How to Get Your First Client as a Freelancer

YouTube video

Written By

Jonathan Jernigan

  • Live and breath your brand
    • Don’t hide it
    • Promote on personal facebook
    • Tell everyone you know
    • Add it as your job on facebook
    • Keep business cards on you at all times
  • Offline networking is huge
    • Chambers of commerce
    • Young professionals meetings
    • Local meetup groups
  • BNI
    • Weekly meetings
    • Required dedication, but what you put in you get back 10x
    • Few hundred dollars a year
    • Some people have bad experience
    • Makes you a better speaker
    • 90% of my business has come directly or indirectly from BNI
    • Multi tiered referrals
  • Stay away from PPC advertising
    • Don’t waste what little savings you have on paid ads
    • Spend it on brochures or marketing materials and go knock down doors
    • You’ll get shut down but you will absolutely get clients
    • 10 businesses at a time, usually would get 1 or 2 clients every week from it
  • Keep your day job
    • Let people know you’re working hard to leave your day job
    • I worked at verizon
    • Either build your savings before leaving
    • Or get enough clients your income is equal to or greater than your day job
    • Trust takes time
    • Trust turns into relationships which turn into revenue
  • Don’t discount right away
    • Don’t instantly give discounts just because you’re new
    • Good clients will understand and won’t pay top dollar but will be fair
    • If you intend to charge $1500 for this website, offer them $1200 as early adopter pricing
  • Success takes time
    • It’s taken me nearly 3 years to have MRR to pay all bills
    • Maybe you others or even you can do it faster
    • Taxes can be brutal
    • You’ll have some quiet months, be prepared
  • Incredibly rewarding
    • Make my own schedule
    • Don’t report to anyone
    • I can fire my bosses (my clients)
    • Can never go back to a regular job

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