If you want an exciting career in digital marketing with the highest degree of freedom and flexibility, then consider becoming a freelance digital marketer. How do you become a freelance digital marketer?

In this post, we answer a number of questions relating to freelance digital marketing as seen below in the table of contents.

So let’s dive in!

What is freelance digital marketing?

Working as a freelance marketer means working independently and not as an employee of a company. Freelance work is per job or task basis. Companies and businesses have many assignments in various domains that are outsourced to freelancers. Freelance work comes with many benefits as well as some downsides. We will talk more about them in this post.

What does a freelance digital marketer do?

become a freelance digital marketer

Need skills and experience to become a freelance digital marketer? Check out all the ways Acadium can help.

A freelance digital marketer is someone who provides digital marketing services to businesses, nonprofits, and organizations as a contracted freelancer (not an employee).

The range of digital marketing services you can provide as a freelance marketer is wide. Typically, freelance digital marketers are hired for:

As you can see, there is a wide variety of work assignments that a freelance digital marketer can choose from.

For some extra inspiration, let me share the story of Arielle Strakhov. When Arielle switched to digital marketing, she had no experience. Today she offers a variety of digital marketing services, such as social media management, content marketing, and brand building. Listen to Arielle share what it was like to get started:

What skills do you need to become a freelance digital marketer?

The skills you need to become a freelance digital marketer depend on the services you want to provide. You can enroll in an online professional course to build specific skills.

Digital marketing has many domains. Each domain has its own set of specific hard (technical) skills. However, there are also common freelance skills irrespective of the domain you want to specialize in. These skills include:

1. Content writing and Copywriting

All digital content begins with the written word. That’s why having solid content-writing skills is a must. Even if you or your client decide to hire a freelance writer or copywriter separately, you still need to know enough to be able to spot good writing/copywriting, critique drafts, and give useful suggestions. Learning the basics of content marketing will help you gain confidence.

Also Read: What is a Content Creator and How to Become a Content Creator

2. Search engine optimization (SEO)

Search engine optimization is essential whether you’re publishing blog posts, LinkedIn articles, Amazon or Etsy product descriptions, or app store descriptions. With SEO, it’s easier for your target audience to find your digital content. Without it, you’ll have to rely on paid ads and referrals to get eyeballs on your stuff. You only need the foundations of SEO, unless you want to specialize in providing SEO services to clients.

It is always a good idea to try out the latest SEO tools as many of them offer free trials such as SEMRush.

Also Read: How to Become SEO Specialist: A Complete Guide + Tools

3. Marketing analytics

It does not matter whether you want to provide email marketing services or manage Facebook ads: you absolutely must know how to collect and analyze marketing data. Almost every aspect of digital marketing can be measured, tracked, and optimized, and that’s why knowledge of marketing analytics is crucial.

4. Business skills

On top of hard and soft marketing skills, you also need to have essential business skills. Remember, you’re in business for yourself now. These skills are required to set up and run a profitable business. They include:

  • Leadership and vision setting
  • Financial management
  • Project planning and management
  • Problem-solving
  • Marketing and sales
  • Customer service
  • Negotiation
  • Networking

As your business grows, you may decide to take on staff. In that case, you’ll need to have skills in:

  • Recruitment
  • Delegation
  • People management

Related: Top Tools for Freelancers

Also Read: 42 Free Marketing Tools for You and Your Remote Team

Business skills to become a freelance digital marketer

Gain business skills by working with a mentor who’s in the trenches of running a successful business.

How much does a freelance digital marketer make?

Since this is not an employed role, the incomes of freelance digital marketers vary widely. It depends on how valuable your services are, the types of clients you work with, and how good you are at hustling to find clients and selling your services.

Some types of digital marketing are more lucrative than others. Email marketing, growth marketing, and paid advertising roles, for example, tend to command higher fees than other digital marketing services.

Certain industries also pay more than others. Finance, electronic manufacturing, sports teams, internet publishing and broadcasting, and well-funded startups tend to pay the highest salaries and contractor fees.

Data on how much freelance digital marketers make is limited. Talent.com has only two data points for freelance digital marketers’ income in Canada:  CA$39,000 and CA$87,750 per year.

In the US, the annual salaries for freelance digital marketing range from $46,313 for entry-level positions, up to $80,288 for more experienced freelance marketers. The average of 16 data points is $59,963.

Too many variables are involved in determining how much you can make as a freelance digital marketer.

Suffice it to say that you can make from almost nothing to more than six figures a year—especially if you combine your freelancing with other streams of income. More on that below.

Also Read: 2022 Average Digital Marketing Salary: Entry Level to Six-Figure Jobs

Pros and cons of becoming a freelance digital marketer

No career is perfect, and that goes for being a freelance digital marketer, too. Let’s examine the advantages and disadvantages of a freelance marketing career.

Pros of freelance digital marketing

Freelancing as a digital marketer has many advantages. These include:

1. Flexible schedule

As a freelancer, you have almost complete control over your working hours. You decide how much you work and when you work—as long as you meet client deadlines, of course. This also means you get paid for the results you get, not for the number of hours you put in. Some freelancers do charge by the hour, but we don’t recommend you do that. Freelance digital marketers’ fees should be based on outputs and results, not the number of hours worked.

2. Variety & choice

Another perk of being a freelancer is being able to choose the projects and clients you work with. In the beginning, you may feel compelled to accept any client work that comes your way. That’s perfectly acceptable when you’re still establishing your client base and are looking to build your track record and, of course, to bring in revenues.

However, when you become established and can confidently bring in a steady flow of clients, you’ll have the luxury of picking and choosing which projects to take on.

Also Read: How to Get Freelance Marketing Jobs

3. Location independence

Freelance digital marketers usually work remotely. This means you can work from anywhere as long as you have a computer and a reliable internet connection. This career is compatible with the digital nomad lifestyle. You can combine it with your love of traveling, or if you prefer to work from home, no commutes to and from work.

4. Lower costs of earning money

In business, there’s a term called “cost of doing business.” Employees in turn have a “cost of earning money,” which includes expenditures for travel, clothing, makeup, and lunches and coffees during your work commute. You have none of those expenses if you choose to become a freelance digital marketer.

Yes, you do have costs as a freelancer, but most of the time those are tax-deductible business expenses.

(Note: I’m not an accountant, and this is not business financial advice. Consult an accountant to find out which business expenses you can claim in the area where you file taxes.)

5. Unlimited income potential

Technically, your income potential as a freelance digital marketer is unlimited. That’s because you can charge as much as you want as long as clients are willing to pay.

In addition, you can juggle freelancing with another side hustle or even a part-time job. You can also combine a full-time job with part-time freelancing. Whichever you choose, you can have financial security and ever-increasing potential for growth.

Cons of freelance digital marketing

Freelancing as a digital marketer isn’t for everybody. It also comes with its share of disadvantages such as:

1. Constant hustle

As a freelancer, you have to be always hustling to keep your pipeline full of prospects and clients. In fact, you may find yourself working more hours than you ever worked as an employee. That’s because you have to market your services and close clients—on top of all the work you do to serve the clients you do have. Or you can let Acadium match you with clients who are looking for your services.

“When you’re a freelancer by yourself, you wear many hats. Half of your time is doing the work. Half your time is finding new work.” Erik Harbison, Acadium Plus Program Instructor and Career Coach

2. Feast or famine

Another disadvantage of freelancing is the absence of a regular paycheck. The demand for your services will likely have peaks and low periods. For example, no matter how good you are at marketing, you may find that clients are more likely to slow down in the summertime and over the holidays.

3. No benefits

As a freelancer, you won’t enjoy the benefits that usually come with a job: paid time off, sick days, health benefits, disability insurance, and so on. In general, if you don’t work, then you don’t get paid.

4. Pressure to earn more

You can, and should, get your own health coverage and disability insurance. However, these will have to come out of your own pocket. And usually, these are not considered business expenses. (Again, I’m not an accountant, and laws may be different where you are. Do your due diligence to see what the tax laws are in your country.) You should also have a rainy-day fund for when you want or need to take time off. This means you have to make more than an employee’s salary to match the entire package you’d receive as an employee.

5. Loneliness and isolation

How to become a freelance digital marketer - loneliness and isolation

Many freelancers feel lonely and isolated.

Finally, freelancing can be a lonely and isolated enterprise, especially in a remote work environment. This can be particularly difficult for extroverts, and it’s often enough to send them looking for office-based work. Even introverts crave interpersonal connections. Either way, you’ll have to devise ways to get the interactions you need for your mental health.

In short:

As a freelance digital marketer, you’re in control of your career and your income. This is both an advantage and disadvantage. On one hand, you create your own opportunities. On the other hand, the responsibility is yours and yours alone.

So you want to become a freelance digital marketer: Next steps

If after reading this post, you’re more excited than ever about becoming a freelance digital marketer, then here are your next steps:

1. Pick a niche: Is it SEO, Facebook ads, social media, or content writing? Pick one specific area or domain of digital marketing you want to specialize in.

2. Pick an ideal client: Which types of clients and/or industries are you happiest working with? You can choose to focus only on nonprofits or you can narrow your focus on a specific industry such as software, retail, eCommerce, finance, travel, beauty, etc.

3. Create an online presence: As a digital marketer, you’re expected to know how to create and maintain an authoritative online presence. Potential clients will always check you out and draw conclusions about you even before they connect with you. Make sure what they find shows you in the best light. Create a video resume and online portfolio to attract clients.

Also Read: How to Build an Impressive Social Media Portfolio

4. Build a track record: Start building a track record of getting results for clients. Document everything you do, and track results so you have proof of what you’re capable of. Also, always collect testimonials from clients. You need social proof to market your services.

No experience? Ready to get on track to become a freelance digital marketer, but don’t have enough experience to attract clients? If you want to strengthen your digital marketing skills, then consider becoming an apprentice at Acadium. We’ll match you with a suitable mentor who’s willing to guide you and give you hands-on experience in their business for free.

Have experience? Got enough experience but would rather not do the heavy lifting required to find clients? We can help you with that, too! We have a marketplace of business owners looking for freelance digital marketers. This means we’ll match you with clients, so you can focus your time and energy on serving them. Learn more about freelancing through Acadium.

 

Editor’s Note: This post was first published in November 2021. It was updated for accuracy and relevancy on June 2022 by Alisha Sharma, Content Manager at Acadium.