5 Tips to Get More Freelance Clients

When a client decides between two freelancers, what will influence their final choice? There can be many factors, but today we will discuss some of the best quick fixes that you can start working on today to make yourself stand out.

1. Work in the same spaces as your clients

One of the strategies to get to your clients faster is to know exactly where it is that you can find them. For example, if your clients are interested in Webflow development, there are Twitter spaces where you can find other freelancers and your clients.

If you are currently working as an employee, you can view your workplace as a networking space to find clients. A lot of people come to freelancing after working for a company, so connections that you make in your employed work can transition into your first freelancing opportunities or create ongoing projects.

It is important to know the online spaces where your clients operate in. The strategy here would be to utilize social media channels where you expect your clients to be. YouTube is an excellent choice and can land you clients after you  build a subscriber base. Many freelancers use Instagram or LinkedIn to create content for their clients. It all depends on where you expect your clients to be at most and what channels you expect they will use to answer their questions and concerns. You will need to identify what content your target audience is interested in and create content accordingly.

A lot of clients that look for help in their business are on freelancer marketplaces. There are advantages to being on such marketplaces, but simply registering to one will not guarantee success. Marketplaces can be competitive, so you will still have to stand out from others to appeal to your client. The first step is occupying a niche.

2. Have a well-designed website as your personal portfolio

What is the best way to showcase your work and convince your clients that it is worth it to schedule a call with you? 

Hands down, the best way is a well-designed website. It can be a game-changer if you are a freelancer who wants more clients or wants to increase your prices. A personal portfolio will be the representation of your brand and the main criterion of your customers wanting to schedule a sales call. 

Clients actually associate the quality of your work with the quality of your portfolio, so it is crucial that you design a website that sells. There are several sections that you should include on your website, including: 

• Value proposition

What exactly do you do? There are two parts to an excellent value proposition. The first part is stating what you do. The second part is stating who you cater to. For example, “I Create Webflow Designs for Small Businesses”. A value proposition is typically placed at the very top of your main landing page and will immediately signal businesses if you are the right fit for them. 

• Self-introduction

There are several ways that you can introduce yourself on your website. Something that will instantly make you stand out is a video of yourself welcoming your client to the website and having a brief introduction of yourself and your business. This will break the digital barrier between you and your customer and make their experience much more personal. Clients will appreciate a more personal approach to the experience and have a better connection with your work.

• Services you offer

In your services section, you will describe your skill set. A crucial part of this section is helping your clients understand how exactly each skill can help with their business. Make sure to explain each service you provide and the results you have achieved in the past for your clients. Outline the benefits you bring to their business and your clients will know that you are a master of your craft.

• Examples of previous work

You will also need to include your relevant projects. The best way to execute this is to make the experience interactive. Creating a collage or making mock-ups of your work will help visualize the final products that you deliver, making the decision-making process all less difficult for your customers. 

• Social proof

It is natural to have doubts about the legitimacy of someone’s services before meeting them. Thankfully, there is a way to address these types of feelings aclients might have. People tend to trust businesses more when they see some sort of social proof. Therefore, to make yourself look more reliable, include testimonials of clients you worked with in the past. Another strategy that a lot of businesses use is adding a line of logos of your clients.

If you are interested in learning more about each section, feel free to check out our article “What does your freelance portfolio need?”.

3. Price your work correctly

There are three main routes that freelancers can take when charging clients. They include:

• Hourly rate

Hourly pricing is extremely flexible and is used by many freelancers. Beginners often charge hourly as well because it is the easiest rate to decide on. If you find that there is only a couple hours worth of work to complete, then go ahead and crage your hourly rate. Even when you are a professional freelancer, it makes sense to know your hourly rates. You may find that clients want to do a paid trial before fully committing to work together, in which case you will need to charge hourly.

• Day rate

You will see that a lot of freelancers who charge day rates are in creative industries. For example, motion designers or photographers often find themselves booked for a day at a time. And because there are a lot of creative processes and changes that can happen during the day, it makes sense for them to charge for a day of work. That helps to set the boundaries and not do work that wasn’t agreed upon beforehand.  

• Project/Fixed rate

If you are further down your freelance journey and have experience helping bigger clients, this is the perfect rate for you. If a client is looking for someone on an ongoing basis, they will most likely be open to project-based work. That's why very often it makes more sense to charge your client based on the deliverables and not the hours you put in. You can have a base amount you charge (e.g. $10,000 per project) and add extra services for more. That will also show your clients whether your rates meet their budget and help in their decision-making process. 

4. Communicate consistently

Clients highly value communication skills among everything else. Responding to emails promptly and keeping a friendly and professional attitude will set you apart from competitors. 

Nowadays everyone gets a ton of emails, so it can get busy. Try to build your inbox in a way that helps you categorize and filter through your emails quickly.

Effective communication with your customers should include a transition from chatting over email to a call or an in-person meeting. You will be able to have a better understanding of your client and see if you want to work with them.

One of the most important skills to utilize when communicating with your clients is active listening. Asking the right questions will let you know what problems your client wants to solve. Active listening is the key to selling your services because it helps you paint the full picture of your clients' needs. Once you know what their needs are, you can explain how you can help them. 

5. Improve customer experience

Consider how easy you make it for your clients to get where they want to be. Investing time and money in improving it will increase your customers loyalty and help in building stronger relationships with your clients.

In the process of hiring you, there are several steps that your clients go through before making the final decision. If you want your clients to have the ultimate experience, make sure to polish each step of their journey through the hiring process.

That would involve you outlining a step-by-step process that your client takes to hire you. Visualizing the process can also help you understand who your customers are and where they find you. Then write out any questions or concerns you think they have on each step. Finally, take action to resolve their questions before they ever start doubting whether you’re the right candidate.

Conclusion

Getting clients is one of the most challenging parts of having a successful freelance business. Luckily, we live in a beautiful age of technology and you have every tool you need to get to the point you want. To get freelance clients more efficiently, we recommend:

• Being in the same spaces as your clients
• Having a well-designed website
• Pricing your work correctly
• Communicating with your client
• Getting your clients what they want