Working as a Freelancer

Working as a Freelancer

For professionals, retirees or people searching for additional income, freelancing can be just as competitive and fierce, but as lucrative as company-against-company competition. For those planning to go freelance, here are some things to take note of:
 
Create your personal brand. Freelancing covers a wide range of professions. Some of you might think that providing just virtually everything in your profession will do you good. Forget about that. Offering a plethora of services will make it hard for you to define yourself in the industry. Specialize in a particular field and leverage on it, while offering other services as add-ons.
 
Build your portfolio. For freelance writers, prepare a portfolio of your best articles; photographers, your best photos; graphic designers, your materials and designs. Your portfolio is a compilation of everything that you can do in your art and profession. A freelancer’s portfolio is like a restaurant menu: the better the contents, the better the chance of getting a customer. Don’t just include your past works because all they can show your clients is your skills from the past, and not the present. Create a personal project that can showcase everything you can do.
 
Give an offer they cannot refuse. Naturally, you have to set your prices lower for smaller projects, and higher for bigger and more time-consuming projects. However, you can bypass this by adding supplementary services, i.e. offering your clients consultancy and orientation before starting the project. Injecting extra oomph can give you an advantage.
 
Use Internet marketing. As a freelancer, the Internet will be your best friend in marketing. The Internet is an even playing field, where corporate giants and SMEs can pit themselves in different marketing stunts, viral videos, promo announcements, and updates, only to be made rocky by the turnout of Google’s search results. Market yourself effectively, and you can be sure that your bargaining power will be stronger and getting a “yes” from potential clients will be easier. Learn how to build your own website. Today, it is fairly easy with content management systems. Upload your portfolio. Create videos that can go viral. Create videos that show how good you are in your art. Make a statement that you are the top choice among others.
 
Find a network. Marketing yourself from scratch, outside the Internet, will be more challenging than actually starting your own business. You have to be a one-man army, handling your own sales, marketing and operations yourself. In this case, a network of connections will help. Have you ever considered offering your services for free just for portfolio and networking purposes? Why not volunteer to design a few ads for charity organizations near you? Why not offer free consultancy as a resource speaker in an event of some college organization? Forget about lowering prices for a moment and look at your long-term goal. For you to land bigger projects, you have to show that you are reliable.
 
Have your paperwork in order. Do not forget to register your business and be compliant with requirements. By starting off right, you would avoid many future requirements/problems. Factor in those additional expenses into your pricing from the start.
 
*Originally published by the Manila Bulletin. C-6, Sunday, October 5, 2014. Written by Ruben Anlacan, Jr. (President, BusinessCoach, Inc.) All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or copied without express written permission of the copyright holders.