The Introvert Freelancer’s Path to Profit

Patience, Practice, Processes, and Participation

Getting a consistent flow of new, repeat and referred clients takes patience, practice and processes. Its is not going to happen overnight. If you have decided to build a successful freelance web development business, you have to understand that it will take time to turn the money machine on.

Even if you are an avowed introvert, you have to be willing to move out of your comfort zone and practice your pitch on friends, family and your meet-up peers.  The most successful freelancers (read profitable) deploy automation tools for as many repeatable processes as possible.

Growing and expanding your business will take more “P” words — Planning and Participation

Plan for growth. Even if you haven’t landed your first paying client, add features to your site like a subscription button. Build an email marketing plan using autoresponders and a newsletter that would appeal to your target audience. Write an eBook and build a free offer to encourage your target audience to register for a webinar, once they have signed up for the Free eBook. The path to building a relationship with your targeted tribe is all about building your list of fans, who want to hear about your special offer.

Even if you have no subscribers for your free offer, even if there is no one in your sales funnel yet — Plan your “What’s next!”  Keep writing, keep adding automated processes to your client intake form, for when you target clients do sign into your sales funnel.

Get ready for success, be ready to not only handle more clients, but to delight those clients with great work and excellent customer service made possible by your automated processes..

Participate in your target community. If you are an introvert, practice your pitch. Join Toastmasters for support and helpful tips for improving your communication skills. Once you have chosen the type of clients you want to pursue, join and participate in the profession associations where they are to be found. Join Chambers of Commerce and Business Networking Associations. I know, I know — you are an introvert — it is hard to talk to strangers. But those strangers, need what only you can give them. As an introvert, I find that when I have the mindset,“I’m here to help.” it makes it easier to meet and hold conversations with the other attendees at professional conferences and trade association events.

Build Peer Partnerships

WordPress is too rich an ecosystem to be good, let alone great, at everything. Get really good at your sweet-spot-skills, and look for others in your WordPress community that you can partner with. If you love design and are great at user experience, user interface, look for a backend developer and offer to work together on larger projects. If you are a content developer look for partnership opportunities with smaller digital agencies or social media specialists.

 That’s a lot of “P” words, but the two best “P” words to Freelancer is PAID and PROFIT

For every freelancer time is a limited resource, that if not allocated correctly, can adversely effect the amount of money you are able to earn. A key aspect of profitability is to minimize time wasted on tasks that can be streamlined, automated, or outsourced. Don’t outsource work that is in your core skill set, but outsource the tasks that you hate, or don’t do well. Use you time getting great at what you love and let someone else be fantastic at what they love. That way you make money and the folks in your support system also profit.

Life is way to short to not love what you do.  Fortunately, the Introvert Freelancer’s path to profit, is also the path to freedom, fun, and living life to it’s fullest.

“Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, you ought to set up a life that you don’t want to escape from.”

– Seth Godin