As online content creators and freelancers, it’s a necessity to not only ‘be on social media‘, but also to take advantage of it in as many ways as possible.

It’s also not just about building a following, but also knowing how to use it in the right ways to help grow your following, build your brand, and also increase new client work and follow up orders. Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are all great for this, but one of the most underused platforms being used by freelancers and content creators is Instagram.

Did you know there are 1 billion Instagram users worldwide?

Want to build your freelance career but aren’t sure how? Not to worry! In this article, we’re going to cover some Instagram tips. This will help you and your freelance career.

Want to learn more? Keep reading to find out.

Instagram Tips for Freelancers

Instagram has many users all over the world and is more active than both Facebook and Twitter.

This means that users on the site interact more with the content. You may think it’s for fashion and nature lovers, but for a freelancer, it’s a tool. Check out this guide of free tools for freelance writers as well.

1. Make Your Bio Interesting

New followers check your profile. This is a spot where you can include links to your website and other marketing hubs.

Make it easy for followers to find out more about you. Most users who have Instagram use their phones so make sure your website looks good on mobile.

Try and write something more intriguing than a dry description of yourself. Write something that makes people curious about you and interests them.

Take a look at any of the most popular users on Instagram and you will find that each of them have an excellent, profile image, bio write up, and a quality link back to their main site or call to action page.

2. What is Your Goal?

Think about why you’re on Instagram. Do you want to increase traffic, promote your brand, or increase sales?

The reason why you’re on Instagram will help you decide what content works for your profile. You can mix these strategies up as well.

If a freelance is working with a brand that just wants to increase their follower count, this can easily be done through a wide range of methods. Some of the most popular are to set up scheduled postings throughout the month, using hashtags within their updates, or even to just buy social followers and shares from another solution or provider.

3. Followers Want to Know You

Your followers will feel more engaged if they feel like your friend. Show them things you do on a regular basis via Instagram stories.

Most people might not live where you do. Consider taking pictures of where you live. This content is easy to capture and interests your followers.

You can view more ways to relate with your Instagram audience in the article at https://sproutsocial.com/insights/how-to-get-followers-on-instagram/. You can see many different resources in this article, such as why it’s so important to schedule out your content accordingly, and how to make sure it’s content your audience actually wants to see.

4. What Should You Post?

If you want to increase traffic, post pictures that lead back to your site in some way. Post a bunch of unique content and put the rest on your Facebook page. If you tell people there’s more to check out on another platform, they’ll look it up.

For brand awareness, you’re going to need to explain your message and values. What is your company about? How does it help people? Your followers will identify your brand and remember it.

Increasing sales is another tactic. Post a coupon code where everyone gets five percent off the next article followers order.

5. When Should You Post?

If you want followers to engage with your posts, consider the time of your post.

The first wave hits when people wake up. People tend to check their phones in the morning. The second wave is around noon when your audience is taking a break from work.

The final wave is in the evening when people have a chance to look through their content. This is the most critical wave.

Learn more about how to improve your rankings on search engines in the article at https://www.microdinc.com/seo/. It covers the basics of using SEO for website optimization, keyword research, local search optimization and also how to analyze the competition.

This is all very useful to any freelancers that are not only looking at how to create the best content to further brand themselves, but also how to cater to local businesses as well.

Growing Your Freelancing Brand with Social Media

Like it or not, social media plays a huge role in the freelance buying decision process daily. It’s also important to realize that freelance work isn’t just about writing text content.

Cater to the needs of your clients. Let them know how important Instagram and social media is to their own business. And then offer them services and solutions to their problems.

I hope you found these Instagram tips helpful as a freelancer. Instagram has a lot of users worldwide. As a freelancer, sharing content on Instagram will increase traffic to your website.

Most freelance writers will tell you that writing isn’t the hardest part of their career. Finding clients is much more stressful and can be more time-consuming. Some writers spend 70% of their time finding new clients, which is a killer to their actual earnings per hour.

Fortunately, your freelance writing career will go much more smoothly if you streamline the way you find clients, while also implementing a few key steps to stand out from the crowd.

Here are some ways that you can get more freelance writing jobs.

Have a Website or Blog

Many freelance writers get all of their work by pitching clients on Problogger, Upwork, and other job boards. This is often a race to the bottom because their pitches don’t stand out among hundreds of other applicants. Even if they do get noticed, they often have to offer very low rates to compete.

You won’t run into this problem if you have your own website to generate leads. Here are some reasons you can’t get by without one:

• You build your brand. Since you stand out more, clients will be more likely to hire you and pay handsomely for your services.
• You rely on inbound marketing, so clients come to you. This is much better than sending dozens of emails pitching potential clients on job boards.
• You can showcase your expertise, testimonials and writing samples. This helps potential clients see whether you are a good match for their projects.

Your website will be the center of your online branding strategy, so it needs to be professionally designed. You also need to make sure your content is compelling and flows well, so potential clients know that you are worth their money. If you still are at a loss for how to start a website or blog, be sure to check out my step-by-step guide here. At the same time, if you are a struggling freelance writer who is working on a very tight budget, you can take a look at these low cost hosting alternatives. I know how important it is to save money when you are starting a new business, but passing up on a domain name and web site of your own is definitely not the way to get more business!

Have a Logo

I am still surprised how many freelance writers don’t have their own logo. Why do you need one?

Are you dreaming about your own Logo, but do not know where to start? Logaster prepared recommendations and examples which will help make your personal Logo. Click here to read the article “What Is a Transparent Logo and How to Create One?”

Well, people remember images much more easily than words. If you have a compelling logo, it will stand out in their minds. They will be more likely to remember you and reach out the next time they need a freelance writer. 

However, at the same time, I can see how freelance writers might not be sure where to start when it comes to logo design creation. I recommend taking a look at Designhill, as they have a seamless process of starting a logo design contest which allows you to pick a design from many different graphic artists.

Not only does it make the creation process easier for writers, it can also provide you with something pretty unique and amazing in the process!

Use Testimonials

I have been hiring freelance writers for years. Some of them are excellent at their jobs, while others don’t deliver the content I need. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to tell ahead of time, unless I know they have provided great value for previous clients.

I am always more confident about a writer if:

• They have been recommended by a colleague that used their services.
• They have testimonials from satisfied clients on their website or LinkedIn profile.

If your clients speak highly of your work, then you should always ask them for a testimonial. It is a good idea to have them place their testimonial on your LinkedIn page because it is more public and people know that it probably wasn’t fabricated. LinkedIn testimonials are especially helpful if they come from clients that are large brands and thought leaders.  You can always use the same testimonials on your own blog.

You may be surprised to see how effective testimonials are. Ben Gran wrote a guest article on Make a Living Writing stating that he earned thousands of dollars in new writing projects by using testimonials. You can also read more about LinkedIn testimonials at liprofilewriter.com, which is where the example testimonial above is from.

Use Guest Blogging

Many freelance writers don’t like guest blogging because they don’t get paid. They would rather write content for content farms at two cents a word.

This is the wrong attitude! While you don’t get paid for most guest blogging gigs, writing guest articles can be a great way to bolster your brand and bring new clients to your door. Onibalusi Bamidele, Carol Tice and lots of other six-figure freelance writers have built their careers off guest blogging…. and for myself, I love guest blogging and the many opportunities and benefits that come along with it — which is why I continually provide new content to FWG.

Unfortunately, too many freelance writers give up on guest blogging, because they don’t do it properly and don’t get results. If you are discouraged from lack of results, you may need to make the following changes:

• Write for higher quality sites. There are lots of low-tier sites on the Internet that have little or no traffic. They won’t help you grow your brand or improve your SEO, so don’t waste your time writing for them.
• Write for more sites in your niche. Don’t just write for blogs about freelance writing like Make a Living Writing or Writers in Charge. If you specialize in writing financial content, then write guest posts for large financial websites. Your prospective clients are more likely to find them. Have a strong call to action in your author bio. If potential clients read your guest posts, you want them to visit your website and reach out.
• Write for your brand before SEO. Far too many people treat guest blogging as a link building strategy. This is a huge mistake for freelance writers that are trying to attract clients. You want to show off your knowledge and writing skills, so it’s vital that you write compelling content.

If you follow these guest blogging tips and best practices, you should start seeing a major improvement in results.

Understand SEO

SEO is a very important skill that many freelance writers lack. According to an estimate from GoSquared, Google drives 40% of all Internet traffic.

If you don’t know SEO, there are two reasons that you need to learn:

• Freelance writers that understand how to tailor content to Google’s SERP algorithms will deliver much more value for their clients.
• Freelance writers with a background in SEO can tap Google to expand their own reach and draw targeted clients to their own website.

There are plenty of great sites out there to help you learn SEO. Moz, Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal, SEO by the Sea and SEOBook are great places to start.

If you are proficient in SEO, make sure you let clients know. Show them that you have successfully gotten other clients to the front page of Google for competitive keywords. They will be willing to pay a premium for your services. For more advice and methods to become a better SEO and freelance writer, be sure to read this FWG article.

Tips to Become an All-Star Freelance Writer!

As you can see, to become a successful freelance writer there is a lot more than just writing skills involved. With so much competition and demand out there for quality writers, you really need to put in the time and effort to stand out from the crowd. Follow each of the tips I’ve laid out for you above, and there is no reason why you shouldn’t see an increase in your writing and client earnings.