I was recently on a call with a new coaching client who is looking to expand their blog into a full-blown freelance business. They want to write, teach, speak, get company sponsorships, you name it! But before they can get into all of that, I was very adamant about the fact that they need to start using systems their business.
The reality is that if you want to succeed, you need to have a solid foundation by using systems in your freelance business. Most people who are starting out – including myself just a few short years ago – feel completely overwhelmed by this notion and as such, may avoid setting up systems. Here’s why that’s a big mistake.
Systems help you save time.
There’s a common phrase that says “Time is money.” While I tend to argue that time is actually more valuable than money, the common saying still makes a valid point: You need to dedicate your time to things that actually make money. For everything else, try to see if you can use systems in your freelance business.
By incorporating systems – such as using IFTTT to keep your eye on freelance job boards, having a follow-up process, or using a service like Edgar to automate your social media postings – you are saving a lot of time that may otherwise go to tasks that either don’t make you money or can be done more efficiently.
Systems help you scale.
On this particular coaching call, I told my client that any business – including a freelance business – has an element of sales. As we all know, sales is a numbers game. You need to make sure you’re moving as many people as possible through your sales funnel so that you can make money. That’s why it’s so important to use systems in your freelance business so that you can scale your business, reach more people and make more money.
For example, a system or a process is a simple as having an email opt-in on your website. This encourages people to sign up and adds them to your CRM automatically. They’ve literally become a lead without you having to lift a finger other than the initial setup.
Systems work while you sleep.
Another example of a system for your freelance business is something like Instagress for Instagram. If you’re a designer or your market happens to hang out on Instagram, you know how important it is to have a presence on that social media network. The only problem is you could spend hours each day trying to build up your following to no avail. That’s time you could be spending on other activities that actually make money.
That’s where a system like Instagress comes into play. Instagress follows users, unfollows users, comments and likes posts based on a set of hashtags and settings you determine. It’s very hands off and saves you a whole lot of time in building your presence. It literally works while you sleep.
Instagress is just one of many systems in your freelance business that you can begin to incorporate in an effort to save yourself time. The point is to starting using systems that help you actually achieve your desired business goals.
