Creating Your Freelancer Toolkit

In this session, the facilitators will explain and guide you on how to create some resources for yourself on your freelancer journey.

While this workshop is open ended and a lot of casual discussions will take place, this the the framework for everyone to follow.

Outline and Resources

1. Why go freelance?
   1. Eliminating myths (such as effortless and easy money) and switching to the right mindset
   2. Advantages and disadvantages
      
2. Where to find potential clients?
   1. Best one: in person via meetups
   2. Cold Emailing / Social Media: Reaching out to influencers and other potentials; Discord servers, FB Groups, Linkedin, etc.
   3. Freelancing Platforms: Upwork, Fiverr
      
3. How to find potential clients?
   1. Setup your own website (to increase your online presence):
      1. Showcase portfolio
      2. Add a ‘Hire Me’ or ‘Contact Me’ section
      3. Write blogs relevant to your services to increase trust
   2. Learn how to pitch your services:
      1. Apply where the competition is low and things aren’t saturated
         1. It obviously isn’t good to apply where 40 others have already applied, so find a niche where less people have applied
         2. Let’s say you find a generic gig on a freelancing platform which says ‘Copywriter needed for our studio’, it’s gonna have 40-50 applicants. Whereas, a specific gig like ‘Articles needed about culture of Ireland’ will have fewer applicants (generally less than 5!)
      2. How to craft a compelling pitch/cover-letter (crucial)
      3. Do NOT use the same cover-letter across all your pitches
      4. Research and learn more about your potential client to get to know their needs better
         
4. Client Communication and Assessment:
   1. Best practices for communicating with potential clients and conducting effective assessments to ensure successful project outcomes
   2. Requirement Analysis
      
5. Managing payments and ensuring the client pays you:
   1. Suggestions for ensuring payments:
      1. If you found the client on a platform like Fiverr or Upwork, ensure that their payments are enabled and their profile is verified. Also, start working only after they fund the gig.
      2. For clients found outside of freelancing platforms, use an escrow service like that of Upwork’s, etc. that is also welcoming to clients found outside the platform (takes a small 4% fee as their commission), or here are other suggestions: salt.pe, Escrow.com, refrens.com (1.8% service charge)
   2. Invoice Drafts and Financial Management:
      1. Rate setting
      2. Invoicing software and services
      3. Taxes (GST) what are they? Do they apply?
         
6. DOs and DONTs:
   1. Stuff like being professional, rejecting incoming commissions or managing difficult clients, etc.