Sam dropped me a line about working together and we got chatting about his travels and freelancing in general. Sam first started working in digital marketing back in 2016 when he launched his own Shopify store. These days, you can find him in Kent, United Kingdom, or Osaka, Japan. His website is at https://freelancesam.co.uk/
Hi – who are you and what do you do?
I’m Sam, a freelance website designer and developer. I generally specialise in Shopify and WordPress builds.
What led you to start freelancing?
I enjoy the process of designing and developing websites, yet I also enjoy the project management aspect of the whole process. This led me to start seeking out and taking on these projects as a freelancer and not as an employee/team member of another company.
What three things do you wish you’d known before starting out?
- The importance of having a strong network of various different contacts
- The seasonal ebb and flow of client enquiries/projects; in other words, there can be a bit of a feast or famine effect when it comes to freelancing.
- How to filter the good clients out from the ‘not so good’ ones. Some clients want you to go above and beyond for rock bottom prices; I tend to avoid working with these kinds of clients anymore.
What three issues have you had since starting up?
- Not valuing my own work. There is a general market rate for high-quality work. I initially started off by undercharging for my work and am now slowly bringing it up in line with the general market value.
- Not having a specialised niche. Taking on a variety of different projects can be exciting, but it can be overly time-consuming and lead to not being as productive as you could otherwise be. I generally find these days that it’s better to specialise in a few specific niches.
- Cash flow: my clients always end up paying, but not always on time. Don’t rely on payments coming in on time since that may not always be the case!
What’s the best thing about freelancing?
The freedom of being able to work from anywhere in the world and run things on your own schedule.
How would you like to develop your freelance career in the future?
I would like to work with exclusively corporate clients in the future, from within a few different niches.
Anything else you’d like to tell anyone thinking of or currently freelancing?
Networking events and other networking platforms (like LinkedIn) are great places for building a network and finding new clients, which is key to building up a successful business.