What to do as a Freelancer in a Financial Crisis?

The freelancer’s guide to surviving a financial crisis:

• Make sure you’re tracking your income and expenses closely.
• Make sure you have money saved up so you can weather any financial storms that come your way.
• Be proactive about finding new work, be more creative and promote your services to potential clients if you see a slowdown in work.
• Diversify your income sources to ensure you have enough money to cover your expenses if one stream dries up.
• Don’t get too upset and don’t forget that a financial crisis are always temporary.

Cutting costs as a freelancer

When freelancing, it’s important to keep up with your expenses and find areas where you can save money.  Often the best advice is create monthly budget sheet so you really get a detailed overview of all your expenses. The most common budget cuts people take are:

• Subscriptions (software for example)
• Food and drinks (really need to work at that coffee bar again?)
• Car (remote work can save more money than you think)
• Rent (is the seperate office space worth your money?)

Once you have all the expenses in mind the next step is to make a budget and really stick to it.

How to get new clients and revenue streams

One of your most important marketing assets should be your portfolio, keep it up to date and make your best work the centrepiece. You might think this only applies for designers but don’t underestimate the power of testimonials and recognisable client brands and their challenges.

Then, use social media, online job boards and networking sites to find potential clients for your projects. Make sure you highlight your skills and services so potential clients can see what you can really offer them.

Lastly in tough times might be recommended to be more flexible in terms of pricing and discounts offered when possible. Your work hours should be flexible to so that you can take on additional projects as they come in. Many businesses are looking for cost-effective solutions in though times!

Get more creative

Use social media, ads and blogposts to your advantage by using it to communicate with potential new customers. Start sharing more about your proces, thoughts and brainfarts, but of course always link back to your business, portfolio or product.

The best way is not only to keep sending but to also get more involved in the community and help others. Attend local events and meetups and get involved in online communities related to your field. This will help you better understand potential client interests and needs, and learn about new trends in your industry that could be valuable for marketing your work. This can be an effective way of marketing yourself without spending a lot of money on advertising. 

Lastly if you really feel you are already squeezing out all your creativity. Get inspired by other. Take courses or attend that events that will bring in new ideas. And maybe along the way you also attract some new clients in the process.

Lastly, remember that tough times are temporary, keep your head up and keep riding that freelancer train!