Have you recently moved over to freelancing from being a permanent employee and want some advice on how to build your reputation as a freelancer? Or have you been freelancing for while and want some advice on how to further enhance your reputation in the industry? Well whatever your situation this article will help you!
We have been working with freelance professionals for over 15 years and over this time we have helped thousands with new opportunities and also helped them develop a successful career as a freelancer within their chosen sector. In this article we have focussed on the three most important things you can do to help you increase your personal brand and future opportunities.
Social Media
Being proactive on social media is absolutely key, and when we say social media we really mean LinkedIn. Twitter and Facebook are great, but LinkedIn is the king of social media when it comes to your career and profession networking!
Think of LinkedIn as your online CV. Make sure it’s up-to-date, it’s informative and showcases your skills, experience and personality. There are three main areas you should focus on when getting your LinkedIn profile up-to-date; recommendations, your summary and your experience. Below we have offered some advice on these three areas...
Recommendations - There’s nothing better than getting colleagues, managers or clients talking positively about you and your ability. LinkedIn offers you the ability to ask for a recommendation, so if you feel comfortable doing this we strongly suggest you ask people you know and have worked with for recommendations. This will genuinely help you and your future opportunities, as most Hiring Managers will always have a look at your LinkedIn profile.
Your summary - This is your opportunity to tell people who you are, what you do and how you do it. It may be a good idea to give them a bit of info on your knowledge, experience and skillset.
Your Experience - As you probably already know you can add your experience on your profile, so for every contract, be it a two week or a 12 month contract, add it on to your profile and explain what you did and on what projects during this contract.
Networking
Now you are a freelancer it’s important to think of every situation is a networking opportunity. If you feel uncomfortable in these types of situations then it’s a great time to practice and take yourself out of your comfort zone. Remember, all you are doing is starting a conversation, how hard can that be? But in all seriousness, knowing people within the sector you work in is such a huge advantage and can genuinely help or even lead to your next contract, so get networking and talking to people!
Work with a recruitment agency
Having a strong relationship with a recruitment agency is a huge benefit when freelancing. There are many freelance professionals that we have helped find contracts throughout their careers, so they never have to worry about their next job. Working closely with a recruitment agency means you can cut out the job search on job boards and focus on doing your actual job.
If you work closely with a recruitment agency they will know when your contract is up, so they can either help negotiate an extension with the current client or go out and find you another contract ready when the time comes. This removes a lot of the stress of finding your next job!
Another benefit of working with a recruitment agency is that they will have opportunities that you wouldn’t find on a job board. This isn’t because we don’t advertise all of our opportunities, it’s because we have clients that are always open to speaking with construction professionals if the right person is available. This means less competition for you!
Looking for a new job?
We have a huge number of great opportunities with great employers across the construction, civils, rail, power and telecoms sectors. Search our current construction jobs, civils jobs, rail jobs, power jobs and telecoms jobs.
Get in touch with our recruitment specialists
If you are keen to discuss your current situation and want to find out how we can help you make your next career step then get in touch with our team of recruitment experts. We look forward to hearing from you and helping you and your career progress.
