This month we've seen an increased interest in Freelancentral - it seems that the economy is actually working in freelancers' favour, as clients are looking to outsource rather than hire permanent staff. The downside for freelancers is that as people are made redundant, the competition for freelance gigs increases. Our March newsletter looks at how you can make your portfolio stand out; make the best use of your downtime; and three cost-effective ways of marketing yourself online.
issue 32 ::
March 2009
FEATURED RESOURCE:
100 GREAT RESOURCES FOR DESIGN INSPIRATION
From Mashable : "Finding inspiration is not always as simple as it sounds, whether you've been designing for years or only weeks. Below is a collection of 100 great web resources to find inspiration and direction on your next project, whether it be online or in print. These range from galleries of graphic and web design to online magazines and a few unconventional sources of inspiration."
Got a resource you'd like to recommend to the Freelancentral community? Send your favourite blog or website links, book titles or software recommendations to info@freelancentral.co.za.
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SITE STATS FOR MARCH
Freelancers registered: 3,982
From Google Analytics:
- 3,609 visits
- 25,864 page views
- 7.17 pages per visit
- 32.78% bounce rate
- 6:24 mins average time on site
- 55.11 % new visitors
IS YOUR PORTFOLIO DOING YOU JUSTICE?
Are you selling yourself effectively in your Lite or Full portfolio? Wouldn't it be great to have someone give you an honest assessment of your portfolio, and tips on how to improve it? For just R350 we will review your portfolio and send you a personalised report on how you can make it more appealing to clients. Just call the Freelancentral team on 021 780 1364 or mail us on info@freelancentral.co.za
GET 25% OFF YOUR NEXT FULL PORTFOLIO
Don't forget that if you send us your Freelancentral success stories and we publish them in our newsletter or on the site, you'll get 25% off your next month's Full portfolio. Submit your stories by sending us a mail.
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10 ways to make your portfolio stand out
Freelancing is competitive at the best of times, but as people are being laid off globally, it's even more so now. Often the first thing a potential client will want to see if your portfolio so it's vital that this positions you in as good a light as possible. Whether your portfolio is online or a in a traditional black folio case, here are Freelancentral's top tips to ensure your portfolio stands out from the crowd. Read on for more.
PIKE: When the going gets... slow
As any freelancer knows, you get good months and you get bad months. In good months, new clients are hurling themselves at your front door, and jostling each other to pour payment up-front onto your hallowed desk. In bad months, your cell phone goes ominously silent, your "hello world!" emails go unanswered and, as in Heart's seminal 1987 ballad "Alone", you hear the ticking of the clock. How will you make it alone? Read on for Pike's coping strategies.
CHRISTINE ONLINE: Three cost-effective ways to market yourself online
As we are all acutely aware, we are facing a global recession and this means that there's undoubtedly going to be much "belt-tightening" in the coming months. So, with this theme top of mind for most, I thought that it would be worth exploring some cost-effective ways of marketing yourself and generating leads online - recessionista style. .Read on for more
CHANGES TO FULL PORTFOLIO REFERENCE REQUIREMENTS
Don't forget that Freelancentral members no longer need two pre-approved references in order to qualify for a Full portfolio listing. Clients can still see how many references a freelancer has had pre-approved by the Freelancentral team on each freelancer's portfolio. These are reassuring, so we encourage freelancers to continue submitting references on the site. Clients can feed back on a freelancer they've worked with by clicking on the little blue speech bubble on each Full listing.
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Read how Freelancentral is helping South African freelancers
on our new Testimonials page - and do send us your success stories too.
If Freelancentral has connected you successfully,
whether you're a client or freelancer, we'd love to hear from you.
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