Ten Things To Do Before Starting a Freelance Business

There are a lot of things to think about when starting out as a freelance writer, and it's not just about the query letters, the writing, the submitting, the search for publications, etc. It's about running a business and being a professional.

Here are 10 housekeeping items to do before starting your freelance business:

1) Create an inspiring work area. Set up your desk, your book shelves, your cup of pens. Put images on your walls, pictures on your desk. Whatever makes you feel most comfortable and inspired.
2) Get a website. I am a full-time freelance writer who still has not finished a website, and I'm doing alright, but I have made several connections who wanted to know what my website was and I couldn't direct them to anything. Try to do this as one of the first things you do.
3) Get business cards. A very simple and inexpensive marketing tool for networking and giving current clients little reminders when you stuff one in with your invoice.
4) Get a separate checking account for business. Never use your personal account, the IRS doesn't like this when it comes to tax time and it's easier for you to keep track of your expenses and receivables.
5) Get a savings account for your business. Then put a percentage of what you earn into it every time you are paid for estimated taxes you will owe.
6) Get a blog and keep up with it. A great marketing tool, it lets people see your expertise, your style, etc. It helps to brand you a leader in your niche or field.
7) Choose your niche(s). You can be a generalist or specialist, but either way you should have a few (no more than approx. 4) niches that you know well. More on generalist vs. specialist in another post.
8) Create spreadsheets. I use one for all corporate jobs, one for publications, one for general contact info of clients and one for general contact info for publications. Lots of database upkeep, but VERY helpful in the long run.
9) Create a filing system. You'll need this to hold receipts for things you've purchased for your business so that you may deduct them at tax time, you can keep hard copies for everything you do, keep a file for every client you have, keep your banking info there, keep EVERYTHING.
10) Make a daily or weekly schedule. This can be tentative but I find I stay on task a little bit better if I have a schedule of what I need to do for the day or week and I break it up into segments of time judging from an estimate of how long it takes to complete each task. Don't get too worked up if you don't ever end up following it exactly. It's about finding out how you work best and making changes as needed. A schedule can just be a guide for your day or week, not an absolute.

Deciding to Start Freelance Writing

The decision to start a freelance writing career is a tough one for some. There are numerous things to think about and organize and a certain level of motivation and commitment required in order to be successful. But you can always start freelancing slowly for those of you who are too scared to jump right into full-time freelance work right off the bat.

You can always start out as an occasional freelancer, writing when you want to, accepting the jobs you want, not starting another until you've finished with the first, all while keeping your regular job (if you need one of those horrible things). Put together a simple portfolio of some sample work you've done (whether published or not) so you can have something to show potential clients. The occasional freelancer may do some marketing or blogging but generally can just gain projects and clients by replying to ads on job sites.

Once you've gotten comfortable with your method of freelancing and you are able to complete your projects with more ease and efficiency than you did with your first project then start moving into part-time freelance. Part-time freelance (to me) means you start marketing yourself, you start blogging and getting your name out there. You may start contacting a few businesses here and there to let them know about your services and see if they need someone to do some content. You gain one or two regular clients and you basically keep a steady stream of "light" projects or one or two heavy ones.
Once you start freelancing part-time and are finding that you are enjoying it, then start setting goals for going full-time. Do you have a time-line of six months, two weeks or even a year? Where do you want to be by then? How much do you want to be making? Start making a list of all the things you need to do to to achieve your goals and put it in a conspicuous spot where it will remind you regularly about your goals.

Now you're ready to move to full-time freelance writing? Get a website, you may have done this previously, but if you haven't then it's an important step in freelancing full-time. Personally, mine is still being designed because I spent too much time trying to read Creating Web Pages for Dummies and failing. Start studying up on self-employment taxes, running a home business and finances. Make some spreadsheets to track all of your clients, payments, publications, accounts receivables, etc. or you can invest in a Quickbooks program. Then market like crazy. Network like crazy. Spend about 50% of your time marketing and doing your finances and the other 50% writing. Make sure you don't miss too many days of marketing, you may not see the effects immediately, but likely a month later you could end up with a gap in work.


All in all, this is an easy method for those who like to play things a little safer, or need a full-time regular job while starting their freelancing career, or for any other reason.