Finding regular clients is an issue for many freelancers. I know I have struggled in the past to find regular clients, and it’s quite understandable as clients are the life wire of any business whether it is offline or online, and sometimes it seems like there are more freelancers than there are available clients.
Having a clear strategy on how to find and retain your clients is one way to stay on top of your freelancing career. Having a platform, knowing what your strengths and weaknesses are, and knowing your clients would help you find and retain them. Here are some facts to have in mind –
- Having a blog or website where you can showcase your previous projects or your works-in-progress is one way to attract your clients. Many clients always ask to see examples of previous work, so having a platform to showcase your portfolio easily is one of the best things you can do for your business.
- Get clear about who you want to serve. Now that you’re a freelancer you need to have a clear picture of your ideal clients. No matter how difficult or easy it is to find clients, the worst thing to experience is to work with clients who do not go down well with you.
- Know your selling points. What is it about you that makes you standout from your competition? When you leverage on this you will put yourself in a better position to find and retain your clients.
With all this said and done, here are a few places (out of several others) where you can find your ideal freelance clients:
- Social media
Millions of people log in to at least 2-3 social media platforms daily. This makes social media platforms a boiling pot full of job opportunities. The trick is to consistently show your skills and let people know that you are up for hire. For example, if you’re a photographer you can upload your photographs using the relevant tags.
- Job boards
This is a great place you can find clients. Potential clients list the services that they need on job boards and all you have to do is go through the list and find the suitable job just for you and contact the client. It’s as simple as that. Make sure that you put your best foot forward by letting your potential client know about your experience and what makes you better than your competition.
3. Referrals
The best marketing tool is word of mouth. Word of mouth is gold, it goes around faster than anything else, and the fact that someone refers you adds extra validation to your skills. But first things first, you need to do a good job to be worthy of a referral. Once you are good at what we do, you are bound to get a referral.
4. Offline engagements
Meet-ups, conferences or gatherings create the perfect avenue to tell people about what you do and get clients. The informal setting creates a relaxed atmosphere which could help in developing a strong relationship with those you meet. Most times, your ability to easily get along with people can positively influence the rate at which people will want to hire you or refer you to those who need your services.
Are you a freelancer? Where do you find your clients?
Excellent advice here. I am currently setting up my freelance website and trying to sort all this out so this has come and an excellent time for me. Thanks xxx
Oh good. Good luck with it all xx
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I am not a blogger as you know: I think it shows the lovely kind helpful person you are that you regularly write on helping others who are bloggers and freelance.
It’s not something I have seen anyone else do on a blog which isn’t geared towards to supporting others in this type of work.
Kudos to you Stella for being who you are
Thanks a lot Carol.
I’m planning on going freelance this year so this is really useful x
Ah nice xx
These are great tips for places to find clients. I think social media is so important and networking in general really helps
Yes it does. Thanks Zena.
I need to show this guide to my friend who is going freelance with photography, but finding it all a bit daunting. Thank you! x
Pls do. Thanks Clair.
Great tips, very useful! I am usually contacted by brands.
Oh good Lilinha.
This is such a helpful post! Freelance can be really hard sometimes.
Yea it can be. Thanks Hayley.
Very useful ! I just posted another travel post! I hope to hear from you! xoxo!
Thanks.
You are very welcome girl! XOXO
Fab tips Stella. There are some good opportunities out there. Social media is certainly a good place to start and job boards x
Thanks Jayne x
I’ve been a freelancer for more than 10 years now. I used to work mainly through websites and platforms for posting jobs and projects, but now I mainly work by word of mouth.
That is really good Lubka.
Great advice on picking up freelance clients!
Thanks.
A great list of tips and advice for people starting out. I completely understand the networking tip. Although not in exactly the same context I did find networking at a blog conference last year brought more brand work my way so I can understand why it’s important from a freelance perspective.
Yea. Thank you.
Very good article, one of the reasons I dont do freelance styling or writing is how hard it was to find and keep clients. Admitedly I started off with a lot of these clients on the wrong foot- i.e. not being paid, which made it harder to then ask for money the second time arouund.
You’ve stated some good tips here, have a great week! ( :
Yes it is always harder to ask for money once you work for a client unpaid. Many take the piss.
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such good helpful advice! I’m nowhere near ready to freelance, but when I am I know where to come for advice! x
Ah nice xx
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