Are you a freelancer? I have seen many freelancers — few struggling to even make a living while some are enjoying the freedom to work from anywhere and earning 3x of what they were earning at their jobs. From my experience, here are 4 very important skills that you should master, to become a successful freelancer.
1. Learn your Craft and spend a lot of time mastering your skill.
I have seen many freelancers, who start freelance work without any actual experience or practice.
It’s completely fine if you are new to the industry and want to make a few extra bucks, but you need to present yourself as an expert and not a newbie.
I am not asking you to lie. You need to invest time in reading books, blogs, watching videos, and talking to experts.
Be very clear about each and every concept of your industry.
2. Learn to SELL.
Selling is a very important part of the freelancing journey.
If you don’t enjoy selling, get a partner or resource. But this is not optional.
You might get a couple of projects at the start through reference but soon your sales pipeline will dry up.
If you need a consistent business and stable monthly revenue, Keep Selling.
In Digital marketing, the client could stay for 3 months to 3 years with you, but consider the worst-case scenario and assume a shorter project span and prepare your sales strategy accordingly.
I personally use Pipedrive for managing the sales funnel.
3. Decide your Pricing Model and stick to it.
A lot of the times, you take up anything that comes your way. But this could be a bad decision.
I recommend Freelancers to decide their fees and stick to it.
Say No if the project is not paying you what you deserve.
Bonus Tip: Say No to work, if you are not confident in delivering it.
4. Good client-freelancer relationships depend on good communication.
Here are my two cents on great communication.
- Establish boundaries and expectations clearly
- Get everything on writing to avoid confusion and finger-wagging down the road
- Take time to explain each other’s systems
- If things go wrong, give the benefit of the doubt. Often it’s not malice, just misunderstanding or lack of experience
There is time to learn and there is time to practice.
Don’t be stuck in the learning phase that you forget to go out there and do some real work.
You might feel like you don’t know enough, but that’s normal.
You’ll gain more confidence when you start practicing.
But if you don’t start practicing, you’ll never feel good enough.
Start practicing today.