Expert Tips on Building and Growing Your Freelance Business

On 26 March, the PTC ran a panel discussion, How to Build and Grow your Freelance Business. Chaired by Petra Green, Head of the PTC, panellists Louise Harnby (LH), Heather Rawlin (HR) and Sarah Thickett (ST) shared their advice and experiences. These are their six top takeaways.

1: Do your homework before going freelance

LH: Check that you have savings to cover your living expenses and any monthly obligations, like rent or mortgage. Prepare your marketing plan in advance. Freelancing isn't just about the work you do, it's about the work you do to get the work.

Think about what you're going to charge. What do I need to earn? How many hours am I going to have to work to achieve that?

Sort out contracts, invoicing, taxation, terms and conditions, privacy policy, appropriate insurance.

When you're a freelancer, you are a business owner, first and foremost. Whether you're an editor, a designer, a writer, a consultant, a marketer, that's almost secondary. You can only do that thing if the infrastructure of your business is in place. You don't have a boss to do that for you – you are the boss!

2: Know what people look for in a freelancer

ST: A huge amount is about word of mouth and about connections. Having your website as a shop window is important for verifying someone. It's about reliability, good communication, the same as working as an employee. Understand that we are doing our best as publishers, but we can be up against it in terms of budgets and timelines and we're often beholden to authors or other stakeholders, so we may move things around, and we need understanding to make things work. Build up trust, because we don't have time to get things wrong.

3: Use existing contacts to establish yourself

LH: Before I left my job, I asked the editorial production department if I could do a couple of free journal proofreads, in exchange for feedback. I got a couple of testimonials for marketing.

Announce your move to your contacts and share the news on LinkedIn.

Are there are people within your network who you can ask for referrals if they have spillover work? Be clear about your specialisms, your ideal clients. Ask for testimonials, because they're brilliant social proof that will give people confidence to try you out. Think about how to keep being visible. You might have contacts in an adjacent industry – find out what networking groups they're part of, and explore those groups. But don't pitch. Instead, offer solutions to problems, be helpful and engaged. And keep in touch.

HR: Once I’d handed in my notice, I emailed clients to tell them and I took those contact details with me. I made a new website. I sent Christmas cards with my business cards in. I distributed pens with my company name on. It's little things to maintain the relationships, then it's word of mouth. And gradually that builds up, but it is slow.

4: Find new clients

HR: Distil in your mind what it is you actually do. What are your strengths? You might say, I am a proofreader, I have a particular knowledge of cookery and have worked on cookery books. Then you trawl the internet, and you find publishers who work in that field. You create a CV with all your qualifications, all your relevant experience, and you write an absolutely stonking covering letter. Your editorial skills and specialisms are what will sell you.

Make a spreadsheet of people that you have contacted, and the response. If it's a “no”, then cross them out. If it's “we haven't got anything at the moment, but we'll put you on our books”, then make a note to write back in three months’ time. Keep plugging away at it.

5: Make yourself discoverable

LH: I work with a niche group of clients – indie, crime fiction, mystery and thriller writers. I am not getting that work via publishers or packagers, I'm working directly with writers. It's essential that I'm visible online, globally. I'm listed in a couple of directories, including the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP). Many of my clients use Google Search and AI answer engines to find an editor. Making marketing a core part of your business is critical. Content marketing is the most powerful way to build trust and get yourself hired. Helpful problem-solving content demonstrates your knowledge and skills. And it makes people, especially nervous or inexperienced authors, want to work with you.

6: Build your own community – and look after yourself

HR: I have friendly chats with my clients. Try to make work friends to have a Zoom meeting occasionally, for a chat and a catch-up. Get yourself an accountability buddy, somebody who you can tell about your tasks, who can give you a nudge, and ask how it went.

LH: join a formal networking group or professional body like the CIEP. Find ways to surround yourself with colleagues and friends who understand the world you work in, and who you can seek advice from.

Louise Harnby is Chair of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading, and a fiction editor and proofreader.

Heather Rawlin is an editorial project manager, copy editor and proofreader.

Sarah Thickett is Commissioning Editor, Head of Zeus.