How to start freelancing
It's a terrific method to increase your income by freelance. Whether you're interested in a part-time gig or want to go full-time, here are five steps for starting a successful freelance business.
1. Don't quit your day job (yet)
You've been thinking about freelancing for a while now. The idea of being your own boss, setting your own hours, and working from anywhere sounds pretty great. However, you're unsure of where to begin.
The first thing you need to do is figure out what services you can offer. Do you have a particular skill set that you can market to potential clients? Once you have an idea of what you can offer, start reaching out to people and let them know you're available for work.
It's also important to create a strong online presence for yourself. Ensure that your website is attractive and that your social media profiles are current. This will help potential clients find you and learn more about your work.
Finally,
don't quit your day job just yet. Starting a freelance business takes time and
effort, and it may take a while to start seeing results. So keep your day job
for now and work on building your freelance business on the side. With hard
work and dedication, you can make your dream of being a freelancer come true!
1. Figure out what services you can offer
The first step in starting a freelance business is figuring
out what services you can offer. If you’re a writer, do some research on the
kinds of content people are looking for and then write it for them. If you have
design skills, look for websites that could benefit from your services and see
if they need anything done. If you have marketing experience, find businesses
that need help with their social media or content management systems. There are
lots of ways to make money as a freelancer — just find something that interests
you and go from there!
Start by identifying your strengths and weaknesses. Are you
good at design? Customer service? Writing? If you're not sure, try doing some
freelance work to get some experience under your belt.
If you have something that people need to be done, you can
find clients and get paid for it. It might be difficult at first, but once you
start getting work and gaining experience, it gets easier and easier to find
new clients.
1. Get some experience under your belt
You don’t need a degree or certification to get started as a
freelancer, but having some work experience will help you, land clients, faster
and earn more money when you do start working. If possible, find an entry-level
position at an established company or organization where you can gain
experience doing the type of work you want to do as a freelancer later on down
the line.
Once you figure out what services you can offer, start
finding clients who need them! Use social media to spread the word about your
services, or use a website like Upwork that connects freelancers with companies
looking for help with specific projects.
1. Start marketing yourself
It's important to market yourself as a freelancer so
potential clients can find you easily. You should have a professional website
that displays your portfolio and information about how much you charge for each
type of work and what other types of skill sets you to have. You should also be
active on social media platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn, where people who
might hire freelancers are often looking for help.
Once you've got some experience under your belt (or even if
not), start marketing yourself by putting together an online presence through
social media and blogging sites like Facebook
Create a website or blog that showcases your skills and
experience — and includes testimonials from past clients
Maintain an active
presence on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook (or both)
Write articles for
online publications about topics related to your expertise
Build an email list
of potential clients by offering free content in exchange for their contact
details
1. Set up a system for tracking expenses and invoicing
As a freelancer, it's important to keep track of all
expenses related to working from home such as internet bills, office supplies,
travel expenses, and more so that they don't affect your income when tax time
comes around
Once you've decided to freelance, you need to get organized.
There are many different ways to go about this, but they all boil down to the
same thing: set up a system that works for you.
Here's how I do it:
Set up a freelance corporation
I set up a corporation as part of my tax strategy. I use the corporation to pay myself and also to run my business expenses. This allows me to deduct all of my expenses from my income before paying taxes on it. (That means I pay less in taxes!) It also provides some legal protection for me in case anything goes wrong with my work or a client decides not to pay me.
Track your expenses
This is probably one of the most important things you can do as a freelancer. If you don't track your expenses, it's easy for them to add up — and then disappear into thin air! Make sure you have a system in place that allows you to keep track of every expense that comes out of your pocket while working (and even after hours). That way, if someone asks where their invoice is, you'll be able to tell them exactly where it is — and when it's due!
Stay organized and manage your time well
