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Home Biz Idea – How to be a successful freelancer

March 7, 2011 By Leave a Comment

profitable niche ideasyou have a particular skill you may be able to make a living as a freelancer. Most freelance businesses require very little startup cash. And one of the primary benefits of being a freelancer is that you can create a business that fits your needs and lifestyle. You’re self employed and therefore you make the rules and decisions. It’s all up to you.

What is a Freelancer?

A freelancer is someone who works for pay. They may work from assignment to assignment. Or they may sign on to work with a company for an extended period of time. Regardless of how they work, they are self employed. This means as a freelancer you are responsible for your own taxes. You’re also responsible for your own insurance.

An example of a freelancer might be a website designer, a writer, a photographer, or even an administrative assistant. In fact, many professions can be freelance. You can be a freelance sales person, a freelance accountant, a freelance attorney and so on. If you have a marketable skill, chances are you can work as a freelancer.

How Does a Freelancer Make Money?

Most freelance workers charge by the hour or by the project. For example, a freelance journalist might charge a flat rate for an article. The flat rate would include interviews and research as well as photographs, the writing and editing of the content. Of course, as a freelancer you can charge by the hour too.

The more clients or projects you have, the more money you make. Many freelancers make quite a substantial annual income.

How to Get Started as a Freelancer

To get started as a freelancer you’ll want to choose a specialty. What are you good at? What are you interested in? For example, if you’re interested in learning more about motorcycles then you could become a freelancer that specializes in writing about motorcycles. You could write for magazines and websites that focus on the topic.

You don’t have to specialize on a topic or industry. You could specialize in a format. For example, you could be a website designer that specializes in creating custom WordPress based websites. You could be a copywriter that specializes in business to business sales pages. The specialty you choose should be something you’re interested in and/or skilled at.

You’ll also need a website to promote and market your services. Your website will have samples of your work along with your rates, policies and procedures and your bio. You don’t have to have real customers to create a portfolio. Create a few samples. Once your business is booming, you can add your new work to your samples.

Getting started as a freelancer is straight forward. Begin with a business plan. Decide what you’re going to offer and how you’re going to offer it. Who are your customers? How will you charge? What are your goals and how will you reach them? With a little planning you can have your freelance business up and running in less than a week. It’s a great way to make a living.

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Book Recommendation – Creative Inc

February 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment


Creative Inc, The Ultimate Guide to Running a Successful Freelance Business
Where to buy: www.amazon.com
Review by: ACMom

There are many good reasons why people go freelance. If you are a creative person, such as photographer, graphic designer or illustrator and you want to take the leap from employment to self-employed, you need to be knowledgeable about various business aspects and common pitfalls.

The Ultimate Guide to Running a Successful Freelance Business offers the freelancer-to-be essential information on starting and running a successful business. It covers the topics that every new entrepreneur/freelancer needs to think and know about before striking out on their own: business name, finances, workplace, moonlighting, specializing or generalizing, business plan, marketing, goal setting, balancing personal and business life, outsourcing and more.

In my opinion, if you are thinking of getting your own home-based creative business off the ground, the book by two experts in the field, Meg Mateo Ilasco and Joy Deangdeelert Cho, is a well-worth and essential resource to purchase and read. With all the information contained within this book, you should be well on your way to developing a thriving business.

Learn more about this title >

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Guru.com Tips – How to place bids for freelance work

February 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

profitable niche ideasGuru.com is one of the many popular freelance job sites. It enables employers to find quality service providers. It also enables service providers to find great freelance projects. If you’re looking for work, consider using Guru.com.

The First Step

The first step to placing a bid on a project at Guru.com is to join. Membership ranges from free to forty-five dollars a month. Free membership enables you to bid on ten projects a month. The most expensive membership offers unlimited project bids and vendor status. It’s recommended you start with a free membership. As your business and needs increase, you can increase your membership too.

Creating Your Profile

The next step to successful bidding on Guru.com is to create a compelling profile. Your profile will include your business name, experience and your website URL. On your website, make sure you have samples of your work. Testimonials and reviews are good too. They help boost credibility.

You can also upload work samples to your profile. It’s recommended that you do this. Also list any certifications, awards and other items that can enhance your credibility. You want to stand out above your competition.

Bidding on Work

The next step is to start searching for projects that match your interests and skills. There are thousands to choose from. Start with the category that matches your skills. For example, web design. Then you can move through the projects. Compare them based on:

* The project requirements
* Desired pay rate
* Turnaround time
* Reviews for the client – providers can review clients based on how easy they are to work with, how quickly they respond and pay, etc…

Once you find a project that looks compelling, it’s time to place a bid. The actual process is simple.

Click on the “Submit Your Proposal” button at the bottom of the Project Details page.

Write your proposal. Be sure to include your fee – how much you will charge for the project. Also be clear about the details. How long will it take you to complete the project? What are the steps to delivery? For example, do you offer a rough draft? What are your skills and experience? Have you handled projects like this before?

You’re submitting a proposal, so make sure to stress the benefits of working with you. Keep it short and sweet. There’s no need to go into your entire work history. The employer simply wants to know what’s in it for them if they hire you. Be professional. Market your skills.

When you’re done, click the “Submit Your Proposal” button at the bottom of the page. Then follow the instructions to complete the process.

When bidding on Guru, the more projects you handle successfully, the more credibility you earn. Each successful project makes it easier to earn new projects. Thus earning that first project may be the most difficult part of the process. Be patient. Guru.com can be a great way to fill your freelance schedule.

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Freelancing versus Owning an Online Business

June 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

If you have skills that are in high demand online, there comes a time when you invariably ask yourself an important question:

Is your time best spent building a freelance business – or starting your own online business?

What’s the Difference?

When you are freelancing, you are essentially self-employed. Generally, you aren’t working for any particular company for a long period of time.

The kinds of jobs that are generally most suitable for this line of work are writing, link building, virtual assistance, graphic design and web design. Work that can be done from any location is the best.

How is this different from owning a business? With your own online business, you can outsource the day-to-day tasks and focus exclusively on the marketing. As a freelancer, you are doing all the daily tasks yourself.

For instance, if you own a web design business, you can outsource some of the actual web design tasks in order to more heavily focus on the marketing. If you are a freelancer, you will do the web design yourself. In other words, you will not earn “passive income.”

So if you really love writing or web design, and that’s what you would like to do full time, then freelancing would probably be right for you. But, if passive income is your goal, then you want to own a business.

Freelancing is like being an employee. This is because when you stop working, the money stops coming in. Even though you set your own work schedule and do not have a commute, you still have to get the work done. When owning a business, you can take time off and the money will still come in.

However, freelancing typically offers much faster income. The second you start working for someone else, you get paid. With a business, there is no guarantee of what you will earn because you never know which of your campaigns are going to succeed.

There is certainly higher long-term income opportunity, but it will take you more time to start making money. If your main goal is to just quit your day job and start working from home as soon as possible, you might want to consider freelancing.

Don’t forget, however, that it is competitive. You still have to go out and find your own jobs. It’s not as easy as quitting your job, working in your pajamas and making six figures, as some would have you believe.

It will take work. You are always bidding against many others for each job that’s available. The key is to make yourself stand out in some way so that they will hire you. Just try making a guarantee that no one else is. This will help differentiate you from the crowd.

The bottom line is, this: freelancing and owning an online business are very different. If your main goal is passive income, you might consider freelancing at first for some quick cash flow, and then building up your business in your spare time. However, if you love to write and can’t think of doing anything else, than why not just become a full-time freelance writer?

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Four Work-at-Home Freelancing Websites You Should Know About

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Whether you have been laid off or you desire a career change for more opportunities, freelancing is a great opportunity that can allow you to work from the comfort of your own home.

Before beginning a career as a freelancer, it is important to do research and determine which type of work you wish to offer in a freelancing capacity.

Freelance work can be writing, bookkeeping, design work or any other type of work that can be done remotely. The most important thing about freelancing is having the resources to ensure that you can make a living, especially before quitting your day job. There are several resources on the internet that provide useful information on getting and maintaining freelancer status.

Demand Studios is a freelance writing website. The company provides articles to several major companies online, and writers are needed to ensure that these articles are written and submitted. There is an application process which requires the submission of a writing sample. In addition to writing positions, Demand Studios also periodically seeks to hire videographers, title proofers and editors.

Guru.com is a site for freelancers to find work in almost any field imaginable. While there are a few free categories, some of the categories require a paid membership to bid on work available. A paid membership is not required, however, to view the postings and determine if the website is useful. Members, both free and paid, create a profile in which experience and skills are listed. Furthermore, all work is rated on a scale of 1-5 stars with optional feedback fields from employers.

Freelancer.com is another website like Guru that offers a job board of various freelance positions. There is an option for a Gold membership that costs $19.95 per month; however, the membership is not an obligation. Free accounts can be set up in just a few minutes.

WAHM.com is an informative website that offers not only business ideas, but also a forum for freelancers to meet and discuss any topic. The forums are useful to help others in their job search as well as to offer professional and moral support to those who need it. Despite the name Work At Home Moms, the site is tailored for men as well.

Many people make a living on freelance work and thrive on careers from the comforts of home. Research is a big factor in whether a person succeeds as a freelancer. The more research that is done and the more prospects a person has, the higher the chance of success.

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Finding Work on Freelancing Websites: 7 Tips

January 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Freelancing websites can be a great way to build a portfolio, fill in gaps between projects and add to your customer base. But not all projects are created equal – and there are definitely a few tricks and tips to make sure you get the best jobs.

Here are seven tips for using freelancing websites.

#1 Make the most of your membership. Most freelancing websites offer varying degrees of memberships. That means if you have a membership that allows you to bid on ten jobs a month, you want to be choosy with the jobs you bid on. Choose jobs that match your expertise and make a habit of checking the freelance websites once a week, once each morning, or whatever fits best into your schedule. Some sites will email you jobs that match specified criteria, which will save you time searching through endless job postings.

#2 Look for providers that post jobs frequently and come through with them. For example, you don’t want to bid on a job where the provider has posted 110 jobs in the past six months and only completed or followed through on ten. Instead, search for reputable projects and companies.

#3 Review buyer feedback. We don’t have to tell you that some jobs just aren’t worth the headaches and buyers can be a real pain in the neck. Of course, there are also wonderful customers who are great to work with. Review feedback on potential companies before bidding on a project.

#4 Trust your instincts. Bid on projects that make you feel positive about them. Projects that get you excited will help you put your best foot forward when bidding and communicating with the buyer. This enthusiasm and confidence in your instincts will translate in your communications and you’re actually more likely to get the job.

#5 Customize your bid for each project. Buyers can tell if you’re simply cutting and pasting the same old bid verbiage for each project. Customize your bid for the specific project and share your relevant experience.

#6 Ask questions. One of the biggest mistakes freelancers make when working on freelancing websites is that they’re afraid to ask questions. Instead, they make assumptions and the result is often costly to them, making them lose money on the project and perhaps not give as positive an impression as they could have.

#7 Go beyond the norm. Most freelancing websites enable you to publish a portfolio. That’s great, but it also helps if you can link to your website or attach relevant examples in your bid. For example, if you’re bidding on a graphic design project for a pet food company and you have logos you’ve designed for the pet industry, attach those to your bid even if they’re already in your portfolio.

Finally, and perhaps above all else, be professional and treat others as you would like to be treated. Respond promptly to questions from potential customers, be willing to negotiate, and always be positive and polite.

You may not be chosen for the project you’re bidding on, but customers remember people who impress them and you may be the freelancer they contact the next time they have a project.

Helpful Links
Looking to find work? Visit Elance.com

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