{"id":30648,"date":"2021-10-21T09:38:08","date_gmt":"2021-10-21T08:38:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.peopleperhour.com\/discover\/?post_type=guides&p=30648"},"modified":"2021-10-21T09:38:09","modified_gmt":"2021-10-21T08:38:09","slug":"how-to-land-your-first-client","status":"publish","type":"guides","link":"https:\/\/www.peopleperhour.com\/discover\/guides\/how-to-land-your-first-client\/","title":{"rendered":"How to land your first client on PeoplePerHour"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

So, you’ve joined PeoplePerHour and are ready to start earning. But, there’s one small problem, you don’t have any clients yet. Check out our top five tips for using your freelancer profile to help you land your first client on PeoplePerHour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Your freelancer profile is everything<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It still surprises us how many people overlook the biggest marketing tool they have on the PeoplePerHour platform. Your freelancer profile. A great looking profile will really help to highlight your strengths and talents and is key to bringing in your first client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fill out your profile as much as possible, and really focus on your headline and the first three lines, as this is what will show above the \u2018read more\u2019 tag on your profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"important<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Profile example: Stephen is a TOP CERT freelancer in the social media category<\/a> with PeoplePerHour<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of your freelancer profile, make sure you have a decent picture. We really encourage personal headshots rather than company logos or cartoon-style figures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buyers like to get an idea of who their freelancer is, so use your headshot to your advantage in your freelancer profile. We also encourage professional profile pictures. So, if you were planning on using the one of you swigging a beer on a beach in Spain, we\u2019d urge you to reconsider!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Upload your best work to your portfolio<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your freelance portfolio is your biggest sales tool \u2014 it shows your potential new customers what you\u2019ve done before, and the quality of work you could do for them. If you want to quickly land your first client, load your very best pieces of work to your freelance portfolio, with your best six pieces first. (These are the ones that will be shown first on your profile.) The good news is, you can add as many pieces to your portfolio as you like!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Showcase<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Profile example: Sallyann is a TOP CERT freelancer in the graphic design category<\/a> with PeoplePerHour<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, we also know that new freelancers might not yet have a freelance portfolio to show off. If this is case for you, don\u2019t panic! Even as a brand new freelancer who\u2019s just starting on the journey to living your work dream, you can build a portfolio easily and quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Enter competitions.<\/strong> This is a great way for creative freelancers to show what they\u2019re made of. Search online for relevant competitions in your industry and create a few pieces of work. If you win, bonus! If you don\u2019t, it doesn’t matter. You have something to add to your portfolio.<\/li>
  2. Do some freelance<\/strong> work for a charity.<\/strong> Here at PeoplePerHour HQ we definitely do not endorse working for free. You\u2019re a professional freelancer and you deserve to be paid! But, for new freelancers, offering to do some free or greatly reduced work for a charity or non-profit that you care about, can be useful to you both. And, you can then use it as part of your freelance portfolio. (Don\u2019t forget to make this a condition of doing the work!)<\/li>
  3. Offer to do freelance<\/strong> work for friends and family<\/strong> at a reduced rate. Know of a family business that could use your services? Use who and what you know to help you build your portfolio. Working for friends and family for a very limited time can really help to boost your credibility, and your freelancer portfolio.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    3. Add Offers to your freelancer profile<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Offers<\/a>, are just one of the things that set PeoplePerHour apart from some of our competitors.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Offers are \u2018off-the-shelf\u2019 jobs that you can complete for different buyers over and over again. For example, if you\u2019re really good at writing blog posts, you can easily create an offer for writing a 500-word SEO-friendly blog post for a set fee. That offer can then be bought by the PeoplePerHour community of buyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Offers are brilliant additions to your freelancer profile and act as your very own little shop that you can promote both on and off the platform.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Interesting fact<\/em>: over the last six months, PeoplePerHour buyers have bought 30,602 offers, compared to accepting 28,867 public freelancer bids.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Go ahead and create as many offers as you like! This can be a great way to land your first customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"Create<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    4. Apply for projects regularly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    As our monthly gift to you, PeoplePerHour will credit your freelancer account with 15 proposal credits at the start of each month – completely free of charge. All you have to do is use them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It’s unlikely you’ll gain your first client without bidding on projects. Applying for projects regularly and writing a stellar proposal will help to convince new customers that you\u2019re the right freelancer for the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We\u2019ll offer more guidance on writing a great project freelance proposal in a later post, but as a rough guide:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Do<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n