I have been working as a digital marketing freelancer for the last 6 years now. I have quite a good understanding now of getting good quality freelancing projects, finding clients, the most in-demand digital marketing skills, where are the trends moving, etc. But things were not so easy when I started out…
In fact, I was quite lost about most of the things and struggled for almost a year before I got a hang of the things. Having said that, it still took me about 2 more years to set my foot in completely, to get clarity about the kind of projects I wanted to work on and, most importantly – the kind of projects and clients I wanted to stay away from! And today, I feel I am in a position to help others who are getting started with their freelancing journey. Let me list down the steps I took to reach where I am today:
1. Enroll Yourself In a Reputed Digital Marketing Course
First things first…you need to learn digital marketing in a systematic way. And this can only happen if you get yourself enrolled in a good quality course. For digital marketing, I would suggest you join a trainer-led training over the recorded courses you get on platforms like Udemy. The reason is hands-on practice and the need to have access to someone who can guide you and help you with your queries. Also, the network that you build as a part of these classes can be of great value, to solve doubts, to help you at places, help you with jobs and even form partnerships.
2. Build Your Website on WordPress
As a freelancer, you will not have a company’s brand name to add to your resume. You need to build it for yourself. And that is why you need to have a website. It will become your visiting card, a platform to showcase your digital marketing knowledge and skills. Why WordPress? Because, it’s robust, easy to build and manage!
3. Build Your Presence on Social Media Platforms
One of the hottest jobs in the market for a digital marketing freelancer is to manage, build and grow social media accounts for their clients. As a beginner, you will not have past clients’ social media accounts to show as a sample. This is where having your own social media accounts becomes important. If you can’t grow your own social media presence, build an audience and drive engagement, then how can you do it for your clients…get the idea?
4. Join the Top Freelancing Platforms
After having done the above 3 steps, now is the time to get registered on the top freelancing platforms. I have already created a blog post on this, listing down the top freelancing platforms (though the post was written in 2018, there isn’t much change to the list. I will be creating a list for 2020 soon…so keep watching this space). These platforms are a get place to get started, find your first few clients and start building your profile.
5. Keep Track of the Key Skills in Demand for Digital Marketing Freelancers
This is relevant for all jobs now, but especially more for digital marketing because of the rapid pace it is growing at. It is extremely important to keep track of the industry trends and the most in-demand skills for digital marketing freelancers. The skills that are in demand now may become redundant 1-2 years down the line. So, it ‘s important to keep track of what’s hot and what’s not!
6. Every Quarter, Focus on One Single Skill
You know about the most in-demand skills, what next? Now go out and get them! But don’t try to go after all the skils at the same time or you will just end up with wasted time, energy and effort. FOCUS, that’s the keyword here. Pick one skill every quarter, be it Instagram Marketing, SEO Writing or Graphic Designing…just go after it and try to become the best at it out there!
7. Practice Everything on Your Own Website/Social Media Channels
A lot of new digital marketing freelancers come to me with the question – they have taken the course, have the certificate but are lacking in hands-on practice. Now let me tell you a secret – nobody will give you hands-on practice on a platter! There are only two ways to get it. One – go get a job in one of the digital marketing companies for a year at least. The kind of learning you will have here will be quite thorough. Also, when you are working in a team, learning is always deeper and faster.
But I understand, it’s not always possible to go back to a job (like it was in my case with two young kids). So, I took the more difficult, but definitely doable route. I practiced everything that I learned on my website and social media channels. Trust me, 70% of all that I know about digital marketing is because I put in the effort to practice them on my own platforms!
8. Join Networking Groups
The earlier you realize the power of strong networks, the better it is. There is only so far that you can go alone. Take the effort to join relevant groups on Facebook, attend meetups or become a part of networking groups in your city.
Also, please remember that this is a dynamic process and not something you do once and set on auto mode. Every few months, I put my thinking caps on, take out my good old pen and paper (trust me, doing this can actually help you look at all the pros and cons better, bring in a lot of focus and clarity) and see what is working and what isn’t.
After all, you are a solopreneur responsible for your sales, marketing, business development, accounts and a whole load of other things. As with all businesses, you need to plan strategically, review your plans once every quarter and see what’s working and what’s not. So plan, execute, review, rinse and repeat…Simple!
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