Freelancing 101: How to Start and Grow Your Freelancing Career

There are numerous ways to make money online, however, freelancing is the best because there are multiple platforms and there will never be a scarcity of assignments, freelancing jobs pay really well, and most importantly, you do not have to spend any money. In order to make money as a freelancer, you need high-level skills, such as writing, designing, programming, video editing, etc. If you are a freelancer and looking forward to excelling in your freelancing career, here are two methods to advance your freelancing career.

Participate in multiple freelance marketplaces: Why should you go with the popular choices like Fiverr or Upwork, why not join lesser-known platforms, hyvee.work for example? Join multiple freelance platforms and build a strong portfolio rather than working on just one or two. Also, use the same username, profile picture, and bio.

Begin blogging: Blogging will not only help you earn money but also assist you in establishing authority in your niche. You can also showcase your portfolio.

Are You a Freelancer? Create a Freelance Portfolio Website

If you want to succeed in your freelancing career, you need a portfolio website. When you have a portfolio website, your online visibility will improve, thus increasing your chances of being hired. That’s because you can share your resume and work experience. You can even directly sell your services through your website.

What exactly is a portfolio website?

The portfolio website is your personal website (you will be using your name as the domain name) where you share everything yourself, for example, your education and training, skills and education, and work experience. You can even share links to your social media profiles, and freelancer profiles (link to your account on various freelancer sites).

How much money do you need?

You need a domain and hosting. You can get a domain and hosting for as little as $30 per year. If you are not ready to spend money, you can even use free services like about.me to create a one-page portfolio website.

Reasons Why Freelancers Should Be Active On Social Media

As a freelancer you might be already working on a freelance marketplace, however, you should not undermine the importance of social media platforms to excel in your freelancing career. You can not only use social media platforms to establish your authority in your niche but also sell your services.

If you are a freelancer, you should utilize a variety of social media platforms, most importantly, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. You'll need a Facebook page, as well as accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and  Linkedin. You can also use TikTok and youtube if your niche is video making and editing.  Social media assists freelancers to...

Increase their online visibility (because people can find you on various social platforms)

Sell and market services to social media users (you can find freelancing opportunities)

Display their work (you can use LinkedIn as your portfolio website)

Make money not only as a freelancer but also as an influencer and digital marketer (if you have managed to build a huge following)

How to Find Freelance Opportunities on LinkedIn

Fiverr and Upwork are not the only platforms where you can find freelancing opportunities, you can find freelancing jobs even on social media, mainly LinkedIn.

LinkedIn was created as a social networking platform for professionals to build networks with other professionals and potential employers/employees, recruit people for your company, apply for jobs, etc.

On LinkedIn, you can find freelancing opportunities and full-time job opportunities (remote jobs as well as regular jobs) That’s because companies, businesses, and individuals use LinkedIn to hire employees and freelancers.

If you want to find jobs on LinkedIn, you need to build a strong profile. You should share your education, training, skills, and work experience. You should mention your best skills and interests.

You also need to share links to your other social pages and portfolio websites to add authenticity.

You will then have to build connections with like-minded people.

You will have to search for jobs and apply to appropriate jobs.

Fiverr Vs. Upwork

You make money on FIverr by selling your gigs and you make money on upwork by bidding on jobs and then being accepted for the job. Making money on Fiverr and Upwork are entirely two different strategies. On Fiverr you will have to rely on SEO to get your gig listed on internal searches and improve visibility, on upwork you will have to wait for the client to accept your application. I find upwork little easier when it comes to make money

Pros and Cons of Being a Freelancer

Freelancing is one of the popular methods to make money online. Freelancing pays well, so you might even earn full-time income. However, freelancing comes with a price.

Pros of being a freelancer:

You might not earn even a buck by writing 1000 words on forums or article sites, but the same length of written work can easily fetch you $10-$20 on a freelancing platform.

You can take multiple projects at once, so there will be no dearth of work.

Cons of being a freelancer

You will have to actively work to generate income. On the day you cannot work, you earn nothing.

Even though there are numerous platforms for freelancers, it is really difficult to secure freelancing jobs because the market is competitive.

You will have to constantly upskill yourself to earn better, you might not earn just with one skill.

You will have to lower your rate in order to secure your freelancing contract.