For most of us, our jobs are closely linked to our mental health. Great days at work can be empowering, while bad days can cause a large amount of stress and anxiety. For this reason, some people choose to work for themselves as freelancers and take on projects as needed.
While this career path comes with a substantial amount of freedom, it can also be inconsistent in terms of income. We’ve created a brief guide on how to establish a stable income as a freelancer and take your career to new heights. Let’s explore the key information you need to keep in mind.
1. Diversify Your Clientele
Some freelancers make the mistake of focusing primarily on a small number of clients and neglecting to acquire new ones. While there might not be issues for long periods, all it takes is for an unforeseen change to disrupt your income.
For instance, one of your largest clients could downsize their company and no longer have the budget to work with you. To prevent situations like this, you should ensure that your workload is diversified across a substantial number of different clients.
If one or two decide they no longer need your services, it likely won’t affect your income too much. Replacing them will also be easier than finding another large client.
2. Increase Your Prices
By increasing your prices, you won’t have to take on as much work each month to reach your goals. This minimizes the chance that you’ll experience disruptions in your workload.
There’s also a psychological phenomenon where people won’t hire someone if their prices are too low. This is especially true if you’re in a niche that offers high-end services, such as email copywriting. Be careful not to increase your prices too much, though.
This could deter people from continuing to work with you. It’s also recommended to announce to your existing clients that you plan to increase your prices shortly. This prevents them from being caught off guard.
3. Use Client Referrals
Establishing a referral program is one of the best steps you can take to keep your workload consistent. These programs are simple in practice: you simply offer perks when someone is referred by an existing client. These should apply to both the old and new clients.
In context, the existing client could get a discount on their next order and the old client could receive a discount on their first order. You could even establish different tiers that dictate what perks they receive.
To clarify, someone who refers 10 clients could receive a substantial discount or a certain service for free. The possibilities here are virtually endless.
4. Strive for Repeat Clients
Never neglect customer service when freelancing. This plays a large role in how likely someone is to hire you again in the future.
This involves answering emails promptly, minimizing mistakes, and staying as professional as possible in each interaction. If your clients start to feel like you care more about the money than helping them, they’ll find someone else who can meet their needs.
5. Hone Your Skills
Improving your skills will make it easier for you to stand out from your competitors. There’s no shortage of ways you can do so, and one of the most effective is taking courses or watching online tutorials.
Completing side projects can also help you improve your proficiency in your chosen discipline. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t feel up to par with your industry competitors at first. With enough time and diligence, you can transform your capabilities and provide much better service than you were previously able to.
6. Expand Your Services
Offering different services is an amazing way to diversify your income. To make the most of this, the services you choose should be tangentially related so your clients are more likely to choose more than one. For example, let’s assume you’re a freelance graphic designer.
You could also offer web design and video editing services to your clients. To make your offers more enticing, you can package these services together and provide a slight discount.
However, don’t offer services until you’re confident you can satisfy your clients’ needs. Otherwise, you could damage your reputation and cause people to choose alternatives.
7. Never Start Marketing
Consistent income is much easier to achieve when you have a solid marketing strategy for your freelancing business. Online ads and social media are some of the most powerful tools you can leverage when getting your brand in front of your audience.
As your company grows, you can take advantage of word-of-mouth advertising, as well. Satisfied clients will often be more than happy to tell others about their experiences.
8. Hire a Professional
There’s no shortage of professionals out there who can help you on your path. This is true for every aspect of freelancing, as well.
For instance, you could hire financial coaching services to help you handle your money more efficiently. You could also work with someone to improve your marketing strategy.
Regardless of what type of service you need, it’s imperative to check their reputation before making your decision. This provides valuable insight into what you can expect from them.
You should also assess how they handle criticism. If they get defensive or aggressive when faced with negative feedback, this is a red flag you can’t ignore. Their pricing is another important attribute to consider, as it’s best to avoid the cheapest options you find.
However, this doesn’t mean you need to go with the most expensive choice. Somewhere in the middle can meet your needs without stretching your budget.
Don’t Overlook Establishing Stable Income Without the right strategies in place, it can be difficult to establish a stable income for your freelance career. The good news is the tips in this guide will help ensure you get started on the right track. From here, you’ll have no trouble reaching your goals.