Want to stick a giant money magnet on your freelance business?

Here’s my process for attracting clients!

1. Be Easy to Find
2. Say No to Niches
3. Show Your Success

Step #1 - Be Easy to Find!

Clients hate looking for the right person to do their project.

They want you to make it easy on them to get their problem solved.

The truth is your client has a checklist about a thousand pages long of all of the issues they need to solve.

Your goal as a freelancer is to access this checklist and check off as many as you can, as quickly as possible.

So how does the client find you as the resource they need?

This is where Inbound, organic leads come from, and it’s all based on search.

Clients often start by asking Google a question.

“How do I do blank?”

And this is your first clue to creating the right content so that you are at the top of the search for your clients.

In a recent video, which I have linked at the end of this video, I explain how more content = more business.

We’re going to expand on that today, by focusing on the client’s “How do I do blank?” question.

We’re going to build 3 channels for your freelance business so you can be easy to find:

The first is your Website, the second is your LinkedIn profile, and the third is your Upwork profile.

I believe that your Website is the most important channel you have simply because you have a captive audience.

Your website displays your content and the client has to leave to view other freelancers.

Your goal for your website this year is to write 100 blog posts answering the “How do I do blank?” questions that relate to your freelancing service.

Onto your LinkedIn profile, this works very similarly to your website.

LinkedIn gives you 2,600 characters to write your about section.

USE. IT. ALL.

You have no idea how many profiles I come across that have little to nothing in this section.

You should be approaching the About section of your LinkedIn profile like an SEO expert with the sole focus on bringing inbound leads to your profile.

You’re seeing the pattern here right?

Yup, it’s content.

And now we’re onto Upwork.

Upwork gives you a total of 15,000 characters, spread over your Primary profile, and 2 Specialized profiles.

Same thing here, think like an SEO expert and fill in these sections completely, this is how search algorithms work, so make the robots’ lives easier!

You can do the same for your portfolio website! Check out How do I rank on Google with SEO writing?

Step #2 - Say No to Niches

Freelance coaching students of mine who are looking to break into freelancing always ask one question.

“Which freelance niche should I choose?”

They say that they’ve seen tons of advice on “niching-down” and choosing a hyper specific niche.

I say, don’t you dare choose a niche starting out!

The reason I say this is because by choosing a niche you do 3 things that negatively effect your future:

1. You limit your clients
2. You assume you’re going to like it
3. You build a single pillar portfolio

You limit your freelance clients when choosing a specific niche because there might only be a small market for that niche.

When you select a particular niche, then get no work you start feeling like an imposter way to early in your career.

When you select a broad category, like graphic design you open your eyes to a world of possibilities.

Yes, being a generalist is competitive, but it’s better to have a vast ocean of opportunities than a puddle that might dry up at any minute.

Remember all the hype about a particular niche then all of a sudden it disappears?

Ya, don’t let that be you.

I’ve been freelancing from before Facebook existed and Graphic Design, Web Development, and Writing haven’t changed, they’re all still very important.

Yes, the tools have continually evolved, but the industries have done nothing but grow.

You assume you’re going to like a particular niche because it’s what you’re into now.

Do you want to eat the same food for every meal for the rest of your life?

Choose a specific niche if you do, keep watching if you don’t!

Thinking you’re going to like the same thing today as you will in twenty years is a silly approach.

Marcus Aurelius said: “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man.”

As you work you will achieve goals.

But when you reach each goal you will move the finish line.

This is called progress, it’s completely normal for ambitious people.

You may feel anxiety from this process.

Sometimes you may ask “what is this all for?”

This is a completely normal question, and you shouldn’t despair in the answer.

The answer is simple “it’s to progress.”

Building a business, building a family, building a life is never done, and there is no upper limit to your potential.

You will eventually reach your goal, and then you’ll ask “now what?”

Keep going, keep building, and never stop.

Take a break when you’re at a level that you’re enjoying, stop, smell the roses.

But don’t worry, the itch to progress will come, and your niche will no longer support your goals.

You’re going to have trouble expanding your business if you become too focused on a niche.

Business is not like your relationship with your family.

You can’t just replace your wife and kids when you’re bored.

But you can change your business when you’re bored.

If you’ve reached a plateau and want to continue learning, expanding out into a different category keeps things fresh.

It also opens up vast new opportunities.

For example, if you chose Graphic Design, you may have done 50 projects in each sub category.

You’ve done Logo Designs, Web Designs, and App Designs.

“Now what?”

You’re creative because you’re a designer, so how about writing?

By being a Graphic Designer who also is a Writer you increase your value to your clients.

Now your $1,000 Sell Sheet design is worth $1,500 because you write the copy as well.

If you niche down too specifically your portfolio will become too hyper-focused and you’ll have difficulty convincing clients you’re more than a one-trick pony.

Step #3 - Show Your Success

Proving your performance is critical to building client confidence.

Clients want a successful business, and if you are struggling with your own success you’ll be difficult to hire.

Success comes in many different flavors:

1. Confidence
2. Willingness to Try
3. Ability to Learn
4. Problem Solving
5. Results

I’ve ordered this list specifically because this is what works.

Confidence comes first.

Your initial impression is what counts, and confidence will make or break your opportunities. No one will give you a chance if you’re timid.

Willingness to try comes second.

Trial and error and failing forward is incredibly important. Everyone starts off knowing nothing, you’re not alone.

Ability to learn comes third.

So you tried and failed, but what did you learn? I always write down why I succeeded at something, and why I failed.

Problem solving comes fourth.

You’ve written down what caused you to fail and what cause you to win. What solution have you come up with to fix each of these failures and make success more common.

Results comes last.

You have the confidence to start, the will to try it, the ability to learn, then fix your mistakes and optimize for success, results will naturally follow!

Showing your clients this process, as you go through it will demonstrate tenacity, creativity and resourcefulness.

By achieving these states you’re ready to explode with success!

I'd love to be your freelance coach!

Become a Freelance Money Magnet - Get Clients to Come to You!