Freelance Life

How I got started as a freelancer

If you are reading this article because you want to get started in freelancing, remember, being a freelancer is a lifestyle choice for many people and it’s not for everyone.  

In my opinion, if you are a grafter and willing to put the time and effort in to build the life you want then being a freelancer can be very rewarding in so many ways.

You have to:

  1. work out how you want to work

  2. know what you need to live on financially

  3. plan how you’re going to get and retain clients

  4. understand your target market 

I started my freelance business with very little money to invest in ads and marketing however I knew from experience, that people who choose to hire you want to be reassured you have the skills and capabilities and know how to deliver what they want / need to expectation.

This website was the starting point for me because I know people want to do their own research on you before they choose to speak with you.

My website has a job to do, in terms of:

  • offer

  • reassurance

  • lead generation.

I know websites must be a true reflection of you, your offer and what clients could expect from you; professional, informative, and a valuable tool to help the client make their decision to choose you to work with, because: 

  1. That’s exactly what I’d look for when hiring freelancers, I was hiring freelancers and suppliers all the time in my 20+ years in agency land. 

  2. In more recent years when I’ve been recommended by people to their friends or colleagues, my website is the place people visit before reaching out to discuss requirements and check my capacity. 

I built this site with clients in minds with content that was based on what they would want to know and the value it could provide for them, based on past experiences, lessons learned and FAQs (frequently asked questions): 

  • what I do

  • how I work

  • projects worked

  • testimonials.

OnpointConnections.co.uk is a template site, created by me with no financial investment, other than hosting, my time and effort. A small professional site I drive people to if they wanted to know more about me and what I do. (Never going to win any awards but provides all the detail the customer would want to know before hiring me and does the job I intended it to do).

My LinkedIn profile recommendations provided the content for my testimonials page and has developed over time into the most popular page on my site.

All projects worked to date came through recommendation and WOM (word of mouth). 

Building my personal brand on socials organically, engaging with my network, and being visible consistently has been the most effective tool for keeping me in work without having to pay any third-party fees.

LinkedIn, IG, and FB (@natsharing) are the channels I use as that’s where my connections are. I repurpose content from my website and that also helps with my social proof.

Scheduling posts, batch contenting and being socially selective helps me stay visible, I engage with my network at times that work for us, whilst working day to day projects.

Twitter, TikTok and YouTube didn’t work for me as I don’t have the time to invest in engaging and feeding those social machines, client projects come first.

I am constantly reading and doing refresher courses to keep up with trends, changes and insights all of which add value to my offer for clients.

So, there you have it, a little insight into my Freelance life but my advise is work out what will work for you and then decide if freelancing is right for you.

Good luck ✌🙌

Keeping it real.

Freelance life enables me to live the life I want but it’s not been without hardwork!

I am often asked, “how do you make freelancing work for you, I am thinking about going freelance but not sure if it’s for me”. 

Leaving employment land and seeking a freelance life is a personal choice. 

When you make freelancing your career you are giving up 9 – 5 as you know it; the stability of knowing your working hours and a regular wage, the benefits of working for someone else; team support, holiday pay, and sick pay to name a few. 

Let’s keep it real!

“I want to work freelance, I want to work less and don’t want to work for someone else”…well that’s great if you can afford to work less and you are financially secure, only you know what you need to earn to live, right?! I don’t know your situation but if you’re not financially secure, you need to think about your money situation and whether you can afford not to work: 

  • you are not going to work 365 days a year 
  • take out your holidays
  • Factor in the traditionally low seasonal work (July, August, January, December and bank holidays) these are times when you may find there’s not much work around 
  • if you are starting from scratch where is your work going to come from? 

Yes, you choose your hours but you’re paid to do a job (by the day or hour) and sometimes projects creep so you find yourself working longer hours to get the project done, before you move onto the next. You have a limited time to do what needs to be done so you have to be disciplined, focused and set clear boundaries. From the moment you are hired, you are committed to getting the work done to schedule and expectation, if you want to get paid and booked again 😉

When you freelance you are responsible and accountable for your work.  The reality is you don’t really switch off, if you’re not working for clients you’re running your business and all that comes with that: 

  • Capacity: the juggle, can you take on more work, do you need more work
  • Goals: strategy to retain work, win new projects, and find new clients
  • Marketing: content creation and engaging with your network
  • Learning: new skills, keeping up with trends and advances in technology, reading and doing courses
  • Accounts: invoices, chasing money, HMRC, accountants, and business matters.
That said for me it’s worth it! I choose when and who I work with, I get to spend more quality time with my family and friends in the low seasonal work times and I appreciate the business and support I get from the people I work with so much more. Work feels more rewarding and valued in my freelance life than it ever did being employed. My goal was/is to get paid for how hard I work not just for the hours I work. 

 

I wouldn’t change a thing! Freelance life is my career and I continue to make it work for me and my family 💪💥✌

How I got into the creative industry, my experience.

I fell into the creative industry really and what a journey to freelance life it was 😁   

At 17 me and a mate were working for Price Waterhouse as office juniors/post room runners. Great job!

As part of our PDP we were training as junior secretaries; in shorthand and typing courses at College.

All really good fun but the fun stopped when we qualified and moved out of the post room into the secretarial department.

I quickly realised I wasn’t cut from the same cloth, I liked to party (too much some would say but hey I was young, single and living in the city).

I hated being told what to do and what to wear (no trainers or jeans definitely not for me – that’s still true today, hehe!).

So, my friend got a new job and I quickly followed her to WWAV, a Direct Marketing Agency, Moortown Corner, Leeds.

I’ve been in the industry ever since;

  • from agencies (WWAV North, RP&F)
  • to print (Prism Graphics Resources)
  • to envelope manufacturing (Great Northern Envelopes then bought by Adare)
  • to new media (digital) agency (HMA New Media)
  • to marketing freelance project manager (Private clients Property industry mostly, SMEs)
  • to full-service creative agencies (Legard Lepson, The Small Agency)
  • events and communications solutions agency  (Touch Media Solutions)
  • to now, freelance life.

WOW, 30+ years went quickly!

Yes, you may have noticed from the above list, I was a freelancer once before.

I was tempted back into employment and whilst it was good; enjoyed the buzz and banter of the studio, I prefer to be a freelancer…it’s how I work best and I get more time to spend with my family, doing what we love to do, family time is the most important thing to me. 

Plus, after the Covid pandemic, the world changed, loads of people started working remotely and teams/zoom became commonplace, so the advances in technology changed those once-distance gaps. We video call all the time, we’re way more productive and I never feel the need to be in a city office 4 or 5 days a week 9 – 5.