by Jad Joubran

通过贾德·乔布兰(Jad Joubran)

如何获得更多的自由开发者客户 (How to get more clients as a freelance developer)

我希望几年前知道的实用技巧 (Practical tips I wish I knew a few years ago)

Whenever a conversation about freelancing kicks off with fellow developer friends, we’re always discussing the same concerns:

每当与开发人员朋友展开关于自由职业的讨论时，我们总是在讨论同样的问题：

• How can I get more clients as a freelance developer?
  作为自由开发者，我如何获得更多客户？
• I finished a coding bootcamp and I want to get started as a freelancer. How can I start?
  我完成了编码训练营，我想​​以自由职业者的身份开始学习。 我该如何开始？
• How do you deal with cheap competition?
  您如何应对廉价竞争？
• How much should I charge?
  我应该收费多少？

“我如何获得更多客户？” (“How do I get more clients?”)

When I got started as a freelancer a few years ago, I made a lot of mistakes when trying to get more clients.

几年前，当我成为一名自由职业者时，在争取更多客户方面，我犯了很多错误。

I thought of it like slices of pizza. Charging less (cutting smaller slices), would yield more projects (more slices). Right?

我认为这就像披萨片。 减少充电(切割较小的切片)将产生更多的项目(更多的切片)。 对？

I also thought that I need to explicitly tell people that I’m a freelancer and post about it on Social media, or else, how will they ever find me?

我还认为我需要明确告诉人们我是自由职业者，并在社交媒体上发布有关此事的信息，否则，他们将如何找到我？

I made these mistakes for a few years until I finally realized something.

我犯了这些错误几年了，直到我终于意识到一些东西。

收费低给客户一个便宜的印象 (Charging low gives a cheap impression to clients)

This also drives them to ask me to do more work for the same price. I also realized that you immediately lose your value if you sell yourself directly.

这也促使他们要求我以相同的价格做更多的工作。 我还意识到，如果直接出售自己，就会立即失去价值。

Soon after I realized that I was doing it wrong, I was able to get high quality projects with higher budgets and better working conditions. The amount of effort I was putting in was minimal compared to before.

在意识到自己做错了之后不久，我就获得了预算更高，工作条件更好的高质量项目。 与以前相比，我投入的精力很少。

In the year that followed, my career started to pick up significantly. I started speaking at conferences around the world, presenting workshops for companies and banks and teaching online courses. Later, I became a Google Developer Expert in Web Technologies.

在接下来的一年中，我的职业开始显着发展。 我开始在世界各地的会议上演讲，为公司和银行举办研讨会，并教授在线课程。 后来，我成为了Web Technologies的Google开发人员专家 。

Now that we got those misconceptions out of the way. Here’s some good news:

现在，我们摆脱了那些误解。 这是一些好消息：

You don’t need 10 years of experience to get more clients. ⚡️

您不需要10年的经验就可以吸引更多的客户。 ⚡️

It’s not about the years of experience, it’s about the service that you’re offering. It’s about the whole experience, from the time your client needs the service, all the way until the end.

这与多年的经验无关，而与您提供的服务有关。 从您的客户需要服务的时间一直到结束，这都是整个体验。

Here are 7 steps that will help you get there and get you more clients.

这里有7个步骤，可帮助您到达那里并吸引更多客户。

1.定义您是谁？ (1. Define who you are ?‍?)

Before you start getting more clients, first you need to define how you want to appear to others — what’s your image? How do you want people to see you?

在开始获得更多客户之前，首先需要定义您想要如何向他人展示-您的形象是什么？ 您希望人们如何看到您？

If potential clients hear about you, they often need to know who you are. The first thing they would do is simply Google your name.

如果潜在客户听说了您，他们通常需要知道您是谁 。 他们要做的第一件事就是简单地用Google搜索您的名字。

Try this: Open a new incognito tab and Google your full name. What is your first impression of yourself? Is is aligned with who you are and what you do?

尝试以下操作：打开一个新的隐身标签，然后用Google搜索您的全名。 您对自己的第一印象是什么？ 与您是谁以及您从事什么工作一致吗？

You can influence what people think about you.

您可以影响人们对您的看法。

If it’s not completely aligned, the best way to change that image is to create a personal website where you show who you are and what you’re good at. Explain what you do in the first 2 seconds of them landing on your website.

如果不完全一致，更改该图像的最佳方法是创建一个个人网站，在其中显示您的身份和擅长的领域。 向他们解释他们登陆网站后的前2秒钟的操作。

“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read.” — Gary Vaynerchuk

“简单点。 令人难忘。 吸引人的目光。 让阅读变得有趣。” — Gary Vaynerchuk

This will motivate your visitors to scroll further down where you will prove to them that you’ve got the experience you claim. More on this in a bit.

这将激励您的访客进一步向下滚动，在这里您将向他们证明您已经获得了所要求的体验。 对此有更多的了解。

2.不要只是成为一名开发人员 (2. Don’t just be a developer ⚡️)

When you’re working on technical projects, it’s easy to get carried away and focus on the little technical details and forget about the big picture.

当您从事技术项目时，很容易迷失方向，只专注于小的技术细节，而忽略了大局。

But if you focus only on the task you’re asked to do, then you’re going to be producing average results. What you need to focus on is quality work.

但是，如果您只专注于被要求完成的任务，那么您将获得平均结果。 您需要关注的是高质量的工作 。

For you to focus on quality, you have to work on skills that are around your area of expertise. For example, if you’re a front-end developer, you should definitely know the basics of User Experience and Performance. This will help you deliver outstanding results.

为了使您专注于质量，您必须致力于专业领域内的技能。 例如，如果您是前端开发人员，则一定要了解用户体验和性能的基础知识。 这将帮助您提供出色的结果。

The same applies to soft skills that can help your relationship with clients. For example, communication skills or business strategy. Understanding the business behind the project will often transform you from a freelancer into a consultant.

同样适用于可以帮助您与客户建立关系的软技能。 例如，沟通技巧或商业策略。 了解项目背后的业务通常会使您从自由职业者转变为顾问。

These skills will prove that you’re not just a developer, you’re a professional driven by quality. That’s what can make you stand out.

这些技能将证明您不仅是开发人员，而且是质量驱动的专业人员。 那才是让您脱颖而出的原因。

3.显示他们，不告诉他们？ (3. Show ’em, don’t tell ’em ?)

So how do you prove to people that you are who you claim to be? It’s not enough to say you’re good at what you do. You need to prove to them that you truly are experienced in that skill.

那么，您如何向人们证明自己就是您声称的那个人？ 仅仅说自己擅长于自己的工作还不够。 您需要向他们证明您确实具有该技能的经验。

You just have to show them what you’ve done. If you have previous projects to show, then that’s easy, you just display the ones you’re most proud of. But in some other cases (like when you have confidential projects), it might be tricky. This is a great opportunity to show your value without actually saying it.

您只需要向他们展示您的工作即可。 如果您要显示以前的项目，那很容易，只需显示最引以为傲的项目。 但是在其他情况下(例如当您拥有机密项目时)，这可能会很棘手。 这是一个很好的机会来展示您的价值，而无需实际说出来。

Here’s an example: when you go to my website, I’m claiming to be a tech speaker and web consultant.

这是一个例子：当您访问我的网站时 ，我声称自己是一名技术发言人和网络顾问。

How do you know this is legit? You can see a background video of me giving talks in many settings (workshops, conferences). From this, visitors immediately lose any doubt and are convinced that I’m a tech speaker indeed.

您怎么知道这是合法的？ 您可以观看我在许多场合(车间，会议)进行演讲的背景视频。 由此，参观者立即失去任何怀疑，并确信我确实是一名技术演讲者。

It doesn’t have to be a video. You can prove your value in many different ways, like displaying logos of companies you’ve worked with, and showing blog articles you’ve written.

不必是视频。 您可以通过许多不同的方式证明自己的价值，例如显示与您合作过的公司的徽标以及显示您撰写的博客文章。

4.使用间接促销？ (4. Use indirect promotion ?)

When you think about how to get more clients, a lot of people might think: ok, how about I start by posting on social media that I’m looking for freelance work?

当您想到如何获得更多客户时，很多人可能会想到：好的，我如何开始在社交媒体上发布我正在寻找自由职业的信息？

I’ve seen countless posts on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter & Slack of developers and designers announcing to the whole world that they are looking for freelance opportunities.

我在Facebook，LinkedIn，Twitter和Slack上看到了无数的开发人员和设计师帖子，它们向全世界宣布他们正在寻找自由职业者的机会。

It turns out, that’s exactly what you shouldn’t do. You immediately lose your value when you sell yourself directly.

事实证明，这正是您不应该做的。 直接出售自己时，您会立即失去价值。

Look at it this way. Remember how you felt when someone called you on the phone to sell you a certain service? How spammy was that? Wouldn’t you most likely ignore and hang up as soon as possible?

这样看。 还记得当有人打电话给您向您出售某种服务时的感受吗？ 那有多垃圾？ 您是否最有可能会忽略并尽快挂断电话？

One of the greatest tricks that I’ve learned when it comes to getting clients is to never approach clients.

在获得客户方面，我学到的最大技巧之一就是永远不要接近客户。

It sounds contadictory, but it’s true. Instead, you apply the concept of indirect promotion.

这听起来很具争议性，但这是事实。 相反，您应用间接促销的概念。

How? Simply share on your social networks the activities and projects that you’re working on without mentioning the fact that you’re looking for clients. After you share your activities a few times, people will start to know you for what you do and they’ll immediately recommend you for their friends and relatives whenever there’s an opportunity.

怎么样？ 只需在您的社交网络上共享您正在从事的活动和项目，而无需提及您正在寻找客户的事实。 几次分享您的活动后，人们会开始了解您的工作，只要有机会，他们就会立即向您的亲朋好友推荐您。

That’s how I’ve gotten 100% of all my projects in the last 6 years. It works!

这就是我在过去6年中完成所有项目的100％的方式。 有用！

If you’ve never had a freelance project before, then build a sample project instead of going and looking for work. Make it look very appealing.

如果您以前从未有过自由职业者项目，那么请构建示例项目，而不要去找工作。 使它看起来非常吸引人。

Here’s an example of a tweet I posted.

这是我发布的一条推文的示例。

5.不要以稳定的项目为目标stream (5. Don’t aim for a steady stream of projects ⏳)

You might think that being a successful freelancer means having a steady stream of projects and being 100% occupied with freelance work.

您可能会认为，成为一名成功的自由职业者意味着拥有稳定的项目流，并100％地从事自由职业。

But it doesn’t have to be this way, and in fact, it shouldn’t.

但这不必一定是这种方式，事实上，它不应该这样。

If you’re occupied with freelance work all the time, then you’re not leaving time for you to be creative, learn new things, and work on your personal presence.

如果您一直忙于从事自由职业，那么您就不会浪费时间去发挥创造力，学习新事物并致力于个人生活。

I leave 50% of my time for personal research. During that time, I watch online conferences, read technical articles, and try out the latest technologies.

我将50％的时间用于个人研究。 在这段时间里，我观看在线会议，阅读技术文章并尝试最新技术。

People often ask me, how did you learn XYZ.. and the answer is always the same: I built a sample app for it.

人们经常问我，您是如何学习XYZ的。答案始终是相同的：我为此创建了一个示例应用程序。

So it’s really important that you don’t keep on looking for freelance projects all the time, but take the time to learn new technologies which will in fact get you better projects and new opportunities over time.

因此，重要的是，不要一直一直寻找自由职业者的项目，而要花时间学习新技术，事实上，随着时间的流逝，它将为您带来更好的项目和新的机会。

6.提出自己的流程？ (6. Come up with your own process ?)

It’s hard for us freelancers to be organized, since we’ve got plenty of responsibilities on our plate. To make sure you have a smooth workflow with each client, create a process that you can follow for most of your projects.

对于我们的自由职业者而言，组织起来很困难，因为我们承担着很多责任。 为确保每个客户的工作流程顺畅，请为大多数项目创建一个可遵循的流程。

This way, you’ll have a plan ready to be launched whenever a potential project comes up. You don’t have to worry about the little things.

这样，只要有潜在项目出现，您就可以启动计划。 您不必担心小事情。

Here’s an example of my project kickoff workflow:

这是我的项目启动工作流程的示例：

1. Send proposal PDF
   发送提案PDF
2. Send contract
   发送合同
3. Sign and receive counter-signed contract
   签署并接收反签合同
4. Send downpayment invoice
   发送预付款发票
5. Receive downpayment
   收到预付款
6. Carry out freelance task
   开展自由职业
7. Send final invoice
   发送最终发票
8. Send feedback form
   发送反馈表

When you have a personalized workflow, you will be comfortable working which will make your clients enjoy working with you and trust you. They will most likely refer you to other companies in the future.

当您拥有个性化的工作流程时，您将舒适地工作，这将使您的客户喜欢与您一起工作并信任您。 他们很可能会在将来将您推荐给其他公司。

Read more about creating a process.

阅读有关创建流程的更多信息。

7.收费更高？ (7. Charge higher ?)

If you’re just getting started, it’s okay to charge cheap for the first project or two, but after that you have to start charging higher.

如果您刚刚入门，可以为第一个或两个项目收取便宜的费用，但是之后您必须开始收取更高的费用。

You might think you don’t deserve to charge higher yet, but going through these steps will let you charge higher, because you have value that’s worth charging more for.

您可能认为您不应该再收取更高的费用，但是通过这些步骤可以让您收取更高的费用，因为您拥有值得为之付出更多的价值。

You may not know this, but charging low makes your client feel that they’re getting low quality results.

您可能不知道这一点，但是低价收费会使您的客户觉得他们得到的质量较低。

If you already have a lot of freelance work because you’re charging cheap, it’s more likely that charging higher will make you lose some clients. But that’s actually a good thing, as you’ll end up earning a bit more while having more free time for research. It’s a risk that you shouldn’t be afraid to take as it’s totally worth it.

如果您因为收费便宜而已经有很多自由职业者，那么较高的收费更有可能使您失去一些客户。 但这实际上是一件好事，因为您将有更多的空闲时间来从事研究，但最终会获得更多的收入。 您不应该害怕冒险，因为这是完全值得的。

Also, you won’t be working with over-demanding clients, you’ll be working with clients that will appreciate your services.

另外，您不会与需求过高的客户合作，而是与会欣赏您的服务的客户合作。

When coming up with a price, you have to be comfortable charging that price — and then increase it by 10 to 25%.

提出价格时，您必须习惯收取该价格-然后将其提高10％到25％。

Let’s say for example you’re already working on a certain project for an hourly rate of €80/hour. Since you dedicated a few hours of your time over the past few months to learn more about User Experience & Web Performance, you should now increase your hourly rate by around 15% as you’re bringing more value to the project.

举例来说，假设您已经在按每小时80欧元的小时费从事某个项目。 由于您在过去几个月中花费了几个小时来了解有关用户体验和Web性能的更多信息，因此，当您为项目带来更多价值时，您应该将每小时费率提高大约15％。

Following these steps completely changed my life and I hope it will change yours too.

遵循这些步骤完全改变了我的生活，我希望它也会改变你的生活。

I can’t stress enough the importance of experimentation with new technologies. Don’t wait for opportunities to knock on your door. Create those opportunities instead.

我不能足够强调新技术试验的重要性。 不要等待机会来敲门。 而是创造这些机会。

Checkout my interactive JavaScript course: learnjavascript.online

检出我的交互式JavaScript课程： Learnjavascript.online

翻译自: https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/7-steps-to-get-more-clients-as-a-freelance-developer-ee00342f9260/