By now, you’ve established your presence in social networking sites and just how credible are you as an expert in your niche? It all comes down to social influence…
With new collaboration and project management tools, just how will freelancing look like in 2012 and the near future?
With 2012 just a few days away, how ready are you to face the new year with hope and optimism?
I can’t believe that in a couple of days, it’s already 2012. So many things have passed and time really do fly faster these days that I almost lost count. I only have one question in mind though: Are You Ready for 2012?
Just in time for the Holiday Cheer, we’ve scoured the Web to bring you hot tools for the savvier freelancer. Though this list may not be as grand as the song that inspired this post, we invite you to take a look and make a list that’s truly worth for your freelancing biz:
Overworked, yet underpaid… You hear this rant a lot among freelancers these days and it’s not without a reason. Do you really know what you’re worth as a freelancer? In the classic law of economics, a price paid for work supplied equals the work demanded. If this were true, why do we hear freelancers say, at least once, “I’m not paid what I’m worth?” There’s absolutely more to this story than meets the eye, and the grass may look greener elsewhere.. but yours. How do you fix this?
Freelancers, you better watch out! The holiday season is here, and perhaps it may feel nerve-wracking than a jolly time to cheer… yet, we want you to gear up for the season and make the best of this time of the year. Yes, you may feel stressed, restless, or sleepless as you reach for your chocolate fix a dozen times. If you tend to work too much and you feel like wanting to slow down this month, you can do just that without missing opportunities to connect with your existing clients and potential ones as well. The key starts with finding your balance.
When Google Plus rolled out its brand pages, another question crept in my mind: Do freelancers need to create one? There have been hesitations and some just felt that adding one more item on top of their social networking list is an enormous time-burner. I’m not going to write down about how to go about creating your very own brand page, or what it’s all about, as there are plenty of resources on the Web to start with. Rather, I’ll be defining how this new platform can help you fully maximize your branding strategy, especially if you want to win against freelancing giants in your niche.
If you’re a social media enthusiast, you may have encountered the term ‘content marketing’ a lot of times. Social media consultants are highly recommending it as the most effective way to market your brand as a solopreneur, and that’s not without a reason. To make things drop dead simple, content marketing is all about creating valuable content so you can attract and engage with your dream clients. Think of it this way: Content Marketing is like silently marketing your expertise, minus the need to shill. If big brands like P&G and Microsoft are in the content marketing loop, that’s good enough reason for you to do so… because, it simply works!
What’s keeping your clients up at night? Ask yourself this one question when you’re thinking of how to make your customers happy so they will keep coming back for more. Most of the time, the answer to your question is that they’re busy surviving in this tough times and what keeps them up at night is what they will have to face tomorrow – your deliverable. Here’s where you take on an inquisitive mind, where you have to harness the art of asking questions. The real opportunity here is not about talking about what’s keeping them up at night, but engaging them in a talk about how you can help to improve their business.
In a perfect world, everyone is a winner… and then, boredom sets in. You may have plenty of reasons not to compare yourself with others, but the only way you can improve your skills and prosper is to take a healthy dose of competition to drive you to become the expert in your field. Forget the popular adage, ‘if you can’t beat them, join them’ – and this time, go all out in beating out the competition by becoming better, faster and more productive. Perhaps, a competitive hat is all you need so you won’t feel like working hard and earning just a little.
What does innovation exactly mean when you’re freelancing? We hear the word countless times and when you’re starting out as a freelancer, there seems to be little option of moving up the ladder of success. You may increase your rates or get projects from your dream clients, but your career can be very limited if you won’t find ways of renewing your skills, marketing tactics and your work life, so to speak. Do you have what it takes to put a dent in the freelancing universe?
Content is King! You hear this plenty of times and in a perfect world, ideas overflow from your writer’s golden cup. But, if you keep on postponing things you could have done today for tomorrow, and words seem to hover in the invisible cloud of your wandering mind, it’s time to snap out of the rut by stomping out that P-factor: Procrastination. Whatever’s stopping you to write a blog on a regular basis, it’s high time to face your nemesis and overcome the irrational fear that’s taking an iron grip of your creativity.
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