Last week we covered how to identify the target market for your freelance business. If you thought things through then you should have an idea of who your ideal customers are. Since you know who these people are, it’s time to think about ways to reach them and turn them into customers.
There are essentially three types of freelance businesses. There is the type of business that is operated solely online, the type operated solely offline, and then a mixture of the two.
Although the same marketing concepts will universally apply to all three businesses, the specific steps will be different. Since the marketing concepts will be different for each of three, I think it’s important to focus on one type at a time. So, today we will look at how to market your online freelance business.
Make Your Home on the Web
If you are doing all of your marketing online it is important to have one place to send potential customers. This means you need a blog or website to send your prospects.
If you are a freelance writer then a blog can suffice since it will show samples of you work and your abilities to draw in an audience. However, it may also be a good idea to have a writer website that will showcase your writing ability, writing rates, and forms of contact all in one easy to read place.
Likewise, if you have an editing or consulting business you need to have a website that showcases your services, testimonials from past customers, and your rates.
You can buy a domain name and hosting from www.GoDaddy.com for $30-$75 a year depending on which options you choose and if you can find any coupon codes. I would strongly suggest searching for coupon codes before you buy hosting. (There are other hosing companies you can use, but I personally use Go Daddy for everything. I think it’s very simple to set up a website and I have never had a problem with them.)
If you are on a tight budget you can also set up a free site at worpress.com or blogger. However, I do think it’s worth it to buy the $10 domain name from www.GoDaddy.com so that your website doesn’t have a .blogspot.com or .wordpress.com address. A simple .com web address appears much more professional.
(You can also check out 50+ Resources for Earning Money Online for more writer website options and suggestions.)
You can use a free, simple theme for your blog or website. Clients don’t like to look at clutter, so keep it clean.
Here are a few essential pages to put on your blog or website:
Optional Pages
- Rates (If you have a per article or per word rate)
- Testimonials
Now that you have a website to direct prospects to, it’s time to hunt down your potential clients!
How to Find Your Clients
Since you have already narrowed down your niche you will have a good idea of where to look. Let’s take my freelance writing approach for example. Personal lines insurance is where I get most of my jobs. There are not enough of these jobs on job boards to keep me busy so I have to go look.
I think about who would need my services. The first thing that comes to mind is independent insurance agents who already have a blog on their website, but it hasn’t been updated for ages. They obviously need help keeping their blog up.
I simply do a Google search for “independent insurance agents in specific location” I then look for websites that have blogs on them. If the blogs haven’t been updated for a while I send a letter of introduction to the agency explaining who I am and what I can do for them.
Do I get jobs from all the sites I query? Absolutely not. I usually get 1 response from every 10-15 queries I send. Finding clients is an ongoing effort. Unless you are famous or a really popular blogger then it’s going to take you some time and work to get your clients.
Other examples:
- You want to edit Young Adult Novels. Google young adult novels writers or New YA writers. You could even narrow this down my specific location. Once you have found who you are looking for leave meaningful comments on the author’s website and send them an email introducing yourself and what you do.
- You want to offer blog consulting. Start hanging out in the blog niche that you have narrowed down. Find new or existing bloggers who could use your service. Send them an email letting them know what you can do for them.
Other Ways to Market Your Business
- Be active in forums for your niche
- Leave comments on blogs in your niche
- Write guest posts for other sites to get the word out about what you do
- Be helpful without being asked
As long as you have narrowed down your specific market you will be able to find your clients. It’s not easy, in fact you will probably be told no far more than you are told yes. But, as long as you are consistent with your marketing methods you will start to develop a client base.
Make sure to knock it out of the ball park for your first few clients. You never know, they may be able to refer you to enough people to keep you busy for a while.
Have you ever thought of starting a freelance business?
Great tips!
I am self-employed as a blogger/freelance writer and I think your advice is spot on. The jobs won’t necessarily come to you…you have to get out there and hustle sometimes!
Alexa, great and thorough post! You’ve got wonderful tips here. I’ve been wondering about how people get those freelance writing gigs, so this is a huge help – thank you!
Great tips! Also remember to be patient and keep pushing. It takes time and if people don’t know you or who you are they have to gain trust first. Always be willing to help others and network. You will find that a lot of people gain business through contacts and referrals. I just put up my Hire Me tab a few weeks ago. I need to get into some of these forums. Great post on marketing the Freelance gigs but I think this is true for most businesses in general. Gotta get out there!
Those are some great tips!
Great tips Alexa! We do many of these things with our business and getting the word out about your business is key. Of course, you need to be out there networking, but having a site for your business is vital. We’ve gotten quite a few of our clients through our site and continue to do so – making any cost well worth it.
Very solid advice. I’m slowly but surely venturing out a bit further with my site and hope to do some freelance writing soon. Other stuff has gotten in the way and taken up my time.
I can think of several people who have really made a lot of side income for themselves by networking with other bloggers and reaching out to them personally. I think that’s the key – being personal. No one likes to be sold to. They like it when someone they are comfortable with will handle their problem with no questions asked. It may take a little longer, but I think the return on your time will be much better using this tactic.
Very good points Alexa. To add one can also start on freelancer websites apart from those job boards and gain some reviews and feedback. Use them as testimonials on your website. I am in strong opinion that Testimonials and References are very important. A good trust building exercise to gain new client
Great tips. I know several people who may be interested in starting an online freelance business and this is pretty straightforward and comprehensive.
Very helpful tips here. You actually reminded me to add a picture to my About page! I have a few freelance ideas I’m kicking around, but nothing really fleshed out yet. I like your point about clearly identifying your clients and narrowing your search.
Solid advice for sure. I just consult a few hours a week currently but this is basically the advice I give people pursuing this kind of freelance work.
Thank you for these tips! They’re great, and will really help me as I step into the online Freelance world.
Good tips! I wanted to mention that even $10 for a domain name is more than you need to pay. If you just Google something like “Godaddy $1 domain” you ought to get an ad at the top of the search results with an offer from Godaddy for a domain for just a dollar.
Super great tips! Thinking about going to self hosting, but not sure who I’m going to use yet. I’ll look at GoDaddy for sure!
I have read so many content on the topic of the blogger lovers however this post is genuinely a nice post, keep it
up.
That’s fascinating that you actively pursue insurance websites that aren’t written well. That seems like a great strategy. The wheels in my mind are starting to turn…
Great post! I’ve just started down this road to becoming a freelance writer. It’s a lot of work but I definitely enjoy it more than anything else I’ve done. Hopefully one day I can make it my full time gig!
Thank you for the tips. Our business is primarily online and we are working on sharing information to get the word out. There are plenty of things that get in the way of being successful, however once that initial push for your business has taken motion, you should be thinking “I’m going to put all of my effort into being successful from here on out!”
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up and
let you know a few of the pictures aren’t loading correctly. I’m not sure why but I think its
a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different internet browsers and both show the same outcome.
Great post! Same with you, I do Google search to get a client. For example I search for “public relations consultants” in Google. If their site is not very good or not updated, then I will send my sales letter.
Great information Alexa… Godaddy is definitely a great place to buy domains from. Join different forums seems to be great to reach out. Will diffidently use your advice on that. Thanks for the information
I like this article Alexa. Great information. Will definitely use some of your advice. Thanks a bunch
I seldom leave a response, but i did some searching and wound up here How to Market Your Online Freelance Business –
Single Moms Income. And I actually do have some questions for you if
you do not mind. Is it just me or does it look like some
of these responses come across like they are left by brain dead visitors?
😛 And, if you are writing at additional social sites, I’d like to follow everything fresh you have to post.
Would you list of all of all your communal sites like
your Facebook page, twitter feed, or linkedin profile?
Awesome tips! I have a lot to do, now that I’ve read all of this, but I won’t give up!