It’s not easy to traverse the professional world by yourself and without the support of a company. While freelancing can free you from the shackles of traditional corporate life, you’re left to fend for yourself in a highly-competitive world. I read a post about freelancing on LinkedIn that highlights how independent workers face huge challenges, such as finding clients, coping with periods of no work, effectively managing their time, and bossing themselves around. Failing to overcome these challenges can prevent freelancers from finding professional success.
No one is truly self-sufficient. In order to succeed, freelancers should understand the value of professional networking, so I’d like to list some useful networking tips for freelancers.
1. Build a professional website
The internet allows freelancers to easily advertise themselves and connect with prospective clients. However, due to the rise of internet scams and grifts, clients and customers are extremely cautious about hiring someone they found online. For this reason, you should aim to build your online credibility by cultivating a strong online presence.
One way to do this is by establishing a professional website. I found this post on building your online professional brand on LHH that highlights how a professional website can help you effectively showcase your education and skills, work experience, and technical prowess to prospective clients and employers. When creating your professional website, keep proper internet practices in mind, such as avoiding posting offensive content, prioritizing good taste and common sense over humor, and having enough relevant content. Doing so can increase your trustworthiness as a freelancer.
2. Don’t be afraid to join groups and communities
If you’re just starting out and you find it difficult to obtain clients, it can be extremely helpful to connect with experienced freelancers. Thankfully, you can find a lot of freelancing groups and communities on social media today. Platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook have group features that allow such communities to thrive.
In these groups, you can find answers to common freelancing concerns, such as going after late payments or creating client invoices. You can also get personalized feedback and support from other freelancers, as long as you remain respectful and civil. Furthermore, these groups can also help you with networking, as some clients often infiltrate such online groups to employ freelancer services.
3. Maintain your connections
Freelancers often forget that networking is not just about connecting with collaborators and clients. In order to find further success down the road, freelancers should strive to build meaningful connections and professional relationships. You shouldn’t just connect with a prospective client or collaborator over the internet and keep them in your contacts list until you find yourself in a situation where they can provide value to your business.
To stay on top of your professional connections and make sure that it blossoms into a mutually beneficial business relationship, be sure to use a customer relationship manager, or CRM tool. CRM tools such as Hello Bonsai and Betterlance can help you keep your contacts organized and maintain connections that are instrumental to your freelancing career.
Networking is key to finding career growth and success as a freelancer. So, be sure to follow these tips if you’re a freelancer who struggles with making meaningful connections. To learn how to cope with the different stressors that freelancers may experience, check out a video I made available on "How To Fight Stress As A Freelancer."