How to Earn More Money Freelancing in the UK (Even If You're a Total Beginner)

If you're looking to take your freelancing career to the next level and increase your income as a self-employed professional, here are our top twelve tips for earning more money during your first year as a freelancer in the UK.

Choose a Specialized Field

When starting out as a freelancer, you may feel tempted to take any paid work you can find on platforms like Fiverr or Upwork. However, as you progress in your freelancing journey, it's important to be strategic about the types of work you do and the clients you work with. Specializing in a specific skillset allows you to become an expert in a particular field, and experts can command higher rates for their specialized services. Platforms like Upwork and Fiverr even have expert and pro categories that can help you showcase your expertise.

The age-old debate of whether to be a generalist or a specialist when starting your freelance career is not worth pondering. If you were a client in need of email marketing assistance, persuasive ad copy, or a website update, would you prefer to hire a jack-of-all-trades or a specialist who excels in one area? The answer is clear.

This principle applies to other fields as well. For example, if you're starting out as a web developer, you can specialize in migrating blogs to WordPress. By doing so, when someone searches for assistance with blog migration, they can find you easily. Graphic designers can also specialize in creating graphics specifically for WordPress.

Choosing the right niche and investing effort into branding yourself as an expert within that niche can pay off significantly in the long run.

Define Your Service Offerings Clearly

Early on in your freelance career, it's crucial to determine what services you offer and what you don't. The more specific and focused you can be about your offerings, the better. This clarity will not only help you establish your brand, but it will also allow you to shape your portfolio in the direction you desire.

If your goal is to become a highly sought-after Ruby on Rails developer, for instance, you should avoid accepting contracts for tasks like customizing WordPress themes or designing user experiences for mobile apps. While the allure of consistent work might be tempting, taking on projects that don't align with your ultimate goal of becoming the best in your field will only hinder your progress.

Identify Your Ideal Client

Before you start searching for clients, it's essential to have a clear idea of who your ideal clients are. Do you want to work with small business owners, establish yourself as a professional blogger, specialize in copywriting, contribute to feature development in high-growth tech startups, or engage in long-term contracts with large companies? Perhaps you aim to work exclusively with brands and clients whose values align with yours.Defining your target clients is crucial for effectively pitching your services. To identify your ideal freelance clients and find them, ask yourself these questions:

What types of businesses have the problems that my services can solve?

Can the businesses I want to work with afford to hire me? What demographic trends can I identify among the decision-makers in my target businesses? Consider factors such as age, gender, geographic location, preferred websites, and personal interests. By narrowing down your potential clients and focusing on those within your niche, you can instantly establish rapport and confidence with new clients who are seeking expertise in your specific area.

Create an Impressive Portfolio Site

Having a high-quality portfolio website is a must if you want to be taken seriously as a freelancer. Your website should:

• Showcase your expertise.
• Highlight relevant past experiences.
• Reflect your personality.
• Provide contact information for potential clients to reach you easily.

An exceptional portfolio can compensate for limited job experience or testimonials, proving your skills and expertise. Invest time in deciding what to feature on your portfolio and how to display it before actively seeking new projects.

Once your portfolio site is up and running, include a link to it in your email signature and on your social profiles to increase visibility.

Start Freelancing While Keeping Your Day Job

It is highly recommended to start your freelance business while maintaining your day job or working part-time, rather than immediately pursuing full-time self-employment. Besides the time it takes to create a high-quality portfolio website, build your personal brand, and expand your portfolio, it's wise to have a few steady freelance clients before relying solely on freelance income. Before leaving your full-time job, aim to grow your side income to at least 50-75% of your total current income, depending on your risk tolerance.

Managing a tight schedule, a heavy workload that includes demanding freelance projects, and fulfilling client expectations with limited time resources will provide valuable insights into running your own business.

Another advantage of acquiring freelance clients while still employed is that you can be selective. You are not entirely dependent on the money, allowing you to turn down work that doesn't pay enough or that you're not genuinely interested in. Upholding these principles will contribute to your overall happiness once you transition into full-time freelancing.

Enhance Your Skills

The best way to command higher rates as a freelancer is to possess impressive skills that are in high demand. Practice using your skills by working on projects that align with your desired paid work. Whether it's building WordPress websites, developing mobile apps, or specializing in graphic design or copywriting, differentiate yourself from the competition by showcasing cool side projects and examples that attract potential customers.

You don't necessarily need to pursue a formal education in computer science to increase your value as a freelancer. Online courses can provide the necessary training and put you in control of your education.

Remember, highly skilled freelancers can command higher rates, and continuously improving your skillset will position you for greater success.