Starting your career as a freelancer is rewarding but daunting.

60% of companies prefer hiring freelancers to accomplish their projects faster, whereas 55% of organizations want freelance contractors to save money. So, several companies have started turning to freelancers for various short-term and long-term projects. Still, the biggest challenge for freelancers is to acquire clients.

A consistent inflow of loyal and genuine clients is key to the success of your freelance business. Developing effective client acquisition strategies is crucial for maintaining a steady flow of new clients and ensuring the growth of your freelance business. Every new client boosts your credibility and improves your market reputation. What’s more, your satisfied clients will drive more referrals. Thus, how will you acquire new clients as a freelancer? What are the challenges in client acquisition? How will you retain your loyal clients? Let us discuss these issues in detail and make your freelancing business successful.

Freelance Client Acquisition Challenges

Finding clients is a big concern for most novice freelancers. So, before understanding the client acquisition process, you must learn about the factors preventing you from acquiring clients.

Lack Of Business Outreach

Inadequate outreach and not identifying potential clients are major obstacles to your client acquisition efforts. Efficient and experienced freelancers know the importance of engaging with their potential clients. It means you should regularly send direct messages or emails to them. Create a strong outreach strategy, and let your clients find you easily.

Improve Messages

Although you have developed a good outreach strategy, your communication might not have resonated with your target audience. You should learn the right technique for presenting your services.

For example, as a web developer, you must not just say ‘‘I create affordable websites.”

Try to focus on your client’s particular needs. Your messages should be tailored to those needs to get a quick response.

Unprofessional Website and Lack of Strong Online Presence

If your portfolio website lacks a strong online presence and professional touches, you may not get new clients. The best portfolio should be a professional showcase of real projects.

Undefined and unclear offers

A vague service list will not help you draw more clients. It is essential to talk about the value you offer to your clients. For instance, if you are a freelance marketer, you should explain how you increase customer engagement and sales. Clear, result-focused offers will draw the client’s attention.

Sticking To A Comfort Zone

Comfort is another factor that hinders the progress of your freelance business. Many freelancers feel contented with their current situation. It prevents them from acquiring new clients. They also feel discomfort while pitching potential clients.

So, overcome these challenges and find an ideal client for your freelancing business.

Understand and Navigate the Competitive Landscape-

Before taking steps for client acquisition, you must have a solid understanding of the competition.

Who are your competitors? What services do they provide?

Detailed insights help you know how you are different from your competitors. For example, you might have some unique skills or you would provide superior quality work.

Understanding the competition will also inspire you to improve yourself. You will also learn about the client acquisition approaches of your strong competitors. Determine the competition and navigate it strategically to find your space in the vast freelancing world.

Crafting The Best Client Acquisition Strategy For Freelancers

Are you struggling to search for new clients for your next gig? Top-rated freelancers experience a steady stream of high-paying projects. But, what hacks do they apply to their businesses? Let us help you develop an effective strategy to expand your client base.

Analyze Your Target Market

Having an in-depth understanding of the existing market landscape is vital to your freelancing career. You should have an updated knowledge about the latest market trends. Do you want to work with clients from a particular niche? Do you want to target small or large organizations? Check for some tips for understanding the market and tailor your approaches accordingly.

• Focus on your skills and interests- What type of projects do you handle efficiently? What are your strong skills? Find answers to these queries and make your decisions. Also, try to know the skills essential to your potential client’s projects.

• Research the target niches and industries- Think of the niches for which you offer services. You can then learn about the industry trends and ensure you have the expertise to serve your clients based on those trends.

Learn about your potential client’s characteristics

Do you like to work with tech-savvy clients? Are you passionate about explaining technologies to your clients? Are you targeting long-term projects? These factors are highly significant in leveraging the benefits of the target market.

Tracking how many potential clients respond to your outreach efforts can help you refine your strategies and improve conversion rates.

To gain knowledge about the dynamic market environment, you may join some professional communities. A competitive evaluation of the competitive landscape will also help you set the right pricing standards. Moreover, identifying your ideal client enables you to find better opportunities.

Your knowledge will help you exceed your client expectations. From consultation to follow-up, every interaction must be driven by your understanding of your client’s needs. It will help you develop trust and gain a reputation as a freelancer.

Create An Optimized Portfolio

Your potential client will hire you only after checking your portfolio. So, a well-organized portfolio acts as the salesperson for your freelance business. It showcases your experience and skills to convince your potential clients to buy your services. However, it is not simply a collection of your past works. You can show how you have delivered quality work to your clients. Let your new clients have a glimpse of your capabilities before assigning a project. Thus, how will you build a robust and compelling portfolio?

You have to carefully choose the best works for designing the portfolio. Quality work is more important than the number of projects you have displayed. Moreover, the portfolio should showcase diverse types of projects to reveal your skills.

You may also craft an interesting story of how you have helped clients overcome challenges. Make sure you have added case studies to your portfolio.

However, the process does not stop just at showcasing the previous works. You need to curate the portfolio occasionally to attract new clients. You may use both offline and online platforms to increase the visibility of your portfolio. Word-of-mouth approaches will also increase your portfolio’s reach.

Pitch To Your Potential Client

Another effective way to acquire clients is to send your pitches. Successful pitching will help you sell your services to more clients and grow your freelance career. It is about developing meaningful relationships and identifying your clients’ needs. You have to determine how you should address these needs efficiently.

However, before crafting your pitch, you should focus on your identity and your services. Make sure you pay attention to your unique value proposition to write your pitches.

Do you have any unique skills? Do you provide some distinctive services? What is your innovative approach to solving your problems? What benefits will your clients get from hiring you?

However, the best pitches are not just a list of experiences and skills you have. You have to concentrate on your UVP to create a highly attractive narrative. It is also essential to understand your clients’ needs. Your clients always want to get the ultimate value from hiring you.

Your pitch should demonstrate your past achievements, which are relevant to your clients’ projects. You may refer to some aspects of your previous clients’ businesses. Mention how you have accomplished the latest project. You may also share your knowledge about industry trends, which are associated with your project.

 The most important trick is to customize your pitches. It makes your client understand that you have analyzed his needs. Your tailored solutions will please your clients.

Many successful freelancers claim clarity and brevity are the main aspects of a strong pitch. You should have the potential to keep your clients engaged without providing complex and vast information. A concise pitch is also easily digestible. Catchy information in your pitch will trigger conversations with your clients.

But, never be frustrated if you do not get a response after delivering your pitch. Every pitch may not convert your leads into clients. Refine your pitching strategy and get an opportunity to learn from every approach. Analyze the potential client’s feedback and modify your approaches. Every well-refined pitch will help you become closer to your goal.

Keep Your Knowledge Up-To-Date

You must have up-to-date industry knowledge to acquire more clients for your freelance business. Most freelancers continue searching for clients without focusing on their knowledge base. But, your strong industry knowledge will differentiate you from other freelancers. It will also help you retain your clients. There are some reasons for improving your knowledge about industry trends.

• Ensure relevance- If you stay updated, your services will be more relevant. Moreover, your clients will give importance to your skills and knowledge. They will naturally like to choose you for their projects.

• Improve your value- With more knowledge about the recent trends, you will become more valuable to your clients. So, you will get more gigs from your client. The pay rate will also be higher.

• Innovative better ideas- Knowledge will stimulate your creativity while dealing with a client’s project. It will make you different from other freelancers.

Remember that there is no need to focus on every new trend. You have to understand the latest happenings in the industry. Try to determine how these trends will benefit your clients. You have to read industry blogs and attend webinars to boost your knowledge.

Set A Competitive Price Rate

Freelancers have to understand the way to set a reasonable price rate for their services. However, if you are trying to attract clients, competitive pricing is the best strategy.

Some potential clients give priority to the price while hiring freelancers. With a competitive rate, there is a chance of finding more gigs. But, your charge must reflect your service quality. If you deliver high-quality results consistently, you must not sell your skills at a low rate. Your service rate must match your actual worth.

Another relevant factor for pricing is that it has to sustain your business. The best pricing scheme allows a freelancer to attract clients and maintain revenue.

But, how will you determine the appropriate price? Research is the most significant way to decide on the price rates. You may also check the freelancing platforms to learn about the rates of other freelancers in the same niche.

Depending on your expertise and skills, you may set your service charges.

But, another thing that needs your attention is the operating costs. You need to make some investments to run the business. For instance, you have to buy premium software for invoice and tax management. These costs will affect your pricing structure to maintain profit.

Participate In Networking Events

You may look for local networking events and online communities to develop connections with other entrepreneurs. However, the theme of those events must be related to your services. Most networking events are workshops or corporate meet-ups. If your commercial peers have attended events, you may leverage benefits from them. Sometimes, you may not be able to win clients from these events. Still, you will learn different things about your potential clients.

You may also join Facebook live sessions and virtual quiz sessions. Various activities at the events will allow you to find leads for your freelancing business.

Leverage Partnerships And Collaborations

Another dynamic strategy to acquire clients is to leverage partnerships and collaborations with experts. It will help you boost the client base of your freelancing business. Collaborations with other businesses will also give you opportunities to work on interesting projects.

For example, if you are a freelancer graphic designer, partner with a content writer. It will help you offer the best web development packages to your clients. By tapping into your partner’s client network, you will get more value.

You may also partner with businesses to get mutual benefits. For instance, a freelance online marketer will benefit from a partnership with a website development agency. It will allow the freelancer to access a wider audience.

When you make partnerships, you must align yourself with relevant businesses or other freelancers. The values and professional standards for both parties should be the same. Moreover, you must clearly communicate about payment terms and deadlines. Make a synergistic approach to finding more clients and improving your freelance business.

Look For Cross-Selling And Upselling Opportunities

Cross-selling and upselling are some easy ways to find new clients. However, this approach works only if you already have some clients. Your services and products will help clients overcome their challenges. You may also sell additional solutions to your existing clients.

You have to communicate with your clients and learn about their current challenges. Listen to their responses before making any decision.

For instance, you are a freelance landscape designer.  But, you may also provide garden maintenance services to help clients in a better way. Ensure that your solution will alleviate their problems.

Compose A Book- Promote It Actively

You can establish your authority by composing a book. It will help you connect with journalists, bloggers, and other experts. Amazon’s CreateSpace provides self-publishing opportunities. Upload your book and send the printouts to bloggers for review.

You may also deliver your book to your potential clients as a unique gift. It lets you send your message to their email inboxes. Moreover, it is the best content marketing effort for a freelancer. Create a book that delivers value to the reader and maintains your reputation.

Distribute Business Cards

Design attractive business cards for your freelancing business. However, if you fully rely on the online world, this approach is not right for you. Many people in the online world want the business cards of their contractors. Use online tools to design an eye-catching card that shows uniqueness and clarity. Accentuate its look with images and colors.

Use Social Media

LinkedIn is a popular platform for freelancers who are searching for clients. If you are looking for business professionals, use this website. You may also reach out to entrepreneurs and marketers through this platform. Optimize your LinkedIn profile to make it reachable to your potential clients.

Facebook also helps you find clients in different ways. You may connect with them by checking the Pages liked by your friends. Use Facebook’s search functionality to look for groups associated with a topic or industry.

Create Your YouTube Channel

There is no need to use costly and complicated equipment to start your video channel on YouTube. Make sure you have created valuable and interesting video content using your tripod and smartphone. With a small budget, you can gather your client’s attention. If your content is attractive to the audience, you will get the best result.

Talk about some topics that give solutions to your potential clients’ issues. You may also focus on the common questions asked by your clients. Research your target audience to find the best topic for your video content.

Take Advantage Of The Hunter Chrome Extension

The Hunter.io Chrome extension is a timesaving solution for freelancers who want to collect the email addresses of their potential clients. So, install the extension and find the email IDs related to a website domain. You may also install it as your Google Sheet add-on.

Hunter.io locates only the publicly available email addresses. It also reveals details of the website owner’s professional information, including

• LinkedIn URL

• Company

• Phone number

Hunter will recommend using your professional email address for safety purposes. As it is a verified extension, you will have no issues while using it.

Best Websites To Find Clients

There are several online freelance job boards to search for reliable clients. You have to showcase your skills and create a profile properly to find your gigs. These platforms show freelance job openings based on your skills and expertise. You will get short and long-term work opportunities on these platforms.

Guru

Millions of freelancers have signed up with Guru to find gigs. Although Guru is smaller than other freelancing platforms, Guru attracts premium buyers and freelancers. Experts from different niches have been earning since 1998. Even big brands like Amazon and IBM look for freelancers using this platform. You may also set high pay rates for your service. The search feature allows you to find relevant jobs easily. However, you have to wait to get your application process preapproved. There is a transparency issue with the commission fee.

Upwork

This platform has become the most popular destination for several freelancers. Millions of freelancers and clients have registered with the site. Abundant job postings and the availability of genuine clients are some reasons for choosing the platform. You may use the filtering option for finding the ideal job. Many experienced freelancers earn $500K every year. But, the platform is highly competitive, and new freelancers will not find it easy to win gigs. You need to pass skill tests to be eligible for some jobs.

Fiverr

You can sell your skills through this freelancing platform. More than 400 categories of gigs are available for experts. You will get fixed-priced gigs using Fiverr. Although there are several active freelancers, you have a chance of finding clients. The platform offers sellers tools to simplify communication and deliveries.

Freelancer.com

It is a highly reliable crowdsourcing and freelancing marketplace. You will get access to jobs from global clients. The website also hosts several projects every day. You will experience no security issues with communication and payments. The website charges only 3% from freelancers.

But, the qualification and registration process is complicated and time-consuming. Clients need to pay an additional charge for featured job listings.

Toptal

It is another freelancing platform where clients search for skilled freelancers. From Airbnb to Pfizer, several companies use the website to hire freelancers. The average hourly earnings of freelancers is around $100. You will find many reputable clients who are ready to pay high for their projects. As an expert, you need to undergo a screening process. Furthermore, there are several meaningful work opportunities and tools to ensure your convenience. However, freelancers of some niches claim that the project volume is low on this platform.

Bark

This platform has chosen a unique approach to working with freelancers and businesses. Entrepreneurs will submit projects, and Bark’s team find the best freelancer to meet their needs. Bark engages experts from fields like bookkeeping, marketing, and web development. Its expert matching process is based on skills and reviews. But, the commission percentage is not clear to freelancers.

FlexJobs

FlexJobs differs from traditional freelancing websites, offering memberships that provide access to a vetted database of flexible job opportunities spanning full-time, part-time, freelance, and gig opportunities screened for legitimacy. FlexJobs has maintained transference regarding payment and salary. Freelancers in the field of finance and other niches may sign up with the site. You will also constantly receive updates about opportunities.

But you need to pay for a subscription to take advantage of the platform. Manual screening also restricts the platform.

There are multiple strategies to acquire clients for your freelancing business. If you are already associated with this business, use your client testimonials to gather attention. Moreover, online communication with potential clients is important for winning projects. You may not need premium tools to search for new clients. However, your creative approaches are essential to achieve your goals. Design your portfolio and show your skills to the target audience. With consistent efforts, you can acquire more clients.

Freelancer Client Acquisition Hack