The document provides tips for freelancers on various aspects of running a freelance business, including finding clients, proposals, contracts, project onboarding, development, delivery, maintenance, and recurring revenue streams. It emphasizes having a clear process, properly positioning yourself, screening clients, developing proposals and contracts, onboarding clients by educating them on their responsibilities, and providing ongoing support and care plans.

1. @mgacreative

2. I am a former Art Teacher in Palm Beach County,
I.T. Director, and Apple At Home Expert.
I have been Freelancing for about 9 years (Full-time
for 7 years) - long enough to have made all the
mistakes many freelancers make.
melanie@mgacreativedesigns.com

3. • Have a process
• Finding Clients
• Proposals
• Contracts
• Onboarding
• Design / Prototype
• Development
• Delivery
• Maintenance
• Recurring Revenue

4. Market Leads Meeting Nuture
Proposal Onboarding Development Delivery
Maintenance Referrals
*based on WP Elevation Blueprint

5. • Do you have/need a niche market?
• How do you find it?
• Finding an “in”
• Position Yourself as an Expert

6. • Position yourself as a solution provider, consultant, company owner,
instead of website designer
• Look for Red Flags (listen to your gut)
• Learn to say “no thanks”
• Take control of the project via your process
• Avoid looking or sounding desperate

7. • Gather project information via phone, meeting, form
or a paid discovery session. Talk to the decision
makers
• Rank your clients on budget, project,
client respect. Bad clients aren’t worth
the hassle but a great client leads to
another.
• PITA upcharge

8. • Walk the line between nonchalance and desperation
• Send follow-up emails but WAIT

9. • Develop a template or use a good one
to save time or use online tools like Bid
Sketch, 17 Hats, or Proposify until you
find the one or create it.
• Outline business goals, target audience,
detailed scope of work with a timeline
including client delivery of content.
• List your Care Plans in your proposal.

10. • Use a CONTRACT!
• Cover use of stock images, premium plugin licenses and renewals,
security, hosting, updates and backups
• Intellectual Property, TOS, and Privacy Policy
• Timelines (Design Process and
Payment Schedule)
• Suspended and Abandoned Projects
• Termination, Cancellations, and
Refund Policy

11. • It is your job to educate your clients on
their role in the project
• single point of contact
• give them a worksheet on their
responsibilities i.e. what content (text and
images) you are expecting and put a due
date on it.

12. • Create a delivery checklist
• Provide client training
videos (Video User Manual
or WP 101), or step by
step guides (iorad.com)
• Define bugs / limitations

13. • Website Care Plans
• Hosting
• SEO Services
• Social Media
• Paid Marketing

14. WPElevation.com - WP Elevation
NathanIngram.com - Advance Forum
training.iThemes.com
sellyourservice.co.uk