Sometimes being a freelancer feels like you’re trying to get the attention of clients by jumping up and down, waving your arms wildly, and shouting… except that you’re standing in a room full of people who are also jumping up and down, waving their arms wildly, and shouting. It’s not that your method isn’t effective; it’s just that everyone else is doing the same thing.

Want to get noticed to get more business? Here are 5 tips plus some freelancing and non-freelancing examples:

• Shout louder and wear a funny hat: All of those people who are jumping up and down and shouting? Guess what. They’re doing everything exactly the same. A customer can’t choose one from another very easily. Why not add a little of your own personality to the mix. Add some spice to what you do. Let your personality shine through. You’ll jump higher and shout louder by being a bit of a character rather than by acting in exactly the same way. A great example of this is Johnny B. Truant .
• Stop shouting and give: Lots of freelancers are shouting in that big room, saying “look at me, look at me”. You can cut through all of this noise by walking up to your prospect and giving them something of value. In your case, it will probably be information, guidance, help. Proactively offer something to them and they will notice. (This approach requires that you understand your market and it’s often a longer-term strategy). A great example of this is Chris Brogan.
• Climb onto someone’s shoulders: A partnership or joint venture with someone else is a great way to get noticed. You’ll create a powerful product or service and your combined audience could be quite significant. To get started, find someone whose has a similar target market. Brainstorm creative ways to partner with them. Will you write an ebook together? Will you build a community? Will you have one set of services that you offer as a package to a particular niche? Approach them with a proposal and be sure to “sell” them on why it will be good for them. Although he’s not a freelancer, a good example is the insanely famous Dr. Phil who wasn’t really that famous until he hitched his wagon Oprah Winfrey’s rising star.
• Change rooms: If everyone is jumping up and down and shouting in the same room, there’s no reason why you need to be there, too. Explore new markets, narrower niches, new ways of offering your service. Redefine what you do. Trust me, you’ll find that the rooms are much quieter. However, by doing this, you need to make sure you are prepared and can actually deliver because you can’t disappear into the crowd if something goes wrong! There are many examples of this. Just look at any freelancer who specializes in something. Dan Kennedy and his sales letters is a good example.
• Set the room on fire: (Please don’t do this literally.) If you are in a proverbial room of freelancers, competing for just a few clients, you can get some attention by creating some controversy. Be careful not to slander or alienate your audience, but do something that will show that you are different from everyone else. (In a way, this is similar to the “shout louder and wear a funny hat” technique, but that one was an internal-personality thing and this one is usually external). Write a tell-all report. Don’t be afraid to reveal who is ripping off customers (just be careful that you back up your position with fact so you can’t be accused of libel). Rename your children. Tattoo an inappropriate word on your forehead. It’s definitely not a freelancing example but The Rich Jerk ebook is a good example. The guy is basically a jerk. And he wrote a helpful ebook but he highlighted how much of a jerk he was.

If your freelance business plan is to keep jumping up and down and waving your arms wildly, you’ll end up competing on price because a customer won’t be able to tell the difference between you and anyone else in the room. Change it!