Freelancefolder

Stuck in Your Tracks? How to Get Unstuck Today

Posted November 30, 2011 in Inspiration

Freelancing can be a great lifestyle that offers many benefits. However, sometimes even the best freelancers get stuck.

There are many ways a freelancer can get stuck. They can get stuck in the rut of working for low pay. They can get stuck creatively where they find themselves doing the same unchallenging work over and over. Or, they can get stuck when they fall behind technology and current trends.

If this is you–if you’re a stuck freelancer right now, don’t worry. There are ways to become unstuck. In this post, I’ll provide some of those ways to help you get unstuck.

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5 Reasons Why I Prefer to Freelance for Others

Posted November 29, 2011 in Freelance Stories, Lifestyle

Back when I first started as an SEO professional (and a part-time content writer) it was common among SEO professionals to get some hands-on experience and then quit their jobs to start their own online business. There were so many opportunities lingering around in the cyber world and everybody wanted to grab a piece of the pie. Back then there was a lot more earning potential in starting an online business than in working on freelance gigs for others.

Needless to say, internet marketing experts and other professionals associated with this industry used to frown upon the idea of doing freelance work for others. IMO, times have changed, and starting an online business is not as good an idea as it was a few years ago.

These days, I meet a lot of professionals (for example: SEO, writers, developers, designers, etc) who are fretting over the fact that they are doing all the work while the “company” gets all the riches and growth without doing anything. That viewpoint is not entirely wrong, but things are not easy on the client side of table either. Of course, experiences will turn out differently for different people.

However, I believe that starting an online venture is not the ultimate answer to success any more. In this post, I’ve listed some reasons why I think working as a freelancer for others can sometimes be a better choice than starting your own venture.

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An Ideal Holiday Gift List for Freelance Writers

Posted November 28, 2011 in Lifestyle

The holidays are upon us once again. Believe it or not, one of my favorite things about this time of the year is finding the perfect gifts for everyone on my list.

If you have freelance writers on your gift list, then read on. I asked my freelance writer friends and readers what they wanted that would help them succeed as freelancers and came up with this blog post. (But while this list is specifically for writers, other freelancers would love to receive some of the items here as well.)

Here are the top 10 things freelance writers want to see underneath their Christmas trees:

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5 Unique Benefits That Freelancers Offer to Their Clients

Posted November 27, 2011 in Getting Clients, Marketing

Small businesses (and let’s face it, most freelancers are small businesses) really have it tough when it comes to competing with agencies and other large businesses. For one thing, the larger companies tend to have a much larger marketing budget.

Freelancers, on the other hand, tend to have a very small marketing budget–if they have one at all. Instead, they rely on networking and word of mouth.

But, does a small business or a lone freelancer stand a chance when competing with a larger organization for a client?

I think they do. Bigger isn’t always better. In this post, I ‘ll list five unique benefits that freelancers can offer to their clients.

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10 New Guidelines for Web Designers for 2012

Posted November 25, 2011 in Design, Web Design

Web design has become a profitable niche for freelancers in the last few years, especially with the popularity of the WordPress platform. Tech blogs, e-commerce sites and general information sites all prefer to have a custom-designed blog to help sell their offerings worldwide.

To capitalize on the earning potential of web design industry there has been surge in the number of custom service web design providers. However, only a handful of freelancers are able to sense the change in the industry dynamics and add value to their creative ideas during implementation.

In order for you to stay competitive, effective, and yet innovative with your web designs I propose the following ten guidelines:

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Happy Thanksgiving to Our Readers!

Posted November 24, 2011 in News

For those of you located in the United States, today is a holiday dedicated to giving thanks. It’s also a time for getting together with friends and family. Here at Freelance Folder we are thankful for you, our readers.

Those of us on the Freelance Folder team who are located in the U.S. are taking today off. We’ll be watching the parades, following some football games, and getting together to spend some quality time with our friends and families. We even hope to get a slice of yummy pumpkin pie. :)

If today is a holiday for you too, then Happy Thanksgiving to you. If you are working today, have a wonderful day as well!

Tomorrow, we’ll be back with our usual posting schedule. In the meantime, we’ll share our favorite Freelance Folder post about saying thank-you–Two Special Words That Will Make Your Clients See You Differently.

Image by SanFranAnnie

All About Deadlines

Posted November 23, 2011 in How-To, Managing Clients

Probably nothing else in the freelancing experience creates as much stress as deadlines.

If a freelancer tells you they are up against a deadline, then you know that it’s time to back off and give them some space so that they can get your work done.

We all have deadlines, but we rarely talk about them. Yet, there’s quite a lot to talk about.

In this post, we’ll look at deadlines from various angles including types of deadlines, how to negotiate a better deadline, how meet your deadlines, and what to do if you miss a deadline. I hope you’ll also chip in with your own experiences and tips about deadlines.

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Get Inside Your Client’s Mind

Posted November 22, 2011 in Managing Clients

Wouldn’t freelancing be so much easier if we could read our clients’ minds?

Then we wouldn’t need to hem and haw about our quotations, worrying if our fees are too high or that our clients can’t afford them. Or too low so that we look like sub-par freelancers.

Neither would we second-guess our work, wasting precious minutes and energy wondering if it’s good enough.

If we could read our clients’ minds we would know what to say so every project proposal we submit gets approved.

Every project we complete would be a huge success, and our clients would thank us for changing their lives forever.

Unfortunately, all this is not possible all the time. But we can get pretty close. With a little extra effort, freelancers can get a clearer understanding of our clients’ needs, problems, and desires–so our work can go as smoothly as possible.

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Time for Freelancers to Become More Social and Play the Game

Posted November 21, 2011 in Marketing, Social Media

For freelance writers, there are a lot of avenues available to promote their work.

Social media, however, should be the first and foremost tool to spread the word about interesting articles, searching for individuals to interview, gathering new story ideas and more.

Some of the challenges that freelance writers can face with social media are which outlets to use, how often to use them, and where and when to promote them. Although social media is not rocket science, it can be challenging at times, therefore stop writers from effectively using the various tools at their disposal.

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