Ten Things I Have Learned About Self-Employment Over 30 Years

Nick Making Money 2 Comments

Yes, it’s true. I’ve been self-employed for over 30 years now (barring a short barren spell 20 years ago when I took a temporary job at the University of Wolverhampton to help make ends meet).

I worked primarily as a freelance writer, but also as a freelance proofreader and editor. As regular readers will know I am semi-retired these days, though still available for small to medium-sized projects that I can fit in around my other commitments 🙂

Inevitably over the last 30 years I’ve learned a few things about self-employment, so I thought today I’d share some of them here. I hope this will be helpful to anyone who may be contemplating going down this route.

1. You Need an Accountant

This is actually my top tip to anyone starting out in self-employment. Tax is complicated (Shock! Horror!) and there really is no substitute for getting advice from a professional in the field.

Yes, you can do your own book-keeping (and there is no shortage of clever software to help with this). But an accountant will do so much more. They will help you set up your record-keeping system, answer any queries you may have, draw up and submit annual accounts for you, and help if (for example) HMRC raise any queries about your tax return. True, an accountant will cost you a few hundred pounds a year, but I have never for one second resented this. It is money well spent for the peace of mind it gives you alone.

• Just one example. Some years ago I was offered a five-figure sum by a publisher in exchange for all rights in some online courses I had created. It seemed a good deal, but before signing on the dotted line thought I should run it past my accountant first. He pointed out that with one or two minor changes to the wording of the contract – which the publishers were happy to make – the fee would be regarded by HMRC as a capital gain rather than taxable income. As I had no other taxable gains that year I was able to keep the entire sum I was paid. Without my accountant’s advice, I could easily have ended up paying thousands of pounds in unnecessary tax.

So get an accountant before you do anything else – you know it makes sense. See also my recent blog post that goes into more detail about why you need one.

2. Controlling Workflow is Crucial

One thing you will soon discover if you take the road of self-employment is that it’s a very short distance from having too little work to too much (and back again). In a conventional job you will have colleagues to share the load, and a manager to complain to if it all gets too much. As a self-employed person, managing your workload is all down to you.

There is no doubt this can be stressful at times. One minute you are worrying about not having enough work to pay the bills. The next you are agonizing over how to keep all your clients happy and meet their deadlines without spreading yourself too thinly and burning yourself out.

There is no easy answer to this; it’s just one of those things all self-employed people have to manage as best they can. One thing I have found helpful, though, is building a network of trusted people in the same field as me. Then when I am feeling swamped I can ask if they would be interested in taking over some work from me – and vice versa, if they are very busy they may pass some of their excess work my way. This can be very helpful in smoothing out your workflow, although you need to be sure that anyone you recommend to a client will do a good job for them.

3. Business Is About People

Obviously to run a successful self-employed business, you need to be competent (and ideally better than that) at whatever it is you do.

Beyond that, however, business is about building and nurturing relationships. This is especially important in terms of getting repeat business, which for most self-employed people is crucial to maintaining a steady workflow (see above).

For any given job, there will be plenty of other people who could do it just as well as you (maybe even better). So you need to come across as someone who is pleasant and trustworthy as well as capable of doing the work. Once you have built a good working relationship with a client, chances are they will keep coming back to you in future, and recommend you to their friends or colleagues as well.

You don’t have to become best mates with everyone you work for, but making the effort to connect with them and build a good relationship will undoubtedly pay off many times over.

4. You Need to Network

However good you are at your work, no client is going to beat a path to your door. You need to network

Obviously social media like Twitter and Facebook can be a big help here. But it’s good to put yourself about in the flesh too. If you are a freelance writer, for example, join your local writers’ circle, go on writers’ courses and conferences, volunteer to give talks, apply for residencies, and run classes in adult education. All of this will help raise your profile, and make it more likely that potential clients will get in touch with you.

And also under this heading I’d add, build up your network of useful contacts. These can come from all sorts of places: business colleagues and former colleagues, suppliers, clients, people you meet on courses, people you connect with via social media, and so on. Many of the new opportunities that have come my way over the years did so as a result of networking.

5. Don’t Rely Solely on the Internet

The internet is a wonderful thing, and there are lots of great resources on it for the self-employed. It can also be great for marketing your services. However, there was no internet at all when I was starting out, and it didn’t hold me back!

I find that young people especially tend to rely heavily on the internet and sometimes forget about other, more traditional media. If I was starting out as a freelance today, one thing I would certainly do is approach potential clients directly by letter and even by phone call. This can be a lot more effective than sending an email, which will probably end up in their spam folder anyway.

I would also scour job ads in newspapers and magazines, looking for businesses who are hiring in related fields to my own specialism. They might well be in need of freelance assistance as well, and a speculative application could turn up a regular source of work. Again, this is a strategy that has worked well for me in the past.

6. You Must Be Reliable

This is one of the most important qualities any client wants. He/she wants to be confident that you will deliver your product or service by the agreed deadline. If the deadline passes and you haven’t met it, for business clients especially it can create all sorts of problems for them.

If you can see you’re going to have problems meeting a deadline, therefore, DON’T just cross your fingers and hope for the best. Tell your client. Given sufficient notice they may be able to make alternative arrangements. But if you don’t tell them in advance, it may be too late for this. Don’t then expect them to offer you any work in future.

7. You Must Be Accessible

Clients may sometimes need to contact you at short notice, e.g. to check a specification or request a progress update. You don’t have to be always just a phone call away (though that won’t hurt), but it should be possible for a client to contact you by some means and get a reply within 24 hours. Always aim to have your mobile with you, therefore, and check this and your email regularly, preferably at least twice a day.

And if you’re going away on holiday for more than a day or two, it’s a courtesy to let regular clients know, especially if you are in the middle of a job for them!

8. Don’t (Usually) Argue

OK, this one is a bit controversial. If you disagree with a client’s choice, you can say so. But don’t push it. At the end of the day, whoever pays the piper calls the tune.

Here’s an example from my own experience. In my capacity as a newsletter editor I was pitched an idea by a semi-regular contributor. Normally I liked his ideas, but for various reasons I couldn’t use this one, so I turned it down with a polite explanation. I then received a long, aggrieved email telling me quite forcibly that I was wrong and he was right, concluding with words to the effect, ‘I think I know our readership by now.’ As you might guess, I didn’t commission many more articles from him after that…

9. Be Friendly but Professional

As I said above, it’s good to build relationships with clients. Over a period of time you will inevitably get to know one another quite well, and genuine friendships often result.

However, remember that the client is also – in effect – your employer, so it’s important to remain professional in all your dealings with them. Don’t assume that because ‘John’ or ‘Mary’ is your buddy, they won’t mind if you palm them off with inferior work or take other liberties with them.

Another example here (all names changed to protect those concerned). A few years ago one of my regular clients, a guy I’ll call Phil, was looking for an additional freelance writer. I recommended a woman named Clare to him, whom I’d worked with on a couple of projects.

All seemed to go well at first, and then I heard that he had dropped Clare quite suddenly. As I knew Phil pretty well, I asked him what had happened. He was a bit reticent at first, but then he told me, ‘We’re a family company, Nick, and we choose the people we work with very carefully.’

A little more probing finally revealed that he had been on the phone to Clare one day, and she casually dropped the F-bomb into their conversation two or three times. Phil hadn’t said anything to her at the time, but I guess he was a bit shocked by this. Anyway, he decided that he couldn’t work with her any more.

I must admit, I don’t know why Clare did this. Maybe she wanted to show she was “one of the boys”, or maybe she’d just been watching too many Hollywood movies. In any event, it was exactly the wrong tack to take with Phil, who abhors bad language in any form. And so it cost Clare the opportunity of a continuing source of well-paid work.

That’s perhaps an extreme example, but it does illustrate an important point. A good, friendly relationship with a client can be very rewarding for both parties, but you should never let it become an excuse for behaving unprofessionally.

10. Keep Updating Your Skills!

Whatever line of business you’re in, you will need to keep updating your skills and even learning new ones.

That has certainly applied for me. When I set out as a freelance writer/editor, I was using an Amstrad PCW computer/word processor. It had no internal storage, no mouse, and used its own dedicated operating system called Locoscript. It came with a slow and cranky dot matrix printer, and had literally no bells and whistles. It had a key with the word OPTIONS on it, and when you pressed this a message came up on the screen saying NO OPTIONS. That summed it up really!

After a couple of years – maybe a bit longer – I realised I would have to dump my PCW and get a ‘proper’ home computer. This came with a mouse and used an early version of Windows (probably 3.1). I then had to learn a whole new set of skills, which I did largely through trial and error and reading books (the internet not being a thing then).

Over the years since I have had to acquire many more new skills, including how to proofread and edit electronically, how to do basic HTML coding, how to build and update a WordPress website, how to do search engine optimization and use social media to market my services, and much more. I also had to keep up with the latest software so I could deliver the services my clients needed using the software they used themselves.

If you’re in a normal job, your employer will generally arrange training for you when the need arises (and of course pay for it). As a self-employed person, once again, it’s all down to you. You will need to stay up to date with developments in your field and arrange training when necessary (or take time out to teach yourself) and pay your own costs (which are at least allowable against tax). If you don’t do this, you are likely to find yourself left high and dry as the world moves on and your old skills are no longer relevant.

Obviously this applies especially in fields such as mine that require the use of modern electronic technology. But whatever your field – even gardening or window-cleaning – there will inevitably be changes in fashion/tastes, technology, legal requirements, custom and practice, and so forth. It is essential to stay aware of what is going on in your chosen field, update your skills and learn new ones as required.

I do hope you find these tips helpful. If you have any comments or questions – or any other useful tips for people new to self-employment – feel free to add them below as comments.

Part 2: How to Make Money Selling Arts and Crafts Items on Etsy

Nick Making Money 0 Comments

In my last post I revealed how you can make money selling arts and crafts on Etsy, even if you don’t have any artistic skills or talents. I discussed how Etsy works and the types of product that are sold on it (and to whom). I also set out some suggestions for choosing products you could sell from an Etsy shop yourself.

Today I’m going to take you through the practicalities of setting up your shop on Etsy, listing your first item, taking photos, writing descriptions, promoting your shop to boost sales, and more.

Setting Up Your Shop

Before you can open an Etsy shop, you first have to join the site as a buyer. This is simple enough. Just click on the Register tab at the top of the Etsy homepage and enter the information required.

You have to provide a user name, and one tip here is to pick a name containing one or two of the keywords you want to target. This can help ensure that your shop is listed high in the search results for the keyword/s in question.

You can then set up your shop by clicking on Sell on Etsy. This is a simple, step-by-step process, and as mentioned last time no fee is charged. No coding is required either – it’s basically just a matter of providing some information and making a few choices.

Many new sellers agonize over their shop design, but it’s not worth wasting too much time on this. Most potential buyers will arrive via a search that takes them straight to a specific product listing, so this is where most of your effort should go.

Nonetheless, you do need to make some decisions about your shop’s overall look, so my advice would be to choose something simple but functional. You can always refine it later once you have made your first few sales.

One thing you should add at an early stage, however, is a banner or logo. This will be part of your branding, so it needs to be attractive and relevant to your product.

Unless you have skills in this area, it’s best to outsource logo design to someone who specializes in this. If you want to keep costs to a minimum, there are people on Fiverr.com who will create one for just $5 (about £4.00). At that price you could get a few done and choose the one you like best.

Your First Listing

My top tip here is to start small. Initially it is likely that only friends and family will see your shop, so there is no need to worry about offering a huge product range from day one.

In addition, if you spend hours making your products in a variety of sizes and colours and nobody wants to buy them, imagine how disappointed you will be. Much better to choose one particular product to start with, and make your listing for this the best it can be.

Product listings have two main components: the photo and the description. The photo is by far the most important, so let’s start by looking at that.

Taking Product Photos

The good news is you don’t need an expensive DSLR camera to take your product photos. A modern smartphone can produce more than acceptable results. Taking photos that sell well is an art, however, so here are some tips to get you started…

• Keep backgrounds plain and simple. The product should always be the star of the show.
• On the other hand, a strategically chosen prop (or props) can make even ordinary items look special.
• Use natural light if possible. This nearly always looks better than artificial.
• But if natural light isn’t available, use spotlights to ensure the product is brightly lit.
• For small items, get as close as you can while ensuring the product remains in focus.
• Use a tripod or stand to ensure your photos are as sharp as possible.
• Look at the photos in successful Etsy shops and see what you can learn from them.
• Try also searching on Pinterest for Etsy – this will produce image boards crammed with product photos from the site.
• Take lots of photos and use only the best. Digital cameras and smartphones don’t use expensive film, so take full advantage of this!

Another benefit of digital photography is that you can easily edit photos, e.g. to sharpen or crop them. There are various free photo editing tools online, including Canva and (my personal favourite) PicMonkey. If you’re using a smartphone, there are many free and low-cost photo-editing apps you can download.

Finally, you can also do some basic editing when you upload photos to your Etsy shop. Your member’s page will show a preview of how the photo will look, with edit options allowing you to crop, rotate and add filters.

Once you have your photo looking exactly how you want, click to save it. All that is left then is…

Adding a Description

While it’s not as crucial as the photo, having a good description is important too.

There’s no need to write reams about your product – the image will do most of the talking for you – but you still need to answer any obvious questions a potential buyer might have.

One good tactic is to study how similar products are sold in other shops. A quick keyword search on Etsy should unearth plenty of such shops for you.

Obviously, you shouldn’t copy descriptions word for word, but they will help you see the sort of points you should be covering. The chances are that the sellers have included those details in their listings because their customers have asked about them.

Note down also any words your competitors use regularly, such as rustic, customized or handmade, and try to incorporate at least some in your own listings. It can also be good to suggest possible uses for your product, e.g. ‘These make great gifts for bridesmaids’ or whatever.

Check your work for spelling and grammatical mistakes, and ensure that the description sounds as enticing as possible. Once you’ve done all that, there is just one other matter you need to attend to…

Pricing

This is something many new Etsy sellers find challenging, but essentially it’s a simple process.

Start by working out what it will cost you to produce and sell an item. That means adding up the cost of materials and adding Etsy’s listing and transaction fees. Obviously you won’t know the exact transaction fee until you have worked out your final price, so use your best guess initially.

Next you need to decide how much you want to earn per hour. Time is money, so the cost of your item will need to reflect this. Let’s say you aim to make £12 an hour, and it takes you half an hour to create your product. That means to make £12 an hour, you will need to make 12/2 = £6 from each item you sell.

Finally, I recommend adding an extra amount – say 10 percent – for profit. All real world businesses budget to make a profit, and even if you’re working part-time from your kitchen table, you should do likewise. Profits can be set against overheads such as heating and lighting, and can also be invested in tools to make you more productive. Or you can simply take them as additional earnings, of course!

Once you’ve come up with a total, the final thing you should do is compare this with what others are charging for comparable products. Ideally you should aim to be selling for a slightly lower price, initially at least, to make your items more attractive to potential buyers. That may mean reducing your target earnings a little, or finding ways to produce items more quickly.

Like other aspects of your operation, such as photos and descriptions, it is important to test various price levels and see which produces the best returns overall.

Promoting Your Shop

If you have followed all the steps above, it shouldn’t be long before potential buyers start arriving at your Etsy shop. But there are plenty of things you can do to attract more visitors and get the sales flowing. Below I have listed a variety of methods, some free, some paid for.

• Set up a Facebook fan page for your shop, with links to the items you are selling and other content that may interest potential buyers.
• Set up a Pinterest board as well, with photos of your products linking to the sales pages in question. This can be a powerful marketing tool for products that are visually appealing.
• You should also create an Instagram account on which to post photos of your arts and crafts products, again with a link back to your Etsy shop.
• Consider investing some money in paid advertising. You could spend a few pounds boosting your Facebook fan page posts, for example, so they reach a much larger target audience.
• Google Adwords is another advertising medium you could consider if your product is something people regularly search for using keywords. You won’t usually be able to show pictures using this method, of course.
• Share links to your Etsy shop and individual product listings on Twitter. You may wish to set up a Twitter account specifically for your shop as well.
• You can also pay to have your listings show up more prominently in search results on Etsy.

As sales start coming in, it’s important to keep in touch with your customers and answer any questions they ask promptly. This will help you get good reviews and ratings on Etsy, and may also turn some buyers into loyal customers who keep coming back for more. Plus the feedback you get can be invaluable for deciding what new products to offer in future. Etsy is in many ways a community of buyers and sellers, so grasp every opportunity to take advantage of this.

Final Thoughts

You won’t make a fortune from Etsy, but if you like arts and crafts, it can be a great way of earning money while doing something you enjoy.

It’s free to get started, and you can do it part-time or full-time. Etsy even lets you put up the virtual shutters on your shop for a week or two, if you want to go and spend some of your profits on a well-earned holiday. Check it out today, then take get out your scissors, your wire-cutters or your paintbrushes, and get crafting!

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this post, please do leave them below.