates. Who is your ideal client, and what services are you going to offer? Based on those two answers, you can formulate an idea of what you need to charge. Consider the time it takes for you to complete a task from start to finish; include preliminary research, phone calls, emails, interviews, and editing. Also establish a comfortable hourly rate for yourself in case a client’s project is more involved than just a fixed price.
- Draft a contract between yourself and your clients. Remember that online portfolio? That is where you can have your contract displayed at all times, but you probably need to be more thorough when discussing terms one-on-one with clients. Include method of payment, communication clauses, and an outline for when the contract is broken by either party.
- Organize invoices and provide customer service. You are your own boss, so you have to act like one when it’s time to deal with the transaction process. Make it easy for clients to pay you without giving too much of your personal information away (avoid offering your personal bank account number). PayPal or another comparable online platform is highly recommended. Also, maintain communication with your clients as often and quickly as possible, since they are your direct source of income.
5. Outsource Tedious Tasks
It might seem obvious as a freelancer to work more hours in order to earn more money, but that road can quickly lead to mental burnout and frustration. Carefully look at the detailed process of your work. Where are the areas of your job that you believe anyone can do? Are these the parts where you are spending a lot of your time? If so, you might gain a whole lot of income just by outsourcing these tasks. By doing this, you can focus on the primary parts of freelancing that make you the most money.
Freelancing can be an exciting journey, especially when there’s a lot of money to be made in the process. As long as you conduct your skill in a professional manner, the sky is the limit to potential income that you can earn.
Author’s bio: Laura Buckler writes website content that inspires people and shares stories. She has been an expert marketer and writer for four years now, creating engaging website after engaging website. If you are looking for content that results in sales and uses the right marketing strategies, Laura is your person.
