Freelance Pocket Guide 2020: 7 Quick Start Freelance Basics
Table of Contents
The Basic and most important information that every freelancer should know before starting Freelance Career!
Over the years I’ve been writing about how to become a freelancer in Pakistan. I’ve written many guides and E-Books in detail but most of the time majority of new users and freelancers asked me to tell in a short way. So this is a quick pocket guide-like article to know and understand what a freelancer requires in order to become a successful freelancer in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and other countries.
What do you need to become the fastest-growing freelancer in Pakistan?
The most asked questions and their quick answers are given below:
- Basic Information about Internet operations (Browsing, Searching, Chatting, uploading, and downloading)
- A specialized skillset in any one category
- Profile at Upwork Fiverr freelancer guru
- A personal portfolio website with samples
- 100% feedback from International clients or local work history with good feedback
- Communication skills (written and/or speaking English)
- Personal Bank Account and/or Virtual Bank Account (Payoneer, skrill, payza, Easypaisa, JazzCash)
The above listed 7 items need explanation so let’s quickly discuss each point in detail so that you can understand.
1. Basic Information about Internet operations (Browsing, Searching, Chatting, Uploading, Downloading)
Freelancing Basic information is a must before you get into the online services or business venture. If you are a local IT professional and want to make money by providing online services or starting an online business, you should have proper information about everything related to your field. You can read my E-Books for basic freelancing information.
Browsing: This is the first thing you do whenever you start using the internet on your computer, laptop, tab, or mobile. The browsing is to explore, search and read the required information through a software program called “internet Browser”.
The most popular Internet Browsers
Searching: A Freelancer must know how to search. Searching is a process to find specific information from the internet using a Search Engine. You can find your required piece of information through a keyword or phrase. Searching is the most important part of a freelancer. Search Engines are software programs that bring relevant information in reply to a searched keyword or phrase.
The most popular Search Engines
Chatting: Chatting is the most essential tool of “Text Messaging” between the Freelancer and the Client. Chat Bots, Chat Programs (sometimes called “messengers”) come in a variety of styles and functionalities. Some Chat software provides video chat as well that displays videos from either side. A freelancer must know the use of chat programs and plugins.
The Most Popular Chat Software are:
- Facebook Messenger
- Skype
- LINE
- Viber
Downloading / Uploading: Downloading and uploading are the most required pieces of skills as an add-on tool for every FreeLancer. You must know how to send or receive the files, folders, pictures, videos, pdf files, etc. to a remote computer, server, database, or Mobile from your computer or online
- Internet Download Manager
- JDownloader
- Ninja Download Manager
- Free Download Manager
- FileZilla for PC
- CuteFTP for PC
- Google Drive for online upload
- Dropbox for online upload
- WeTransfer for online upload
2. A specialized skillset in any one category
As a Freelancer you should have at least one specific niche/category to adopt in order to provide online services or sales products. So first of all you need to decide whether you will be providing services or selling products online like online business.
The most popular Freelance Service Categories
- Content Writing
- Graphic Designing
- Web Designing
- Search Engine Optimization
- Social Media Marketing
The most popular Freelance Business Models
- Selling Brandable Products Online
- Selling Software, Apps, Plugins for WordPress, Website Themes/Templates
- Selling Course Material, E-Books, and Tutorials.
- Selling Personal or Professional Consultancy Services
3. Profile at Upwork Fiverr freelancer guru etc.
The online websites where online clients post their jobs for freelancers are called marketplaces. The marketplace is the online web portal where the buyer and sellers meet each other under the terms and conditions of the marketplace. They mutually agree to a job project with an estimated price and duration. The buyer or Client deposits the payment in a marketplace account called Escrow and the service provider (The Freelancer) deliver the job after satisfaction, the Client orders the marketplace Escrow to release the payment to “the Freelancer”.
The Most Popular Job Marketplaces
4. Personal Portfolio Website with samples
One of the common mistakes that lead a Freelancer towards failure is the absence of the Freelance Personal Portfolio Website. I strongly recommend every freelancer have one Website where they can display their best work samples to showcase.
You may have a strong profile at the job marketplaces, yet you need a personal portfolio website as a most demanding requirement for the online Client. Actually, having a personal portfolio website is proof of your professional approach. Online Clients always want to see work samples but they prefer your personal website that tells them you are a serious and professional freelancer who knows the importance of portfolio.
The most popular ways to display work samples
Free tools to create a portfolio Website:
Self-Hosted Website on a paid server
- WordPress.org (CMS)
- CSS, PHP, HTML, etc. Websites
5. 100% feedback from International clients or local work history with good feedback
After completing the above things, The Freelancer’s primary concern should be always getting 100% feedback from a satisfied client. This is the main thing that either gives you more clients one after another or pushes you to the darkness of failure. Just remember the online Client doesn’t know you or your skill so s/he can’t trust whether or not you showing true or fake information about yourself and your skills but the feedback is a reality that the online Clients believe as a fact because this is the certificate of your previously provided satisfactory services to the previous Clients.
The most popular methods to get 100% Feedback from the Clients
- Attention to detail for the job requirements
- Fair price estimation
- Offer out-of-the-box services
- After Sales Support
- On-time Delivery
- 100% required results
- Professional and instant communication
6. Communication skills (written and/or speaking English)
This is what a successful freelancer needs. The power of communication is the key to success. You should have good communication skills both written and verbal. In this modern era, Clients don’t have much time so they just want someone as a “Go to” guy that simply takes the job and delivers the results.
They prefer quick and fast communication like online chat, video chat, direct calls, etc. So a successful freelancer must need to have communication skills in order to understand as well as guide the client for different aspects of the projects wherever and whenever needed.
Also the availability according to the Client’s time zone is another most important factor. You should always consider the time zone and let your client know that you will be available. This is a mind-making factor because the Client can communicate anytime accordingly.
A freelancer must know the basic rules of writing messages, suggestions, and progress/process report that tells the Client you are a professional freelancer. Proper use of Grammar, way of speaking, or writing the way that the client could understand is very important. After completing the job, requesting the client for positive feedback, and asking him to refer you to some other prospective clients is based on your best communication skills.
7. Personal Bank Account, Virtual Bank Account, and Payoneer Master Debt Card
The final question that sometimes comes first is, how to get paid and how to get money in the local bank account or virtual debt card. Obviously, every freelancer is concerned to the hard-earned money transfer to the local bank account.
There are two methods that you can use to get the money transferred.
- Local Bank transfer
- Transfer to a virtual Bank account
Local Bank Transfer:
Every marketplace where you provide freelance services provides options to get paid directly into the local bank account. All you need to do is just open an account in any local bank and add the bank account information to your financial account. You will be provided an IBAN number and a Swift Code that are required to transfer the money from any international bank.
Virtual Bank Account and Debt Card:
If you don’t have a Bank account or the marketplace where you provide freelance services, don’t support local bank transfers in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh etc. The most reliable option is then a virtual Bank account. The Virtual Bank account is created on an online Internet Bank that feasibly doesn’t exist but online.
The Virtual Bank provides online money transfers using a bank account as well as a virtual debit card. You can use a virtual bank account to get paid just like a normal bank account. You can buy and sell products as well using the account.
Almost all virtual bank accounts come with a Free Master Debt card that you can use to withdraw cash from your local bank’s ATM machine just like a normal debit card.
One of the most popular and useful virtual payment processors in the USA is Payoneer. Payoneer is USA based virtual payment processor that uses Bank of America, First Century Bank, and other banks for virtual accounts. Payoneer offers a Master Debt Card for withdrawing cash from designated local banks’ ATM machines. They charge a small fee of each transaction but securely provide online buying and cash withdrawal services in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and other countries.
Conclusion:
These are the basic and initial information just like a pocket guide that a new freelancer can easily understand and apply wherever needed. Every Freelancer should full aware of the above details before getting into the freelancing profession. I highly recommend using always legal and confirmed methods of providing services, dealing with the clients and getting the hard-earned money transferred to the local bank or Payoneer master debit card.