Setting up your own freelance business has never been easier – thanks to the internet, social media, globalisation, companys’ needs for outsourcing and great tools such as Google and WordPress. But what does it really take to become a successful entrepreneur who stays ahead of the competition and makes money that pays more than just the bills? I thought I’d share a few tips with you – you are welcome to suggest some more!
1) Stay tuned!
This should go without saying – whether you are a translator like me, an IT crack, a wedding planner or running a business for personalised shot glasses, you need to keep track of the latest developments and demands in your industry and decide if and how far you want to get involved with these. For me as a translator, these developments could involve a new translation software or the fact that more and more clients require not only translation, but also DTP work – both require learning new skills, possibly at the expense of something I used to do before. I always like to revise the services I offer once per year – January is a good option, as this is generally a “quiet” month (and a month symbolising a fresh start, for that matter) – and decide which services I’d like to carry on offering and which ones are not profitable or enjoyable anymore, and which I can therefore get rid of, to make space for a new skill set that is in line with current demands. It is a type of spring-clean, as it were. Now it’s for you to decide whether you want to take up new skills to expand your business and satisfy your clients’ needs or not. If you choose the latter option, you have to again make the decision whether you don’t want to satisfy these new demands of the industry at all or whether you should outsource them – which leads to the second point…
2) Be a team player!
Yes, you want to beat competition by a nose, but don’t think of everyone as your competitor – there might well be someone who could enrich and complement your business in the most beneficial way. If you feel you love translating, but DTP is not your forte – I plead guilty! -, and you cannot be bothered to learn the strings, then look for someone who does! This way, you both benefit from a win-win relationship, while your customers are kept happy, and you don’t need to reject any projects because you don’t feel comfortable doing them. The key is that you build a strong virtual team for your business and preferably have a list of suitable suppliers for all tasks related to your business which you are not keen to do or don’t have time to do. Remember that it’s always also a good idea to recruit someone who IS your competitor and outsource those projects that break your time budget. Remember that the best way to stay ahead of the competition is to collaborate with the competition!
3) Have your own secretary!
You are great at what you do, I am sure – and I am also quite sure that you might be less great at accounting, invoicing and general admin stuff. You probably waste a lot of unpaid time and nerves every day to keep up with your everyday accounting while you could do the jobs you are good at and get paid for it! In today’s day and age, with millions of very capable and trustworthy VAs (virtual assistants) around, there is no need to waste any more time and resources. Get someone to do it for you! I know a lot of fellow entrepreneurs who outsource their admin to VAs e.g. in the Philippines, who are not only more than happy to do your accounting for little money, but who are also way better at it than you! This way, you’ll establish another fruitful win-win relationship, and the money spent on a VA is more than offset by the amount of freed time that you can fill with doing paid projects in the area of your expertise! If you are not comfortable with the idea of a VA or you have very sensitive data to handle, look out for an accounting assistant in your area – business networking events are a good place to start – and meet them in person to build trust.
4) Be a marketing professional!
Whether you like it or not – you need to sell your services just like the vacuum cleaner rep who goes from door to door. Especially with today’s endless options to find service providers, you can only make yourself known, liked and trusted and stay ahead of your competition if you continually sell yourself, your ideas, products, and services. Try to put yourself in your client’s position – what do they need? When? How? What could you add to solve their problems? In what way can you enhance your services to them? You need to think of a convincing strategy and then sell it to them. Remember, your business will only be profitable if it is about your clients, not you. You first need to think of a solution to their problems and then a convincing sales and marketing strategy. Hire a marketing consultant if you are unsure or enrol in a marketing course to enhance your sales skills.
5) Do what you love!
I know this might be an unusual tip as we are so indoctrinated to work to make money, not for fun. However, you will eventually learn that working for money alone and not for your passion will lead not only to you being unhappy, but your business will eventually suffer – which leads the aim to make money ad absurdum! Now, as a Joe Blow office worker, you might get by doing what you hat for money – as a business owner, you certainly won’t! You will only be able to keep your business alive doing what you are passionate about, while keeping in mind that turning your passion into money might involve the one or other unloved task – on the whole though, you must be convinced every minute that you love what you are doing! You would have already noticed at school that you are good at the subjects you like, and that you like the subjects you are good at. Passion and excellence are inseparable sides of the same medal. And you can only be excellent and thus successful if you pursue your passion. This also means that you need to identify passions and talents you might not know you have. So keep an open mind and stay alert!
6) Nurture your cash cow!
Now this is more practical advice – besides being innovative, creative, and excellent, and having a supportive team of like-minded co-workers, you always need to make sure to keep your cash flow going! This applies from the first idea for your business and for the whole duration of it! It is not enough to have the ideas, it is utterly life vital to secure the financial resources to fund your ideas from the very beginning. Identify your personal “Cash cow” – which products and/or services of yours generate immediate income that can be used to pursue higher, long-term goals? What is your cash cow? How can you nurture to not only keep it alive, but make it thrive? Do not start a business before having this issue all set – it is worth keeping in mind that most businesses fail just because they have not identified and nurtured their cash cow!
7) Simplify your life!
In order not to waste time and resources, think of strategies how to streamline your work flow – checking e-mails only twice a day, using e-mail filters, canned responses and invoice templates can be simple steps that save you time, energy, lift stress of your shoulders and free up more time for really productive tasks.
These are my seven personal tips – which ones are yours?
