As a freelancer you\u2019re your own boss, and that entails a lot of mundane tasks that require good judgement on how you go about doing things. It’s really important to learn how to be a successful freelancer if you want to carry out through the rough and tough times.<\/p>\n
Some of these tips are going to appear as common sense, but they may be the reminder you need to refine your work process. I hope you\u2019re able to pick some value in these tips, no matter where you\u2019re at with your freelance career.<\/p>\n
Should you always have a client sign a contract, even if it\u2019s a small job? How do you put together or find the right contract for each job? Too many freelancers get caught up in the details of contracts, and it\u2019s ultimately wasting a lot of time that should be spent making money.<\/p>\n
All you need for the time being is a general agreement that covers some basic, yet important terms that both you and the client need to agree upon. In its simplest form, your contract terms should cover:<\/p>\n
Having some basic terms in place for every project will help protect you, but more importantly, will help inform the client of how you work.<\/p>\n
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Once you have your contract, your client can then physically print, sign, and return, or digitally sign.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not a legal professional nor does the sample above cover every situation. If things are starting to take off and you\u2019re making large amounts of money from a single project, then you might want to get a legal professional involved to craft a specific contract for the job.<\/p>\n
One of the biggest issues you hear about freelancing is not getting paid on time or getting stiffed by the client. I\u2019ve luckily never experienced this, but that\u2019s because I follow a simple process when starting a project.<\/p>\n
To guarantee payment 100% of the time, you must require a down payment. For all projects I take on, I require 50% upfront before I start any official design work, and I make this clear to the client in our preliminary discussions and in my contracts. If the client has an issue with this, then that should raise a red flag. Also, by requiring a down payment, the project doesn\u2019t progress without it, so you\u2019ll never risk a late payment again.<\/p>\n
Once I\u2019ve received the contract signed and down payment, I\u2019m good to go on starting the work. Then before I deliver any workable files, I require the final 50% payment. I do this so the client doesn\u2019t take what I\u2019ve created, cancel the project, and run. So before you\u2019ve fully been paid, don\u2019t send any master files or designs in full resolution.<\/p>\n
By putting these simple practices into your process, you can guarantee that you\u2019ll never be ripped off.<\/p>\n
Saying no is hard, especially if you\u2019re like me\u2014you\u2019re generous and want people to feel happy working with you. You don\u2019t want to disappoint anyone, so you offer to help any way you can, not really considering the strenuous load it\u2019ll put on you.<\/p>\n
No matter what you do, you\u2019ll disappoint someone. Whether it be the client because you\u2019re unable to deliver halfway through the project, your family because you\u2019re working long hours, or yourself because you\u2019re so stressed with the work you\u2019ve chosen to take on. So you must get comfortable with turning down work if it\u2019s ultimately not for you or your availability. To help determine if you should take on a project, ask yourself these questions:<\/p>\n
The worst thing about taking on everything that comes your way is that your plate may end up full, but with all of the wrong commitments. You\u2019re stressed, anxious, and the worst part, now you\u2019re left with no room to take on that golden opportunity. You can\u2019t say yes to your ideal client if you never say no to the wrong ones.<\/p>\n
Next time you get a project, don\u2019t just reply with a yes. Really consider the opportunity, ask yourself those questions above, and proceed with a conscious decision for your future and wellbeing.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve followed my writing for a while now, you\u2019ll know I share quite frequently about focusing your freelance business and the importance of it. I continue to share this tip because I regularly get message after message from freelancers who seem to be stuck. They can\u2019t find enough work and they struggle getting their name out there.<\/p>\n
By focusing your brand identity and the type of projects you take on, it\u2019ll make everything much easier for you\u2014from marketing to doing the actual design work.<\/p>\n
Pick one or two services to specialize in, and only take on work that falls into those categories. Then turn down the rest.<\/p>\n
Once you\u2019ve decided on the services you now specialize in, be sure to translate that in your brand. Reword everything on your website to those keywords and phrases, only showcase that type of work in your freelance portfolio, and start producing content around those services to prove your expertise. All of this is a byproduct of marketing, which in turn will drive traffic and new freelance projects your way.<\/p>\n
This tip goes hand in hand with the previous tip of focusing your freelance business, but I think is a topic worth elaborating on.<\/p>\n
Many freelancers make the mistake of filling their portfolio with work just to show that they have some sort of skill in design. But most often, the work just comes off as all over the place, and will only do your portfolio a disservice.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a difference between a freelance business portfolio and a school portfolio. Your freelance portfolio should only contain the work you specialize in and want to continue accepting via client work. The work can consist of past client work or even personal work.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s say you specialize in logo design\u2014if that\u2019s what you want to be known for then you should only showcase logo projects in your freelance portfolio. That\u2019ll be what attracts and helps future clients decide to go with you over another freelance designer whose portfolio might be all over the place.<\/p>\n
As a freelancer, your business is just you running it inside out. That\u2019s something you must be proud of, so don\u2019t hide behind a facade. Be the name and face of your business, because your business is you.<\/p>\n
From a client\u2019s perspective, if I were to hire you to provide a service, I would want to know who I\u2019m giving my money to. So be sure to inject who you are into your brand. You can shape that however you\u2019d like, but the key is to be more human.<\/p>\n
Also, when a client is interested in working with you, be transparent in conversing with them. If they\u2019re going to hire you, explain to them how your process works. Show your interest in them and their business, then break down what they can expect by working with you step-by-step. This helps build trust and confidence, and can be what seals the deal in the proposed project.<\/p>\n
This is the most important tip I can give you to take your freelancing to the next level \u2013 and that\u2019s to write. I don\u2019t care if you don\u2019t think you\u2019re a good writer. Writing is the doorway to getting your name out there, having clients find you, and to truly grow yourself as an individual and freelancer.<\/p>\n
I personally don\u2019t think I\u2019m a great writer, and you can only imagine how I felt about my writing a year ago. It comes with practice. I owe everything I\u2019ve accomplished this past year to my writing. Everything I do\u2014whether it\u2019s a blog post, a newsletter, a book, a video, or an email to a client\u2014it all starts with writing.<\/p>\n
Watch your feet so you don\u2019t trip while looking at the end goal. You know where you want to be one day, so focus on what you can do now to end up there. Too many freelancers get hung up on envying those they aspire to be.<\/p>\n
If you wish to have a reliable client base, a product that can help supplement your income, or if you don\u2019t want to have to rely on a single client to make a living, then what are you doing today to make that happen?<\/p>\n
Make a daily to-do list with small tasks that you can easily complete by the end of the day. Progress is progress, and if you start taking it one step at a time towards your long term goals, the sooner you\u2019ll get there.<\/p>\n
Your freelancing efforts must be treated like a business, and as a business, you need to know your numbers. Such as:<\/p>\n
Knowing these numbers will shed light on the areas that are working for you and what areas need improvement. For example, take a look at your monthly revenue. Find out where your business income is coming from (what clients, type of projects, passive income), and focus more on those areas that are producing the most results. If you\u2019re steadily earning $100+ a month selling products on your Creative Market shop, then consider producing more items to sell.<\/p>\n
See where most of your traffic is coming from or what type of content is most popular, then do more of that. For example, if you\u2019re getting a lot of traffic from a guest post you wrote, reach out and write another guest post.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re serious about freelancing, then start separating your income and save. For every dollar I make that\u2019s business related, I split it up like this:<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not saying this is the way to handle and split your finances, but it\u2019s what works for me. What\u2019s important here is putting a minimum of 16% of every dollar earned towards taxes. It\u2019s the same concept of an employer taking taxes out of your paycheck. Once it comes tax time, you\u2019ll then use this savings to pay what\u2019s due. (I recommend paying quarterly, so you\u2019re not dealt one large payment in April.)<\/p>\n
These tips aren\u2019t the end-all and be-all for freelancing, but honestly, I wish I knew these when I was getting started. Since I\u2019ve put these tips into my work process, I\u2019ve seen some major growth, and I hope you were able to pick some value from them.<\/p>\n
I hope you have enjoyed the blog post and to add more spice to it, I would suggest you to go through\u00a0How Technical SEO And WordPress Work Together<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0How Quora Can Help You Gain 9,000+ Users In A Month<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As a freelancer you\u2019re your own boss, and that entails a lot of mundane tasks that require good judgement on how you go about doing things. It’s really important to learn how to be a successful freelancer if you want to carry out through the rough and tough times. Some of these tips are going<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":5766,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[205],"tags":[661,662,663,664,665,666],"class_list":["post-5765","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-seo","tag-become-a-freelancer","tag-freelancer","tag-freelancer-tricks","tag-freelancing","tag-how-to-do-freelancing","tag-tips-for-freelancers"],"yoast_head":"\n