How to Start A Freelance Business that Makes Serious Money in 12 Simple Steps

Looking for freelance business ideas or freelance business ideas for beginners? You’re in the right place. 

Starting a freelance business was hands down the best thing I could have possibly done for my family 5 years ago. I was able to replace my full-time income and quit my day job in less than six months from starting my business. 

I think anyone can be a freelancer, even if you have no experience and in this post, I am going to tell you exactly how to do it. But first, let’s determine the best type of freelance business for you. 

What is freelancing? 

Freelancing is when you get hired by businesses on a contract basis. You aren’t an employee, you are self-employed. This means you set your own hours and prices, you determine what your specialty is, and you pay your own taxes. In other words, you have complete freedom to do what you want inside your business. 

If you want to hear the full story of how I started my own freelance business and grew so quickly, you can check out my post here! 

Which freelancing business is best? 

If you’re looking for freelance business ideas for beginners, you might be wondering how to choose a specialty. Something I love about freelancing is you get to create your own dream job. Love Pinterest? Become a Pinterest Manager like I did! Passionate about podcasts? Try out Podcast Management! There are so many options, and if you don’t have any experience, you can always just start with general virtual assistant work and specialize once you have found something you absolutely love. 

Here are some freelancing specialties you can choose from: 

1. Pinterest Manager
2. Podcast Manager
3. Social Media Manager
4. Web Designer
5. Graphic Designer
6. Copywriter
7. Launch Specialist
8. Ads Manager
9. Online Business Manager
10. Virtual Assistant
11. Data Analysis
12. Video Editor
13. YouTube Manager
14. Blog Manager
15. TikTok Manager
16. Curriculum Designer
17. Product Description Writer
18. SEO Consultant
19. Resume Writer
20. Tech Virtual Assistant

There are tons of options. If you want more details on the highest-paying services you can offer as a freelancer, make sure to check out my post here! 

How do I start a freelance business? 

Here is a simple breakdown of the steps you can take to start freelancing today. 

1. Choose your specialty and your business name: Find a specialty from the list above and then pick a business name that is easy to remember. If you aren’t sure, your name is always a great business name for a freelancer.
2. Research Legal Requirements: Research online the legal requirements for becoming a freelancer in your area. If needed, register your business so that you are legal. 
3. Set up your business with an email, scheduler, and invoicing system: Now that you’re registered, it’s time to start setting it up! Create a business email address that you use only for business. When you are starting, a Gmail email address is perfect. Create an account with a scheduling program so that clients can easily book calls with you based on your availability. You can use Acuity or Calendly for this for free.
4. Obtain a freelancing contract template: Anytime you are agreeing to work with a new client, you want to make sure that everyone has signed a contract before the work starts. The contract should outline what work you are agreeing to do, when it starts, when it ends, when billing will occur, what happens if there is a late payment, and how far in advance notice should be given on either side if they decide to end services. There are several contract templates online specifically for freelancers so I recommend getting one that way and customizing it for each new client. 
5. Decide how you will price your services: There are two ways you can price your services- hourly or package pricing. I always recommend package pricing so that you are not boxed into how much money you can earn in your business. Create a package of services that a business will receive and a set price for those services. This way, no matter how much time it takes you or how quickly you get it done, you still get paid the same amount. 
6. Create a portfolio and social media accounts for your new business: After you have determined your services and pricing, it’s time to create a portfolio. You can do this for free in Canva. Be sure to include who you are, what you do, your experience, your pricing, and the next steps if they want to work with you. You want to have this on hand in case anyone asks for pricing information. If you have any experience in your area of expertise, you can include case studies here. You can immediately send them your portfolio so they can get a feel for what you do and if they want to work with you. It’s also a great time to create some social media accounts on whatever platforms you are focusing on so that you can start to generate some credibility and brand recognition. 
7. Start telling people about your business: A wise man once said you can’t run a business in secret! You have to tell people what you are doing if you want to succeed. Begin getting the word out that you are freelancing now so that you can start spreading the good news. 
8. Find out where your ideal clients are hanging out and start networking there: What clients would you be working with in a dream world? Where would that client hang out? Facebook groups? LinkedIn? Instagram? In-person events? Do some research and find out where they are most active and then focus your attention on that! Start mingling in this area and getting to know other people. Tell them who you are and what you do so that they can start to associate you with your services. 
9. Finding clients: Now for the fun part, finding clients! While this part can seem overwhelming, it’s actually pretty fun. As mentioned above, if you want to find clients organically without any freelancing websites that take a part of your commission, then networking is going to be your golden ticket. Find out where your people are and hang out there too! Add value to the conversation and become known for what you do. If someone posts that they are looking for help in your area of expertise, then reach out and see if they want to get on a call with you.  These are called discovery calls and it’s essentially when you hop on a call with a potential client and see what they are looking for. You determine if you’re a good fit for what they need and sell your services if you think its a good fit. After the call, send them a proposal (you can make one for free in Canva) explaining what services you recommend and pricing. Once they agree, send a contract using your contract template and get started! 
10. Wow your clients: Schedule a kick-off or starter call to get everything you need to get started working. Do your best to make a great impression! Do your work well and turn it in before it’s due. Go out of your way to impress your clients. This is how you create a business that succeeds! 
11. Ask for referrals: After about three months of working together, it’s time to ask for referrals. If clients are happy, you’ll find that most of them are happy to send their friends your way. You can also create a referral program of your choosing that encourages them to refer people to you. A percentage off of your clients services is usually a good one to provide incentive. 
12.  Repeat. Determine how many clients you need to meet your income goals and then repeat steps 9-11 until you reach that number. 

How to start freelancing with no experience

Find a freelance specialty that you are interested in but don’t know how to do it since you’ve never done it before? No problem! The beauty of having a freelance business is that you can create your dream job and teach yourself whatever skills you need to know to do it. 

Online courses are an amazing way to get top-tier education in whatever subject you want. I myself took multiple online courses to further my education in online business and I don’t regret a single one. Investing in your financial future is always a good idea. There are courses on how to do just about everything and do it well. I have taken countless courses on any subject you can think of and it has paid off each and every time because they brought in more money for me. 

Of course, if you really need to start a freelance business from home for free, you can always teach yourself everything you need to know on YouTube. Granted, it will take you longer and there will be a lot of trial and error, but it’s possible. Just keep your head up and keep going! 

Freelancing will always be near and dear to my heart because of all of the things I tried, it is the one thing that allowed me to quit my job and be home with my kids while also making real money from home. 

Have questions for me? Drop them below!