Did you know that there are so many more opportunities today to start working online compared to when the first online freelancer struck it rich?
Unfortunately, many people feel that the online freelance ship has already sailed for them. Yet, there is a huge demand out there for freelance writers, SEO specialists (which is basically content writing), IT experts required, web developers, and software engineers. Even online accountants are in demand right now. The ship is still very much in the port and catching a piece of the action that it offers not as difficult as you might think.
Here are some steps you can take to start your online career:
Find Freelance and Write For Us Websites
If you can find a good freelancer website, then you are set. My advice would be put a decent amount of time aside to start opening as many profiles as possible on websites that offer freelancers the chance to advertise their services. ‘Write For Us’ websites are great for freelance writers. If you are an accountant, then look for websites that offer work for freelance accountants.
Be Prepared To Undersell Yourself
Now most marketers and salesman will keel over with red faces at this subtitle. The reason I say be prepared to undersell yourself is a very good one. Most freelancers get their work from freelance websites. There are sites out there such as https://www.legiit.com/ on which you will face a lot of competition. In order to win new contracts with zero feedback, you will need to start low.
The idea is to build up trust on your account. The more trust you build with positive feedback, the more customers and inquiries you will receive.
Building Up Your Feedback
You will need to start to build your feedback up, which is why the previous section is so important. The more positive reviews you get, the more you can start charging for your service. Now, this is what makes things difficult. There will be people with lower prices than yours, but they will have low feedback. This will have been the very same tactic you used to get your feedback.
Now all that will be happening here is that your target market will change. More affluent people or businesses looking to hire freelancer will be sold on good feedback plus a good rate. You may also start to lose your old customers because they would have been attracted by your cheap prices and expect to continue hiring you at that rate.
Offering Quality
Now I am at a stage where I hire my own freelancers. I hire web designers and freelancers to do much of the work I used to do as a freelancer. Plus, I am still in a freelancer for large websites like https://www.c9bets.com for example. If you look at the blog section on the c9bets website, all the artwork, graphics, and the customer service chat app, then you will see examples of work I have hired a freelancer to do for me. This website has literally been built off the back of freelance workers.
My policy is to not waste my time with low priced freelancers. It is too hit and miss for me. I have the luxury of being able to afford to pay higher prices for people with decent feedback on their account. Now, there are other people out there that do not have the budget I have, so those are the ones that you will be targeting in order to build up your feedback.
However, just because they are paying a low price does not mean they are not looking for quality. Therefore, in your early days as a freelancer, make sure you deliver high-quality work at bargain prices in order to foster and encourage good feedback.
How Will Becoming An Online Freelancer Help Increase Your Net Worth?
Hopefully, the answer here is obvious. If you are earning extra money on the side of your salary, then inevitably your income goes up. The downside is that you have to give up some of your free time. Nonetheless, there are ways in which you can turn this into more money and work less.
One guy I know, James Donaghue, was working long hours as an IT software support specialist. His profile is here: https://github.com/jdonaghue. He was working as a freelancer via a reputable website to get extra cash to save for his new house. He ended up getting some great freelance contracts, but the issue was that the freelance work increased and his free time decrease. In the meantime, his stress levels skyrocketed.
Too much work, a lack of sleep, and no time for social life are all too common for freelancers that have a full-time job. However, James dealt with this well, and you could do the same. He found a part-time software engineer contracting job. It was half the hours and as it was a contract his daily rate versus the daily rate of his salary was 50% more than his job. Instead of earning $4,000 a month salary, he works 3 days a week 9 to 5 and earns $3,000 a month. His freelance work helps him take home another $2,500.
That’s a $1,500 increase, and he only has to go into an office 3 days a week. When that contract ends, he can look for another one, but James can take his time because he has not squandered the extra cash, he has saved it; while, he has also been able to afford the deposit and payments on his new house.
Summary Of The Above
You too can do exactly the same as James or myself. You just need to follow the steps mentioned above in order to get your foot in the door on a decent freelancer website. Once you build up your feedback, you are set to start charging higher prices. Just make sure you are always delivering quality and value for money to your clients, and you will go far in the world of freelancing.
After you are an established freelancer, then you can start to think about either creating your own online freelance company like me or do what James Donaghue has done and work as a contractor for part of the week, and the rest of the week work from home as a freelancer. In the end, you start to govern your own destiny, quality of life, free time, and earning potential.