AllDevJobs Blog

Finding freelance work can be a daunting task, especially if you’re just starting out. These five tips are the absolute key to getting high-quality, consistent work with companies you actually want to work for. One thing to remember though is to make sure you are producing high-quality work because that truly is the best thing you can do to get more work. Now, on to the tips!

1. Release High Quality Free Stuff

Show off your quality of work by releasing something awesome. If you do a great job, odds are you’ll get some serious interest from companies looking for whatever it is you’ve built. In my experience, releasing free WordPress themes has been a huge benefit in my career. I typically would get in contact with the owners of sites like Smashing Magazine or Six Revisions and ask them to release my themes, which they are more than happy to do. Remember though, the focus should be on quality, not just pumping out free stuff that could suck, which nobody would want or care about. A great example is my good friend Rogie King, who releases only the highest quality design goodies on his website, Komodo Media.

2. Target a Niche

Find a niche that needs help. Build a service around it. If it’s within your skillset, put together a service for real estate websites built in WordPress using AgentPress. The real estate market needs services like this. If you’ve ever tried to find a home online, you’ll know what I mean. If you’re a front-end developer, put together a site for XHTML/CSS conversion and start doing some marketing for yourself. Typically the payoff is well worth the effort put into building the site. Basically, the key is to find a niche, build a needed service around it, and start getting clients to come to you, instead of the other way around.

3. Build a Network of Professionals

This one takes years, but I can’t stress enough the importance of building your own network of professionals. Honestly, it’s been a huge advantage for me to be able to not only work with the best developers, copywriters, illustrators, etc., but it can also help you get great feedback from other designers/developers who have different approaches and perspectives on things. To me, this is huge, because it improves the quality of your work which makes you a more desirable freelancer.

4. Start a Business (In Your Mind)

You’re probably thinking… “What the heck does that mean?” Well, let me explain. Often, a freelancer will limit themselves just because of their own shortsightedness in finding the “next job” or the “next client.” By starting a business or at least thinking of your freelance work as a business  with a full business plan, strategy, and quarterly goals, one can really focus on how to optimize workflow, client communications, marketing, billing, and all the other aspects of freelancing. By thinking with the mindset of a business owner, it makes freelancing a lot more challenging, but also a lot more rewarding as well.

5. Search for Opportunities (in the Right Places)

Now, I typically don’t go out and find work on sites like elance.com, getafreelancer.com, or rentacoder.com, mainly because the average client on those sites is not the type of client I want. They are usually looking for an offshore developer or someone who can do a single job for them on the cheap. I do however, browse sites that have great freelance jobs listed that can turn into long-term engagements, like Authentic Jobs, the 37signals Job Board, and of course, AllDevJobs.com. Sites like these have much higher quality clients who are paying top dollar for their listings, as well as seeking the finest job seekers and freelancers they can find.