Choosing a contract rate
In the United Kingdom, determining a freelance contract wage is a delicate balancing act. You want to set a competitive rate so that you get a fair return on your investment without pricing yourself out of the market.
Several handy websites offer survey findings on standard prices for certain abilities.
These resources, although informative, do not account for the mix of talents or amount of expertise necessary. Consequently, you should establish a baseline rate based on your existing wage, evaluate your study findings, and ask around. Otherwise, you may be susceptible due to a lack of understanding about your market worth.
Consult with other contractors. “Human intellect” is an excellent source of data. Talk to as many coworkers and friends as you can, but do it quietly, particularly if you’re still working full-time. Existing freelancers or contractors and permanent employees who’ve already worked with freelancers have a thorough understanding of the task and the need for certain talents. If possible, consult with an experienced freelancer who has abilities and expertise comparable to yours.
In the United Kingdom, market factors may greatly influence freelancing demand. Browsing contract advertising on the internet may assist you in gaining a better understanding of the charges you should demand in the present atmosphere.
You should promote yourself.
Your CV and LinkedIn profile have a single purpose: to persuade an agency or client to call you so that you can set up a client appointment. These profiles are the most important marketing tools you’ll need to be considered for a contract. Consider their sales brochures for both offline and internet marketing.
Both your CV and LinkedIn profile demand extra care to achieve long-term success. Design both as if you’re putting up an “elevator pitch,” with your most relevant abilities and achievements prominently displayed, indicating that you’re a great fit for the assignment’s criteria.
Remember that a recruiting agency or client will normally invest 20 seconds to the initial make-or-break reading before deciding if you are selected for a client encounter. Don’t expect the reader to go out of their way to find uninteresting traits. It is up to you to bear the brunt of the responsibility.
‘The best individual available isn’t always the freelancer, but the greatest person at promoting themselves.’
Other helpful hints when it comes to arranging your CV and LinkedIn profile are:
- Find out what your prospective customer wants to get out of the job at hand.
- Customize your CV to show how you can contribute to the project’s success.
- Always provide a list of your prior work’s quantifiable achievements and how they benefited your company.
- Recall what you’ve learned in past positions.
The freelancer who obtains a client meeting isn’t necessarily the best person for the job, but they are the greatest at selling themselves. Thus the value of a well-optimized CV and LinkedIn profile cannot be understated.
Obtaining work
After you’ve prepared to join the job market, use the daily checklist below to make sure you’re getting the most out of your job search. It also establishes a habit for you. It might be disorienting to stay at home after years of disciplined living, but securing your next contract is your work for the time being.
Call any agency to whom you applied the day before.
Post and prospect on LinkedIn in a proactive manner.
Check job websites and LinkedIn groups for potential openings that have just been posted, and respond to pertinent activity with proactive comments and queries of your own Send out email applications to any other positions you have applied to but have not yet talked to the agent about
Unfortunately, the job hunt may be tedious and unpleasant, but the more you work, the faster you’ll find a job.
Using internet job boards to find contracts
Because job boards are such a valuable source of possible contracts, you must frequently keep an eye on them. Although LinkedIn has become the key source of excellent contracts in many ways, most contracts are still placed on job boards.
TotalJobs; Indeed; Reed; CV-Library; JobSite; JobServe; Monster; NHS Jobs; CWJobs are only a few of the most popular job boards for various industries. Because these sites dominate the recruiting industry, agencies typically advertise the same job on many job boards.
Most job sites also offer a free notifications feature that you can use to get an email whenever a new job that meets your criteria is posted. You may create numerous alerts with varied parameters, and with a little tinkering, you should be able to fine-tune the results.
Make a record of the positions you’ve applied for. When an agent or customer calls, it’s a good idea to save the record in the cloud so you can access it quickly on your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or PC. This way, you’ll know which role the call is about right away. You can’t submit several applications for the same job via separate agents if you keep a record.
Take a chance and go for it!
If you don’t want to be left wondering “What if?” or being forced to consider “What next?” then now is the moment to take charge of your future freelancing job in the UK. You could realize that freelancing is the ideal solution to your Covid-19-related recruiting issues, and you’ll never look back.
