What Does It Take To Succeed As A Freelancer In 2018?

Whilst the idea of becoming a freelancer might seem overwhelming, it’s actually a very smart business move. Perhaps operating a company on your own sounds like a big task, but the internet has changed a lot of things. Freelancers don’t have to stroll from door to door in order to sell their products or services - you can do it all from the comfort of your own home. As it becomes easier to create an online business, more people are doing it. It was estimated over at qz.com that 40% of business will involve freelancing by 2020. When you consider that, you’re not really the underdog if you’re a freelancer. But what does it take to succeed as one in 2018? Let’s talk about it.

Branding.

When it comes to succeeding as a freelancer, you need a captivating brand. If you want any chance of impressing potential clients then it’s all about projecting the right image for your business. Portraying the right values is crucial; you could donate some of your profits to charity or make sure that your services are eco-friendly to show that you care about the planet. We’re living in an age of concerned consumers; people want to know that they’re buying goods and services ethically. As a freelancer, this is your chance to prove that you care about the big issues. Of course, you can go further than this if you really want to impress potential clients. Consumers want to buy products from personal brands, but they also want to buy products from professional brands. That’s why you need to go the extra mile if you’re hoping to stand out against the big businesses this year.

As a solo freelancer, it’s always been hard to prove to consumers that you’re just as efficient as a company run by an entire team of employees. In the modern age, of course, the internet has made it easier to overcome this barrier. You can give the illusion of your business being just as big and impressive as the corporate companies in your industry. You might want to check out a site such as physicaladdress.com because a real street address for your business could give it that extra level of professionalism and credibility. It’s all about illusions of grandeur in the game of business. You might be operating out your home study, but a “proper” business address makes your brand appear as strong as the other big businesses in the city center.

Marketing.

The brand is one big component of success for any modern-day freelancer, as discussed in the first section. The other component of success is the way in which you spread awareness of your brand. You might be a professional who offers a highly-professional product or service, but how does that make you stand out from any other freelancer in 2018? There’s a chance that you’ve invented some brand new product, but the likelihood is that you’re selling something very similar to an existing service that’s being offered by thousands of other businesses.

At the end of the day, it’s all about the way you advertise your brand. That’s what determines success in the modern age. And, as we’ve discussed before, online marketing is the way to go in this century. Obviously, the rules for online marketing keep changing. Search engines have always had algorithms that favor certain websites over others, but those algorithms are updated frequently. If you want your site to rank highly on Google in 2018 then you need to focus on responsive content; your website needs to be adaptable to all modern devices. Even meta descriptions and page titles are still relevant in 2018, as explained over at moz.com. Who knew?