4 efficient ways to find work as a freelance social media manager

If you’re new to the career track, finding clients may seem difficult at first. Learn how to find clients as a freelance social media manager here.

One of the greatest things about freelancing is that there’s a virtually endless amount of different career paths that you can pursue.

You have the opportunity to be a freelance writer, graphic designer, accountant, or even a consultant. One of the most popular options that people choose is working as a freelance social media manager.

If you’re just getting started, it can often be fairly difficult to secure new clients (especially enough for full-time work). Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can make this process easier.

1. Show them what you have to offer

Before you can begin acquiring clients on a regular basis, you’ll need to convey what you have to offer them as a professional.

This means you should have a website that clearly illustrates who you are as a social media manager. An integral part of this also involves showcasing a portfolio of past projects.

If you haven’t worked with clients in the past, you’ll need to create mockup work on your own.

To elaborate, you would choose a brand (either real or fictional) that represents the type of client you’d like to work with. Then, you would complete a handful of projects as a way to give prospective clients a solid idea of what you’re capable of.

2. Message brands directly

Unfortunately, people most likely aren’t going to come knocking on your door during the early stages of your career. So, you need to get out there and start interacting with the brands you would like to work with.

Luckily, the Internet has made this easier than ever before, and a simple direct message can go a long way. When pitching yourself, it’s best to keep it as concise as possible out of respect for the other person’s time.

Be sure to briefly introduce yourself, mention the merits you have, and provide a link to your portfolio. You should also write each message personally, as nobody will read it if it seems like you copied and pasted it to a massive amount of people.

3. Choose a niche

It might seem counterproductive to limit yourself to a single niche as a social media manager, but it’s a necessary action to take.

After all, nearly every freelancer has a handful of niches that they focus on. In this context, this means that you’ll need to figure out what type of brands you would most enjoy working with.

To help get you started, you can consider broad categories like sports, fashion, music, etc. From here, you’ll have a much clearer path forward.

Once you begin securing work, it’s best to utilize a platform that serves as a centralized location for all of your ongoing projects. That way, you will always have an accurate representation of your outstanding obligations, upcoming deadlines, etc.

4. Set your rates

As previously mentioned, it’s important to save time when interacting with a potential client. By establishing your rates before you contact them, you can avoid the entire negotiation phase and eliminate any uncertainty about whether or not they have the budget to hire you.

As you progress in your career, your established rates will also help you avoid unprofessional clients who may attempt to lowball you. So, take a bit of time to figure out how much you are willing to work for and then convey this information during client interactions.

It’s also worth taking advantage of tools that help you keep track of your invoices and client payments. Not only will this allow you to see your progress from month to month, but you can also use this information to make filing your taxes an easier process.

Hectic provides freelancers with an invoice tool to automatically generate branded invoices as they complete projects. After everything’s been properly configured, all you’ll need to do is briefly review and approve them.

This will ensure all of your hard work pays off like it’s supposed to.

It might seem impossible to get clients as a new freelance social media manager

But, it’s not nearly as difficult as you might anticipate. As long as you keep the above advice in mind, you’ll be able to streamline this process and begin building your presence as a freelance social media manager as quickly as possible.

Want to learn more about what we have to offer? Feel free to reach out to us today and see how we can help.