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The Perks of Being a Freelancer

There are many perks in freelancing. Probably the best among them is that freelancers work in their preferred time and days of the week. They do not have to worry about waking up so early in the morning or missing out from their children’s Parent Teacher Association meetings. They can start their projects at noon and continue until the wee hours of the night while munching on a healthy snack cooked from their own kitchen.

Most freelancers work from home. And since they do not have to report to the corporate world, they can just wear comfortable clothes while thinking in front of their computers. Dry cleaning and wardrobe expenses are significantly reduced. They can focus on getting the job done instead of what they will wear for a presentation in front of a bunch of executives.

Freelancers save a lot on transportation money. Due to the fact that they do not have to leave their houses, they do not spend a huge chunk out of their savings for gas or train tickets. Morning traffic jams do not concern them. The rush hour does not affect them. They can sit back and need not worry about long commutes that tire the employees in a corporate setting every single shift.

When it comes to compensation, freelancers can dictate how much their output costs. Unlike regular employees who have fixed salaries, freelancers can bargain with clients on how much a project would be. The more intricate the details for a project are, the higher price freelancers can ask. The more experienced the freelancer, the higher compensation he can demand. The amount of money that a freelancer can earn in a month is never fixed. It can increase depending on the professional abilities, sample portfolio, relevant job experiences and communications skills of a freelancer.

Image courtesy of [Stuart Miles] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How to Pursue New Clients

One common question among freelancers is how to pursue new clients. The answer is pretty simple: you don’t pursue clients, you ATTRACT them. And when you want to attract new clients, the first question you need to ask yourself is this: Will I pay for my own services? If you answered yes, then you will be confident enough to strut your stuff and add new projects to your teeming portfolio. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on marketing because your work will speak for itself. Here are some tips on how to attract clients.

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Make A Splash On The Internet
Write, write, and write. That is, if you are a freelance writer. If you have other projects like web design or illustrations, you want to make a niche for yourself in the Internet and publish your best works. This way, you need not be stalking forums or whatnot for potential clients.

Contribute
In line with our first suggestion, contribute to various websites so that you will be able to build solid portfolio. 

Scare Off Clients
The last freelancer tip may sound counterintuitive but it’s not. When we say let them know you mean business, we mean make it clear what you want to work on and how much you want to get paid for it. Always mention that because you do quality work, your payment is not going to be the monetary equivalent of peanuts. This could be mentioned in your blog/website so when you give a potential client some links to your work, it will come across that you mean business – which is always good. 

Image courtesy of [ddpavumba] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Does A Freelancer Need A Blog?

Freelancers nowadays range from writers to nutritionists. A lot of people think that freelancers are mostly “just” creative types who don’t like to work in the corporate world. And while most freelancers do like the freelance lifestyle as compared to the corporate world, some freelancers actually have no experience in the corporate world and are glad to never have set foot in an office building. But I digress. The real question is, whatever kind of freelancer you may be, do you actually need to blog?

Most people think that a blog should be completely personal or should contain work-related stuff. The thing is that a blog is a great marketing tool whether you’re a writer or a software engineer. It shows that you have a personality to back you up and that you are an actual human being with actual interests. Blogs are kind of like your physical counterpart on the Internet so having one is actually beneficial in the long run.

What to Write About

Most freelancers who wish to blog actually have a lot of trouble starting their own blogs. Frankly, you could write about anything. Just don’t start to rant about your job in a negative way so that you only attract positive comments as well. If you’re a writer who loves food, a food blog is a great place to start. This way, you can keep up with your interests even if you’re too busy. This will keep you well rounded and grounded in the subtlest ways.

Now, you may also blog about your job or you may create a blog that’s focused on your target clients and audience. This is a great blog to showcase your capabilities and strengths. In fact, this kind of blog is ideal as long as you’re committed to keeping it updated regularly. This kind of blog also works as a portfolio of sorts that you can provide as a link whenever a client asks for a sample. 

Image courtesy of [rattigon] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Infographic: The Cost of Landing Your Next Freelance Project

When setting your hourly rate, it is important to consider the client acquisition cost or CAC, one thing that is overlooked by most freelancers today. Before you start writing down your profits, first make sure that you actually have a profitable system set up for your freelancing career. The best way to do it is in finding out how much it costs you to land your next freelance project. 

This infographic shows exactly how to compute for the cost of finding your next client. Don't forget to share with us your findings as well as additional tips you may have!

 

 

Source: http://pandadesk.com/blog/2012/04/infographic-what-does-it-cost-to-get-a-new-client/

Freelancing: Facts, Pitfalls and Perks

Freelancing is no easy feat, especially for those who are just starting out. There are numerous challenges ahead but the benefits far outweigh them all.

Compiled with facts from MastersDegree.net, the infographic below shows interesting facts, pitfalls such as the struggle of freelancers with client nonpayment and perks - which we are all very well aware of.

Do you agree with the information presented by our infographic of the week? Which ones did you find surprising or interesting? Leave a comment and let us hear your thoughts!

What is in the mind of a freelancer?

JESS3, a creative agency that specializes in virtualization teamed up with 24Seven, a talent management resource to come up with this cool infographic that pretty much sums up what’s in the mind of a freelancer – apparently, a lot!

According to the study, what initially prompted freelancers to take the leap are the search for freedom and flexibility, and we couldn’t agree more.

While freelancers have the usual concerns such as meeting project deadlines and staying professionally significant, they are also happier campers than most traditional employees.

Check out the full insight below to find out more about what’s going on in the mind of a freelancer and don’t forget to share what’s in yours!

 

 

Source: http://mashable.com/2012/06/22/mind-of-freelancer/

 

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The benefits of being a freelancer

The Most Resourceful Online Tools Every Freelancers Should Have

Freelancing is a good way of earning money online while being virtually available through a computer connected to the internet and other online tools. In order to get the best in online jobs, one needs to hook with the latest information, tips and tutorials on how to succeed in this industry and probably make a good living from unending job opportunities all over the world.

The first tool every freelancer should have is an Internet modem. Due to mobility, mobile services providers are selling cheap modems which use 3G internet technology for faster access and one should get one. However, if one is near an internet hot spot, only a WIFI receiver is needed. A good modern browser supporting Ajax and rich web technologies like Opera, Google Chrome, Mozilla or Safari latest versions are paramount to do research and access the companies offering the job without security issues.

Because most of the jobs are received and sent via email, a good email client like Outlook express can save a lot of time wasted in accessing email via the web. Look for POP and SMTP or IMAP settings for your email account, add them to the email client and start sending, receiving and synchronizing your online email account. A word processor with word counting capabilities for reading instructions and counting number of words in article job should be installed.

Paypal is the website payment standard and many employers will always ask if you have an account there. Efforts should be made to open the account in advance as it requires verification and additional of bank account details. To outdo other freelancer, it is recommended to have a blog bearing your names which simply showcases all your skills. If possible add a portfolio and ask all clients you have worked for to leave comments and direct link to their websites. Finally, you must make a habit of learning new things from emerging technologies to safeguard your stake.

 

image: imagerymajestic / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What's Cooking this Week?

3M Innovation: Flexible Transparent Touch Screens

 

3M, the company that is known for post-it-notes, sandpaper and disks now came up with an outstandingly magnificent innovation of transparent and flexible touch screens. 3M introduces touch sensors with ultra thin bezel, which is five times thinner. It has a flexible electronics and curve that enables its designers to make new innovations out of it.

 

Its films have optimum balance and electronic functioning that makes it highly-controllable. Fine conductive features support variety of applications with heightened boost of display area. It fosters state-of-the-art multi-touch aptitude that is also eligible for high performance EMI shielding applications.

 

 

What's cooking this week?

We list down the top social media and technology updates you need to know all in one place.

 

Virtual Squatters Beware

Squatting has taken on a higher level with sites like Wikapedia and Twtter posing as their popular counterparts. Typo squatting sites often sign up for domain names that are spelled very similar to high trafficked domains. Unfortunately for them, they have been booted out of the World Wide Web and was even fined $156,000 each. 

Mountain Lion Unveiled

Apple just released their latest upgrade to OS X, aptly called the Mountain Lion. It’s reported to have 100 new features, bringing some favorite apps from iPads and other Apple mobile devices. It also supports Flickr and Vimeo sharing. However, some Apple fans were disappointed to find out Siri is not included. 

Facebook Verifies Celebrities

Facebook joins Twitter and Google+ as it launches verification for celebrity and other public figure accounts. The feature will start as exclusive invitations for high subscriber profiles to change their account settings to verified status. This will also provide an option to display a nickname instead of the Facebook required real name. 

Self Service Advertising Service on Twitter

Twitter launches its much anticipated automated system for advertisers and their marketing campaigns. This new service will be initially available only to advertisers using American Express cards.

 

image: TCJ2020 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What’s Cooking? Social Media and Tech Updates You Need to Know

What's cooking for the holidays? We list down the top social media and technology updates you need to know all in one place.

Garden of Time Tops Facebook Best Games of 2011

For some freelancers, Facebook is not just a social networking site, it also means playtime. Playdom's Garden of Time bagged the top spot followed by EA's The Sims Social, Zynga's Cityville, DoubleDown Entertainment's DoubleDown Casino and Zynga's Indiana Jones Adventure World. Facebook reportedly based its ranking on games with most active users and high recommendations.

After Klout comes Kred

Kred - a new site for measuring community based influence was recently launched. Although Kred is similar to Klout, Kred provides exact details of how Kred scores are tabulated. Kred also generates a list of Twitter users who can help promote a brand or business.

Medfield - Intel's New Mobile Chip

With Medfield, Intel's new mobile chip, your phone can now have "Intel inside". The UK-based ARM currently dominates almost all phones and tablets when it comes to processor design but Intel will surely be giving ARM a run for their money. A prototype Android phone running on Medfield is reported to have high speed web browsing and a camera that has the ability to capture 15 stills per second at 8-megapixels each.

Sony Ericsson's Superphone

Don't finish your Christmas gift list just yet as Sony Ericsson is preparing to release their new Superphone, LT28at. With a whooping 13-megapixel camera, LTE support, 4.55-inch 720p “Reality Display", Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LED Flash as well as a front camera, it's most likely to be a hit among tech aficionados. Although the release date has not yet been announced, we are crossing our fingers we'd get a glimpse of the new superphone sometime in January.