5 Things Every Freelancer Needs

This article was contributed by Jason Dirkham

When you work on a freelance basis, you are often on your own. You are your own boss and have no colleagues or team working under you to bounce ideas off, delegate work to or generally have a moan to. You have to be focused and motivated, going out from the very beginning and seeing out new clients. However, if you are to be successful, there are things that you have to have ready and in place.

A Website and Social Media Presence

Your website is your portfolio. It gives you the chance to present your skills and shows clients and customers why you are their best option. Without a fully operational and easy to navigate website, the chances of success are drastically less. If website design and management are not in your skill set, find someone who can do it on your behalf. As a freelancer, you are probably on job market places such as People Per Hour and Fiverr, but why not use them to find someone to help you out?

It would help if you also had an active presence on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. These are all free to use, and you should utilize them as much as possible to reach a broad audience and expand your client base. Every business needs an identity, whether you are a freelancer or a large scale operation. You will be entering into a competitive market, so it is vital to have a brand that people recognize. A logo is one of the best ways you can do this, and use it across all of your online profiles as well as business cards, letterheads, and other business stationery. One of the key rituals of networking events is the exchanging of business cards with your peers and potential clients, so have them on you at all times.

A Computer

As a freelancer, you will be spending a lot of time in front of your computer, no matter what industry you are in. It is vital that you have the most up to date computer that you can afford. If you have a laptop, it gives you more flexibility in terms of where you can work, but make sure you keep up to date with virus checks and updates. You also need a reliable internet connection.

A Smartphone

After your computer, the next most crucial piece of technology for your business is your smartphone. It allows you to access your emails and relevant documents wherever you are, and you can always be in contact with your clients. Various apps can be beneficial for freelancers – you can even get apps for Google Docs to help you with your productivity. It is important to have a decent contract, such as one of the SMARTY SIM deals to make sure you never run out of minutes, text messages, or data.

Insurance

You are self-employed as a freelancer, which means that you are solely in charge of your own insurance, savings, retirement funds, and all other financial aspects of your business. If you are ill and cannot work, you will not make any money. If a deal goes wrong and you find yourself facing legal action, you need insurance to cover any issues. It is important to make sure that you are covered by all of the appropriate insurances to protect you, your clients, and your business should something not quite go to plan.

Workplace

One of the benefits of being a freelancer is that you have the option to work wherever you want. That may well be in your pajamas in bed or from the kitchen table. However, for your mental health and to ensure a work/life balance, you need to find a way of separating your personal life from your business life, which is a lot more difficult if you work at home. It also can look a little unprofessional if you are meeting clients. A co-working space or even a ‘proper’ home office can help you to look professional while allowing you the flexibility that you get from freelancing.

Time Management

When you first start in business, you will spend more time working than anything else, and this is an unfortunate fact about self-employment. However, once you have established yourself, you can relax a little bit as long as you have sorted out any time management issues. Workflow apps such as Trello and Asana can help you to organize your work a bit better and keep you on track.