10 In-Demand Tech Skills for Freelancers in 2019
Freelancing is on the upswing across the world. The number of people choosing to freelance is rapidly increasing because it allows them to be their own manager and director, gives freedom of work, flexible working hours, work from anywhere and unlimited opportunities.
According to a survey by Upwork, 56.7 million people in America did freelancing in 2018, up from 53 million in 2014. Of them, 84% are full-time freelancers and 42% choose it because of the flexibility.
Freelancing is opening a wide range of opportunities for everyone who has the relevant skills. However, with the change in the pace of innovation, the demand for necessary skills is also changing. Although no skill is going out of work, some skills are gaining traction and are in high demand.
If you are a freelancer or looking to start freelancing with technical skills, then we have curated the top tech skills that are in high-demand today. If you work with these skills, you are very likely to make a lot of money in 2019 and beyond.
1. Web development
Because of ease of access to the internet, more people go for various online services like online shopping, e-banking and others. Start-ups and other SMBs are excited to launch their websites and leverage market opportunities. This has increased the demand for web developers.
Today, there are plenty of freelance opportunities in web development because not many people out there have the right skills. Companies require web developers not only while setting up a website, but also when they find any issues or need to add new functionalities.
The average salary of a web developer today is around $69,000 per year.
2. Blockchain
The blockchain is the underlying technology for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. This technology was developed for cryptocurrencies, but it has the potential to transform every industry today. Because of its wide use cases, like peer-to-peer payments, distributed ledger approach, identity management and more, blockchain has become one of the hottest technologies of today’s era.
Since blockchain is a very new technology with high potential, companies are looking for blockchain developers who can build smart contracts and decentralized applications.
According to Hired, the average salary of a blockchain engineer is between $150k and $175k.
3. AR/VR
Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are the technologies of tomorrow with potentially more than just entertainment. These technologies are being used in several fields including marketing, advertising, healthcare and manufacturing.
As per Statista, the market of AR and VR market will reach $209.2 billion. If you have decent programming skills, then you can enter the field and learn AR and VR development.
4. UI/UX design
User interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are the key aspects for a website or an app to make it visually appealing and user-friendly. While UI includes designing interfaces, the UX requires research and testing for integrating the elements that can engage users and make them feel comfortable with the website/app.
If you are into design and have creativity and analytical skills, then UI/UX is a great option for you as a freelancer.
As per Adobe, the demand for UX designers is high as software engineers. This demand will only increase with time.
5. Cybersecurity
With the advancement in technologies, the cybersecurity attacks are also on the rise. Security of sensitive data of customers and organizational assets is critical for every business. According to Cyber Seek, there were around 313,735 job openings for cybersecurity workers between September 2017 and August 2018 in the US alone.
This shows the importance of cybersecurity for companies. However, there is a wide gap between demand and trained cybersecurity professionals. The good thing is you have the opportunity to fill that gap.
6. Search engine optimization (SEO)
SEO is critical for website owners to rank their website higher on search engines like Google and Bing. Businesses today, look to expand their visibility and reach through online mediums. The competition has drastically increased in the recent times and so do the need for experienced professionals with SEO skills that can improve the ranking of a website.
If you have SEO skills along with good knowledge of overall digital marketing, then it can help you make good money.
7. Data analytics
Big data market will grow rapidly over the next several years because of increased usage of modern technologies like AI and the internet of things (IoT). The big data will deliver great potential to organizations. Around 84% of businesses are already investing in big data practices for gaining insights and making better decisions.
The field of data analytics offers good opportunities to freelancers who can analyze and are open to improving their skills. The average salary of a data analyst is estimated to around $58,777.
8. Cloud computing
The demand for people who are abreast with cloud computing skills is increasing. This is because enterprises are rapidly shifting from traditional server infrastructure to public/private cloud computing. Gartner predicts that public cloud revenue will witness a growth of 17.3% in 2019.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure are the most used cloud computing platforms worldwide. If you want to make it big in cloud computing, then learn the skills related to AWS and Azure.
The average salary of a cloud computing professional is $146,350 per year.
9. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning
As a part of digital transformation, AI and machine learning are being aggressively adopted by organizations today. The technologies are widely popular in the building and granting human-like intelligence to digital assistants like Alexa and Siri. Additionally, chatbots and self-driving cars are some of the other applications of AI & Machine Learning.
A majority of organizations across industries are already looking for freelancers with AI and ML skills. Since these are modern and relatively new technologies, the competition is not very challenging. If you have the right skills, you are very likely to be in demand and earn good profits. According to Indeed, the average salary of an ML engineer is around $144,000 per year.
10. App development
Smartphone usage has seen a major hike lately. People use for almost everything, for ordering goods and food, booking a cab, reserving a theatre seat and plenty more things. This means that organizations nowadays choose to have their own mobile apps along with websites so that they can provide improved user experience and reach more people easily.
If you are an app developer, then sharpen your skills this year and market yourself for freelance projects. You can not only build apps for your clients but also for your own vested interest. Glassdoor reports an average salary of $83k per year for an app developer in India.
Wrapping up
The above-mentioned are some of the profitable technical skills freelancers should possess in 2019. If you make it to any of these skills, you are well set for making good money this year and beyond. The ball is in your court, explore your interests, choose a domain, learn related skills inside out and finally go out in the wild to fulfil your dreams.
Which technical skill are you looking forward to learning in 2019? Let us know via the comments below.
