How to market yourself as a freelancer & get more clients

You’ve been freelancing for a while, and up until now, the work has come through referrals, repeat clients or purely word of mouth. But at some point, the pipeline slows — or you realize you’re ready for clients and projects that are more aligned with the work you really want to be doing. This is a sign that it’s time to learn how to market yourself as a freelancer.

One of the biggest struggles for my business coaching clients is landing the right opportunities. Finding any client isn’t the goal. Working with the ones who respect your process, align with your values and pay you well is a freelancer’s dream. But, it can also be a reality. In this post, we’ll dig into how to market yourself intentionally so you can get more leads and even be selective about who you work with.

There are many ways for marketing yourself as a freelancer, including building a strong personal brand, using social media effectively and attending networking events with a strategic lens. Let's explore several options so that you can find the best strategies for you.

Why market yourself as a freelancer?

One of the biggest challenges for freelancers is finding clients, so it’s essential to market yourself. If you wait for leads to come to you, it’ll be tough to maintain a consistent client roster, and you risk falling onto the “feast or famine” revenue rollercoaster.

If you have a strong marketing strategy, you’re more likely to have success as a freelancer and even scale your business if that’s your goal.

How to market yourself as a freelancer: 11 effective strategies

1. Build your personal brand

Half of the global workforce is self-employed, so personal branding is essential for standing out. We often think of branding for larger companies, but you can also create a personal brand yourself. 

A personal brand makes marketing easier for your freelance business because it helps build trust and recognition, explains Verô Branding, a brand design company.

Verô Branding suggests the following tips for creating an effective personal brand:

• Define your brand: Consider your values and how you want people to feel when they see your brand or work with you.

• Define your target audience: Identify who you want to work with and how you can help them.

• Create an authentic visual identity: Develop a logo and other visuals that align with you and your business.

• Be consistent: Use the same colours, fonts and visuals in your marketing material to help people recognize and remember you.

2. Join freelance communities

Not only can freelance communities make freelancing a lot less lonely, but they’re also a great place to network and find clients. 

For example, Pop Club is a small community of freelancers with 24/7 chat support, a resource library and regular workshops. The group also has a chat channel where you can market your services and share job opportunities. 

3. Use social media

About 35% of freelancers find work via social media. Common platforms include LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

You can use social media to market yourself as a freelancer with the following strategies:

• Build your personal brand: Define your goals with social media marketing and what you want to be known for. Then, create a content strategy that aligns with your goals and target audience.

• Implement content marketing: Create valuable content that attracts and engages your ideal clients. This can include helpful tips, inspirational stories, and client projects and wins.

• Find job opportunities: As a professional networking platform, LinkedIn is especially useful for finding freelance work. To find opportunities, you can use the job feature and search function to look for phrases like “hiring a freelance [your skill].” You can also follow and engage with people who work in marketing roles at companies in your niche.

• Make connections: Actively looking for jobs on social media can be time-consuming, especially considering the competition. An effective way to organically get jobs with social media is by making authentic connections, which can turn into opportunities when the time is right.

4. Pitch your services

Pitching is one of the most common client acquisition strategies for freelancers, but it requires time and careful consideration. Companies are being inundated with pitches from freelancers, so you need to stand out when pitching your services.

When sending pitches, consider the following:

• Choose your method: You can email companies you want to work with or contact them via LinkedIn. You can also pitch local businesses you're interested in working with.

• Do your research: Know a bit about the company before you reach out. This will help you identify if and why you’d be a good fit.

• Make connections first: Warm pitches often have better success than cold outreach. Consider sending pitches to people you’ve already connected with on social media or companies you’ve crossed paths with before.

• Send unique pitches: Instead of following a template, send an authentic message. Be yourself, share why you’d like to work together and include links to relevant work.

5. Create a website

A website is one of the best ways to market yourself as a freelancer, as it provides a home for your business and helps you stand out as a professional. 

Your website can feature everything potential clients need to know before deciding to work with you, including the following:

• Your services: Outline your offers and how they can benefit potential clients.

• Testimonials: Showcase positive feedback from past clients to build trust and credibility.

• Portfolio: Display samples of your work. You might also include a bit of information about each project, including its scope and the results you helped your client achieve.

• About page: Introduce yourself, your background, experiences, who you help and how you help.

• Contact page: Offer a simple way for potential clients to inquire about working together. You might also include the option to schedule a discovery call.

6. Implement website SEO

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a set of practices you can use to rank your website on Google and get more traffic. The best part? Year over year, SEO remains one of the marketing strategies with the highest return on investment. 

While there are many ways to optimize your website for SEO, important ranking factors include:

• Website accessibility: Your website needs to offer a good user experience and be accessible to as many people as possible. This helps Google know that your site is worth ranking and encourages your website visitors to stay around and potentially convert.

• Keyword phrases: SEO keywords are terms your target audience is searching for. These usually relate to your services or problems you help people solve. You can find SEO keyword phrases using a keyword research tool like Semrush (paid) or Answer the Public (free).

• Blog posts: Blogging is key to an SEO strategy because it allows you to incorporate more keyword phrases. Your articles can also share helpful content that Google can show to your target audience, helping you increase website traffic and build trust with prospective clients.

7. Ask for referrals

About 50% of freelancers get clients through referrals. You can get referrals from other freelancers, past and current clients, and people you know personally.

Talk about your offer(s) as much as possible, especially when you’re actively looking for clients. This way, you’re at front of mind when someone needs your services.

You can also reach out to people who might refer you using the following template:

Hi [client name],

I’ve had some availability open up and am looking for new clients. If you know anyone who could use help with [your service], feel free to share my contact information with them.

Thanks so much!
[your name]

8. Sign up for freelance newsletters

Over the years, freelance newsletters have become increasingly popular. This is an excellent way to get job opportunities straight to your inbox.

Some of the best freelance newsletters include:

• Kaitlyn Arford: 100 freelance opportunities every Friday for all kinds of services, including writing, web development, graphic design, social media management and more.

• Freelance Framework: Daily emails with various freelance writing jobs for all niches.

• All Things Freelance Writing: An email every Friday with freelance writing and pitch opportunities.

9. Start a podcast or YouTube channel

If you enjoy talking, hosting a podcast or YouTube channel could be a fun way to market yourself as a freelancer. These work similarly to social media marketing, where you share helpful and inspirational content with your target audience to build trust and generate leads.

For example, I have a YouTube channel for my business coaching business. I share real-life lessons and stories from my experience as a writer, strategist and business owner.

You can also repurpose your podcast or YouTube content for blog articles and social media content to expand your marketing strategies.

10. Be a podcast guest

If you want to use podcasts for marketing without hosting your own, being a guest is an excellent option. 

The key is getting on podcasts with an audience similar to yours. This might require some research or chatting with people in your network. When you find a podcast you want to be on, reach out and share your interest and the value you can bring. 

As a podcast guest, you can discuss a topic related to your offer(s). Most podcast hosts will also let you promote your services to their listeners and include your link(s) in their show notes.

11. Attend networking events

In-person networking events are one of the most effective ways to make connections and promote yourself. At an event, you can chat with business owners who might need your services. This is a good time to have business cards handy as well.

You can find networking events near you on sites like Eventbrite and Meetup. If there’s a co-working space in your area, they may also offer networking opportunities. 

Helpful tips for marketing yourself as a freelancer

Marketing your freelance business comes with a learning curve, but these helpful tips can make it easier.

• Avoid marketing overload: Start by choosing one marketing strategy you can implement at a high level. Then, consider adding one or two more methods to reach more potential clients.

• Create a marketing schedule: You’re more likely to implement your marketing strategies if you’ve made time for it in your schedule. Set a reasonable marketing schedule for yourself — one that you’re likely to stick to.

• Market yourself even when you’re fully booked: Avoid the feast or famine cycle by marketing yourself even when you’re not actively looking for clients.

• Develop good client relationships: Client retention and referrals can take your business to the next level. Being friendly, professional and reliable encourages them to continue working with you and share your information with other prospective clients.

Get support growing your freelance business

I hope you found this article helpful and are ready to market yourself as a freelancer to get more clients and increase your income. I recommend nailing down one strategy before trying to dive into multiple. This is often more sustainable and usually ensures the best results.

If you’d like support growing your freelance business and landing clients you’re excited to work with, feel free to explore my business coaching offers. My business and marketing strategy guidance can help you get clarity and take action to build a freelance business you love.

If you’re ready to chat and learn more about potentially working together, you can book a free discovery call.