A 9-5 job sounds perfect and everything, but have you thought about working according to the same routine everyday, for the rest of your life? At Least that’s how it felt for me. Therefore, if you are someone like me, who likes every day to be an adventure, I think freelancing is the way to go! Freelancing offers an incredible opportunity to control the way that you work. As a freelancer, you have the freedom to work from anywhere at any time. You get to create your schedule, set your own hours, and decide which projects you take on. These perks are why many people decide to start freelancing part time as a side hustle or make it their full-time job.

I know for those who are starting fresh, becoming a freelancer can always be a bit of a big step and that’s why you need to start it as a side hustle first and then eventually move on to it as a full time job.  So if this is you, considering freelancing i’m going to share some tips or guidelines as to how you can start.

1. Define Your Service And Offering

Rule no.1, always pick your service first. Make sure you know your niche, or atleast what you are good at. Be it writing, marketing, photography, teaching, designing etc.. I don’t think anyone can just do anything and everything. I think you need to really have a knack for it. And also don’t try to put all kinds of services on your plate. That’s just going to be a pain. So make sure to first identify and define what your service is going to be and what you offer your clients.

2. Find Your Target Audience

Moving on to rule no. 2, who are your clients? Now that you have your service or niche picked out it’s time to figure out who actually needs this service from you. For this you need to  identify your target audience. The first step to this is to identify what type of clients would actually need your service, what is the problem they face? What are their characteristics? Are they from one particular industry or is it diverse?

When you are new to freelancing, just being good at what you do is not sufficient for clients to reach out. It’s important that you position or market yourself in front of your clients. You need to get down straight to work and start looking for your potential clients. Now how do we market or start looking for clients? You can start on platforms that offer freelancing, you need to establish good contacts and get into networking. You need to conduct advertising and marketing.  Try all these methods out and try figuring out which method works best for you. 

3. Develop A Pricing Structure

Now that we have our niche, and worked on our target audience the next step is to develop an appropriate pricing strategy. Now when it comes to pricing there is no hard and fast rule that you need to follow since pricing is based on many factors like experience, time, effort, urgency etc.. But obviously the goal is to maximize the amount you’re paid without losing out on potential jobs. Now i’ve always had this challenge when i started fresh, if i should set a pricing that is high or low. Because if it’s low, clients may end up thinking you’re desperate. But again this doesn’t mean you need to be overpriced which may end up you losing the client to another competitor. So the first right thing to do here, is to try to look at your competitors and compare their prices and try matching their pricing strategy. 

Don’t complicate your pricing structure too much and keep it from getting you started. Your rates will not be permanent. You can change them in the future once you have some good clients. Start with a price you feel comfortable with, and try not to overthink it.

4. Build An Amazing Portfolio 

Now this point is very very important. I know it’s not easy to build a portfolio when you are a fresher in this field. But building a portfolio is one of the most important steps when you are a freelancer. And this can help you immensely down the road. In my point of view a portfolio can be in any form, a website, a linkedin profile, a pdf document, a blog, a linktree site. Etc.. as long as this portfolio carries all your work and effort it works. 

Why do I say a portfolio is important? Because that’s proof of the effort you will be putting into your clients work, it’s proof of what you claim to be you and your effort. Your portfolio should be an extensive version of your resume. Including all the work you have been doing in the past. It can be in the form of case studies, blogs, images, links etc.. This portfolio should highlight your most impressive projects related to your service offering. Each piece in your portfolio should paint a clear picture of your contributions and how that project benefited the client.

5. Be Realistic

When I say be realistic I mean, with your client. Do not say yes for everything and do not make them feel that you are new to this. Most clients tend to be tricky to handle, they give you a small budget or a particular budget and try to get you all overworked. Therefore it’s always best to discuss these matters beforehand or even write up a contract or email if you think the client can be shady. Jot down all the necessary key points to your service offered. This way the client knows exactly what you will be providing them and at the same time you will not be overworked. This is basically a win-win situation. 

6. Create A Relationship With Your Client

Once you’ve sorted all things in the professional side, try to go one step further and build a good relationship with your client. For this make sure your work is delivered with exceptional quality. You need to provide value and solve the client’s problem to have a chance to build a long-term relationship with the client.  Do not get too personal but try to have a good rapport with the client since client satisfaction is important plus having a good relationship helps you build your network and helps with word of mouth leading to more client referrals as well as repeat business.

7. Continue Developing Your Skills

The sign of a good freelancer is someone who keeps learning and enhancing their skills. A freelancer is hired for the skills and it is very important for freelancers to consistently improve their skills, adapt to changes, and expand their knowledge in the particular field they offer their service. Always work on yourself and your skills and keep applying them to your work. Online learning resources such as Udemy, LinkedIn and even YouTube tutorials are great starting points for ensuring that your skills are always up to date.

8. Network With Other Freelancers

This step again is an important one, since this helps to understand and resonate with other freelancers. It also helps you learn a thing or two. Definitely different freelancers would have unique experiences with their clients, and getting awareness on these will help a great deal when working with your clients. You can share your experiences  as well and get advice from other freelancers on how to deal with a situation. There have been instances when these freelance pals I’ve made have actually even passed some of their clients to me since they are tight with their work. So that’s a bonus you get when networking is done right.

9. Continue To Find New Clients

No amount of clients is sufficient. End of the day all of our motives are money, gaining experience, exposure and learning a thing or two. So make sure you keep on exploring your options for more clients. Try looking for new industries after a certain period so that you can expand your knowledge on a different or new industry. Some clients may want to work with you long term, while others may only need your skills once—depending on what type of services you offer. But each client comes with something you can learn. 

All this may actually seem a little overwhelming when you try doing it at once. Keep calm, take your time and go step by step. All of this is not going to happen overnight but eventually you will get there just like I have. Make sure to create a brand for yourself. Try to work with a mentor or another fellow freelancer who can give you some tips or help you with clients during the initial stages of your freelancing career.

So, what’s stopping you? Start by identifying your niche, and don’t get stuck in the planning phase. Take that first step today!