How to Build your Online Presence as a Freelancer

Are you a new freelancer or do you plan to go into freelancing?

This article targets people who are already freelancers.

So, if you are contemplating on becoming a freelancer, check out these steps to starting your freelance business, you will also learn basic information about becoming a freelancer.

If you’re a freelancer, then you probably know it can be quite hard to get clients especially if you are not well known.

There are several places you can get clients and freelance jobs but these platforms do not guarantee great jobs, paying clients, and consistent earnings as a freelancer.

If you want to become a freelancer that earns money without pitching or applying for jobs, then there is one thing you must do:

Build an Online Presence

Building an online presence is the most important aspect of being a freelancer. 

Every freelancer should have an online presence.

Every freelancer should be searchable on google and other social media platforms.

If I want to hire your services, I should be able to check out your website, your social media pages, or your blog and be able to tell that you are good at what you do.

I should be confident enough to work with you after seeing your online portfolio.

What does it mean to build an online presence?

Building an online presence is like building a brand for yourself online. It is like having an online shop where you showcase your services and also samples of your services so that prospective customers can find you.

When they find you, your ‘online shop’ should also convince them that you are the right person for their work.

An online presence can be in the form of a website, a blog, YouTube channel, or social media pages like Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc.

Why is building an online presence important?

Building an online presence is important because for you to convince people to work with you, they need to know that you fit the description of the person they need for their work.

When I didn’t know about building an online presence, I lost a prospective client because I couldn’t provide a portfolio page, website, or social media platform where my work was displayed or at least my credibility as a writer could be confirmed.

So, the client had to back out.

This might not be the case for you. You might have clients that are convenient working with you after you write a few samples for them. 

But this is not always the case for many other clients.

An online presence will:

• Help clients see that you are the perfect match for their work.
• Show your skills and experience to everyone who sees your work. Whether it’s your website or social media account. 
• Make prospective clients trust your brand and be willing to work with you.
• Make it easy for you to have a place to refer people who want to know more about your work and your skills.

How can I build an online presence as a freelancer?

Now to the golden question…

How to build an online presence.

You can build an online presence on different online platforms or on every online platform.

Imagine searching your name on google and getting several results of your name on different platforms. 

This helps you build more credibility in your work.

So how do you do this?

The following are essential places to build your online presence as a freelancer that will definitely get you known.

1/ Website

Having a website as a freelancer is important.

Your website should encompass a description of who you are, what you do, and why you should be hired.

In the first page site visitors see when they visit your website, you should be able to convince them to work with you or to get to know more about you just by seeing your first page. 

It doesn’t have to be a complicated design or template.

You can get your domain name and hosting from Namecheap, and design something simple with the Elementor plugin.

Your website can be something as simple as Isaac’s site or as complex and customized as Kat’s site.

Whatever you choose, ensure it encompasses everything you do and it carefully explains what you will be offering anyone who chooses to work with you.

If you’re a freelance photographer,  your website can be filled with portfolios of the pictures you’ve taken.

If you’re a freelance graphics or web designer, you can display the logos and web designs you’ve done on your site.

As a freelance writer, I have a section on my website for my portfolio and resume. I have a section for my services and also a section of my blog where prospective clients can check my writing style to see if I’m the best fit for their content.

2/ Social Media

Social media platforms like Twitter and Linkedin can be a great place to find clients and other freelancers who can refer you to prospective clients when they see that you are good at what you do.

But how will they know?

They will know through your profile and posts.

How often do you post?

Is your account optimized for the skills you’re offering?

If you’re a freelance web developer, it should show all over your Linkedin bio, banner, and profile.

Your Twitter bio should also show what you do.

At first glance, anyone who sees your social media pages should be able to tell what you do.

Endeavor to explain your service, your target customers, how you have helped other clients in the past, and also showcase your expertise in those few lines.

Having a youtube channel is also a great way to showcase your skills. You can teach people some things about your skill. 

If you’re a logo designer, you can make a video of how you designed a client’s logo in the past.

If a prospective client sees that, this can convince them to work with you because your video has shown that you know what you’re doing and you’re skillful.

As against other opinions about Instagram, you can also get leads and clients from Instagram.

Although it is a visual-based platform, you can make infographics and videos of your work and sell yourself on the platform.

But two places I will recommend are Linkedin and Twitter.

If you are consistent on these platforms and you’re known for what you do, before you know it, people will start reaching out to work with you.

3/ Post Everywhere

This doesn’t mean to literally post everywhere. It just means putting yourself in the right places for your freelance business.

This is the best way to generate backlinks to your website and also get search engines to show your website, brand, or name often.

So how do you do this?

-/ Guest post on other people’s blogs

-/ Answer questions or post on Quora, Reddit, etc.

-/ Join Facebook groups in your niche and engage with the members of the community

-/ Start a podcast or get interviewed for someone’s podcast

-/ Partner with other freelancers

-/ Hold free and paid webinars and workshops

-/ Have an email list

-/ Give out free ebooks and guides to your readers or site visitors.

-/ Learn SEO and optimize your site so that people can easily find you when they search for the services you offer.

If you make use of these tips, you too can build a credible online presence.

But, it’s not that easy…

Building a solid online presence takes time and commitment. It takes consistent showing up, posting, and putting yourself out there.

There will be times when nobody will see your posts, videos, and the hard work you put into your website, but you mustn’t stop.

I wrote a post on consistency and you should read it.

I started my consistent posting on websites and social media platforms in December 2021, after going full-time freelancing and I’m already getting traffic and leads.

Sometimes it feels like l have been doing this for a long time and sometimes I am frustrated that this will not yield results.

But one thing I have learned is that to get results you must be ready to put in the work.

Building an online presence has so many advantages but you must be ready to keep posting and putting yourself out there even when you don’t have a lot of engagements and traffic.

Gradually, everything will begin to come together.

People will start noticing you and your brand will grow.