A lot of freelancers get excited about international clients these days. But you can create a niche for yourself as someone local — a freelancer just down the street who is happy to meet in person with clients. For those prospective clients who want to make sure that they get a chance to get to know who they’re working with, working with a local freelancer can be worth a premium over working with someone who is only accessible online.

But if you’re going to promote yourself as the local solution, there are some facts that you need to know about.

The Always On Call Problem

Some clients are bad about considering you always on call — but when you’re in a different time zone, you at least get a reprieve when they have to go to bed. When you’re just around the corner, it can be easier for a client to be constantly asking for more. Of course, this isn’t just a problem for local freelancers, though it is certainly worse.

After all, if a client halfway around the planet has your address, it’s unlikely that he’ll just show up one day. I’ve had local clients who have wanted to see where I work, had a question and were ‘in the area’, and otherwise wind up on my front stoop. Continue Reading

The fact that you can learn anything from John Mayer might surprise you, but I learned a lot about how you can ruin your reputation through social media and interviews in this NPR interview with the musician on All Things Considered this afternoon.

I have to admit, I am not a John Mayer fan. He bothers me. I can’t stand to watch him sing. And after a couple of nitty gritty interviews in 2010—one for Rolling Stone and one for Playboy—I didn’t like what I heard, either.

In Mayer’s interview with Playboy, he made racial comments, talked about his sex life with his famous exes, and made homosexual comments—all of which made the public scream Too Much Information! Continue Reading

Do you dream of quitting your job and going it on your own? Not so fast. Building a freelance business while working a full-time job is difficult.

It is possible though with some juggling and creativity. You’ve got creativity in spades though, right? That — and a fierce sense of independence — are the likely culprits that drew you to freelancing.

Before you ditch your day job, use those creative muscles to find ways to build your freelancing business while you continue to earn your full-time paycheck.

Looking to make part-time freelancing a way of life, rather than a temporary way to build your clients and savings account before going full-time? These secrets will definitely work for you too. Continue Reading

One of the biggest challenges for freelancers just starting out is how to get more press and publicity for their business with few funds. As a one-person shop, you can’t spend a fortune employing your own PR rep or a marketing guru.

There are several D-I-Y strategies you can implement to generate positive publicity. What are PR opportunities for your freelance business? You may think PR is only for big companies, but even small freelance shops can benefit from taking advantage of newsworthy opportunities happening in your business, market, and industry.

Here are five ways to create PR opportunities for your freelance business.

1. Send press releases to relevant media outlets.

Drafting a press release is the easy part. Read tips for crafting the perfect press release. But before you write one, consider factors such as what industry you’re in and determine what the key trade publications and media outlets are in your industry.

As an example, if you’re a photographer that specializes in weddings and family events, then you need to draft separate press releases– perhaps one for a wedding or bridal magazine, and another one for parenting magazines. You’ll need to do some research for each publication, finding the relevant news team or section editor. When you write or call them, make sure you sell your story by getting to the point of how a mention of your services in a story would be of interest to the publication’s reading audience. Continue Reading

There have been many blog posts here about how you, as a freelancer, can give your clients great customer service and why it’s important. Let’s turn the tables for a minute and focus on how you, as a freelancer, can get better customer service.

When you are a freelancer, you don’t have a boss you can go complain to when something has happened to you. Maybe you were double charged when ordering something online or you had a terrible experience flying business class. As a freelancer, you run your own business, which means dealing with your own vendors.

As someone who owns a company, I have a lot of people I have to pay and deal with on a regular basis, including: my internet service provider, phone company, the lenders who let me borrow money for my small business, my credit and debit card companies, the web design team, and the woman hired to manage the distribution of our magazine.

Other people I deal with on a less frequent basis include the tech dude who helps with computer problems and issues with our printer/copier/fax machine. I also have a bookkeeper who manages the books and helps with the taxes. There’s also a lawyer thrown in there for good measure.

When you think about it—that’s a lot of people! And I’m not even mentioning the car repair guy (I drive a lot), the United States Postal Service (I mail a lot of stuff), and the stores where I buy supplies.

A freelancer’s life is stressful (look at all these bills!) and we have to deal with lots and lots of people. So what can you do when you feel like you aren’t getting the customer service you deserve and expect? Below are some tips on how you, as a customer, can get better customer service to make running your business a little easier. Continue Reading

As a freelancer, you have a lot of issues to juggle – branding yourself being one of the least of your concerns most days. But your brand is a critical piece to your long-term success. You don’t have to engage in a massive marketing overhaul or develop a full-tilt brand management plan to take advantage of the power of branding.

The key is to approach your personal brand from the perspective of your clients and customers. How do you want them to perceive you? This article focuses on techniques and concepts to consider as you develop your own brand that you can leverage for long-term success.

Continue Reading

Did you have a favorite Dr. Seuss book growing up? I sure did. It was Green Eggs and Ham. I could read that book over and over and never get tired of it.

But beyond the “Whos” and “Thing-a-ma-Jiggers” is an author with more advice relevant to freelancing than most.

Known by Dr. Seuss for his delightful and whimsical children’s books, Theodor Seuss Geisel was also an advertising ace – spending his early career in the advertising industry.

Urging us to keep moving forward, to learn a lot, and not to worry – here are just a few of the fun and insightful quotes from the poet behind classics like, The Cat in the Hat and Horton Hears a Who. Continue Reading

We’re looking for images of your freelance offices to be submitted to our FreelanceSwitch Facebook Group. This is for a post to run on FreelanceSwitch about Real Freelance Offices of FreelanceSwitch Readers in 2012. We’d love to see how your office looks.

Here are a few home office images we’ve received so far:

When submitting your freelance office photos be sure to include your name and what freelance work you do. We’re looking for 550px wide jpg images for the format.

Upload (or tag) your photo to the FreelanceSwitch Facebook group to participate.

Networking events can be nerve-wracking.

You’re in a room with a bunch of people you don’t know and you have to make conversation or risk looking like a wallflower. But just because networking events can make you uncomfortable or nervous doesn’t mean you shouldn’t attend. On the contrary—it can be great practice!

Here are some tips on how to make your next networking event a success:

Mingle

The worst networkers are those who attend events with their friends and then talk to only their friends all night. It’s one of my pet peeves—you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. So If I see a group of people off to the side of the room talking only to themselves for an hour, I get turned off. I want to talk to people who are open to making new connections, not people who are using the networking event as their own private social gathering.

Dress the Part

You want to look like you belong there, so leave the hoodie and sneakers at home.

You won’t make an impression (at least, not a good one) if you look dishevelled, disorganized, or overly casual. But also pick something that makes you feel good—a great dress or those new shoes you’ve been wanting to wear will help you exude confidence in what can be an uncomfortable setting.—TheDailyMuse

You don’t have to go out and buy a business suit, but be mindful of looking presentable. Dirty fingernails and smelly jeans are a turn off. You want to put your best foot forward, and the first thing people judge you on is your appearance. Continue Reading

Are you unhappy with the amount of freelance writing income you’re bringing in? The check account is looking bare, and the bills are piling up.

You need more gigs — and you need them now.

Fortunately, there are many basic steps you can take quickly to help you land new assignments at better rates. Here are 10 strategies for growing your writing income fast:

1. Ask for referrals from existing clients. Do all your current clients know you’re looking to add another client or two? If not, be sure to let them know you would appreciate their referrals. They won’t be offended — I promise.
2. Find former clients on LinkedIn. Do you know where every former editor of yours is now? If not, reconnect, catch up…and let them know you’d be interested to work with them again, or to receive their referrals if they hear of anything. Another great way to reconnect — ask for a testimonial. You’ll be surprised how often that leads to a new assignment.

Continue Reading

Once a week, we feature a fantastic freelance-themed comic from the talented N.C. Winters. Why not also take a look at our comic archive? Continue Reading

Looking for a new client? The FreelanceSwitch job board is a great resource of freelance gigs and opportunities. These opportunities are in various fields, from development to writing to design, and come from a wide range of potential clients. The job board is hand-moderated by dedicated staff and volunteers from the freelance community.

Each week, we’ll feature a selection of the best job opportunities posted for the week. This week, we’re featuring jobs in Motion Design, UX/UI Design, Flash Design and more!

To apply for any of these jobs, simply pick up a FreelanceSwitch membership for an affordable $7 a month. See something you like? Join now!

Continue Reading