When you’re starting out in business, it can be hard to know where to start when it comes to marketing your services. Luckily, there are plenty of ways that you can use freelance marketing techniques to drive new business and generate revenue for your small business. In this guide, we’ll explain why you need a marketing plan and how to create one that will help you grow as a freelancer.
Here’s how to create a marketing plan for your freelance business.
- Define the problem before starting on a solution.
- Set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable and realistic.
- Don’t worry about what other people’s goals are. Be ambitious but stay realistic!
- Examples of tangible fitness goals you could achieve in 3-6 months: lose 5 pounds (1 kg) or 10 pounds (2 kg), increase your strength by 20 percent or 30 percent, and run a mile in under 6 minutes/km without stopping.
Make sure that you know your business goals.
Before you start, it’s important to define your goals. Are the business goals that you’re trying to achieve related to revenue? If they are, then what kind of revenue are we talking about? What is the most realistic target for your business in 3-6 months’ time?
It’s also important not to worry about other people’s goals. The best thing that can happen when setting out on this journey is for each person who does it will have their own unique path and experiences along the way. It doesn’t matter if another business owner has done something similar before; what matters is that YOU have a plan that works for YOU! And if there is anything we’ve learned from personal training sessions over the years (and also life) – goal setting works!
Make sure you have an understanding of who your customers are.
The first step in the process of marketing your business is to understand who your customers are. You need to know what their needs are, what they want out of the product or service you offer, and how much money they’re willing to spend on it.
Once you have this information, it’s time for some research! The next thing I recommend doing is researching your competitors–the other companies that also provide products or services similar to yours. Look at what they’re doing right and wrong so that when it comes time for your own marketing efforts later on (like content creation), you can make sure not only that they’re effective but also that they’re unique enough from other companies’ efforts so people will notice them as well
Create a marketing plan with SMART goals.
To start, you’ll want to create a marketing plan with SMART goals. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-Bound. These are the most effective types of goals because they make it easy to measure your success and track your progress toward achieving them.
Here’s an example: You want to increase sales by 20% this year by focusing on inbound marketing tactics such as blogging and social media management. This is a great example of a SMART goal because it’s specific (20% increase in sales), measurable (you can track how much revenue comes from each marketing channel), achievable (you have evidence that similar companies have been able to achieve similar results), realistic (you know what challenges might arise) and time-bound (you’ve set yourself up with deadlines).
Determine the best methods to reach your target audience.
The next step is to determine the best methods to reach your target audience. In this case, we’re going to focus on social media, email marketing and SEO (search engine optimization).
- Social media: This can be used for both lead generation and brand awareness. The key is creating engaging content that people actually want to share with others on their own time rather than having them sit through a sales pitch from you directly.
- Email marketing: Email newsletters are great because they allow you direct access into someone’s inbox where they are likely more open-minded than they would be otherwise if approached by phone or in person due to privacy concerns when communicating via electronic devices versus face-to-face interaction between two humans interacting with each other directly without any barriers between them physically separating them first before talking directly at each other face-to-face instead of just talking over the top of each other via phone call only which doesn’t allow either party much opportunity
Freelance Marketing: Set a budget.
The first step to creating a budget is to figure out how much you can spend on marketing. This may seem like a simple task, but it’s important that you set aside enough money for your marketing efforts before they begin. The next step is to decide what kind of marketing costs should be included in this budget and how they will be tracked.
The best way to determine an appropriate amount is by looking at the revenue generated from previous projects or past freelancing rates (if applicable). If this information isn’t available, consider using industry averages as guidance: many industries have established standards for what constitutes “reasonable” compensation for various types of work–for example, $100/hour might be typical for web design work while $50/hour might be standard for writing copy. You can also use our free rate calculator tool here at Freelancer Labs if need help calculating a fair market value based on location and experience level!
Once you’ve determined how much money should go towards marketing efforts each month/quarter/year etc., then break down specific areas where those funds will go into action so there’s no confusion later on down the road when making spending decisions during the project kickoff meetings or client calls – especially since many clients won’t understand why certain costs may seem high until explained thoroughly beforehand through written proposals etc..
Track and adjust as needed.
After you’ve identified your target audience and established the right channels, it’s time to get down to business. This is where things get a little more complicated. You’ll want to track your marketing efforts and make adjustments as needed so that you can continue improving over time.
As with any other aspect of business, it’s important not only that you know what works but also why something is working or not working at all–or even whether or not it was worth doing in the first place! If something doesn’t seem like it should be working well (like an email campaign), then maybe there’s another way for you to reach out instead (like using social media).
You should also consider establishing a marketing calendar: scheduling when each task will happen so that nothing slips through the cracks–and remember that no matter how detailed your plan is now, there will always be things outside its scope!
Creating a marketing plan is essential to your freelance business success
A marketing plan is an essential part of your freelance business strategy. It helps you to define your goals, prioritize tasks and stay focused on your target audience.
You don’t need to be a marketing expert or have any special training to create one–in fact, we’ve created a step-by-step guide that walks you through each stage of the process so that anyone can do it!
Here are some tips for getting started:
- Think about what type of client would be interested in working with you. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from our clients over the years, it’s this: everyone has different needs and wants when it comes down to their marketing strategies. The more specific you can get about who they are (and why), the better chance you have at connecting with them. Once we know what kind of person needs us most right now then all else falls into place much easier than expected.
Conclusion
With a marketing plan, you can strategize how to reach your customers and create more revenue. This is important for any business, but especially for freelancers who work from home or run small businesses from their laptops. If you’re looking for more ways to market yourself as a freelancer, check out our post on social media marketing tips.
