What makes you stand out from other freelancers?

The freelance space is getting more and more crowded by the day.

It used to be that all you needed to do was to show up, deliver, and then support to stand out. But nowadays it’s a bit different.

I wrote a blog post titled How to Stand Out As a Freelancer in a Saturated Market a little over a year and a half ago with 10 tips.

I want to share with you something that I’ve found that can make you stand out that isn’t in that article.

But before I do, I want to highlight those tips and if you want to get more in-depth with them, have a look at that article.

• Setup a regularly scheduled time to email or talk with a client
• Be selective about your clients
• Focus on Customer Service as much as one getting a customer
• Be positive
• Remember why you started your business
• Look at other freelancers and agencies and see what they aren’t doing
• Be organized
• Invest vs Expense
• Share your expertise & experiences
• Be the “Go-To” person

All those still apply, don’t get me wrong, but since writing that article, I’ve found a few more things that can have you stand out from other freelancers.

As the industry of freelancing grows and more and more people flood the market, the more it becomes a commodity.

Which basically means that you are competing on price.

If you want to stand out from the crowd, you have to not compete on price. You have to create an experience with your leads and clients. And you have to fully understand the business of who you serve.

How do you serve your freelance clients better?

This comes in the form of specializing your business and really understanding who it is that you are talking with, their problems, and how to build the solution they desire.

By asking tons of questions of your clients, by listening and using the words that they use to describe themselves and their businesses, you start to be able to state their problems before they do.

Albert Einstein said “If I were given one hour to save the planet, I would spend 59 minutes defining the problem and one minute resolving it.”

As a freelancer, you are presented with and often jump at opportunities, like creating a new website or designing a logo.

If you dive deep on defining the problems those businesses are attempting to solve and articulating why those issues are important, that’s how you stand out as a freelancer.

Without that deep dive you’ll miss out on opportunities and potentially waste valuable time and resources pushing out projects that aren’t aligned with your clients’ strategies.

You will elevate yourself above the commoditization of freelancing and become an integral partner with your clients and their business when you provide solutions that align with their overall strategy.