Freelancing

Why You Can Start Getting Freelance Clients in Just 3 Months

Start Getting Freelance Clients

Do you think the 3-month period is a long time?

Wait.

I want to say something out loud: are you kidding me?

It took me three years to get a couple of regular clients.

Do you remember the new year eve?

It’s already September. Time is running fast. So should you.

You might find your first freelance client after five weeks, or it may take up to 12 months to finally reach to that point.

I don’t care when you get your first client… (it sounds harsh, but it’s not, in real)

You’re going to win.

You’ll beat the odds.

You’ll prove a lot of people wrong.

I don’t doubt your ambition.

Do you know you clicked on this blog post because you were interested in freelancing?

It’s true that a lot of people skipped past very blog post that you’re reading now.

I know you want to start freelancing and win.

I’m going to tell you some strategies that you should apply until you get your first freelance client. Once you get one, you’ll double down your efforts along the way. Let’s take a look at the strategies:

1. Fix Your Social Media

No offense.

Nobody is going to hire you if your Facebook profile says the following:

Works at Facebook         

or

Works at Student

It’s fine if you don’t work anywhere. Nobody is judging you.

Instead, use bio, cover, display picture, and URL to express who you are and what you do.

Same goes with the Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Social media has become a powerful tool to engage, attract, and convert customers. One of the misconceptions is that you have to use paid advertising if you’re looking for clients.

No, it’s not true. All you need is to use the social media the right way. Check out my Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn bio details. You won’t find any fluff, just trying to convey the message.

2. Build Relationships on the Internet

I’m not saying to hang out all day long on social media. Building relationships mean spending time talking to the right people, help them out, share what you or learned. Either build a community or join someone else’s. There is no other way around. I talk a lot about choosing the right social media platforms and being specific about the number of social media channels.

If you join a soccer Facebook group and start talking about Tennis, no one would be interested in you because they won’t be interested in your topic.

All you need is to stick to your niche and find the right people to talk you.

What it does is that it showcases your profile, skills, and talent to the new eyeballs, and therefore, it results in the penetration.

Real Life Example: I managed to attend the TEDxIslamabad 2017 lately because I met a person at a WordPress Meetup in Lahore who manages the TEDxIslamabad, and it helped me attend the first ever TEDx talk.

There is no alternative to building good relations. So, please pay attention to the relationship building.

Gary Vaynerchuk emphasizes a lot on Instagram DM. The idea, however, is that you need to put some work into it. He is right because the success doesn’t come right off the bat. You work, work more, spend years, and then you master it.

3. Use Your Content the Right Way

Stop thinking about the chaos of launching a blog. No one is saying to set up your blog. I don’t want you to get anxious, but rather you should be excited because I’m going to give you a solution. Content publishing doesn’t have to be a problem, especially these days when you have tons of online platforms to use to put your content out there.

First of all, decide what kind of content resonates with you.

  • Written?
  • Video?
  • Audio?
  • Photos?
  • Presentation?

Once you’ve figured out the type of content you’re going to enjoy making, then comes the right platform to jump on.

For instance, if you try out the written content, there is so much opportunity around that, and don’t panic, same goes with other types of content as well.

Let’s dig deeper into the written content. You don’t want to spend $100 to $200 on setting up a blog. Just start publishing content on any of the following platforms:

  1. Facebook Notes: It’s the Facebook native platform for publishing written content. It doesn’t require any special skills whatsoever. Go to the Facebook Notes and start off publishing content.
  2. LinkedIn Publishing: LinkedIn Publishing is LinkedIn’s native platform for publishing written content.
  3. Medium: It’s a dedicated platform for publishing written content. Many influencers are jumping onto this platform. The best part is that Medium is all about either reading or writing content.
  4. Vocal: Vocal is a different platform than the previously mentioned ones. It does have a few revenue-sharing systems for authors, which is interesting.

The opportunities would keep on popping up.

It’s YOU who needs to take action.

Pick up one platform and start publishing content on a regular basis. Use the right call-to-action in the end. Don’t forget to add a small author bio explaining what you do and how someone can you reach out to you.

Check out my blog, for example.

I don’t have the greatest author bio, but it works for me. I explained what I do and added an action-driven call-to-action to the contact page, which instantaneously puts blog readers on a conveyor belt to reach out to me.

Conclusion

I’ll give you a recap now.

First of all, fix your social media. Your display picture should be depicting your personality. The cover and bio must be sending a clear message to the new friends that you’re about to meet on social media.

Secondly, help out people. Share what you know. It gives you an unprecedented advantage if you assist people without asking for anything.

Thirdly, pick one content publishing platform; write content on a regular basis. Once you have spent six months or so, start analyzing the response, for example, the engagement, the number of followers, the leads, and paying customers. You might sit back and ponder what to write, so let me fix this problem for you right away.

  • Choose the relevant topic to your field
  • Make a list of things you know very well (about it)
  • Convert those things into tutorial-based topics to help guide starters
  • Think like a trainer and share what you know about the field you’re in

Do you know I wasn’t unhappy in the first three years of my freelance career when I wasn’t getting regular clients?

During that three-year phase, I used to practice writing every day.

I wrote thousands of blog posts during 2010 to 2015.

It did help me in improving my blog writing skill.

So…

I’ll give you just one advice: DO. FAIL. LEARN. PRACTICE. SUCCEED.

What else would you recommend to someone who is starting a freelance career?

Let’s talk in the comments section.

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15 Comments

  1. Great post Hassan,

    I really loved your tips shared about getting first freelance clients!

    Regardless, I’m definitely happy I discovered it and I’ll be bookmarking it and checking back often!

    1. Thanks, Osho!

      I have seen your comment after a very long time. I’m glad you’re back, mate.

      How is it going?

      And, thank you so much for reading and liking my blog post.

  2. Hi Hassaan,

    Smart, very smart.

    The power of clarity wins again.

    If you do things from a clear space, you will do things from an intelligent space, almost from Day 1. This leads to quick success, like, attracting clients in 3 months type success.

    Most bloggers do not attract clients in 3 months because they do not get clear – being ruled by their fears – and lack the sound planning, patience and persistence you have exhibited over the months, and years.

    Kudos to you for all the value you share.

    Keep up the inspired work and thanks so much for sharing.

    Ryan

    1. Right?

      Clarity wins.

      I have been telling this to the local audience as well as on the internet that you should be clear what you want to do and where you want to reach. A lot of people feel stuck even when they have made a start, and the reason comes down to the clarity as you pointed out.

      Thanks for stopping by. It’s a pleasure.

  3. Yes I am satisfied with this post because for any freelancer need have to at least 3 months for best freelancing and I am also freelancer.

    1. Thanks for reading the blog, again.

      All the best for your freelancing career.

  4. Mehak Haider says:

    Worth reading whole post. I am soon starting as freelancer writer so these tips will help out. Thanks for sharing useful tips, you are doing great job. When I will start writing, feel free to give valuable feedback.

    1. Mehak, thank you for reading and commenting.

      All the best for your freelance writing journey. I would say: don’t give up and don’t stop learning, ever.

      Thanks, again.

      1. Mehak Haider says:

        Thanks for your kind advice. Yes surely, Insha Allah.

        May Allah bless us all in our journey.

        Happy writing and cheers.

  5. Hassaan,

    Great that you kept yourself motivated in those 3 years. I was reading recently that it takes around 10 years to be a master in a certain field if you are passionate. The key is to keep going and keeping faith. Best of luck and best wishes.

    You were spot on when you said, GO, DO IT, FAIL IT, IMPROVE AND KEEP DOING. Sums it all up.

    Ahmad

    1. Thank you so much.

      I can’t explain that how consistency impacted my blogging. That’s what I’m trying to translate for others. It does work.

      Thanks for stopping by.

  6. Yes I agree with all the tips you have shared in the post. I’m also a freelancer and these tips are very helpful to get more clients.

    Thanks

  7. Hi Hassaan,
    I can’t agree with you more about the need to create a professional look for ourselves on social media sites such as Facebook. Yes, most of us mingle this platform with our personal visuals which may not give a good impression to our clients.

    It is true that clients do have interest to get to know more about us (for the first time) through our social media presence. Hence, our duty becomes even more to have a professionalised presence.

    Thanks for sharing

    1. Hey, Raj!

      It’s about leveraging the platform and making the most out of it. I feel bad when people spend a lot of time doing the communication and networking on Facebook, but their profiles don’t talk that way.

      I thought to share this point because I kind of used Facebook profile to land freelancing opportunities. So I know it works.

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