10 Best Business Ideas for Freelancers
According to a report from Forbes, in 2019, the number of freelancers in the United States increased by 4 million since 2014. Because of that, the freelancer population reached an estimate of 57 million people. As you can see from that analysis, many individuals are becoming freelancers, and it’s not just in the United States, but in other countries as well.
10 Best Business Ideas for Freelancers
Well, there are multiple benefits of freelancer jobs that one doesn’t get to experience in a traditional job. Those benefits are the most probable reasons why the freelance economy is booming immensely. Most freelancers say that they’re earning more money than they used to compared to their previous jobs and that there’s more work-life balance in freelancing. So, if you think freelancing is your future, we’ll show you ten ideas that can help you decide what freelance niche to take.
Consultancy
Consultancy is among the most common jobs in freelancing. It’s a broad freelance career category with many branches. In consultancy, your clients are mostly business owners and executives. You’ll be helping them improve and monitor specific aspects of their companies. Most of the time, they will invite you to join their meetings to discuss certain optimizations in their organization. You’ll be giving them advice and ideas to enhance their business based on your observations. That’s the general job description of consultants.
Being a freelance consultant pays well relatively because you’ll be suggesting major decisions for the growth of the company. The hourly rate of this job depends on what type of consultant you are and your experience level, however. If you have a sound mind for business, being a consultant should be an excellent choice for you.
Virtual Assistant Service
Companies do tons of paperwork and administrative duties daily, which overworks their employees. For that reason, some companies hire freelance virtual assistants on demand through freelance websites and referrals. Virtual assistants don’t need to work on the company’s office. They only need to work from home as long as they have a connection online.
If you choose to be a virtual assistant, your job could be tracking documents, facilitating company email inbox, processing quotation bills, plotting appointment schedules, and responding to other tasks ordered by your clients. You’ll be an outsourced secretary or an office clerk. Being a freelance virtual assistant is definitely for you, especially if you have prior experience working in an office setting.
Writing
When talking about freelancing, writing is never out of the conversation because it’s a freelance job that’s accessible for everyone, with or without experience. If you’re going to be a freelance writer, your service fees are quite low at first, but you can increase your income rate as you progress and gain experience. Freelance writers usually write blogs and articles for their clients’ websites that feature products and services.
You should try writing. You might find out that you have a knack for it. Plus, writing is fun, and you could learn many things in it while earning money.
Proofreading Services
Well, if you’re a language nerd and reading is more to your liking than writing, then probably being a freelance proofreader or editor is ideal for you. Editors earn as much as writers, or even more on certain occasions. Your job will be to correct typos and grammatical errors on blogs and articles. The downside is that some clients prefer freelance editors with prior writing experience. In that case, you should consider starting as a writer first, for a few months at least.
Content Marketing
Content marketing is quite a challenging freelance business, but the pay is good. You need to work extensively in studying industry trends and help your trusted clients boost the promotion of their business. You’ll be marketing your clients’ business through articles, blogs, and vlogs to raise their online reputation. Your knowledge of social media strategies will be useful in this line of work. Most of the online marketing activities nowadays occur on social media platforms.
Content marketing involves articles and blog publications. That said, writing is involved in this freelance business. So, if you believe you’re adept in developing business brands through informative content, you may have a bright future in freelance content marketing.
Graphic and Web Design
If you have artistic skills and proficiency in operating graphic design tools, graphic and web design should be your niche. Many clients offer work contracts to graphic and web designers regularly with handsome service fees. Some clients don’t even require you to have experience. As long as you can show them a great portfolio and produce high-quality output, they’ll hire you.
Thanks to various online platforms, many businesses and organizations are establishing their presence on websites and social media. In doing so, they will need graphic and web designers. With that in mind, windows of opportunity are abundant in this type of freelance business.
Programming
Startup businesses are doing their best to keep up with the steady trend of using computerized systems for operations. For this reason, a lot of them are urgently hiring freelance programmers. So, if you have the skills and certifications in programming, go on and become a freelance programmer. It’s one of the highest paying freelance jobs in the gig economy, and you can certainly make a steady career out of it.
To further your competency, you should take a review of programming by enrolling in online courses.
Photography
One of the tips for freelance workers is to choose a niche that feeds your passion. So, if you have a passion for capturing picturesque sceneries, nothing should stop you from becoming a freelance photographer. You can be the honored photographer of occasions such as weddings, graduation ceremonies, and grand birthday celebrations. Aside from that, companies also hire freelance photographers for their product promotion campaigns, and they pay considerable amounts.
Most freelance photographers focus on one or two types of photography. But in your case, you can diversify your photography prowess to have more work opportunities.
Videography
Videography is more or less the same as photography. You’ll mostly be catering to events and occasion, and companies who are doing video advertisements. But, in videography, your camera skills should be more advanced, including your editing skills. If you’re considering being a freelance videographer, it would be best to take online courses about videography or cinematography beforehand.
Project Management
Freelance project managers are among the most highly paid freelancers in the industry. Well, that’s because their job description is broad and their responsibilities are heavy. The success of their clients’ business could depend on them. The clients of freelance project managers are mostly startup companies and organizations. If you choose this line of freelance work, you need to create a project plan for each client, aid in structuring a budget, make a to-do checklist, and monitor the productivity of the people involved.
To become a freelance project manager, you first need to enroll in business management online courses and obtain experience. But if you have a degree in business management, then all you need is experience.
There’s no such thing as an impractical business idea or career path in freelancing. It’s just a matter of choosing a niche that best suits your skills and passion. For starters, you only need a low investment to begin your freelance career. So, start your freelance journey now and choose a niche that’ll bring out the best of your capabilities.
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