Create A Website
If you want to get started in SEO freelancing, you’ll need a website to gain credibility. After all, if you aren’t utilizing SEO for your own business, why would others trust you to do it for theirs. Make sure that your website is appealing, highlights your skills, explains your services, is aesthetically pleasing, and of course, is SEO optimized. Also, be sure to highlight your relevant experience and share descriptions or links to projects that you’ve worked on. Once you build your business consider adding in client testimonials.
Sign Up For Freelancing Sites
You can find SEO projects and work on most of the major freelancing websites. The websites all operate in the same general manner; you create a profile, choose the services you’d like to offer, share your portfolio or experience, and submit proposals to projects posted by clients. Some of the most popular freelancing platforms are:
UpWork: UpWork is one of the most popular freelancing sites. When you join, you’ll be able to create a profile with your education and employment history, a portfolio of past projects, your services, and the rate that you charge per hour. There are a variety of hourly and project-based SEO projects available for freelancers to bid on. To stand out, be sure to spend a fair amount of time crafting a well-written and compelling proposal telling the client why you are the perfect freelancer for their SEO project. Once you completed projects and earned positive ratings from clients, you will also likely have clients reaching out to you to request that you apply to their openings as clients also have the option of searching for freelancing and inviting them to apply directly to open projects.
Fiverr: Fiverr gives freelancers the option to provide service packages for a flat rate, with the option of offering three different levels of packages per service with tiered pricing. Signing up is simple and packages can be priced from $5-$995. SEO services are available and offered on Fiverr. They break down SEO into several optional subcategories: On-Page SEO, Off-Page SEO, Technical SEO, Competitor Analysis, Keyword Research, and Voice Search SEO.
Freelancer: Freelancer operates similarly to UpWork; clients post jobs or projects and freelancers can submit proposals for client consideration.
Network
Most small business owners have a website, but a large portion of them are not getting seen. Many business owners may have limited to no understanding of SEO. This is where networking and consumer education will help you land clients. You can utilize LinkedIn for digital networking and to find business owners that may be in need of SEO services.
LinkedIn can also be a great way to build your personal brand and gain referrals. There are also opportunities to network in your local community by attending business networking events or Chamber of Commerce events. Get the word out to as many people as possible about your freelancing business to find potential clients and generate word of mouth marketing.
Join SEO Slack Communities
Many industry-specific Slack communities will have a dedicated channel for job postings. Many SEO jobs can be done remotely so scour these communities for remote freelance opportunities and be sure to join local SEO or digital marketing Slack communities if you live near a major city.
The Online Geniuses Slack community is targeted towards all digital marketing professionals, including providers of SEO services. You can check out the #hiring channel to find a variety of marketing job opportunities. There are SEO openings for both freelancers and traditional employment posted in the channel frequently.
These communities can also be a great resource if you ever run into an issue with a client project and want to ask other SEO professionals for help. Be sure to check out our blog on Why SEO Professionals are Joining Slack Communities to learn more!
Online Geniuses Job Board
You can find freelance SEO opportunities right here on our website! Thousands of major companies and agencies fill their roles through Online Geniuses job board. Our job board features a variety of opportunities in the digital marketing space including a large number of SEO roles. Utilize our search feature to find relevant freelance positions such as contract SEO Specialist or SEO Consulting roles. While the job board includes jobs from top companies posted directly on Online Geniuses, it also includes relevant digital marketing focused job listings from Indeed, giving you access to a comprehensive list of marketing focused positions and opportunities.
Online Geniuses Talent Network
Creating a profile on our talent network can help your SEO showcase your skills to companies looking to hire freelancers! You can set your rate, list your primary skills, experience level, and location. You can link to your existing portfolio and your website so that potential clients can check out your work. SEO and Search Engine Marketing are both areas of expertise that can be selected and shown on your profile. It is free to join the Talent Network and there are no fees associated with the network or any leads that you get from it.
Traditional Job Sites
Traditional job sites like Indeed, Career Builder, and LinkedIn job search. Though if you’re checking our job board you’ll already be seeing job openings curated from Indeed. While they aren’t as targeted as freelancing sites, traditional job search engines can help you find freelance opportunities. Most job sites have the option to search by job type and if you select contract, you’ll see the available freelance job postings.
One advantage traditional job sites do have is that they don’t take a cut of your earning. Freelance sites will generally charge a service fee or commission, ranging from 3-20% depending on the site. Traditional job sites primarily make money through sponsored job posts or premium recruiting features paid for by employers. Though if you do plan to use traditional job sites as a resource, be sure to spend time sprucing up your website as discussed above and your LinkedIn profile, as you’ll need to link to those instead of creating a portfolio and freelancing profile on the site. Most traditional sites will only support adding your resume information to your profile.
