Hey Reader
I went to one of those huge buffet restaurants last weekend. You know the kind – they have a little bit of everything: pasta, sushi, tacos, salad... the works... (and the desserts, yum!)
While the variety was nice, nothing was truly great. It made me think about how many of us start our freelance careers the exact same way –offering a bit of everything.
When we do this, we think that more services will attract more clients. But what usually happens is we attract clients who are just looking for the cheapest, most generic option.
What I've noticed is that those who have OK services at everything seem to be OK-ly priced. As in, if you can pick something that is unique to you, and get really good at it, then you can charge more, be more picky with your clients, and save time for yourself - you don't need to learn about lots and lots!
This week, let's talk about finding your specialty.
Are you a "jack of all trades, master of none?"
When you're new, it feels safe to say "yes" to everything. "You need writing? I can do that. And social media. And email marketing. And graphic design."
This strategy leads to two major problems:
- You attract low-quality clients who don't see you as an expert.
- You compete with thousands of other generalists on crowded platforms, forcing you to lower your prices just to get noticed.
Experts don't compete on price. They compete on value. The first step to becoming an expert is choosing a niche.
Find Your Niche: A 10-Minute Exercise
Grab a pen and paper and draw three overlapping circles. If you're not a drawing person, just make three lists.
- Skills & Strengths: In the first circle, list everything you're genuinely good at. Think beyond your main service. Are you a great researcher? An amazing communicator? Super organized?
- Passions & Interests: In the second circle, list the topics, industries, or types of work you actually enjoy. What could you happily talk about for hours? (e.g., sustainable fashion, tech startups, pet care, productivity apps).
- Market Demand: In the third circle, list who has money to spend on the skills you listed in circle one. Think about industries that are growing or businesses that have a clear need for your help.
Your profitable niche lies where those three circles overlap.
For example, maybe you're a skilled writer who is passionate about pets and knows that online pet supply stores are a booming industry.
- Your Niche: Content writer for e-commerce pet brands.
Or in my case - I love the outdoors, camping, hiking, dirtbikes, and I'm a pretty good SEO writer, I think anyway :) So, over the years I've narrowed down my niche to blog writing for businesses within this field.
See how much more powerful that is than just "writer"? You're now an expert.
Finding your niche is one of the most powerful things you can do for your business. It allows you to charge more, attract better clients, and build a reputation much faster.
If this exercise sparked an idea for you, that's amazing! If not, don't worry - it took me many iterations before I found one that I was really aligned with.
My advice - pick one thing, stick with it for a little while, and if it doesn't fully align with you, or if you find something better along the way, then make the small pivot. Keep doing this until it feels just right.
For reference, it took me about 4 years to hone in on the category I'm in now. It wasn't that I didn't like my previous niches; it just didn't feel 100% aligned with my interests.
Is freelancing for you?
If you're wondering if Freelancing is for you, or you're after some answers on what exactly is a freelancer, what tech do you need (or don't need!), and what qualifications do you need, then why don't you start my free mini course - Freelancing Demystified ​
Exciting News!
I'm currently working on a new mini course behind the scenes. I've had a heap of questions about - where do you start? How do you start? And not everyone wants to jump into my main course - Freelancing Fundamentals for Travellers (it's only $au180 with a private FB group and bts access to how I use Upwork, but I understand that it is still lots of money), so I want to make something accessible for everyone.
While you can take my free course Freelancing Demystified to see if freelancing is your next exciting path, if you already know what it's all about, then my new course - which I think is going to be named Freelancing Launchpad - is all about the first steps to take to get an Upwork profile up and running so clients can get their eyes on you.
So far, here are the topics it will cover:
- A step-by-step walkthrough of setting up a professional Upwork profile that stands out.
- My "Niche-Finder's Cheatsheet" with 50+ ideas to get you started.
- The simple formula to find your niche: [Your Skill] + [Your Interest] = Your Profitable Service.
- A fill-in-the-blanks template to write a compelling profile overview in less than 15 minutes.
If there is anything else you think would be great in a starting course, feel free to reply to this email :)
Have a great week, and stay tuned next week with some more tips for Freelancing Online.
Margie :)
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PS, if you're currently travelling, why don't you jump into the FB group online freelancing while travelling and share where you are - I love hearing about travel stories :)
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