Things You'll Need:
- Business cards
- Brochures
- Website
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Step 1
Seek out businesses that need freelancers to help with their advertising. From coding web sites to writing promotional materials, freelancing work abounds during a recession because local businesses need to find interested customers. If you don't have any experience with advertising or marketing, do some pro bono work for non-profit organizations to beef up your portfolio.
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Step 2
Revamp your website to include enhanced services and specials you're running for new customers. You can beat a recession by adding to your current stable of clients, and by offering discounts for word-of-mouth referrals. A bargain is a bargain, regardless of the state of the economy.
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Step 3
Hand out business cards wherever you go. Those little slips of card stock are powerful marketing tools, and you never know when someone will hand yours over to a friend. Include your contact information and logo to the front, with a list of your services and specials on the back.
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Step 4
Team up with other professionals to form a freelancing circle during the recession. Two minds are better than one, and a group of you together can gain more clients and present a more professional brand. For example, freelance writers can team up with videographers and web designers to enhance their services.
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Step 5
Balance your time between your day job and your freelancing career until you can replace your current income with freelancing entirely. A recession is an unpredictable market, and you don't want to depend on your freelance work until you're sure you've got it under control.
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Step 6
Connect with clients who have used your freelancing services in the past by sending them a postcard or an updated brochure. In a recession, you never know who might need your skills and talents, but might have lost your number at the office. Plus, this shows that you value their business.
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Step 7
Broaden your target market. If your freelancing bread and butter is small businesses, you should know that marketing efforts are often the first to be cut from the budget when a recession hits. Expand your advertising to target large corporations as well as individuals to keep a steady stream of work coming in.
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Step 8
Hit them where it hurts. When freelancing clients are turning away from your services because "they just don't have the money", remind them that the skills you provide actually makes them money. If you are indispensable to your clients, your services won't be cut from the budget, so start marketing yourself aggressively.
Comments
joanneburns said
on 7/31/2009 Post a profile or job on www.projectposts.com. You can bid on work and get paid! It is free and easy to use!
plea4helpcom said
on 7/9/2009 I would love to be a writer!
MidniteWriter said
on 7/9/2009 This is what I have been doing for years now. Just hard to find clients. I am getting more aggressive with the business cards now. 5*
joaniek said
on 7/8/2009 Interesting article. Good tips and encouragement.
dandeneau said
on 7/7/2009 great tips, i work 2 part time jobs in addition to running a graphic design company. desperate times, desperate measures. but you are right, freelancing is where it's at! a ton of people are looking for help promoting themselves and their businesses right now.