The promise of freedom, flexibility, and better pay has led thousands of Filipinos to choose freelancing as a permanent career path, with many more using it to supplement their income. Additionally, while Filipino freelancers engage with local businesses, international clients are often considered more desirable thanks to their higher earning potential and wider career opportunities.
However, until recently, high-value foreign clients were often out of reach for many skilled Filipinos because of challenges with international and local payment systems. Often, this meant paying high transfer fees that ate into one’s earnings. Fortunately, developments like easy transfers from Paypal to Maya have made it much easier for local freelancers to get paid.
That being said, getting paid is just part of the challenge. If you want to scale your freelance hustle, you’ll want to look at the bigger picture instead of just the day-to-day grind. Here are 10 actionable tips to help your international freelance career reach its next level.
Tips to Scale Your Freelance Hustle
1. Set Competitive but Profitable Rates
First, we have to address the elephant in the room. Foreign clients are usually drawn to Filipino freelancers because they cost less to retain compared to employees from their home countries. This is not universal by any means—there are definitely foreign clients who offer the same rates to Filipinos that they would to anyone else. However, these are the exceptions and you probably have to build your reputation up to justify those rates.
All that being said, your pricing strategy is key when targeting foreign clients. Before you reach out, research industry-standard rates in different countries to understand the thresholds that international clients are willing to pay. At the same time, don’t fall into the trap of undervaluing your work. Instead, focus on delivering the best possible work within the relative price category you’re targeting. Strive to communicate your value proposition so that clients see why investing in you is worthwhile.
2. Specialize in Niche Skills
Following the previous point, specialization gives you a stronger value proposition that attracts high-value clients. Generalists may be qualified for more positions but they’re unlikely to stand out in today’s hypercompetitive markets.
Start by identifying a niche skill that aligns with your target industry’s market demands. For instance, if you’re a web designer, you can start specializing in areas such as UX design, AI-driven web asset creation, or other similar areas. You’ll also need to continuously refine your expertise by keeping tabs on industry trends. Once you build credibility in your niche, you can begin charging premium rates for your outputs.
3. Build a Strong Online Presence
Speaking of credibility, a lot of it has to do with how easy you are to find online. Outside of just building a compelling LinkedIn profile, you’ll also want to build and optimize a portfolio website and maintain active profiles on freelance platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, or the more specific ones used by your niche.
Your portfolio site is especially important as it gives you more leeway to showcase your expertise through original blog posts, case studies, and testimonials from past clients. If you leverage this well, it can become a strong lead generation tool so that clients come to you, rather than the other way around.
4. Actively Engage with International Clients
It shouldn’t have to be said, but Filipino freelancers often forget that their clients are human too. We are all more likely to trust those we engage with and this trust can be pivotal for project offers and other opportunities. Make sure you’re on global freelancer groups on Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn, and Discord, and to contribute to discussions every so often. If there are any industry events in town or nearby overseas locations, make it a point to attend. “80% of success is showing up” and this principle directly applies to scoring valued clients.
5. Mind Your Freelance Platforms Accounts
A mere presence on freelance marketplaces like Upwork, Toptal, and Freelancer isn’t enough. You’ll want to fully optimize your profiles with relevant keywords, a professionally shot photo, as well as a compelling bio that immediately tells visitors what makes your work special. Also, regularly update your portfolio with recent work samples and case studies so that your profile is sent to more interested parties.
6. Be Easy to Communicate With
Filipinos may have a good grasp of English and common etiquette but this doesn’t guarantee mastery of other key areas of business communication. Learn to read messages in their entirety and be prompt in responding to inquiries. If you receive a brief or a multi-question inquiry, take the time to address every single point. Do all these and you will build trust and long-term relationships along the way.
7. Be Open to Adapting to Different Time Zones
Working with international clients inevitably requires adjusting to different time zones. Use scheduling tools like Google Calendar to set clear availability hours and establish boundaries. Knowing how to handle time zone differences makes collaboration smoother and helps your reputation.
8. Expand Your Payment Options
As mentioned, receiving payments from multiple international clients can be a challenge if you don’t have the right tools. You’ll want to set up multiple payment channels like PayPal, Maya, and direct transfers to ensure consistently smooth transactions with minimal fees.
9. Get Certified
Gaining and keeping trust is an underlying challenge in the freelancer world. Sure, your work should speak for itself, but many potential clients will be more comfortable hiring you if you have certifications that they can look up. Allocate some of your schedule to completing online courses and industry workshops that offer certifications so that you can offer more value to future clients.
10. Nurture Client Relationships
Retaining clients gives you invaluable stability that is often hard to come by in the freelance world. Furthermore, having good relationships with past clients opens up future opportunities. In other words, once you manage to snag a client, do whatever is in your power to maintain a healthy relationship, during and after your engagement. Good client relationships lead to consistent work, a stronger professional network, and better earnings.
Turn Your Freelance Hustle into a Full-Fledged Enterprise
Scaling your freelance hustle demands systemic thinking, which is a skill in itself. With time, you’ll get a better handle on managing multiple clients. Once you develop a stronger network, you may even be able to take the next step and start your own agency. You can eventually turn your freelance business into a thriving global enterprise with the right mindset.
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