How to Become a Freelance Digital Marketer

by Sreeja B. Growth Hacker

Introduction

Do you aspire to be a freelance marketing consultant? (Or are you already freelance marketing consulting?) Have you fancied going out on your own for a long time but haven’t quite managed to do it just yet? Maybe you just want a job, or on the other hand, you just don’t want to salute your boss anymore, and you want to take more control of your destiny. More precisely, you want more control over how you spend your time, how much you can earn and how you want to grow. If this describes you, then becoming your own boss is probably the answer for you.

The thing is, up until a few years ago, an overwhelming method to gain such control was to start your own traditional business (like the one you are currently trying to get away from). If you ask anyone who has tried it before, it’s not that easy. In fact, for some, it is downright terrifying.

Today, however, there is an alternative. FREELANCING.

A freelancer is a person who is self-employed and provides their services to one or several different clients at a time. They could be someone who is a certified expert; say, someone who has enrolled in a digital marketing course - although this isn’t always necessary.

Almost any service required by a business can be provided by a freelancer. This includes jobs in different areas like programming (and technical support jobs), graphic design (and other creative and artistic jobs), accounting (and other jobs in the finance sector) and as you shall find out below, marketing jobs as well.

The proliferation of freelance and traditional part-time jobs today describes the new (and growing) reality of today’s labor market. This new Gig Economy has excited everyone from professionals to non-skilled workers and everyone in between. Most people today want more control over their time and efforts vis-à-vis the different types of jobs that are available across the world. The question is how do you get started amidst the fierce competition. This post will provide you with useful answers and direction on how to become a freelance digital marketer today.

Who is a freelance digital marketer?

To understand who a digital marketing freelance expert is, we need to be on the same page about ‘what is freelance digital marketing.’ Traditional ideas of digital marketing use a limited scope of what digital is all about. They restrict their scope to a business/corporate website and probably a Facebook page. This often means that there are several opportunities for marketing that are missed. You should not make the same mistake.

The scope of digital marketing can be more comprehensively defined according to the 5 Ds of Digital. That is:

Digital devices, e.g., an audience to business interaction (and vice versa) using TVs, tablets, smartphones, computers, etc.
Digital platforms: the browser or apps used for interaction in the digital devices, e.g., Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Snapchat, etc.
Digital media: Channels used to reach and engage audiences, e.g., search engines, email, advertising, social networks, etc.
Digital data: Insight businesses collect about their audiences
Digital technology: the marketing technology businesses use to create interactive experiences

Therefore, a freelance digital marketing expert is a person that achieves the marketing objectives by applying or making use of the 5D’s mentioned above.

The marketing objectives are often defined as follows:

Identifying customers’ needs and wants
Anticipating or evaluating demand for resource allocation
Customer satisfaction including the customer's digital experience and delivery of services and physical products.

Why become a freelance digital marketer?

Now that we have answered the central question ‘what is freelance marketing?’, here are some advantages and some disadvantages of freelancing that you should be aware of while you research further.

The advantages are that:

Demand is high
Low entry or startup cost.
Freelancers get paid what they are worth
Freelancing is flexible, you can work full-time or part-time.
Freelancers are independent contractors and not employees. You can choose the jobs to take up or set aside and control to some extent how you will deliver.
You are not bound to a specific location
You often pay less in taxes

Some disadvantages are as follows:

Your time may still be dictated by your clients to the extent of when you communicate, and when you should deliver.
Work may not always be consistent
It will take some time and effort to become successful
You must wear a lot of hats, for example, managing invoicing, follow-up and managing of different clients, marketing your brand, managing finances and so on.

If the above disadvantages are discouraging, here are some fast facts about digital marketing that should encourage you and help you realize that there is space for you as a freelance digital marketer:

About half of small-medium businesses do not have a basic understanding of SEO
Mobile will account for almost three-quarters of all digital Ad spend.
eCommerce customers that receive multiple emails as opposed to a single email about items that they have abandoned in their cart are 2.4 times more likely to complete the purchase.
Content marketing generates 3 times more leads than traditional marketing and also costs more than 60% less.
Social media marketing is the most popular form of content marketing accounting for 90% of B2C business

There are a lot more statistics on digital marketing that you can find online. More importantly, these statistics expose the role that you can fill as a freelance digital marketer. So, let's turn our attention to how you can become a digital freelance digital marketer.

How do you become a freelance digital marketer?

There are several different routes that you can charter towards becoming a freelance digital marketer. That said, with whichever route you decide to pursue, you must consider these six critical tips:

Find your niche
Assess the required skills,
Find useful tools,
Find the right clients,
Decide what to charge, and
Be a business.

Find your niche

Which freelance marketing role do you want to own? You probably already have some ideas but if you don’t. Here are some simple questions you should answer to lead you in the right direction.

What are your current skills? What do you love to do? What do you have an aptitude for? For example, analytics, trends, SEO management, PR and customer relations, etc.
What do your family and friends say that you are good at? Maybe you are known to be the de facto analyst, storyteller or tech guru. This can give you some insight into talents you may not have considered.
What do you spend most of your time doing or what are your hobbies? It is easy to pivot your habits or passions into a new freelance digital marketing niche.

Once you answer these questions the next step is to find out who you want to target or what the client’s specific needs are. Some of the questions that you should ask yourself include: Who are your client's customers? Where do they live? What’s their age group/interest/income level? Do they like to read/skim/watch their media? What is their preferred platform for information/news/media consumption?

Based on the skills that you have you should find a niche in one or more of these marketing channel expertise fields:

Email marketing
Data analysis
Paid social media advertising
Search engine marketing
Social media marketing
Content marketing
Viral marketing
Mobile marketing
Visual marketing
You could also become a technology expert in the tools and platforms used in digital marketing

The great thing about being a freelancer is that you can change your role based on what you find is a good fit for you at any time. The critical thing to remember is to find a niche and focus on it. To reiterate the point, here is a case study describing how to find a niche and how to profit from it.

What skills do you need as a freelance digital marketer?

The skills you need will depend on your chosen niche. That said, some of the personal skills and qualities that will be required include:

Good time management skills.
Good relationship management skills.
A likable personality.
Self-promotion savvy.
Well-organized, disciplined, and motivated.
The ability to think objectively i.e., the ability to separate yourself from your passion and to see beyond theory into what actually works.
A mix of creativity and analytical abilities. Today, creativity and analytics are two sides of the same coin.
Good sales copy and visual storytelling skills. You will only win over clients and customers if you can separate yourself from the crowd by telling a compelling story.
Be accurate, clear and concise. You must be efficient and effective in how you communicate your message
Listening skills. Listening to consumers and client’s thoughts on relevant issues, products, and even your own services is critical. Thereafter, creating a solution based on observation and insight is also crucial.
Agility to adjust to a rapidly changing market in the midst of constantly changing tools, algorithms, and platforms.

Some of the technical skills that you will need are as follows:

Basic design skills.
Sales skills. Understanding how to engage people and then turning them into sales opportunities is crucial.
Paid social media advertising skills. You need to understand the popular digital marketing platforms and how they can be used to find budget-friendly opportunities.
An understanding of WordPress, one of the most popular content monument platforms.
Ability to analyze quantifiable metrics. The ability to deliver actionable metrics and prove real value with real data is an essential skill for success.
The ability to analyze and execute drip marketing campaigns. Not just automated ones but personalized and well-thought-out communications based on actions performed.
Specific marketing channel expertise skills, e.g. email marketing, mobile marketing, etc. as listed above.

Together, both the personal and technical skills will allow you to become accountable, responsible, trustworthy and most importantly successful as a freelance digital marketer.

Useful freelance digital marketer tools

The tools that a freelance marketer needs mostly depend on the specific tasks or jobs that they are going to accomplish. That said, the main tools that a freelance digital marketer needs, based on specific work requirements are as follows:

Digital Marketing Research Tools: Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, Ahrefs, App Annie, SimilarWeb, Buzzsumo, and Facebook Audience Insights
Advertising Platforms: Bing ads, Google Adwords, Facebook Ads, Appstore Search Ads.
Instant message marketing: Pushengage, Manychat, and Leanplum
Analytics & Report tools: Yandex Metrica, Google analytics, WEBRIS SEO Report Tool, Google Data Studio, and Facebook analytics
Design Tools: Canva, Marvellapp, Bootstrap Studio, Flatpack, Igloo
Email tools: Pitchbox, Buzzstream, Headreach, Active Campaign, MailChimp, GetResponse
Project Management Tools: Todoist, pCloud, Confluence, Jira, OneNote/Evernote, Slack
Additional Tools: Google Tag Manager, Google analytics URL builder, Color picker, Tag Assistant, FB Pixel Helper, Data Scraper, Pocket, Google Analytics Debugger, and pCloud Save.

Find clients

Now that you understand more about the required tools and skills, how can you find digital marketing freelance work? Well, generally, freelance work can be found in the following places:

In your personal networks, both online and offline. (acquaintances and friends, social media friends, etc.)
Wherever your niche target groups meet. For example, in forums where clients meet to share and look for help.
Associations within the marketing industry and in specific niches. E.g., Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization (SEMPO)
Freelance job sites: There are several freelance job sites including some that attend to specific freelance needs.

Some of the top freelance online marketing job sites are as follows:

Upwork, Freelancer, Guru, Fiverr,