Today’s question comes from Kirsty. She says, “Do you charge a rush fee? For example, it’s 5:22 pm, and a client asked if I could do an ad tonight. Considering how busy I am, clients need to understand that I don't work weekends unless we have an agreement.” To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-length coaching calls: http://freelancetofounder.com Support our Episode Sponsors: Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) - Use ...
Jul 04, 2023•11 min
On today's show, is hiring a Virtual Assistant really worth it? Ben calls in from Rhode Island to get our take on VAs and other questions he has while growing his business. Plus, we share our best advice for making the most of your virtual assistant, and we talk about scaling your business vs. growing it. It all starts right now on this episode of Freelance to Founder. Here we go. This episode was originally aired on May 12, 2022. PS: Get featured in an upcoming FTF SHORT! Just visit http://free...
Jun 29, 2023•57 min•Season 21Ep. 7
Today's question comes from Jacquaniese, a member of our Facebook Mastermind Group. She says, “A client asked me to put “hours” on my work to justify it, but I don’t work on hourly rates. How do I kindly inform potential clients upfront that I work on project-based flat rates? I don’t want to sound rude, but I also will not put an hourly rate on my work to end up cheated.” To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-...
Jun 27, 2023•11 min
On today's show, Nouman calls in from Pakistan with loads of questions. That's because Nouman's business is growing. At the time of this call, he has 20 employees. But he still struggles to find clients outside of Upwork or Fiverr. All of this leads to questions about hiring the right team, overcoming cultural barriers with clients, where to find high-caliber clients, and a lot more. Let's dive in. An all-new episode of Freelance to Founder starts right now. This episode was originally aired on ...
Jun 22, 2023•47 min•Season 21Ep. 6
Today's question comes from Emma Noel, a member of our Facebook Mastermind Group. She says, "How do I politely turn down a client? I had a Zoom meeting with a potential client, and we left off with me saying I'd sent her a proposal. But since then, I've decided I don't want to work with her anymore. Apparently, she and her husband run two businesses. The client says she knows how to do everything but doesn't have the time, which is why they're hiring me. It sounds like there'll be a pain to work...
Jun 20, 2023•10 min
On today’s show: do you ever wonder how to generate some of the best leads possible? For most freelancers and agencies, filling your pipeline with quality leads is not only critical to your business’s health, but also one of the toughest problems to solve. That’s how our guest Morgan feels right now. Morgan’s a side-hustler who wants to take her freelancing full-time. But until she has a steady stream of client leads, it just can’t happen. So Clay and I break down everything we know about lead g...
Jun 15, 2023•52 min•Season 21Ep. 5
In today's question, Simon says, "I'm getting really annoyed with people asking me how to do things rather than paying me to do them for them. How do I tell clients they'll need to pay me to do things or look it up online and not use me as a tutorial instead?" Interesting question, Simon. Clay and I have some answers for you! To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-length coaching calls: http://freelancetofounder...
Jun 13, 2023•10 min
On today’s episode, we have a coaching call with Eva—a branding expert from Portugal. Eva has gained some nice traction on Instagram and delivers her clients a highly customized service when it comes to her entire on-boarding process. But her attention to detail and propensity for perfectionism could lead to burnout as she tries to scale. So today, we explore how to scale your business without losing your personal connection with clients. This episode was originally aired on December 23, 2021. P...
Jun 08, 2023•52 min•Season 21Ep. 4
Today's question comes from a Millo Mastermind member, Tamra. You can join our Free Facebook Mastermind Group at millo.co/mastermind She says. "If you've given a discount to a client before, and then they refer someone to you, how do you charge the referred client a fair price since they probably talked to the person you originally worked with, and that person told them what they paid?" Clay and I had a lot of thoughts about this question. Click play now! To submit your question, visit Freelance...
Jun 06, 2023•11 min
On today’s show: how can you delegate without upsetting clients or sacrificing quality? It’s a problem today’s guest, Michael, faces in his young freelance business. He’s been working for himself for a while but can’t seem to solve the delegation piece. So, with a little role-playing, Clay and I help Michael see exactly what he should say to clients about his need to delegate and grow. This episode was originally aired on August 4, 2022. PS: Get featured in an upcoming FTF SHORT! Just visit http...
Jun 01, 2023•51 min•Season 21Ep. 3
Today's question is, "How do I answer when a client asks me this question: How did you come up with your pricing?" So let's discuss your different options when you have clients saying, "How did you get to that price point?" or, in many cases, "Why are you charging me that much?" Let's dive in! To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-length coaching calls: http://freelancetofounder.com Support our Episode Sponsors...
May 30, 2023•13 min
When growing your business, should you worry about getting a positive ROI on every penny you spend? It’s an interesting question for me while talking with today’s guest, Sarah. Sarah started her own agency just 5 months ago. And while she’s been able to get hourly contractors on board quickly to help with creative work, she’s having difficulty finding the right people to help with administrative work. Even more, she’s not sure how to pay for them. Because in a traditional agency model, everythin...
May 25, 2023•58 min•Season 21Ep. 2
Today's question comes from our free Facebook Mastermind Group. Laura MCFalls says, "I ended up doing more work than was included in a proposal I sent to a client and forgot to send an updated estimate as promised. So now I'm wondering, do I send an invoice for the entire amount and hope that they're not upset? Or what should I do? For what it's worth, the client was fully aware of how much extra work there was and they were asking for the extra work. And when they went over the original scope, ...
May 23, 2023•9 min
Keeping clients engaged can mean great things for your bottom line, but how can you interact with clients regularly in a sustainable and effective way? That’s what our guest Wayne finds himself asking about his own business. Wayne recently launched a monthly subscription for his clients, and he’s excited to build his recurring revenue. But he’s worried that clients may not stick around for the long term without the right systems and processes in place. Having both built subscription businesses o...
May 18, 2023•59 min•Season 21Ep. 1
Today's question comes from Brenda (a member of our free Mastermind Group). And Brenda says, "I'm new to writing, and I hope to put together a portfolio to showcase my skills and abilities. I don't have any professional experience or schooling in the field, so I'm wondering, what pieces or samples I should include on my portfolio to effectively demonstrate my writing ability and land paid writing gigs?" To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcomi...
May 16, 2023•9 min
Do you know you might have potential clients hiding right under your nose? Our guest Jim finds himself in exactly that situation. Jim’s deciding when to pull the trigger and take his business full-time. A decision that becomes a little easier when Jim realizes he’s got a somewhat reliable source of leads right under his nose already. Add to that some unexpected but helpful long-term marketing strategies from Clay and myself, and we’ve got the ingredients for a really great episode. PS: Get featu...
May 11, 2023•49 min•Season 20Ep. 10
Today's SHORT question comes from Robert. He says, "The past month or so, I've been focusing on LinkedIn." Robert's whole goal is to get leads through LinkedIn. And he says, "It's been great for getting people in my network, but not so great for getting leads. I get a few people scheduled twice, many noes, and a lot that never reply." And then, he asks for some advice or insight on the process. So we're going to give Robert a little bit of advice on where to go with his LinkedIn outreach. This e...
May 09, 2023•12 min
On today’s show, we chat with Carey from PodcastFastTrack.com where his business has taken off over the years. Carey is a bit further along in life than many of our guests and is contemplating retirement. But instead of just selling his business, he wonders: can he just hire the right people to keep the business running smoothly and send him a paycheck each month? The answer is “yes” and by the end of the show, Carey admits he wished he’d considered this question much earlier in his career. This...
May 04, 2023•55 min•Season 20Ep. 9
Today's question comes from our Facebook Mastermind Group (it's completely free. Join +11,000 freelancers and agency builders helping each other). Jay opened a discussion there that made us come up with the following question: When a client asks you, "Can I pay you with a cheque?" or "Can I pay you with PayPal?" - How much do you let the client determine how they're going to pay? And how much do you dictate how you get paid in your business? To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/...
May 02, 2023•15 min
When it comes to growing your business, messaging is everything. Your messaging impacts your ability to generate leads. It makes a client decide to hire you or forget you forever. It can even make the difference between staying small or scaling up. And today’s guest Taylor joins us for a conversation all about messaging. If you find yourself in Taylor’s shoes, not really sure how to move your business forward, what niche to explore, or how to market yourself, all of these issues might be solved ...
Apr 27, 2023•51 min•Season 20Ep. 8
On today's show, Chris calls in with another question: How do I build an impressive marketing plan for big-brand clients? This episode originally aired on April 12, 2022. To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-length coaching calls: http://freelancetofounder.com Support our Episode Sponsors: Ampla - Providing capital, banking, bill pay, cards, and insights to omnichannel businesses. Sendinblue - Use promo code F...
Apr 25, 2023•16 min
Should you find a business partner? It's something you might have asked yourself. And answers on the web are mixed. Some say it's a good idea, and others say it's a disaster waiting to happen. But today's guests, Julia and Melissa, have worked together exceptionally well for the last ten years. And now they're ready to take their business to the next level. But how do you legally start a partnership? And how does that affect your income? And where do you even begin? There are lots of questions a...
Apr 20, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 20Ep. 7
In today's SHORT, Brittany says, "I'm a freelance designer and a marketer located in New York. My question is, how do you keep clients engaged once they've signed on? I have a few clients that have signed up for monthly marketing support, etc, but the problem is, I can't get anything out of them. I need content and updates. I've tried emails, I've tried setting up monthly check in meetings, but nothing seems to really work. And because of this, I feel I'm failing them. They're paying their bills...
Apr 18, 2023•17 min
Have you ever looked at all the marketing options out there and felt so overwhelmed you just don’t do any marketing at all? You’re not alone. That’s exactly where we find our guest, Matt—calling in today from the UK. Matt’s growing his new business and has taken courses, listened to podcasts, and read blogs all about lead generation. But there are so many marketing ideas out there, Matt’s feeling a bit overwhelmed. Some quote-unquote experts say you have to “be everywhere” with your marketing. I...
Apr 13, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 20Ep. 6
In today's short, we’ll cover 4 powerful ways to build passive income into your freelance business. Passive income is the holy grail of any business. And the reason why is pretty obvious. Who doesn’t want to make money on autopilot instead of clocking in and out daily to earn a paycheck? So in today’s episode, we’ll share 4 of the most successful ways we’ve seen real freelancers grow their passive income. The audio for this episode was actually pulled from our YouTube channel, which we’ve been w...
Apr 11, 2023•12 min
On today’s show: this episode is worth at least $10,000—maybe even more. Why? Because today I’m chatting with Hooman. He’s the CEO and founder of Collective—A company that helps freelancers and agency builders like you save thousands of dollars on taxes every year. I’m a customer, and I’m not exaggerating when I say they’ve saved me probably close to $100,000 since taking my business full-time. It all comes from a few small, simple changes you can make for almost free. Or you can hire Hooman’s c...
Apr 06, 2023•49 min•Season 20Ep. 5
Today's question comes from Gielizza in our Facebook Mastermind Group. You can join here. Gielizza said, "I'm a visual identity designer, but I also have social media content retainers from different industries. And this 2023, I want to have more focus by having a niche or niching down. Did you figure out what projects or clients you wanted to work with? Did you check the pattern of the projects or clients you've been getting and focused on that? Please share your tips regarding niching down or ...
Apr 04, 2023•19 min
Spencer Haws is an SEO master. He also knows scale. Because plenty of people have built singular niche websites and monetized them, but this is a guy you can safely follow and learn from at NichePursuits because he's built over 200 highly focused websites that do extremely well in Google. In this episode, you'll get to know Spencer—why he escaped the world of finance (and a pretty secure job by all external accounts) to build these niche websites. You'll find out how he got going with niche webs...
Mar 30, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Season 20Ep. 4
Today's question comes from Joshua in our Facebook Mastermind Group. You can join here. Joshua says, " is it completely unrealistic to try setting up as a freelance translator with only one second language and no formal translation qualification?" Today I will answer this question with a special co-host: Christine Olivas from Co-Conspirators Agency. To submit your question, visit FreelanceToFounder.com/ASK, and we'll feature you on an upcoming episode. Listen to our full-length coaching calls: h...
Mar 28, 2023•19 min
On today’s show, we catch up with Sara Noel, a freelancer with a pretty interesting journey. Sara didn’t study copywriting or marketing at school but now has a six-figure freelancing business doing just that: copywriting and marketing. In our conversation, Sara shares exactly what she did to decide on a skill, teach herself that skill, and then monetize her brand-new skill into a full-fledged business. Whether you want to learn a new skill to offer your current clients or pivot to a new industry...
Mar 23, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 20Ep. 3
