As a Freelancer, your goal is to attract and retain as many customers as possible because essentially more customers equals more profits right? Being that you will often get only one chance to showcase what you can do, you need your first impression to be your best impression.

One thing that has to be absolutely perfect is the materials that you are presenting to your potential and current clients. There are a great number of sites that you can access on the web where you can utilize the tips that they detail in order to make sure that your writing is perfectly suited to appeal to your client base.  One site that I think has some practical yet often overlooked advice is 10 Tips for an Eye-Catching Freelance Profile.  This site shares some insight on the little things that you MUST do in order to make sure that your materials stand out and are noticed.

This includes:

1)    Making sure to always, always, ALWAYS utilize spell check in everything that you put together.  Don’t let something as simple as grammatical and spelling errors cause a potential client from viewing your business as less professional that it is.
2)    Including things in your materials such as links and testimonials that people can use to get a further understanding of what it is that you do and how you do it better than the competitors around you.

Another thing that is important with freelancing is to understand that there will be times where you are busier than others, and knowing what you can do during those times. One site that offers tons of great suggestions is 15 Tips for Freelancers: What to Do in Slow Days and Dry Times.  This site gives you a whole laundry list of what you can do to still maximize your productivity during times when your business is a little slow – for example it provides ideas for revamping your marketing or updating your portfolio.

The key with freelancing, and what these two sites encompass is:

1)    When times are good, you need to make sure that you bring your “A Game”.  Your presentation and materials need to be strong and flawless so that potential customers become actual customers.
2)    During times that are not as busy, you need to be sure that you are utilizing your time by positioning yourself to be ready for the next wave.

By ensuring your productivity and effectives during all times, you can be sure that your freelancing business will be on the road to success!

photo credit: jasleen_kaur

I have been a freelance writer for about eight years. I’m somewhere shy of being an expert, but well versed enough to have discovered a few things that work. I must be the only freelancers my friends know, because as I watch my friends cross over to “our side,” they’re always coming to me for advice.  I always willingly agree to dole out what I know, but then I realize two things. First, I’m talking to my new competition. And secondly, I can’t remember how I started.

So I have this go-to list. It’s my set of things that I think you “must know” before you just jump into this whole freelance writing business. It’s a different world than most people expect and it can be tackled in a variety of ways. At certain times in my life, I’ve relied on freelancing as my sole source of income. Other times, it’s been a fabulous supplement to another full-time job. And now, as a stay-at-home mommy first and foremost, I have the luxury of taking on work as it comes.

But this list of things? It’s always been true, no matter how I’ve gone about things. And now I’m going to share it with you.

1.You must have a portfolio. It probably goes without saying that if you’re hoping to write for someone, they’re going to want some samples of your previous work. In most instances (though fear not–not all!), this is going to mean published work, not just something you whipped up in a Word document to pass their way. Keep your original clippings. Scan them into your computer. Lay them out nicely with headings and date information. Have a serious variety.

2.You might have to do some free work. And this doesn’t just apply to the point above, though when you’re building a portfolio, you better take what you can get. Free work can be more than just a resume builder. You’re also making contacts, refining your skills, and still learning a lot about the process. Consider it a valuable internship.

3.Know what you’re capable of. If you’ve never taken a public relations class or have never been a journalist, it’s pretty likely that you don’t know the ins and outs of writing a press release. And I’m guessing that means you’ve never built a PR campaign. Not only would you flounder working for a company that wanted a PR writer, you wouldn’t be able to deliver results! Figure out where your strengths are, advertise those; and if there’s something else you want to do, get the proper training.

4.Get ready to be your own best salesman. If you’re freelance writing full-time, you cannot sit around waiting for work to fall in your lap. I mean, this is what I do most days because I’m a mom first; if I wasn’t, you better believe I’d be writing pitches out the wazoo. Explore your local magazines’ websites; find their media kits and editorial calendars so you know what kind of stories to prepare. Get connected to the non-profit world; reach out to small organizations that might need to bring on a contractor for an annual report or special publication. Let your friends with businesses and business contacts know what you plan to do. Oh! And graphic designers, especially freelance graphic designers–become best friends with them.

5.Do not underestimate social media and personal projects. Whether I’ve got five clients in a month or zero, I’m still working on my own book and blogging every day. It’s important that you practice your craft and fine-tune your voice. It’s equally important to stay in touch with your creative side. If you’re a writer, you really ought to have a blog. Just write. Every day. It’s good for you. I promise. Plus, you never know what connections you’ll make through social media! I have made great contacts just by being an active blogger and tweeter.

6.Remember that you’re self-employed. If you’re freelancing, you’re running a business. You’ve got to find the right clients, put out good work, edit your own work, negotiate timelines and payment, keep exceptional records, and keep yourself on task day in and day out. Design letterhead and matching invoices, proposal sheets, and price lists. Save your receipts and keep a profit and loss statement. Keep yourself organized and know how much work you’re taking on. Remember that you’re the president, the CFO, the editorial staff, the secretary, and the janitor.

So, there. That’s what I know. That’s what I always keep in mind. That’s what I have posted in a place that’s easy for me to see so that I don’t forget what I actually signed up for.

Other freelance writers, what did I miss? What works for you?

photo credit: sierragoddess

Sarah Ann Noel is a writer and she loves it. She has been freelancing for eight years, writing regularly for publications such as Colorado Homes and Lifestyles and 303 Magazine, both based in Denver. She is also a trained editor, public relations professional, and social media fanatic. She is currently working on her first book and runs a lifestyle blog called Reverie. She’s always got a journal attached to her hip, but aside from writing she’s a wife, mommy, dog-lover, shoe shopper, and city girl who likes that she can see mountains out her window.

I used to work as a freelancer for several years and know that the most important thing for a freelancer is self-organization, discipline. You have no boss to stimulate you working even when you don’t want to. Even though I think the famous song “I don’t wanna work today, seems just like I wanna stay in my bed because there’s no stress” sounds in the head of each second every morning, it doesn’t matter if you’re a freelancer or an employee.

So the main point after you reduced the sound of this song in your head, is to figure out what you need to do now. Of course, you may have all of your projects written on a piece of paper. On may pieces. Write and re-write them over and over again. Maybe it helps you. But it depends on what you like more: writing or getting the things done.

Getting the things done is what matters. So the more you reduce amount of ‘work about work’, the more things you will do in less time and sooner will you go back to your bed ‘where there’s no stress’ (or start doing any other entertaining activity, in your bed or outside it).

I suggest using task tracking software for your freelance projects. This will allow you to keep all of your tasks organized, prioritized and transparent. And of course, when you work for yourself, take care of your budget and pick up a free solution. Yet with free solutions there’s danger: they might be open source or made by a bootstrap company. In this case you will probably have to polish this software yourself to make it work normally. Numerous bugs may really waste your time. In this case instead of an optimization solution you will grab another problem to solve. This is one of the reasons why I was really glad with myself when I found Comindware Task Management. The on-premise solution is free, at the same time it is produced by a company for B2B software. The platform and the interface are the same they use in their enterprise solutions that cost significantly for a freelancer. Yes, I take my freelance work seriously. And yes, I want a reliable solution like that. Especially when it’s free.

You will not only be able to see yourself what you’re about to do. One of the main advantages of the web-based software for the freelancers is the possibility to share information on the project with remote customers and clients. Just give them access to the software and set the appropriate access to the data: you might want them to see only the tasks that are related to their project and hide others. It is collaborative software, so you will be able to exchange comments on the current tasks inside of the software. Each conversation will be tied up to the relevant task. Files can be also attached to the task. Everything related to a task can be kept in one place, will never get lost and can be easily accessed by everybody on board.
Comindware Task Management shows your tasks as a single list with a number of useful parameters, but this list is not ‘just a list’. Dashboards will always enable you to see how much you’ve done and estimate time left to finish your current project. Do you have to speed up work? Or do you lack orders and you need to find more? Just track your tasks, take a look at the report. The reports are generated automatically after you customize them. Create a new Dashboard (hit ‘new dashboard’) and name it Report. Place it in your favorites. Now open it, add widgets (hit ‘add widget’). Each widget will calculate and show you the parameters you need. You may also reduce time to answer the question of what work you’ve done when you need to make a report to your customers and clients.
Another advantage of this system is that if one day you decide to work in a team, you will already know how to work with this highly technological and professional tool. Comindware Task Management is only a part of a product line of enterprise-scaled solutions. Your business may grow and you may decide to upgrade Comindware Task Management to a larger professional version to organize your team work. Or you might just find a job that doesn’t interest you less than your freelance job and the team might probably use this soft or similar collaborative software.

Comindware Task Management is a completely free edition yet reliable and made for business. It is new generation of collaborative software, and it was designed to make your work more productive and your business more competitive. You can get the download link and the activation key after a brief registration on www.comindware.com.  Since I’ve done it, the guys have never disturbed me with any promotional junk email. The solution comes with a 30-day fully functional Comindware Tracker trial. If you are interested, comment, and I will tell you the principals of this software in my next post. I will be glad if you share your experience as well, in case you download and try the solution: feel free to comment.

Author’s Bio:
The article was written by Katya Steelstone. She’s been freelancing for 6 years and keeps on doing freelance job from time to time. Her main idea: freelance must bring you money and reduce your effort. She gladly shares her experience with our readers.

photo credit: fabola

As freelancers, sometimes it’s hard to generate creative ideas as quick or as easy as we wish we could. People will normally give you similar advice like brainstorming or taking a walk. But what if we delve deeper into these well known ideas for boosting your creative side? Or what if someone handed us some brand new ideas that are backed up by different studies?

The fantastic people from the website Onlinecollegecourses.com have come up with a truly enlightening article to give you some new ideas to try when you are experiencing writers block or just can’t seem to think up anything creative. For example, did you know that learning another language can really boost your creativity? Or that studies show that you can get a similar boost from the problem-solving aspect of playing video games?

If you really want to reap the benefits of amping up your creativity, you can read the full article by clicking here. Don’t miss out on a great opportunity to learn some new creativity boosting techniques or see the reason behind why the older ones you know and love work so well!

Visit Onlinecollegecourses.com for more thought provoking articles and you can read the referenced article at 19 Scientifically Proven Way to Boost Your Creativity.

photo credit: carlosfpardo

Successful bloggers are often addicts to information gathering. However information gathering is not enough. You also need to be able to filter all the vast quantities that you consume everyday and identify that which makes sense to your audience. After this, come up with a way that allows you to communicate this information to your audience in a practical and appealing way.

To succeed in blogging, you will need to read a lot. Reading books and stuff on the Internet, especially blog posts of successful bloggers and writers is one way to become an information maven. Since most bloggers specialize in their niche, this will also give your research some direction and help you filter and identify ideas for your blog posts. Reading however is not the only way to gather information. Being on the lookout and observant is another way. Successful bloggers say that they always get blog post ideas from even non-related events and experiences in life. Some experiences or events offer an analogy that can be applied and put into a blog post which can add more impact if readers can relate to it.

In order to be a good writer, you have to be a good reader. Reading consistently sharpens your skills, helps you to be innovative in your writing and contributes to appealing content. Reading well-written content cannot be over-emphasized. Fortunately, most successful bloggers out there have well-written copy on their sites, which is one of their selling points. Be diverse in the kind of content you consume. Read productivity blogs, niche blogs and notice the different styles of different writers. Do not fall into the trap of reading only content that appeals to you. The more diverse you are in your reading habits, the more rounded your knowledge will be and the more likely you are going to write content that your niche readers will appreciate and learn from.

What sets Mavens apart, though, is not so much what they know but how they pass it along. The fact that Mavens want to help, for no other reason than because they like to help, turns out to be an awfully effective way of getting someone’s attention.” – Malcolm Gladwell (Tipping Point)

David Gitonga is a freelance content creator working
with various clients in setting up websites, blogs and writing
web content on a regular basis. He is also actively involved
in creating social media content for SEO.

 
You can find more written by David Gitonga by clicking these links:

facebook.com/DavGit
twitter.com/DavGit
G+/DavGit
davgit@freelancecontentcreator.com

photo credit: mac.rj

A good marketer not only knows how to do a great job in marketing but also how to listen to his or her audience. If you don’t understand who your target audience is, you will not understand what they need. As a blogger, you want to know what resonates with your audience before you start writing. As you get to know them, you will know what they like and where they need help. How can you do all this?

One thing that most professional bloggers do is to look at the posts that receive the most engagement. What kind of posts are your readers commenting on and what are they saying in those comments? Take note of what and how they are saying it. Sometimes, their comments and their questions can be used as topic for your next post.

Listening to your audience also opens up new opportunities where you can offer your services. For example, you could develop a teaching course on a subject of interest to your audience or you could offer some consulting service that helps them solve their problems. These complimentary services that are targeted at your audience can only be spotted if you take time to know your audience.

David Gitonga is a freelance content creator working with various clients in setting up websites, blogs and writing web content on a regular basis. He is also actively involved in creating social media content for SEO. His website is www.freelancecontentcreator.com.

 
You can follow David Gitonga by clicking these links:

facebook.com/DavGit

twitter.com/DavGit

gplus.to/DavGit

david@e-labz.com

photo credit: LeWEB11

When your main focus is supposed to be on the work you are doing for your clients, it’s tough to have to switch gears and start dealing with the ‘money side of things’. So we’re here to share some programs with you that will hopefully save you some time (and money). Here’re the three programs to check out:

1. Shoeboxed – Shoeboxed is an amazing program when it comes to logging your receipts or expenses. You just send in any documents you have lying around in their pre-paid envelope and they will input them in your virtual Shoebox. Another cool feature is if you have receipts lying around from supplies you’ve purchased or possibly client lunches, you can use your Shoeboxed iPhone app (there’s an Android one currently in the works!) to snap a picture and send it to your Shoebox! Plus, you can mail in any business cards you receive in a pre-paid envelope and Shoeboxed will manually enter the data into your account so you’ll be able to search for clients or colleagues via first name, last name, email, or company. However you look at it, Shoeboxed is a great and unique way to store all of your important documents!

2. Outright – If you’re in the market for a financial program that’s self-reliant in inputting data from your bank account so you don’t need to lift a finger, Outright may be right for you! Outright automatically updates all your banking info during the night and categorizes all of your transactions as well. Then when you log in to Outright, you’ll have all the info regarding how much money you’re pulling in along with where your money is going. Another excellent part of having Outright is that you can get accurate estimates for your quarterly and end of year taxes so you’ll feel more prepared as you reach tax time.

3. Freshbooks – Invoicing can be tough. Not just the portion where you create invoices and send them out. Sometimes the toughest part is keeping up with who has paid you and who hasn’t, along with actually getting the payments. This is where Freshbooks comes in. Freshbooks offers you a place to input the hours you’ve worked, produce professional looking invoices, and have them emailed to the client directly from you or sent out via snail mail by the wonderful people at Freshbooks. Freshbooks also gives you a place to process any PayPal, credit card, or E-check payments that are sent your way. You can also schedule payment reminders for those clients that may have forgotten or put your invoice on the back burner.

Hopefully these websites will help you out and keep you on the lookout for other spectacular programs that are hidden out there in the depths of the web. As a freelancer, what types of software do you recommend?

photo credit: Images_of_Money

Happy New Year! We’ve bid 2011 farewell and are now welcoming 2012. As with every start of a new year, there’s always a feeling of hope and uncertainly for what’s to come our way. As freelancers, we ask ourselves, ‘Will this be a productive year with plentiful amounts of work? Will 2012 be an excellent year financially?’ While we can’t give completely accurate answers to these questions, here are the top 3 predictions for freelancers in 2012.

1. We will see an increase in people trying their hand at freelancing. With the unemployment rate (which, according to CNNMoney, was last reported at 9.4% in December 2011) staying high and gas prices always on the rise, many people will decide to try their hand at freelancing. In turn, if more people make an attempt at it, freelancing will also begin to play a larger part in continuing to mend our economy. But current freelancers may not need to worry, which leads us to our next prediction:

2. Companies will begin outsourcing more of their work to freelancers. This seems especially viable considering that large companies have to worry about not only paying their employees for a 40+ hour work week but also having to pay for health insurance and possibly 401K. Before working as a freelancer, I worked as a secretary for a small engineering firm. Although they had several clients, work wasn’t always constant. Looking back now (and I would have never admitted it then), someone could have done much of my job from home without having to go in everyday. We may see this more in companies that suffered financially in 2011 and are now trying to save money where they can.

3. Social media will still be king. With Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn thriving (and also with the arrival of Google+), social media will still be one of the main ways to put your name out there and get people talking. With more people using social media now to communicate with loved ones, friends, and business associates, we will most likely see a growth in people who join the social media revolution. Although one question on many people’s mind is if all of these websites will still be around in January 2013. Will we see one of these websites drop off the map, or even more interestingly, will we see any new social networks enter into the mix? Only time will tell.

Although no one can say for sure what the future holds, hopefully we will see a fulfilling and profitable year ahead. What are some of your predictions for freelancing in 2012?

photo credit: Suus Wansink

There might be a freelancer out there who loves dealing with the bookkeeping elements of freelancing, but if so, she’s well hidden. Keeping track of income, expenses, amounts due, estimated taxes…well, it’s just not fun. But it’s a necessary evil. If you don’t keep proper account of the money side of your freelance business, you can run that business right into the ground – or worse, get into serious legal trouble. So, even if you’re a newbie with few clients, it’s a good idea to develop strong bookkeeping habits right from the start. How to do this? It doesn’t take massive brain work. Just good organization.

1. Write Everything Down. Get into the habit of immediately recording every single dollar you receive, expect to receive, or spend on your business. It’s not uncommon for freelancers to lose money by forgetting to invoice clients or failing to keep track of outstanding amounts or expenses owed. Don’t throw away money like that. Create a simple spreadsheet through Excel, Microsoft or Google Docs, that includes the client’s name, the amounts paid, the amounts due, expenses incurred, and the dates all financial transactions took (or will take) place. If you have dozens of clients and projects, you may want to use an online bookkeeping system like FreshBooks or QuickBooks, both of which also include an invoicing service.

2. Develop a good filing system. Every time you spend money on your business, you should obtain a receipt and file it in a specially-designated folder. Remember to print up online receipts and put them in your folder, or create a digital folder on your computer to store those (personally, I do both). Also, if the expenses are client-related, write down the name of the project or client on the top of the receipt, so you can remember to whom to bill the expense. If the expenditure is a general business expense, remember to mark the receipt “deductible” when appropriate, so it can be written off.

3. Brush up on deductible expenses. You can lose lots of money unnecessarily by failing to claim tax deductions for certain business expenses. On the other hand, you can into huge trouble by writing off certain expenses that aren’t legally deductible. Avoid both problems by educating yourself on which business expenses are deductible. Under most circumstances, any expense that furthers your freelance career, from writing classes to printer toner, can be deducted. But it’s better to be safe than sorry: if you have a question as to whether something is tax deductible, ask a qualified accountant.

4. Understand your tax responsibilities. Okay, this part is really not fun, but understanding your tax responsibilities will help motivate you to keep clear, organized bookkeeping records. In the U.S. freelancers are required to file estimate tax reports on a quarterly basis. In certain other parts of the world, freelancers pay a flat tax on their earnings at regular intervals. Once you understand your obligations, you can approximate how much money you’ll need to put aside for each project for tax purposes. You may even want to add “less taxes” it as a line item to your income spreadsheet so you’ll remember what you’re netting for each project.

5. Maintain a Separate Account for Business-Related Monies. Even if you don’t open an account in the name of your business, you should maintain accounts that are only used for business purposes. For example, you might keep a separate checking account for the business and open a savings account earmarked for your taxes. Keeping your accounts separate – and being diligent about it – will enable you to instantly distinguish between business and personal expenditures. This will be an enormous help come tax time – or if you are in the unfortunate position of being audited by the IRS.

Mike Law has extensive experience as a freelance journalist and online marketer, and has worked with a number of leading Sydney companies ranging from online marketing agencies to compensation lawyers. If you’d like to get in touch, you can send Mike an email.

photo credit: o5com

Making the leap to become a freelancer is daunting, exciting and challenging, all rolled into one.

Being your own boss has huge advantages, but it can also mean that in times of uncertainty, there is no one to turn to, such as when a new project arises, or when work is taken on for a new and therefore unknown client.

In this day and age, time is money, and there is a temptation to jump straight in and start the project right away, after all there’s no time like the present.

Preparation is key

Some preparation before you start work, and some gentle client management along the way
can make all the difference in ensuring the freelancer and client relationship remains a happy
one.

Document exactly what’s expected, by whom and when before you start. It can also be useful to keep a project timeline which can be updated as you go. If things change as the project progresses, report back to the client immediately and let them know of the changes. Make sure they are happy with the changes before the project progresses any further.

It may sound formal, but defining and agreeing on terms and conditions before commencing the work ensures that both parties clearly understand and agree to their roles.

If we’re talking self-preservation then the first thing to ask yourself is ‘what’s my liability? If I make a mistake, what could happen and how much will it cost me to rectify it?’

That’s really your worst-case scenario and it’s where you should start. If you identify every potential pitfall, it’s straightforward enough to work back and consider which are the biggest areas of risk – and do something about them before you might actually have to.

It might seem obvious but, as a starting point, try thinking about:

• What am I being asked to do? And can I actually do it? (Be honest!)

• What is my client expecting at the end? Can I deliver, on time and to specification?

• Will I control all or part of a budget?

• What sign-off procedure, if any, is in place?

What else? If you don’t already have it, invest in a specialist professional liability insurance policy. The security that comes in knowing that you have an insurer and specialized legal team behind you is priceless.

Theresa Reardon is Managing Producer of InsuranceBee Inc (www.insurancebee.com). InsuranceBee specializes in professional liability insurance for independent consulting firms and freelance professionals

photo credit: freeflyer09