How to Stand Out as a Brand-New Freelancer

As more people than ever before crave freedom when it comes to their working requirements, whether it’s the ability to work at home or on the road, freelancing continues to be one of the most sought-after solutions for professionals looking to experience life outside of office walls.

Right now, there are 56.7 million people freelancing in the United States, comprising nearly 36% of the workforce. Even more impressive, it’s estimated that the majority of the US workforce will be freelancing by 2027.

When the average freelancing income for full-time freelancers comes in at $68,300, it’s hard to ignore the ability to live anywhere you want, travel, and earn a sizable full-time income according to your schedule, hours, and timelines. That is the number one reason why I quit my corporate job in 2015, which was paying me $32,000 at the time (barely enough to survive in NYC), to start freelancing on Fiverr. Never in a million years did I imagine I could make six figures, consistently, working for myself off my laptop. That’s why I am so passionate about sharing my journey with all of you, encouraging you to take the plunge into freelancing remote work.

If you’re a brand-new freelancer, considering quitting your corporate job, or contemplating the move into the world of freelancing, I am going to detail five different ways to stand out from the competition as a remote working newbie.

The most important thing for you to take away from this is that not only is there room for your skills as a freelancer, but also, more businesses than ever are hiring freelancers to fulfill their requirements (it’s cheaper to hire freelancers for one-off projects, as opposed to hiring salaried full-time employees that don’t come with expertise).

5 Ways to Distinguish Yourself from the Freelancing Competition

1.?Get on more than one freelancing platform. I can’t tell you how many new freelancers have told me they didn’t know they could be on more than one platform at once. I blame corporations making employees sign non-competes, tricking us into believing we need to list our services in just one spot. As a freelancer, you’re your own boss now. At the very least, I would set up your services on the following sites:

• Fiverr: This is still the best site to be a brand-new freelancer. Clients can auto-book you in your sleep, helping you to amass reviews more quickly.
• Upwork: Upwork is slower than Fiverr; yet the clientele has more money. Think of this site as a place to take on longer-term projects.
• LinkedIn: Many people don’t realize LinkedIn can double as a freelancing marketplace. Be sure to stack your profile with keywords so potential clients can find you.
• Contra: Contra is an up-and-coming freelancing marketplace that has a fair amount of activity on it. Although it’s not as busy as a Fiverr, it’s a great place to sharpen your freelancing customer service skills.

2. Prioritize a gorgeous, high quality, and organized portfolio. Your portfolio is the window to your freelancing business. Therefore, it needs to be eye-catching, personal, professional, and organized, so clients can quickly review your work and decide if they want to collaborate with you or not.?

To save yourself time designing, coding, and publishing a portfolio, leverage AI instead to do it for you. Tome is an AI-powered website that helps you generate presentations with a single prompt.

In addition to generating presentations with the click of a button, Tome also has a wide variety of templates to help you get started. Use the AI rewrite feature to help fill in your template.

You can then update the portfolio to match with your business, rates, and background.

Additionally, you can customize your portfolio with narrations, embedded websites, and other specialized items that add a personal touch to your freelancing business. To check out Tome’s templates and tools, click here .

3. Post about your freelancing business on social media. Gone are the days when you could get started as a freelancer and tell no one about it. I did this for years back in 2015 when the competition wasn’t as stiff. There are more freelancers today, but don’t let that scare you – there are also more high-paying clients, too. Be sure to stack your Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and even TikTok or Pinterest with your freelancing keywords. Post behind the scenes pictures and videos of yourself hard at work. Make it very public that you are available for hire.

4. Open more than just one service. When you walk into a store, do you prefer to walk into a place that has tons of clothing out for you to sift through, or a place that only has two items on a table in the center of the room? I am guessing you’re like me and would prefer to have options when you shop. Well, your clients are the same way. They want options when it comes to hiring you. Be sure to offer a variety of price points so that you can capture nearly everyone who stops by your freelancing portfolio.

5. Plaster updated imagery of yourself to build trust with clients. Thanks to AI and bot technology, people are weary of working with imposters online today. I get it. That’s why you are going to have at least 10 different pictures of yourself all over your services (these must be high-quality – iPhone selfies do not cut it). The more quickly you build trust with clients, the more likely they are going to hire you. People don’t want to be scammed.

Mastering the art of freelancing takes time, no doubt, but it’s a natural way of working that I know for me, clicked after just a few weeks. If you do all five of the things I have listed above, you will be months ahead of the competition, launching your successful business into the future.

In the mean-time, while you are growing your brand-new business, don’t waste time designing, coding, and publishing a portfolio when AI can generate it for you. Check out Tome today .