One of the most challenging parts when getting work as a freelancer is ensuring people will want to hire you. It’s a puzzle for most people since clients want to know who you are, but they can’t know who you are if you don’t have any clients before. You’ll need to get some early clients quickly to build a reputation so that you can have a steady stream of work and not many gaps between jobs.
Making money is much easier when you have a reputation because people understand what to expect from your work. Word of mouth is also much more likely when you have customers that were happy with your work. In this article, we will go over several of the ways that you can build a reputation and never struggle for clients.
1. Find your niche
One of the most common mistakes that new freelancers make is to try to take on any work that comes their way. This is a mistake because you don’t develop a reputation in a particular field by trying to do too many different types of work. It is much better to be known as the person who is an expert in a certain area.
For instance, if you are a web designer then you should look to be the best person out there doing virtual reality design and not something generic. This helps people find you because you were able to build up a reputation very quickly. If you were a web designer that promised to do a multitude of different things, then your reputation gets diluted, and people won’t think of you when they have a specific project.
2. Use social media
Social media has long been a tool for self-promotion and can be very effective. However, not many people will be on there looking to hire a freelancer for their next project. The key is to not really use it as a direct way to drum up a clientele. Instead, focus on creating engaging content that will highlight your skills, and your reputation will follow.
By creating content that people are happy to consume and share then, you will help people understand that you know what you’re talking about. The type of content will vary depending on what topic you are freelancing about. It should be helpful no matter what niche you are dealing with, however.
3. Use a lot of platforms
To get your name out there, you have to make sure that people are talking about you. Then, when somebody does a Google search for the best freelancer in your field, your name will come up.
This involves getting onto podcasts dealing with the topic that you are passionate about. If you are a web designer, then try to get invited to some podcasts that deal with that. Interviews with bloggers or even in traditional news media will help you get your name out there, as well.
