How to Get Started Freelancing: Freelance Samples

We are continuing on with our series on how to get started freelancing. Today we’re talking about those ever-important freelance samples.

If you’re just getting started freelancing, then you will quickly discover that your potential clients are going to want to see some samples. It makes good sense, after all, to ensure that they’re hiring someone who is up to the task. On the other hand, those who are just getting started may have no idea how to go about getting those samples or the best way to use them.

The most obvious place to get your samples would be from projects you’ve already completed for other clients. If you’re a freelance web designer, for example, then you would certainly want to direct prospective customers to sites you’ve designed for other clients. From those samples, he or she can get a feel for both your style and your abilities.

Samples are also really important for freelance writers. Clients will often want to see that you have experience writing about their topic, in addition to the fact that you can string together a coherent sentence! Of course, you’re not always going to have samples written on the exact topic, so you might have to get creative when it comes to sending along appropriate samples.

If you are so new that you don’t have any previous projects to use as samples, it is fine to make some up. After all, you’re just trying to give the client a sense of what you can do. He or she won’t usually be too concerned about whether the piece was published/posted/etc. There is an exception for print media, however, as these “markets” will very often only want to see writing or photos that were published in other print publications.

A Few DOs and DON’Ts

Do:

• Try to send samples that are related to the topic or style the client requests.
• Have an online profile that clients can view.
• Send samples as attachments if the client requests it.

Don’t:

• Send samples that don’t represent your best work. If you’re a freelance writer, that means triple-checking the grammar.
• Expect an employer to be interested in everything you’ve ever written. Consider sending two or three samples with a note that more are available.
• Forget that you can use your blog or pieces you’ve submitted to article distribution sites as samples.

Finally, some potential clients may ask you to work “on spec.” This means that they’ll give you a topic and expect you to write a sample to their specifications. If they like the work, they’ll pay you for it, and if they don’t, then you’re up the proverbial creek. We rarely recommend that freelancers work on spec.

I know that this is a huge topic, so if you think of something that I forgot to cover here, please leave a comment letting us know!