Are you finding it hard to get a job as a freelancer? First and foremost, you have to understand that this is completely normal, especially in the first year or two. The path towards successful freelancing is not easy. The workload is enormous, the clients demanding and the competition hard.
Update 2016
Still, building up your freelance business can be a lot of fun, provided you know how to find the right gigs and make sure you get them. Drawing from our experience in the field, we at freelancermap sat down and wrote a list with some of the most common reasons for not getting enough freelance work. Here are our top six:
1) Incomplete profiles
Incomplete profiles are often an immediate no-go for clients. Think of it as buying, say, a laptop. A description like: “has keyboard and mouse, can run Windows” doesn’t do much for you, does it? You want to know how big the screen is, how long the battery lasts, what other customers think about it and much more. Providing a client with accurate and plentiful information is the first step towards being even considered for a gig.
2) Not applying for the right jobs
Applying for the right jobs is something that should be obvious, but is often overlooked. Many clients search for a specific skillset, a certain form of experience or even a particular location of the freelancer. Make sure you cover all the criteria set by the client. Applying to jobs that don’t fit you as a professional is wasted time. Time, which you could’ve spent on actual job hunting.
3) Under- or overselling yourself
Pricing is a big issue. You get to set your own rate, but doing it right is a science. Go too high and risk not being affordable. Set them too low, on the other hand, and clients might think you’re not good enough. If you’re interested in some tips that will help improve your pricing methods, we recommend you check out some of our previous articles about “
Writing a quote as a freelancer” and “
The 4 most commong pricing mistakes of freelancers“.
4) Blasting clients with template applications
Sending tenths and even hundreds of job applications can get tedious. Few know that feeling in its repetitiveness as well as the self-employed. However, using templates is not always as good of an idea as it sounds. Yes, they can be useful, but only to some extent. Add a personal approach to your emails and look at what your clients want. Search for things that you can offer for that one specific project and outline them. There is nothing worse for a client than having to read through paragraphs of obviously copy-pasted material that has little to no relevance for the position.
5) Trying to be a jack of all trades
Many freelancers gravitate towards offering everything they can possibly do in their field. Being a jack of all trades might seem like it covers a larger market, but more often than not, it really doesn’t. Clients look for the best freelancers they can find for any specific job, not someone who can do a bit of everything. It definitely pays off to specialize and have tons of successful projects doing the one thing you are absolutely brilliant at.
6) Not treating the job hunting like a job
As we said above, job hunting can get pretty tedious. But what you have to realize is that it is a part of your work as a freelancer. Looking for a job is serious business – have a system, be organized, try keeping track of failures as well as successes. This is one of the few ways to guarantee that you systematically improve and start getting more and more gigs as a freelancer.
7) You´re not marketing. Or you´re doing it wrong
Marketing that doesn´t get you any jobs is worthless. Make sure you use the right platforms to present yourself and your references and do it professionally. If you are not sure how to do it right, buy a book or ask an expert. But don’t keep wasting time on marketing that doesn’t get you projects.
Got any questions? Leave us a message below and we’ll get right back at you.
Pic: ©
klublu_shutterstock
