Editor’s note: This article was first published in September 2018. “Google AdWords” was renamed Google Ads that same year, and Facebook Ads is now run under Meta.
Being a freelancer or independent professional (self-employed, or autónomo in Spain) can be a great idea in today’s job market, but it isn’t as easy as it looks. First of all, when you start out as an independent professional, you’re your own boss. You’ve given up a “safe” pay cheque at the end of the month for the chance to earn more on your own and shape your personal project. You’ve entered the business world.
What’s more, you need to be very clear that whether you call yourself self-employed, a freelancer or an independent professional, you’re really a business owner in every sense. The question is whether you’re one full-time or part-time.
Which brings us to our first tip for freelancers and the self-employed
1. Treat your work as a business
For all intents and purposes, you are an image, a brand, a business. That’s why you must be committed to quality at all times, and above all to your image, especially if it’s a personal project you’d like to turn into a full-time business.
Communicate well with clients, produce top-level work and meet deadlines just as you would as an employee. Whatever you do, if you take on the job, do it to the highest quality. We keep stressing quality because quality will be your hallmark of success.
2. Focus on growing your network of contacts and clients
Working independently can be slow at first when it comes to winning clients, but if you do things the right way and are persistent in looking for them, the clients will come. In fact, your main focus at the start should be actively looking for clients by every means available. Don’t wait for clients to walk through the door or call you. Go out and hunt them down.
Today it’s easier than ever to reach potential clients thanks to all the online advertising tools we have, from Google AdWords to Facebook Ads. A good landing page with a strong presentation and references from past work will help you build trust.
It’s very likely that at first you’ll have to take on jobs at lower prices or less attractive work. Treat them as financial fuel while you keep looking for more potential clients.
There will be time later to be more selective about the kind of clients you take, your prices, or letting current clients go.
3. Automate everything you can
As we said, even if you’re a freelancer or self-employed, you really have a business. So you’ve become chief executive, secretary, caretaker, administrator and every other title that comes with running your new business.
To stay focused on the part of the business that generates the most income (finding clients and the work itself), try to automate everything you can. If you can’t automate the less important parts of the business, you won’t be able to concentrate properly on the parts that do bring in money.
4. Make the most of your day job
Although many people can’t wait to leave their job as an employee to work for themselves, sometimes there’s no need to rush into quitting until we’re sure we have a solid income base in the activity we want to take up. As we explained in our article “how to start your own business with no money“, sometimes the best approach is to take steps part-time while keeping the income from our current job.
See also: How to make money online fast: 28 easy ways
5. Become a tax expert
The self-employed need to think about taxes from day one, or they may run into trouble as their income grows. Of course, in many cases the best option is to hire someone or an advisory firm to bring us up to speed on the subject.
Sometimes the joy of having increased the income from our independent work is followed by the sorrow that comes at the hands of the tax office. Record every money transaction and keep all your receipts and invoices. Use a bank account for your business that is separate from your personal account.
6. Specialise
Many people agree that the income from their independent work didn’t take off until they decided to specialise in something specific. You can do a bit of everything, but these days it’s better to go after a specific need you can meet. Being an expert in something specific brings in many more clients, and therefore much more money.
To give an example, there are plenty of professional writers out there, but what caught my attention was a man who has been earning his living as a résumé writer for 15 years. In other words, he helps his clients write a good CV. And that’s his business.
See also: 7 tips from young entrepreneurs to get your business idea off to a successful start
Featured image: Hipersyl, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
