We’ve all been there. Upwork, eLance, Freelancer or other platforms are easy ways to kickstart a freelancing gig. Many of us, myself included, got our start with Upwork (well, it was oDesk back then). The clients are all there, they’ve outlined exactly what they want, and they’ve told you how much they expect to pay. Seems like an ideal situation, right? Almost like going fishing at the aquarium: everything is transparent and everyone is on the same playing field.
But after a few projects, Upwork begins to become uncomfortable, and you realize…
You’ll never make enough money on Upwork.
It’s sad. But it’s true. Let’s revisit the fishing metaphor.
Yep, it’s like fishing in an aquarium, but you and every other person out there knows about it! Those fish are presented with so much bait, they can easily pick the one that:
- will hurt the least (cheapest)
- they’ve had before (the job was never actually open)
- they saw first
- stands out the most
Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever used UpWork to hire someone, but let me assure you: it sucks. I posted a job looking for a copywriter once and had over 1,000 applicants. OVER ONE THOUSAND. I was amazed that many of them had no experience, no portfolio, and could barely stitch together a sentence. Mind bottling, isn’t it?
So we’ve established that UpWork is no place for professionals like you…
How do you find bigger clients outside of Upwork?
Well, it’s tough. At least to start. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. But it’s absolutely doable with some hard work.
It helps to learn a little about consumer psychology here. Your Upwork client probably was drawn to that platform for one of these reasons:
- They want to find a deal, or can’t afford industry-accepted rates for professional design
- They have no idea where to look for service providers
- They’re worried about scams, or getting screwed over
Those are pretty horrible starts to a professional relationship if you ask me. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why bigger clients choose the designers they work with:
- They’ve worked with the designer before
- They know someone who worked with the designer before
- They met the designer in person
- They found the designer on social media because they have a large following
- They see work in the designers portfolio that looks like the work they want done
This list is by no means complete, but you can start to see the difference. The underlying cause for the purchase decision is the same, but their results and actions vary wildly. So what’s the one takeaway here?
Bigger clients buy assurance, and they don’t look for it on sites like Upwork.
Assurance is everything to a high-paying client. What does that mean? Bigger design clients are looking for you to be able to assure them that you can get the job done 1.) well 2.) on time and 3.) in budget. Communicating that is key, but let’s take a look at a simple four-step process to connect with those bigger clients. Note — we could probably write an encyclopedia on each of these steps, but for the purposes of this article, let’s take a macro view of this flow:
1. Define Who You Want to Work With
This step is key, and not many people do it well. Tap into your interests, passions, beliefs and hobbies for ideas. Let’s say you’re a craft beer enthusiast — what would stop you from working with a local brewery? Plot out an entire list of breweries, bars, and burger joints in your area. Then learn a little about the corporate leadership and company structure. Who’s responsible for the brand image? Who’s responsible for purchasing media or marketing materials?
Once you’ve done that, figure out all the ways you can make these people aware that you exist. Look up examples of a consumer journey and use a combination of your knowledge and common sense to plot out a journey for each type of business that you want to work with.
2. Get Positioned
This is the second step for a reason. You should mirror who your desired customers are and what they need. Tesla may be a great car, but they’d have a tough time selling to someone shopping for an ATV. Does your website reflect your vertical? Does it reflect WHO you want to work with?
This is where you sell assurance. Do you have great examples of only your best work? Does your website have grammatical errors? Do you have references and testimonials available and visible?
If you’re positioning yourself as a freelancer, I highly recommend developing a very niche style and service offering. In other words, don’t have a website that offers or displays web design, character design, illustration, print work, and kinetic typography in one place. Someone who is looking for an expert will see this and run far, far away. If you’re positioning yourself as an agency, or as a “we,” you have a little more leeway, but definitely stick to a defined group of services.
3. Be Visible
Within your customer journey, you should have identified several opportunities to increase your business’ awareness. Now is the time to take action on these items. Crafting a specialized Instagram account, actually GOING to those burger joints and breweries and talking to the staff, connecting with leadership over LinkedIn (without overselling, people, c’mon), being active in local small business groups, or competing in award shows are all good ways to increase awareness for your practice.
Traction is a great book to read for awareness ideas — they claim there are 19 channels for lead generation. Check it out here.
4. Connect
After you’ve run your passive awareness efforts, it’s time for some hand-to-hand combat. Pick five of the people you listed in the first step and buckle your seatbelt. I’m going to suggest something that will go against every one of your designerly instincts:
Invite them to lunch.
Or coffee. Or for a beer. Just invite them out to connect. No strings attached, no sales pitch. Just say you’re new in town/in business/to their shop, and that you’d LOVE to pick their brains for some knowledge. It’s as simple as that. You can shoot them a three line email, or send them a tweet, or stop by their business and invite them in person. However you do it, be cordial, friendly, and reassure them that you’re not there to sell them. People hate that.
This really is part of the awareness phase, and it’s almost like a cold call, but if you have no agenda, it takes the pressure off of both of you. When you sit down with them, just ask questions. How did they get their logo done? Who do they work with for packaging? What’s the worst part about their job? Show genuine interest and it will be reciprocated.
Now, you may not get work right off the bat. But if you continue to sit down with people, your name will start to pop up in industry conversations. You’ll be amazed when that first massive design job lands at your feet how far that one connection went.
The silver bullet doesn’t exist
There isn’t any ONE proven way to find bigger clients. Finding high-paying design clients, as in any other sale, is all about people. Brainstorm and follow a customer/consumer journey, and make every effort to genuinely connect with other humans who are positioned to help you grow. It’s even better if you can offer them value immediately, even if it is simply in the form of stimulating conversation.
If you enjoyed this, please — hit us up on social media and let us know. It would mean the world to me. And if you have the time, let us hear about your biggest client to date and how you landed them. Just leave us a comment below!
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