Becoming expat can be a big challenge. Even if you have a guarantee of employment waiting for you, it is no less stressful. However, being an expat and a freelancer adds another layer of uncertainty. Imagine there is no company, support network of future colleagues or stable income waiting for you. But, despite all of that, you are 100% certain that freelancing is what you want to do. On top of that, you want to relocate and do it in another country, a very brave move indeed. It would be a wise idea to quickly integrate yourself to keep the momentum of your business. But how exactly do you introduce yourself as a freelancer in your new surroundings?
Being an expat in makes it more difficult to make positive first impressions. You are facing a different language, cultural barriers, and possibly different business-related customs. The most important thing is to focus on your business and how to introduce yourself to others. It will help you to find new clients and keep your freelance business going!
Being an expat and a freelancer can be hard, especially if you are new at freelance business and the first thing you need to do is find clients without having struggles with language differences. In this article, you can read about some tips on how to introduce yourself as a freelancer, but also as an expat.
Introducing yourself
“What do you do for a living?” can be a very difficult question to answer. People are sometimes unfamiliar with freelance work and can have difficulties understanding what it is.
So, when it’s time to introduce yourself, try a different approach. Instead of “I’m a freelancer and I do freelance web design” say omething like “I help people to build attractive designs for their websites” can be more understandable to others and it gives you more space to elaborate further on your area of expertise. The important thing is to focus more on the value you provide than the title you give yourself. The key to introducing yourself as a freelancer is to focus on what makes you different and how your business adds value to the people interested in it. It will give you more opportunity to talk about your work as it actually is, rather than just explaining freelancing to people.
Considering the situation with Covid-19, online platforms seem to have become the most effective and sometimes the only solution for introducing yourself to anyone, especially to your new customers. If you can come up with a good way of promoting yourself and your work, you won’t have to worry about finding new customers. Your online presence can speak for you! Self-promotion can be as simple as having your own website and creating a profile on social media platforms (e.g. LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter..).
Be sure to highlight the best aspects of your expertise and your most specific skills related to your work.
- Highlight your accomplishments
- Talk about your experience with previous clients
- Mention the main reasons why you started your business
- Mention your goals
- Speak up about your credentials
- Mention why you are passionate about your work
As already mentioned in our previous blog post Advantages & disadvantages of freelancing, freelance work has many benefits. If you successfully introduce yourself as a freelancer and position your work on the market, you are increasing your personal brand and it adds further value to all those already existing benefits.
A great way to introduce yourself as a freelancer and becoming a part of a local community is by joining a diverse co-working space. It is a great way of meeting new people, as well as like-minded freelancers and entrepreneurs who might share your interest.
A few important tips to remember:
- Focus on communicating significant aspects of your work in a clear and easy-to-understand way.
- Set up your profile (if you don’t have one already) on social media platforms and keep it updated.
- Practice your way of introducing yourself before actually making the introduction to someone.
- Introduce yourself with confidence while bringing attention to your proficiency in a specific skill in your area of expertise.
- Highlight your expertise as much as you can.
- Be sure to have your goals set up and be ready to tell people all about them.
In case you are already thinking about becoming a freelancer in Prague, we’re here to help you take the first step! Check out our previous blog post and find out what you need to do to get a visa and become a freelancer in the Czech Republic. And, don’t forget about Locus Workspace! Our diverse community full of freelancers and entrepreneurs, ready to support you on your journey to self-sufficiency!
