The corporate work force has taken a hard hit in the last few years. Powerless to do anything about it, workers are losing their jobs due to several various reasons; all decided by the higher ups on the corporate chain.

Fortunately, as a freelancer you hold the control to the amount of work you have on your plate and the amount of money you put in your bank account. The slowing economy is creating a boon of opportunity for folks just like you.

As a freelancer, you can offer the same services as a business that has much higher overhead costs. The lower overhead costs that you have allow your pricing to be much more appealing to clients that may be reluctant to part with their money.

Often times your services are even better because your business is focused on the specific need of the client without being watered down by other distractions associated with corporate business. The word of mouth referrals will thrive when that obvious focus and attention is present.

A slow economy is a perfect opportunity for you to add to your client base.

Here are some ideas to help you stay in the forefront of a thriving business during a tight economy:

Don’t be quite as selective of the clients you choose to work for or the tasks you accept. A few years ago you may have passed on the smaller assignments that only brought in a few dollars, but now, these smaller assignments hold most of their value in the area of building client relationships more than they hold a dollar or time value. Like the squirrel that stocks up for the winter, start gathering your nuts now.

Mentor and advise others in the freelancing market. With so many corporate employees recently out of a job, a small percentage of them are going to venture into the freelance society. You can offer insight and advice to those folks starting out in the freelance world, even if they have a specialty you know nothing about. The behind the scenes skills of managing a successful freelance career isn’t just about how many clients you have or how much you charge, it’s all about how you got those clients, how you made them happy and how you did it in a cost effective manner. These sorts of things are priceless information for a beginning freelancer.

Focus any Advertising and Social Media Marketing on the affordability of hiring a freelancer. Get busy writing some blogs that tell why hiring a freelancer can get the best bang for their buck. Format your approach to new clients to focus on the financial worries that are constantly humming in the back of their minds. Life is still going on and services are still needed, you just need to make sure they know they have cost effective options available to them by hiring freelance services.

Step into the Lion’s Den. A great example would be, if you do ad copy and you know about a large business letting 80% of their advertising staff go, approach the business about some freelance ad copy writing. Get comfortable with the possibility of doing some subcontracting work for the big guys.

Recognize other areas to utilize your skills. You need to really think outside of the box on this one. Just about every skill has a place to be applied that most people don’t think about. Really rack your brain to find out the area of opportunity you aren’t presenting yourself to and then jump in there and grab some work.

The slow economy doesn’t have to trickle down to your world. You need to see it as a golden opportunity; an opportunity to branch out, build some more client relationships and rise above the economical trends.

photo credit: DavidGeen