Before we bid adieu to 2011, let’s take a look at the most popular posts in The Savvy Freelancer for 2011.

This list is based on the number of page views, as well as the number of comments on each post. I didn’t use any scientific formula, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.

Most Popular Polls

I published a number of polls for freelancers in 2011, and these three topped the list in terms of readership and engagement:

Poll: What’s The Biggest Mistake You’ve Ever Made as a Freelancer?

This question resonated with many Savvy Freelancer readers — which goes to show mistakes do help us learn and become better freelancers.

Freelancers: What’s On Your Christmas Wish List?

Understandably popular — who doesn’t want to dream about what they’re getting for Christmas? This will be a yearly tradition at The Savvy Freelancer from now on.

Poll: How Do You Communicate with Clients?

Who knew freelancers had such a wide variety of preferences when it came to communicating with clients?

Freelancing Poll: Would You Work for a Client Exclusively?

I was surprised by how strongly readers responded to this question.

Most Popular Guest Posts

LinkedIn Tips for Freelancers

Readers enjoyed this guest post from LinkedIn expert, Lewis Howes. And why not? It’s full of practical advice for using LinkedIn to find clients.

6 Simple Tips to Warm Up Potential Clients When Cold Calling

Savvy Freelancer reader Chris Vanasdalan wrote this piece for the blog — and attracted plenty of readers. Send us another post soon, Chris!

How to Walk Away from Any Conference with Clients for Your Freelance Business

This guest post from writer Thursday Bram is a personal favorite of mine as well. I used her advice immediately.

Most Popular Productivity Posts

Home Office Decluttering Tips for Freelancers

Aside from home office decluttering tips, I also shared a photo of my own home office in this post (disclaimer: Said home office is no longer as neat as portrayed in the post).

Roundup: Staying Motivated as a Freelancer

Granted, this post has links to excellent posts and articles to help freelancers stay motivated. However, I am fully convinced what made this post popular is the cat picture.

Are You Experiencing Freelancer Burnout?

Readers liked this post about the signs and symptoms of burnout, and what to do when you’re experiencing them.

Most Popular Management Posts

How to Find A Profitable Freelancing Niche

Strictly speaking, this is not a post, but a sign-up page for my webinar with Steve Slaunwhite. The high number of page views shows this topic is relevant to you, my readers. If you missed the webinar, you can still sign up to get access to the recording.

A Freelancer’s Dream Home Office

Another wish-list type of post. Obviously, freelancers like to dream and aspire for great things.

How to Increase Your Freelancing Income — Right Now

The title explains it all.

Most Popular Marketing Post

A Freelancer’s Business Card

In which I show my very first freelancing business card. (Admit it, you’re a bunch of curious cats)

Most Popular Personal Post

A Ghost Writer’s Dilemma

Quite possibly the only personal post I published in 2011, and this attracted a high number of comments.

What was your favorite post from this blog in 2011? Do you see it in this list? If not, post the link the comment below, and let us know why you liked it.

Happy New Year!

If you’re a freelancer, it’s easy to get freelancing advice. You can invest in books, coaching programs, and bootcamps for freelancers.

Even if you’re bootstrapping, you won’t run out of freelancing advice from blogs, free webinars (ahem), not to mention well-meaning friends and relatives.

The bottom line is, you can find a lot of guidance for freelancing out there. What’s critical is your ability to sift through all the information that is available, and make a judgement call on which advice is good, and which is bad.

In this post, I’m sharing the best and worst freelancing advice I’ve ever seen, read, or heard in 2011. Don’t worry, I won’t name names. And if you happen to be following the bad advice I do single out here, I hope by the end of this post, you’ll be convinced to change your ways.

The Best Freelancing Advice of 2011

Prepare a custom elevator speech before a live event.

I got this advice from Thursday Bram, who wrote a guest post in The Savvy Freelancer about finding clients in conferences. Her pre-game advice was to create an elevator speech especially tailored to the typical attendees of the conference.

By now, if you’ve been paying attention, you already have an elevator speech for your freelancing business. But did you know you can and should tweak it, depending on whom you are talking to?

I made the mistake of using my generic elevator speech in one networking event, for example, and ended up being confused for a web designer.

I’ve learned my lesson. I now have a custom-made elevator speech for that particular audience. I’m sure nobody will end up thinking of me as a web designer at our next event.

The Worst Freelancing Advice of 2011

Add a QR code in your email signature line.

A freelancer wrote in a blog that this was a great idea.

Um, no, it is NOT. Think about it. To be reading your email, a person is either already in front of a computer or a mobile device. If the reader is already on the computer, wouldn’t it be much easier for them to simply click on a hyperlink in your email? Than have to scan your code to get to the linked page?

And if they were on a mobile device, such as a smart phone, how would they be able to scan your code?

Scott Stratten of Unmarketing explains this so much more entertainingly than I can:

There’s a time and place for QR codes. Use them on physical objects, such as your business card, to make it easier for people to get to your landing page. If you want to learn more about using QR codes — properly — this article can help you get started.

How About You?

What’s the best and worst freelancing advice you heard in 2011? Share them in the comments below, and let’s get a good discussion going.

 photo credit: rhodes

All I ask is that you tell me what’s on your wish list this coming holidays — something(s) you want that you think will really help you succeed as a freelancer.

All I Want For Christmas…

To get things started, I’m sharing my own wish list below.

1. Blue Microphones Yeti USB Microphone

I love my Blue Snowflake microphone, but sadly, after years of use it is literally falling apart. Granted, it’s still working, but a new mic like the Yeti, with all its features, will help me sound better at Skype calls with clients — not to mention all those Savvy Freelancing Webinars!

2. iPhone

I thought that between my iPad, iPod Touch and several Macs that an iPhone would be overkill, and so I bought a Blackberry phone instead. Big mistake! I admit it, I’m sorry, and now I want an iPhone. This isn’t a frivolous wish, because freelancers are using their smartphones to find and get clients. Any smartphone will do, I suppose, but an iPhone makes everything a lot easier.

3. Amazon Gift Card

I’ve got a long Amazon wish list, many of them for books about social media, marketing, entrepreneurship, and finance. An Amazon gift card is the simplest gift to give this freelancer. Other people may think it’s impersonal to give gift cards, but if it’s for a store I regularly shop in, I would appreciate the shopping spree

Your Turn!

What do you want for Christmas? Let me know in the comments below (then send the link to your loved one, hint, hint!).

PS: Yes, the above are my affiliate links to Amazon.com. If you click on those links and end up buying anything from Amazon, I’ll get a commission — pennies, but they add up.

LinkedIn and Lovin’ It is the latest offering of Rockable Press, an online publisher dedicated to freelancers.

In fact, LinkedIn and Lovin’ It * is the only LinkedIn resource I know of that’s written specifically for freelancers.

This post has my thoughts on this 80-page ebook.

The Big Picture

Social networks have become an essential part of marketing for freelancers. With growing numbers of companies and business owners using social networks, we can no longer ignore them. Even if your target clients are local to you, social media marketing may still prove to be an effective, inexpensive and even fun way to connect with prospects and get new clients.

LinkedIn and Lovin’ It is all about how freelancers can use LinkedIn to find clients. LinkedIn is perhaps more popularly known as the online hang-out of corporate types. It’s popular with those who are seeking EMPLOYMENT.

However, author Susan Johnston points out that LinkedIn is also an excellent place to find freelancing work. If you know how to use it. For example, I’d always suspected you could respond to job ads and turn an employment opportunity into freelance work. Johnston confirms my suspicion with a specific example.

Johnston takes you from the basics of setting up and populating your profile, to building your network. Then she moves on to the more crucial and involved task of maximizing your LinkedIn presence.

You’ll also learn how to use LinkedIn, not only to find clients, but also to do your job better. For example, LinkedIn is an excellent research tool.

Click here to download the first 14 pages of the ebook.*

The Good

• It’s written specifically for freelancers, so you can be assured there isn’t any fluff in this ebook.
• Whether you’re a beginner or intermediate user of LinkedIn, you’ll learn something.
• It’s short. You can finish reading it in minutes and start implementing what you’ve learned (in fact, I took a long time to go through the ebook because I would stop and do stuff with my LinkedIn profile.)
• It’s filled with screen captures, so you’ll know exactly what Johnston is talking about and how to do it yourself.
• You’ll read real-life stories of freelancers who actively use LinkedIn and have gotten results from it. Very inspiring!
• Very well written. It was a pleasure to read this ebook. And guess what? I didn’t see any typos
• When you buy the ebook, you’ll also get versions for your Kindle and other mobile devices. Rockable gets it!

The Bad

• The problem with social networks is they’re changing all the time. So any tutorial on any social network is bound to become obsolete really fast. Unfortunately, Johnston doesn’t mention access to any updates. A website with updates would be good.
• It wasn’t easy for me to find some features Johnston mentions. Maybe I was speed reading too fast or not paying attention well enough. But perhaps a video here and there would help.
• Johnston makes a paid LinkedIn account too tempting.

The Bottom Line

For $17, this ebook is a no-brainer. Even though I’ve invested hundreds of dollars on LinkedIn courses, I still learned a thing or two (more, actually) from this ebook.

Order your copy of LinkedIn and Lovin’ It here*

* Affiliate Links. If you purchase LinkedIn and Lovin’ It through these links, I will receive a commission. Nevertheless, I’ve written a balanced review of the product with both the positive and negative aspects of the ebook.

UPDATES!

Just to give you a better idea of what this group coaching opportunity will cover, here are some of the questions Laura and I have received so far from early enrollees:

• I want to set up a passive income website. Where should I buy the domain name? Must I host this myself or can I have it hosted elsewhere? Which is best and what are the costs associated with each?

• How do I know if my rate is high enough or too low? How do I know if I’m charging my clients right? Should I charge less for subjects I’m less familiar with?

• What is the best way to brand my new freelancing business?

• How can I increase my rates without losing my current clients and still get new clients?

Also, a couple of announcements:

1. Deadline: Doors to the mini-coaching program will close after 20 participants or at 5 pm EST on Friday, February 11, 2011 — whichever comes first.

2. Bonuses: Laura and I have added bonuses to the program. Click here to get the details.

Then this will interest you:
Mini-Coaching for Freelancers

Together with my friend and Editor at Freelance Folder, Laura Spencer, I’m offering a mini-coaching opportunity for the first 20 of you who sign up.

You can use this mini-coaching to:

• get individualized answers to your particular questions or conundrums about freelancing

• obtain a second (or even third) opinion on decisions you’re wanting to make

• have an objective point of view about choices you need to make but are torn about

• get a new perspective on freelancing issues or challenges you can’t seem to wrap your brain around

• feel supported, motivated and encouraged in your decision to freelance

Laura and I are here to answer your most pressing questions about YOUR freelancing career.

If you think this is what you need to get closer to your freelancing goals, then click here to get all the details of this mini-coaching program, specially for freelancers like you.

PS: Because Laura and I want to give as much attention as possible to everyone who joins, the mini-coaching is limited to 20 participants only, and the last day to join is this Friday, February 11, 2011. So if you’re interested, don’t wait, ok?

Mini-Coaching for Freelancers

photo credit: Liz Grace

As a freelancer, you’ve no doubt gotten plenty of advice — both solicited and not — about freelancing.

Some were plain useless: “Go find a real job.”

Some were just weird: “Don’t take a shower, no one will see you anyway.”

But others change your life. They’re gems you play over and over inside your head, to guide you like an invisible angel.

Best Freelancing Advice I Ever Got

Here, in no particular order, are some of the best freelancing advice I’ve ever received:

• If you don’t want to earn peanuts, don’t write articles.
• Create a website to market your services.
• Market to past clients. It’s easier to “revive” them than look for new ones.
• Specialize.
• Blog.
• Create and manage a list of prospects.
• Keep an eye on your expenses.
• Stop undervaluing yourself. Write down your value, in terms of the number of hours of training and experience you have, the amount of money you’ve invested in your skills, and the outcomes you get for your clients.
• Market to the 20% of clients who’ll bring 80% of your income.
• Strive to be extraordinary.

Your Turn

What’s the best freelancing advice YOU’VE ever received?

Please post them in the comments below so we can learn from each other.

PS: Are you still waiting for personalized advice on freelancing, meant just for you? Laura Spencer and I have launched a mini-coaching program for freelancers to answer your most pressing questions and challenges about marketing and branding your freelancing business. Click here to get the full scoop.

photo credit: Don Fulano

For the first time ever, an entire day will be devoted to celebrate freelancers — those courageous souls who are taking our lives in our own hands and creating our own economies. Whether you’re already freelancing, or still dreaming of doing so, this day is for you!

Watch the video and read the interview below to find out more about the Day.

1. What is International Freelancers Day and why did you guys at The Wealthy Freelancer organize it?

International Freelancers Day is a day to celebrate independent workers and the tremendous impact they have on the economy, in the US, Canada and around the world.

We looked around and noticed that freelancers were not celebrated on a international scale like this, and so we shared this idea with our colleagues in the world of freelancing, marketing and social media (many of whom you’ll see on the speakers page) and just about everyone we talked too said, “Great idea!” so we knew we had to to it. It’s been a lot of work, but its been tremendous fun and the event itself is going to be amazing.

2. Why did you choose September 24/25 to be International Freelancers Day? (Which day IS IFD anyway?)

This goes back to much earlier in 2010 when we first were batting around this idea. In fact, the date sort of chose itself.

When we first started batting around the idea, we wanted to have a massive online event the like of which had never been done before in the freelance/solopreneur worlds. And we knew that it would take months of preparation in terms of lining up speakers, and exploring and organizing the technologies required for an online video event like this.

We also wanted the event to be held during a time when most people are likely to be home, and September is a time of year when most people get back to school/back to work/back to normal after the summer.

We settled on September 24, a Friday, because we knew that Friday seems to be a day when people like to watch videos, so Friday seemed to be the most logical day.

And we decided to expand the event to two days, in fact, because we had no choice! We had so many speakers saying, “Yes!” when we approached them with the invitation to present. So September 24 is the actual International Freelancers Day, but the celebration spans two consecutive days. There’s an incredible amount of content packed in there!

3. How did you decide on the session topics and speakers?

In fact, we focused exclusively on approaching quality speakers, and we pretty much let each of them them choose their own presentation topic. We picked speakers based on the value of the content that they provide, in the areas of marketing, social media, productivity.

Whether or not they typically deliver exclusively to freelancers or solo professionals was not a big factor; we were more so interested in, “Is his or her content excellent?” And we knew that the speakers we were approaching were reputable, so we weren’t worried about someone coming back with a topic that was not relevant, or that lacked relevance or value.

As it turned out, the session topics are awesome, and quite varied. I wish I could say it was all part of a brilliant plan… but the sessions all just fell into place.

4. What do you think is the biggest challenge facing freelancers today, and what is the biggest opportunity we should make the most of?

I personally think the biggest challenge is the same as it has always been: the fact that becoming or being a freelancer is not typically the way in which many (most) of us were brought up.

Most people were raised with a specific idea of what career and work should look like and to “go out on your own” is still largely viewed as being a rebel/derelict/outcast/insane person.

So it can be intimidating to get started on one’s own, or to keep going if the going gets tough.

But having said all that, the general view of freelancing as a fringe activity is rapidly dissolving. Millions of people are enter the word of freelancing/solopreneurship, so this challenge will become less of an issue as time goes by.

The biggest opportunity is the other side of this same coin… the fact that organizations, not just individuals are rapidly supporting the freelancer/project-based model in order to get work done.

It sounds cliche, but now really is the best time in history to become a freelancer because there’s such increasing acceptance and familiarity with the idea among companies who dish out the work.

5. This is only the first celebration of IFD, right? What are your plans for IFD 2011? (If you have them already)

Yes, this is the inaugural year. We honestly haven’t planned much for IFD 2011 yet… too buried in the details of this first event!  But I know we’ll learn a lot from this year’s event, and hopefully we’ll set a great precedence, and one can live up to again next year.

Thank you very much for your time, Pete!

Make sure to click here to register (if you haven’t done so yet) and get FREE access to two days of valuable content exclusively for freelancers.

PS: Pete and the other organizers of International Freelancers Day are running a contest. I’m not normally interested in contests, but the books in the prize package had me drooling. Click here to find out how you can win.

If you have a copy of my ebook, “The Savvy Freelancer’s Website Secrets: How to Create A Client Magnet Online,” you know that I recomend using WordPress to build your professional site.

That’s right, whether you plan to actually blog or have a static site, WordPress is the best option for you. It’s free to use, highly customizable, flexible and functional with all the plugins available… plus now there’s another reason to use WordPress for your site:  The Client Machine.

The Client Machine is a WordPress template developed by Freelance Folder specifically for freelancers.

It’s got unique features and functionalities that make it super easy and fast for freelancers to build a website that attracts leads, captures prospects, and compels visitors to hire them. These features include:

• adding testimonials in the sidebar or footer
• creating a portfolio
• making proposals and invoices — straight from WordPress

… and many more!

The good news is, The Client Machine is one sale now at 40% off — but only until 1 pm Eastern today, September 8th. Click here to order The Client Machine right now. (<== Yes, that’s an affiliate link right there)

In case you’re reading this after that time, let me assure you: The Client Machine is an excellent value even at full price. Check it out: http://thesavvyfreelancer.com/clientmachine

Juliet came across one of my guides, “How to (Really) Make Money on Elance,” and thought that her ebook would be a good complement to it. After all, her ebook is all about winning proposals on bidding sites such as Elance.

The first thing that struck me about “The Winning Proposal” was the sheer volume of it. For an ebook about writing proposals, I didn’t expect 106 pages. But there’s good reason for that.

More Than Proposals

Juliet’s ebook is really thorough and actually goes beyond just putting together a winning proposal. For example, she includes tips for:

• creating an attractive profile
• putting together an impressive portfolio
• assessing a job description to decide if you really want it
• spotting scams
• screening potential clients
• sustaining your success – after you win the bid

How To Make Winning Proposals

Now, onto the meat of the ebook, which is the actual proposal. Juliet shows two ways to make a proposal: the long, formal proposal and the brief proposal.

Juliet goes through each of the parts of the proposal – what to include, how to write it, how to price your services. The ebook even includes a complete sample proposal, and a link to a downloadable template.

Although I don’t foresee myself needing Juliet’s format for a long proposal (unless I market my services to corporate clients, maybe), her advice is spot on for creating any type of proposal.

For example, I often have prospects contacting me requiring something that’s similar but not quite exactly the service packages I have on my freelance website. Or they inquire about my rates even though these are published on my site.

This is an opportunity for me to reiterate my qualifications and how I can help the prospect with their copywriting and/or marketing needs. Which is exactly what I would accomplish by following Juliet’s guidelines – even if I use my own proposal template or outline.

As for the brief proposal, Juliet presents four real-life examples of how not to create a brief proposal, and then she writes a brief proposal to demonstrate how to do it. The contrast is quite eye-opening.

The brief proposal is probably what I’ll use more, but with a few changes. For example, even if it is a brief proposal, I would add sub-titles to guide the prospective client along. Otherwise, Juliet’s letter format, composed of more than five paragraphs, could be difficult to skim.

As I said, Juliet is very thorough. She goes into a lot of detail, which is perfect for the new freelancer, or at least one who’s new to bidding sites.

She even has a system for monitoring the bids you make, your successes and “failures” (Juliet says there are no failures, only lessons to be learned), and how to keep improving your game. I’m not likely to do this, mainly because I loathe details. But if you’re more meticulous than I am and have the time, this exercise will certainly give you insights.

What You’ll Take Away From This Ebook

The principles Juliet teaches are applicable not only to bidding sites, but to any situation where we, freelancers, pitch our services to potential clients.

For example, Juliet emphasizes that we need to read and re-read the job description to make sure we understand what the client’s requirements are. We should contact the prospect with questions, if we have any. Understanding what our clients really want is key to being successful freelancers.

Juliet’s advice is certainly consistent with what Trish Lambert and I present in “How to (Really) Make Money on Elance” as well as in my ebook, “The Savvy Freelancer’s Website Secrets: How to Create a Client Magnet Online,” and various posts throughout TheSavvyFreelancer.com.

For a mere $12, “The Winning Proposal” is a small but worthwhile investment for any freelancer who’s serious about being successful. Juliet promises that, after reading and following the steps in the ebook, the reader will have:

• a top-notch profile
• at least one impressive proposal
• a stronger personal brand

Is It For You?

I recommend “The Winning Proposal” to any freelancer who would like to improve their marketing efforts – whether in freelance bidding sites or not. If you have all the clients you can handle, and you’re happy with the type of clients you have, then you probably don’t need this.

I’ll certainly be referring to this the next time I create a custom online marketing proposal for a client. Just to make sure I’ve made it well as I possibly could.

Find out more about “The Winning Proposal” here and download a sample chapter to decide if this is something that can help you. (Disclosure: Paid affiliate)