In this Article. I’m going to teach you how to start freelancing, what you need to do, what steps you need to take, and all the other tips you need to know.
1. English Proficient
So the first on our list is that you must be English Proficient. Even with non-voice jobs, they provide language tests that will assess your English proficiency.
You need to have a strong English command because, in freelancing, our clients are primarily based in the USA and other foreign countries.
That is why we need to be fluent in oral and written English. So that we can communicate properly with our clients, know their needs, explain our side, and generally have a good rapport with our clients and produce quality documents free from grammatical errors or corrections.
2. Desktop or a Laptop Computer
The second requirement is a desktop or a laptop computer. So most, not all, but most freelancing jobs require laptop or desktop computers for you to be able to start working.
You can do some jobs with your phone, but they are rare. In freelancing, most of the time, we need to multitask, and for us to use our time efficiently, we need to have a laptop to do that.
When you have a desktop or a laptop computer, multitasking will be more effortless, you can handle multiple clients, your encoding will be more efficient, and you can work faster. In my case, I use HP 15-EQ1117AU Rose Gold. So this laptop has 8GB RAM and an AMD Ryzen 5 Processor. This laptop passes most of the minimum requirements for freelancing jobs.
So when I bought this laptop, this is Php35,000. I started working after three months. I got my first job after three months. After two weeks of working, I already got my investment back. Your investment in a good computer will pay off.
So the typical minimum requirements for desktop and laptop computers are: For Windows, you should have at least a Windows 10 OS, 2Ghz CPU, Inter I3, 4GB RAM, and 4GB Hard drive.
You should have OS X 10.14 Mojave, OS X 10.15 Catalina, and OS X 11 Big Sur for MAC computers: an Inter processor CPU, at least 4GB RAM, and a 4GB Hard drive.
3. PayPal or Payoneer Account
The third requirement is to have a PayPal or Payoneer account. Foreign clients usually pay through PayPal and Payoneer.
You must visit their site, register, and sign up. And input your bank information. Regarding this, you should also have a local Philippines bank account so you can link this to your PayPal and Payoneer accounts to verify them.
According to some forums, if your PayPal account is not verified, your payments may be categorized as fraud, and you cannot withdraw them.
So it’s vital to verify your account and register your bank account in your PayPal or Payoneer account.
4. Skill
The fourth requirement would be to have a specific skill to offer. So freelancing is very vast. There are so many types of skills that you can offer. For example, if you are good at writing, you can be a copywriter or content writer, you can be a proofreader or editor, and you can be a tutor.
If you are good at designing, you can be a graphic artist or a web designer. If you are good with administrative tasks, you can be a virtual assistant, which involves data entry tasks, customer service, filing, and document management.
If you are into social media, you can be a social media manager, and here you have to learn about SEO or Search Engine Optimization and marketing.
Your skill should be something that you are good at. If you still need to, you can take steps to learn the skill and get training so that you can get work in line with that skill.
5. Build your Portfolio
Lastly, once you have chosen a skill, the fifth step would be to build your portfolio. So how would you do this? Building a portfolio involves showcasing the most notable projects you have performed in line with your chosen skill.
It should also contain all your relevant experiences in line with the skill. Like, for example, the training that you have undergone. Let’s look into the reality here.
When you sign up for onlinejobs.ph or upwork.com, most of the job descriptions not all, but most. Most employers are looking for freelancers that already have experience.
For beginners, this is a disadvantage. But let me help you build your portfolio without any experience.
So first, build your blog if your chosen skill is a writer. It’s free to create a blog through Blogger or WordPress. Create a blog. Write your articles. Publish them.
Include this in your portfolio. This blog will showcase your writing skills, your creativity, as well as your English proficiency. If you’re a graphic artist, compile your work.
Create a TikTok account and show people how you create your illustrations. You can put that in your portfolio.
If you’re a social media manager and are interested in becoming a social media manager, you can start by managing your brand yourself. Create a Facebook page, and make it grow. It can be about anything you are interested in. Create an IG page, and make it grow.
Put that in your portfolio and explain how you made it grow. With social media management, SEO is the key. SEO means search engine optimization.
This is the secret to viral YouTube videos, blogposts, and other viral social media content. SEO may sound intimidating, but many courses help you understand what it is and how to employ it.
If you want to learn a skill, you must invest like our degree courses. If you want to be a nurse, enroll in a nursing course. You enroll in a psychology course if you want to be a psychologist.
If you want to be a doctor, you enroll in medical school. So if you want to be an SEO Specialist, you will take a training course. It is an investment that will pay off because SEO Specialists are in demand right now. All internet-based content utilizes SEO to make it successful.
So if you want to be a virtual assistant, there are job openings in onlinejobs.ph and Upwork for virtual assistants. However, they are also looking for experience.
If you’re a beginner, with agencies that will give you free training and a client.
My favorite agencies are:
- 1. cyberbacker.ph
- 2. getmagic.com
- 3. helpflow.net
So all you have to do is go to their website, apply there. And if you pass their interview and application process, they will give you free training. After you pass the training, they will give you a client. So that’s it.
If you are an aspiring freelancer, I hope this article helps you. If you have questions, suggestions, or recommendations, please leave them in the comments below.
