Starting out as a Freelancer

It’s already been two months since I went freelance. I have learnt a lot in this relatively short space of time. I want to share my experiences to anyone considering taking the leap to go freelance.

So, you’ve made the decision to go freelance? Let’s be frank, it’s not for the faint hearted. You are selling yourself as a service. You are on your own. You are everything… IT, web developer, salesperson, marketing, graphic design, finance and legal. Can you handle that? If not, freelancing may not be for you. If this floats your boat then read on.

Firstly, I defined my service offering. This was a combination of what I enjoy doing and what I’m good at. There are currently over 2 million freelancers in the UK, if you are lucky enough to have a niche skill, leverage it.

Next, I had to decide whether to trade as a sole trader or a limited company. There are pros and cons to each, my advice is consult an accountant. Do set up a new bank account to keep business and your personal transactions separate. I have one where monthly fees depend on how much you earn, you can issue invoices and it also tells you how much tax you should be expecting to pay at end of the tax year. Genius!

My next task was to create a website, I know content management systems, so I thought that it would be relatively straightforward. First hurdle, linking my newly purchased domain name to my website proved tricky. In my corporate life, I would outsource this to a web developer. I had to figure this out on my own. After a week, my website still wasn’t live. Fortunately, I have a techy brother-in-law, so with a little help, my website finally went live.

Any marketer will know the importance of building content on the website, I need to create services pages, blog posts, case studies, videos, social posts. All this falls under the remit of marketing. I understand the importance of doing this. However, I also need to find clients, and that takes priority.

This is the biggest question for any freelancer starting out, how do I find clients? Before you do this, my advice is be clear in your mind, who is your target audience? Use personas to help you.

Next, find your niche. At first, it’s easy to think that you can offer your services to everyone and every sector. Ask yourself, which sectors are you experienced in? Remember, you can’t be all things to all people. If your experience is primarily in B2B, there is little point in going after B2C work and vice versa.

Once you have defined your target audience and niche, consider where do they hang out? Which networking groups are they on? Be visible to them.

To find clients, firstly use your existing network, THIS is your biggest asset. Most freelancers I know win work from their existing contacts. There are also freelancing websites such as peopleperhour or upwork. In my experience, work on these are very price driven and competition is extremely high.

"Use your existing network, this is your biggest asset"

Speaking of pricing, another big question for any freelancer is “what should I charge?” My advice is do some research, I have found geographical variations. It also depends on your experience and level eg AE, SAM, AD. Once you have set your price stick to it and state it with conviction.

"Once you have set your price stick to it and state it with conviction"

I must confess, I have good and bad days. On the good days, treat the little things as a win; it could be an opportunity to quote, a blog finished, or perhaps you learnt a new skill. On my bad days, I often shouted “I’m going to get a job!” The reality is you need to get used to handling rejections and lost opportunities, don’t take it personally. It’s part of freelancing life. Keep calm and carry on.

When you eventually win your first gig, as any business owner will tell you, it is the BEST feeling in the world. I’m going to compare it to childbirth, any mother will know that labour is excruciating but as soon as your baby is born, you forget all the pain, your new bundle of joy makes it all worthwhile. Winning clients gives you the same feeling.

After you win a client or two, you must establish your terms and conditions. A freelancing friend kindly sent me a few templates to adapt. I came up with two pages. Fortunately, I have a different brother-in-law who has experience in this field and gave me some helpful advice. I also know a fantastic solicitor who lives in my village, she kindly agreed to review my T&Cs. Incidentally, she re-wrote it for me, I now have 5 pages.

After you’ve done billable work and logged tasks on your timesheet. It’s time to invoice your client. Another lesson, I need to do my own invoicing.

It’s been a learning curve and has definitely taken me out of my comfort zone. I have, ironically, spent more time doing business development than any marketing. However, I’ve seen my network grow exponentially over the last weeks and this is now starting to bear fruit. My next challenge will be wrestling with a self-assessment tax return!