Freelancers tend to take pleasure in the flexibility of their work, be that taking on clients from many different industries, to managing their own hours from day to day and changing them if that’s the approach they need.
Regardless of your approach, granting yourself more stability as a freelancer can help you develop the next step in taking your professional opportunities more seriously. You may have worked for a particular agency thus far, or perhaps you’ve been working with an official third party platform like Upwork.
Either way, granting yourself more stability as a freelancer can help you remain effective at what you do while also systemizing your approach, developing a more cohesive brand, and from there, potentially securing bigger, better, and higher-paying clients.
With the rise of AI, freelancers are looking to many methods they can use to retain their relevance and importance. Thankfully, that is still more than possible to achieve. In this post, we’ll help you get there and beyond:
Develop A Centralized Website & Portfolio
It’s important to develop a centralized website or at least online presence that can be referred to as a more stable connection space. It’s very easy to rely on website profiles (such as on Upwork) or other social medias as your main contact area, but you’d be surprised how a clean website showcasing some of your previous work and a contact form or number can help you gain clients. This way, you can always leave your website information in your contact info or biography on social media pages, allowing you to refer others to your entire breadth of past testimonials and portfolios you could offer to a new client.
Resolve Your Documentation & Onboarding Process
It’s also good to make sure you have your documentation in place, as well as designing how clients should onboard to your services. For example, a great invoice template will ensure you always quote correctly and consistently within your guidelines and can make payment terms clear before you both agree to the contract. On top of that, you might work out a schedule where you’re paid half first and half after delivery, or perhaps implement a booking suite that showcases the earliest you can deliver on some projects.
Connect With Clients
Outreach is always important no matter what kind of business you run, but for freelancers it’s essential. You can use sites like LinkedIn or more specific freelancer websites to connect with potential job offers, pitch your skills to those looking to commission, and of course, network with confidence from that point on. You never know just how one opportunity can lead into another if you’re smart about your networking approach and never take a commission for granted. On top of that, you may also visit local networked events to see who the main players in your local market are, or the new developments in your freelancing field. For example, a copywriter might attend an SEO convention to see just what the latest perspectives, practices and attitudes in the industry are.
With this advice, you’re sure to grant yourself more stability as a freelancer.
