What You Need to Know About Turning Your Freelancing Gig into a Small Business
The United States is known for supporting entrepreneurs. In fact, there are more than 30 million small businesses in the country, according to Pie Insurance. If you are currently earning your living as a freelancer, you might consider joining their ranks by formally establishing your services as a small business.
If you’re intimidated by this step, don’t stress. Read on for a step-by-step guide from The Freelancer’s Life explaining how to successfully transform your freelance gig into a small business entity.
Create a Dedicated Workspace
Establishing a dedicated workspace gives you the peace and quiet you need to focus on your burgeoning business. You don’t have to splurge on rent for a commercial retail space when you’re first starting out. There are many cost-effective options, from working out of your home to renting a co-working space.
Wherever you set up shop, though, make sure to establish an ergonomic workstation to promote health and productivity. Create your own ergonomic workstation by choosing an appropriate desk height and monitor position. And if you’re revamping your home to accommodate a home office, make sure to document any upgrades by keeping receipts and taking before-and-after photos.
Register Your Business with the State
Formally registering your business with your state can make it easier to open a business bank account and claim certain tax deductions. Some entities will also help to protect your personal assets in case liability issues arise from your business operations. Berkman Solutions offers a primer to different entity types, including limited liability companies, corporations, and partnerships.
Create a Cohesive Brand
With your business formally registered, you can start thinking about how you want to present your business to the world. Column Five Media explains that a strong brand identity can make you more recognizable and memorable to clients. Their step-by-step guide to crafting a brand identity covers everything from visual design elements like logo, color, and typography, to messaging elements, like tagline and content voice.
Set Up a Streamlined Invoicing System
You want to make sure you are promptly paid for any goods or services your small business provides. Setting up a streamlined invoicing system will speed up the time it takes for you to process invoices, checks, bills, and expenses. An invoicing calculator will spare you having to manually enter invoices one by one, so you can either customize or duplicate invoices and send them to customers quickly. Accurate and detailed invoices will also simplify your bookkeeping and tax filing in the big picture.
Find Cost-Efficient Ways to Market Your Goods or Services
Marketing and advertising will help you find new customers and grow your startup. The Digital Marketing Institute describes some affordable options like retargeting and social media selling. If you don’t have the skills to do these tasks yourself, consider hiring an external pro. You can then use project management and communication tools, as well as create a shared calendar to keep productivity high. Outsourcing tasks can help reduce the burden on your shoulders and reduce the likelihood of burnout. Verywell Mind explains that burnout can leave you feeling exhausted and hating your job. That’s the last thing you want as an up-and-coming entrepreneur!
Hone Your Skills
Running a small business means wearing a lot of hats. You will likely find yourself muddling through some aspects of business that are new or unfamiliar to you. Once you have the budget, you can always outsource. However, you might find it helpful to pursue an advanced degree so that you feel more confident with things like business, leadership, or technology. There are many online programs that allow you to pursue a degree outside of business hours and around your personal schedule.
As you gain more experience, skills, certifications, and degrees, be sure to add them to an updated resume. Oftentimes freelancers are asked for a resume and portfolio to prove they are qualified and experienced, so try a resume creator and take advantage of the free templates to make your business and your experience stand out. You can choose from a variety of templates to find one that is best suited to your experience and industry. Then, edit it to match your branding.
Make it Official
The thought of scaling up your freelancing and transforming it into an official business may be daunting at first. Tackle the above steps one by one to break the process down into manageable bites. Once you have your business particulars in order, revise your resume using a free editing tool in order to showcase your experience and skills. Before you know it, you’ll officially be a small business owner.
The Freelancer’s Life offers insights and advice for freelancers, digital nomads, and independent contractors. If you have any questions, please CONTACT US HERE!
Looking For More Advice on Pursuing the Freelancer’s Life? Try These:
27 Must-Have Tools for Freelancers
Create Top-Notch Financial Projections to Help Your Business Flourish
7 Unique Challenges Freelancers Face Daily and Their Solutions
11 Essential Qualities of Successful Freelancers
Dean Burgess Founded his website, Excitepreneur.net to explore the areas of entrepreneurship that are often overlooked as well as share with current and aspiring entrepreneurs the stories and lessons he has learned. He fully believes entrepreneurs will lead us to a more exciting future. All it takes is an idea or goal and a desire to see it to fruition.
