To All Freelancing Professionals Out There, Make It Happen This 2015

It's a brand new year, and it's crucial to assess how the previous year went for your freelancing career so you can determine your moves for 2015.

You may have figured out the kind of routine that has brought you the most benefits, not just in terms of boosting your productivity, but in eliminating, or at least, minimizing distractions.

But due to the nature of our jobs, freelancing professionals shouldn't grow lax over time. Take a few hours now and assess where you need to improve and what you'd like to do. If your goal is --

to have a regular cash flow as soon as possible:

• Diversify by having at least three specialized skills. 
• Team up with other freelancers, establish a network, and recommend each other when you're swamped with projects. While you may not earn actively, you can still collect a 12- to 15-percent commission.
• Set up several payment options. PayPal is best if you have clients overseas, but Xoom is also just as effective.
• You may need to vary the standard 50/50 payment plan. I operate on a 40/60 basis, which means I only require a 40-percent down payment and a flat fee and I can immediately proceed to work and have my client settle the balance after I turn in the finished draft. If the project is large in scope and will stretch for weeks and even months, I adapt it to 40/30/30, which means getting a 40-percent down payment and some time into the project, I'll receive another 30 percent of the rough estimate so I can have something to keep me going. And after I turn the work in, I'll collect the remaining 30 percent.
• Offer your client an installment plan for more convenience. 

to discover new markets:

• Take a good look at your hobbies, interests, and other pastimes. Even something as seemingly "quirky" as frequenting garage sales can be a goldmine of ideas for articles and blog posts.
• Google blogs and websites about the topics that interest you, and spend a few days doing market study. Skim through the articles, notice how they're slanted, and see how they appeal to you as a reader.
• Ignore the newsstands and grocery store racks that sell magazines. I was able to discover two new titles at a rack inside a hardware store. The pet shop may have a number of publications about pet care, and the Sunday edition of your favorite newspaper may have "inserts" where you can pitch article ideas.
• To be able to keep within a budget when buying magazines and other periodicals, click here and here.

to improve your "soft skills":

• Draft your emails and cover letters carefully, keeping them brief yet concise. Highlight two to three of your skills, or other qualifications that present you as the best person for the job.
• Organize your portfolio and keep it up-to-date. If you're applying for a writing gig for a parenting blog, make sure that you can immediately retrieve two of your written samples and attach them in your email.
• Click here if you don't have any clips, or published articles, yet.
• To save time writing emails, click here.

Have a happy new year!

How to Keep A Record of Items for Possible Reimbursement (Part 3)

In my two previous posts, I talked about the items that would qualify for a reimbursement and how a freelancing professional can accurately present a record to his client.

To illustrate, let's say I was hired to write copy for a three-fold flier and I have to beat a six-week deadline. My client represents a training institute focused on equipping students with technical skills for career advancement in the workplace.

Let's say my client instructed that the institute's coordinators would like to attract more students to take up short-term courses that allow them to acquire a specialized skill. The flier would be part of their marketing strategy. 

Consequently, I will be tasked to interview some of the institute's successful graduates who have since gone on and landed entry-level positions and gradually worked their way up the career ladder.

Additional tasks include writing at least four concisely written testimonials vouching for the competence of the training institute and providing figures on how a certificate can increase an employee's salary within, say, a five-year stint in a company.

I create charts using Microsoft Word. Your record of incurred expenses can look like this:

Date                                       Meals                                         Fare

September                    Php220 (Lunch)                      Php100

   12                             Php220 (Two snacks)                  

September                    Php270 (Lunch)                      Php120

   24                             Php200 (Two snacks)

October                         Php250 (Lunch)                       Php100
    2                              Php200 (Two snacks)

TOTAL:    Add everything up and calculate at least 30 percent of the total.

Now, if I were to enter the amount into my invoice, here's how it would look:

Invoice of

RONALI G. dela CRUZ

Freelance Writer/Proofreader

Magazine Features * Ghostwriting * Resumes
Copywriting * Web Content * Blogging * SEO

Rate: Per project

Date                                          Tasks                                       Charges*

September 8-11           Brainstorming /

                                              conceptualizing                       Php2,000

                                    

September 12          Interview with graduates

September                Market study, feasibility            

   15-19; 22-26             study, day out on the 24th        Php4,500

September          Make follow-up calls for possible 

   29-October 3          rewrites; day out on the 2nd

October 6-10                        Revisions                                 Php1,500

October 13-15                 Finalize drafts

                                      Add at least 30 percent of

                                         incurred expenses.                      PhpX,000

                                          Add your flat fee.                           Php500

TOTAL                                                                                    State exact 

                                                                                                      amount.

*Keep in mind that freelancer's fees vary, even flat fees. The crucial issue is to make sure that you're being justly compensated.

How to Keep A Record of Items for Possible Reimbursement (Part 2)

In my previous post, I talked about the possibility of claiming reimbursements from clients. Here's the last item that you should include in your invoice:

(3.) Telephone and mobile phone bills

In the Philippines, people can get access to unlimited Internet through offers called "bundles" by companies like PLDT and BayanTel. You can get a telephone line with your Internet at a variety of monthly rates. 

Paying for a telephone-and-Internet bundle is an excellent idea to be able to sustain a freelancing professional's career. It can qualify as a tax deductible, which can help you reduce costs in the long term. 

Provided that you live within an area where it's easy to avail of such services, consider a telephone-and-Internet bundle as essential to your career. As a side note, there are reputable companies that outsource tasks and projects, and they allow a budget for a freelancer's Internet connection.

Now, if you schedule occasional days to go out to attend events and network, pay bills, and make appointments with people who can lend authority when you do research, a post-paid cellular phone plan may be better than making calls through telephone. 

But whichever you decide to use, have your telephone bills photocopied within the duration of the project and include them among the receipts you've incurred for your meals and fare. 

Next, add up the amount and calculate the equivalent of 30 to 40 percent of all expenses incurred.

In my next post, I'll show you how to include reimbursements in your invoice.