How to Get Freelance Clients FastThere have been people who said: "Yeah, ok, you know, it was easier for you because you already had experience".
What about me? I have no experience at all. What can you do? So the first thing that you wanna do, is to determine what you are good at. This could be really anything Like - maybe your hobbies. Maybe you are at school or college, university and there's something you are really passionate about Maybe you know Photoshop and you think "Hm, I could become a good Graphic Designer" Maybe you like writing and you would become a great content writer Maybe you like solving problems and you want to become a developer.
It's really up to you The first thing that you have to do is to understand if that's really something you want to do and if you have the skills for that And one great tip here - if you are a native speaker, this is a good chance for you to start your writing career as a native speaker Because there are lots of people who specifically want native content writers So this is your chance to become a good specialist in what you're doing Now that you have already determined what you're good at, the next step is to find certifications. Like, if you want to become a graphic designer or a digital marketing specialist, what you have to do is to Google certifications If you are like - thanks captain obvious, let me tell you this: There are lots of people who get lazy, who think that there's no opportunity, they don't think positive and all they want to do is to wait for someone to help them.
No This is not how it works. You have to build your career yourself. Go out there, search in Google, ask a question on Quora, go to Reddit and post on Reddit your skills and ask people how they can help you, what they think you could become with your skillset and then, what certifications can they offer There are lots of free certifications, lots of free courses, websites that will help you for free. So take this chance, don't get lazy, make your research and find out what you can do, what certification you can take. Another important thing at this stage, is to get involved in online communities If you already understood what you want to become, you want to get involved in the community of people who are already specialists and who can help you become one Believe me, there are lots of people on the internet who will help you for free with advice or their personal experience how they got started, what you want to avoid, what you have to do at the beginning.
So, got to Reddit, go to Quora, Facebook groups, forums where you can find people who are already specialists and ask them what you can do. Explain them your situation and get your answers Besides online communities, what you can do, is - you can ask your friends if they have anything to "offer" you For example, you might have a developer friend or a designer or really anyone in IT or someone who's a freelancer already Ask them how they got started Ask them if you can do the same job with your skill set And this can be really helpful for you. Don't underestimate the power of friendship For example, when I wanted to change my career, I worked at school for 5 years, and then, I decided that this is not really for me, I got really tired and I couldn't bring any more value to school and to kids who I taught. So, my friend was a recruiter at that time and she offered me to become a Digital Marketing Specialist because she really thought I could do that. And I trusted her because she's my best friend and knows me a lot more than sometimes I do And, here I am! 3 years and I'm a really great specialist due to the chance that she gave me and due to my readiness to work with lower rates, to work like, a lot of hours a day and take free certifications. So, here I am.
With the help of my friend. Go out there, ask your friends if they have anything to offer. What you want to do next, is to build a good portfolio. For this, you have to do something extra. By saying something extra, I mean that you have to be prepared for working with no income. Let me bring you an example. Once, I came across a Reddit post. There was a guy who offered his services for YouTubers. He wanted to create YouTube thumbnails And in return, he wanted to use these thumbnails in his portfolio. I got really interested in his offer, contacted him and now me and this guy work together. This is good for me because, at this stage, I can't afford to pay someone for this. And I had to do it by myself. Now I have a really good specialist. And it's good for him because he can build his portfolio and he has my recommendation later on when someone needs a Graphic designer or someone just to photoshop his photos. So he builds a good network and he builds a good portfolio. And, of course, I help him with suggestions on what he can do with his portfolio or how to stand out as a freelancer.
When we speak about the portfolio, It's also important to get involved in trending topics. Especially if you are a designer, you want to get involved in topics that are booming, topics that are interesting to everyone at that stage. For example, one of my friends was really affected by the fires in Australia and he created a landing page about saving animals. If he sent this to a client, they would, I am sure that they would like this. I really like it and the fact that he's ready to do something extra both for his portfolio and both for the nature, is really encouraging. So do whatever you can, to be in the trending topic and to be a specialist that is really caring, that is really creative and can put his creativity into work. The next thing that I'm going to suggest, you might not really like. But if you want to get started, that's something you really have to take into consideration.
This is not something you have to do This is just a suggestion. But if I just got started, I would do this. What you want to do is to start a free internship or a low-paying job. For internships, there are sub reddits where you could ask people if they give you some internships. And for low-paying jobs, you could go to freelancing platforms, LinkedIn... Again, there are sub reddits about hiring, being hired You could post there that you're a newbie who wants a job experience. I divide the clients into two groups Clients who are low on budget and are ok to work with a freelancer who's just getting started, to give you advice. And clients who don't really have time but have a budget so they want to work with experienced ones. Of course, there are other types of clients I don't want to talk about now. But what you have to know is that you either have to sacrifice your time or your earnings. So, decide, I do know people who don't really want to work with lower rates and they end up being nowhere. Like really. If you are really determined, you have to start somewhere, you have to build a portfolio. And by saying portfolio, I don't only mean that you do some work for yourself or friends. Working with a real client can be really challenging and you learn a lot. You learn how to negotiate, how to talk to the client s. So these are the soft skills that you really need to have. But here, you have to be aware of such jobs. For example, lately, I cam across such a post on Up Work.
The title goes: "English speakers needed for article writing. No experience needed" And then, you see that the budget is 5 dollars. And it goes "Quick 3.000-word article" Quick 3.000-word article?! Like, do you know how much time I have to spend for writing a 500-word article or a 1.000-word article? Writing a 3.000-word article is not quick, first of all. It requires lots of research, it requires lots of your time. SO you are going to spend lots of time And being paid $5 for a 3.000-word article is not something I would do. I am really ready to start with lower rates but this doesn't mean that I am like someone who will work for $5 per 3.000-word article. So, be really aware, understand if the client is just someone who wants to "use" you as a newbie, who wants to manipulate you but someone who is eager to help you grow as a freelancer and you help the client with your services. Maybe you're just starting but you're really good at what you're doing, you have really creative ideas and you can help this client. But trust me, you don't want to work with clients who have such requirements and who are not willing to pay even the lowest rates. $5 is not something you want to work with in this case. As you get started, I hope these tips are helpful for you.
How to Get Freelance Clients Fast
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