Being a freelancer, is a lot like a popularity contest. The further and deeper your connections are, the more (projects) you’re likely to win. That’s why it’s pretty important for freelancers in general to always keep time aside for networking and getting to know other people, whether they’re in your industry or not.
One of Don Corleone’s traits (talking about the movie here), is that he had very deep, inter-connected and loyal contacts. But how did he develop such a circle of people around him? Simple – he did favors for them and they simply wanted to reciprocate. I’m not advocating you become a gangster, rather, you learn a thing or two from his über networking skills.
1. Those who give, receive.
One of the fundamental rules to networking, and business in general is to give to the communities you are in, or want to be apart of. People, consciously and subconsciously are very favorable to those that have given them something, or have taught them something. There are so many ways you can give something valuable to people – it doesn’t have to necessarily cost you anything (in terms of money) either.
For example, you could release a free resource for people in the industry you’re trying to target, such as a blog or ebook. Not only will you get targeted attention to your portfolio, but by helping those in your target industry, they now have an inert sense of appreciation and automatically want to give back. That is the beauty of human nature.
2. Learn some psychology and apply it.
It may sound a little extra, but just learning some basic psychological tips and tricks that you can use whilst meeting a client, or speaking to them on the phone can do wonders for your client relations. If you’re looking for a resource that can help you with this, our ebook, Clientophilic Freelancing has a large section on client psychology, which is written especially for freelancers to learn about and apply in their business.
3.Be Honest and Take Interest
When you’re dealing with your clients, take an honest interest in what they do, maybe arrange to talk about their business over a cup of coffee. It helps wonders with building rapport and increasing your chances of being referred for extra business.
If you’re interested in learning a lot more about building great client relations, and ultimately making the sale with potential clients, you really need to check Clientophilic Freelancing out. You can get the first chapter for FREE by subscribing to our mailing list (check above this post).
Follow the steps above and you’ll be well on your way to becoming a freelancing Godfather.
Places To Find Work For All Types of Freelancers
Elance – They have over 30,000 jobs posted. They also cover many different categories, almost any type of freelancer can find work here.
oDesk – With almost any set of skills you have, you should be able to find freelance work here. They have a wide variety of categories. This is a heavily posted website.
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