Freelance customer care is a great way to make money from home. Freelance customer care roles are available in many industries, and companies such as Apple, Amazon, and American Express all have openings for them.
The demand for this type of work is high because people need help with their digital devices or accounts when they have questions about them or when something goes wrong. If you do this job well, it can lead to more lucrative opportunities, such as becoming the president of a company.
We’ve compiled all the information you’ll need to succeed at freelance customer care in one place. This guide will help you figure out what type of work is best for your skills and interests so you can find new clients quickly and launch into your career with ease
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Understand the basics of freelance customer care and its benefits. |
| 2. Learn how to find freelance customer care jobs and attract clients. |
| 3. Develop effective communication skills for successful client interactions. |
| 4. Establish clear contracts and agreements to protect both parties. |
| 5. Manage your time efficiently and prioritize tasks to meet client expectations. |
| 6. Utilize tools, apps, and services to enhance your freelance customer care work. |
| 7. Continuously improve your skills and stay updated on industry trends. |
| 8. Maintain professionalism and provide exceptional customer service to build a solid reputation. |
| 9. Take care of your well-being and avoid burnout as a freelance customer care professional. |
| 10. Network, seek feedback, and learn from experienced freelancers in the field. |
1. Self-Assess
Before you start your freelance customer care career, it’s a good idea to first do some self-assessment. You need to be able to work without supervision and stick to your own schedule, so being self-motivated is a top priority. If you have trouble staying on task or meeting deadlines, consider working with a time management coach who can help you create strategies for success.
You should also be comfortable separating your personal life from your work life if you don’t like the idea of answering emails while on vacation or during dinner with friends and family, then this type of job probably isn’t a good fit for you.
Customer service agents also need the ability to deal with conflict and upset customers in order to succeed. It’s one of the main aspects of the job! We all know that not everyone is pleasant 100% of the time, but if you’re uncomfortable dealing with people who are angry or frustrated (even when it’s not directed at you personally) then this might not be the right career path for you either.
It’s also important to understand that customer service jobs require flexibility and adaptability—in other words, being able to deal with situations as they arise instead of having everything spelled out ahead of time. If this is something that makes you feel nervous or overwhelmed, consider taking some public speaking classes or reading up on ways to manage stress before diving in headfirst.
If you’re a customer service specialist looking for freelance opportunities, explore our guide on 14 Best Freelance Jobs for Customer Service Specialists to discover a variety of rewarding options in the industry.
2. Create a Client Avatar
When you’re a freelance customer service rep, you aren’t selling your services to just anyone. Your customers need to be people that you can help, and whom you want to help. That’s why it’s important to create a client avatar, or persona, that best matches the type of client you want to work with.
A client avatar is a representation (or “persona”) of this ideal client. It includes details like age, job, gender, hobbies and interests, personality traits, and even location. If you’re writing an ebook or blog post for your business website that will be seen by potential clients (as opposed to a piece of content that is only meant for current customers), then the characteristics of your ideal client should match those of the reader(s) who will be viewing that content.
For example, if your target audience is likely going to be female freelancers in their 20s or 30s (and maybe even millennials who have been pushed out of full-time jobs due to COVID-19), then it might not make much sense for your brand voice and style to adopt an old fashioned tone or appeal more heavily towards older audiences with families.
Similarly, if most of your ideal customers are male executives in their 40s who are looking for someone they can trust with their company’s online reputation management needs due to its importance to their bottom line – then choose colors that appeal more to women rather than men might give them the impression that you don’t understand what they need.
3. Network
Networking is the key to getting clients. Once you’ve built your portfolio, start contacting people who could potentially be interested in hiring you. Reach out to previous employers, colleagues, friends, and acquaintances who work in related fields. If they have time to chat with you, explain why they should hire you and ask if they can refer others who may also benefit from your services.
If your network doesn’t contain any potential clients, seek out people who might know someone who needs customer care services. For example: find a networking group that gathers regularly; attend an event hosted by a small business association; or reach out to entrepreneurs whom you admire on social media. You never know where it will lead!
Remember: be respectful of people’s time when contacting them for the first time, and keep it short! When I first started my business, I sent out an email that was six paragraphs long which is a lot for someone you’ve never worked with before and most people didn’t respond. If a friend or colleague doesn’t want to help you out at first, don’t take it personally and keep trying! Just remember to proofread carefully before sending anything (i.e., no typos!).
Struggling to find a freelance customer service job that pays the bills? Our comprehensive guide on how to get a freelance customer service job to pay the bills provides valuable insights and strategies to help you secure a stable income.
4. Understand Your Value Proposition
As a freelancer, one of your main goals should be to understand and communicate your value proposition or the benefits that you offer potential clients.
What is a value proposition?
A strong value proposition will help you answer the question “why should anyone hire me?” by communicating how you’re going to bring value to a client. A solid value proposition explains how you are going to solve a problem for the client, what kind of pain points you can help alleviate, and what specific solutions you can provide.
For some freelance careers, it’s clear how hiring someone like yourself solves an issue for potential clients. For example, hiring me as a freelance writer will give my clients more time in their day (because they can spend less time writing) or ensure that their writer needs are taken care of on an ongoing basis.
But other freelance careers may have different kinds of benefits. If I was a freelance graphic designer, my clients might not have the time or expertise to create beautiful graphics without my help. My value would be that I can take over this burden by providing them with pre-made templates and graphics.
Why is it important?
A strong understanding of your value proposition goes beyond simply knowing why someone would want to hire you; it’s also about knowing why someone wouldn’t hire you! For example: if I was trying to pitch myself as a freelance graphic designer who could do all sorts of design work, but didn’t actually have experience with logos (and had never done it before), that means that I don’t make sense as a logo designer candidate because I’m not bringing any real experience with logo designs into the mix.
However, since I do think that creating social media banners is one kind of design work where I could deliver real results for clients (and where my past experience would be relevant), then social media banner design is part of my set of skills where there’s room for me to bring true expertise and deliver great results for people who are looking for help.
5. Set Up Your Side Hustle Business
What Is A Side Hustle?
A side hustle is a project or business venture that you work on in addition to your full-time job. It’s designed to bring in extra income, but it may also be something you pursue for fun, passion, or interest.
Why Start A Side Hustle?
Side hustles can be super rewarding and give you the flexibility to work on projects that matter to you, but before you dive in, it’s important to set up your side hustle so it runs smoothly. Here are some things newcomers should know:
Create a business name that’s unique and fits your goals. If you’re not sure what direction your side hustle will take, consider going with something more generic. Also, avoid choosing a term that can have multiple meanings; for example, “exercise class” might mean “personal fitness trainer” or “health club,” depending on the context.
This isn’t always the case, for example, if you want to offer online tutoring services or dog walking, there are enough different names for those kinds of businesses without needing to use an ambiguous one like the aforementioned exercise class—but it’s good practice to avoid confusing people too much when first starting out.
Start with engaging content. The most successful sites focus on getting visitors back repeatedly by providing them with the value they can’t get anywhere else; this means providing tutorials or information they can refer back to later when they have questions or need help getting started.
Don’t just sell products here; offer something people need, and make sure that is related directly to your product offerings (see below).
Get a tax ID as soon as possible if you want to be eligible for all kinds of benefits from local authorities and other organizations that may provide valuable services for small businesses.
Discover the allure of freelance customer service jobs with our article on 15 Reasons Why Freelance Customer Service Jobs Are So Attractive. From flexibility to growth opportunities, explore the advantages that make this career path enticing.
6. Create A Website That Works For You
As your business grows, so will your need for a professional website. But it’s hard to get started when you’re not sure how to put one together—and you’re having trouble making a name for yourself online. Here’s eight steps to help you set up a website so that you can start building your brand and attracting clients:
- Choose the right domain name
As crazy as it sounds, choosing the right domain name is the most important step in setting up your site. It’s impossible to build a good-looking site without naming it correctly.
- Set up an account with a hosting plan provider
Now that you’ve chosen your domain name, pick out an account type that suits your needs—the amount of storage space and other features offered will depend on what kind of business you run (a small or personal blog, for example). + More information about choosing the right hosting plan here
7. Leverage Social Media To Get Clients
One of the most effective ways to find new clients and projects is by leveraging your social media accounts. When you post on social media, you are in front of your target market.
The type of content that you share can be a big factor when it comes to capturing attention. Here are some types of content that you can publish on social media:
- Share your knowledge and experience.
- Showcasing your expertise and credibility can boost engagement and attract the right people to work with.
- Post about the industry you’re working in, or what services are popular in the marketplace today: “It’s not too late for businesses that want to implement SMS marketing this year!”
- Share your accomplishments
- Don’t hesitate to tell people about the projects that have been successful for you or your clients.
One way to do this is by sharing case studies where you demonstrated how one business achieved certain results through customer service training.* Inspire others.* If a client has a great success story or if something interesting happened at work, don’t hesitate to share it with others!
8. Send Out Emails To Prospective Clients About Your Service (Cold Pitching)
When you decide to get into freelance customer care, cold pitching is an essential part of getting started. Cold pitching is a process by which you reach out to prospective clients about your service(s) via email. If you’re interested in starting a freelancing career as a virtual customer care agent, I highly recommend reading through this article first. It should give you an idea on what this job entails, its benefits and drawbacks, and how people can get started with it.
Cold Pitching 101: How To Get Started
Now that you know what cold pitching is all about, let me walk you through the steps of doing it right. While there really isn’t one tried-and-true way of sending out emails to prospective clients about your services (cold pitching), here are some things that I’ve found useful for cold pitching potential customers when I first started my business:
- Write a short intro about yourself – Your name, what do you do or sell? What are the qualities/skills/experiences that makes up your value proposition? Why would someone want to work with/hire you?
- Include links to your website/portfolio (if applicable) so prospects can view past work examples or other relevant details on other sites like LinkedIn etc., depending on what type of industry field it may be.
For example, if someone wanted me specifically because I have experience working as an assistant director at Disney World before going full-time into freelance writing then they would want links back here so they could check those credentials out before deciding whether or not they will hire me for their next project!
- Explain in more detail how valuable the service is going forward; why should customers care enough to pay attention now instead of later just because another competitor may come along and offer them something similar but better quality products at lower prices?. This section ensures prospects understand exactly why our team provides superior customer support practices as compared with competitors within their own market space who may simply be trying harder
As a freelance customer service representative, achieving success requires specific skills and approaches. Dive into our guide on 12 Secrets to Success as a Freelance Customer Service Rep to uncover valuable tips and strategies for excelling in your role.
9. Don’t Be Afraid To Charge What You’re Worth, Or Ask For More
While the idea of charging what you’re worth may seem daunting, it’s important to remember that it’s only scary if you haven’t determined your worth. And only you can determine your worth.
If you think of yourself as a fairly good customer service representative who could handle a couple calls per day at $20 an hour, start there and charge $20 an hour. If you are really great at customer service and really enjoy it and want to do more calls per day than the average person, then charge $30 an hour or maybe even more!
Maybe this is something that comes easily to you and you know that because of your great communication skills and ability to empathize with others, your time is better spent helping people than doing anything else. In this case, why not charge $40 or even $50 an hour? It’s up to you!
To streamline your freelance customer service work, it’s essential to have the right tools, apps, and services. Discover the best resources available in our article on The Best Tools, Apps, and Services for Freelance Customer Service, and optimize your efficiency and productivity in the field.
Final Thoughts
The purpose of this guide is to help freelancers new to the customer care field start out. In it, you’ll learn everything from the basics of how customers expect to be treated and the best ways to get a job in customer care, all the way up through advanced tactics for dealing with particularly tricky customers and furthering your career in this industry.
From a customer’s perspective, there is no worse feeling than trying to reach out to a business and failing. You probably don’t want to be part of the 25% of companies that offer poor customer service, so the following tips are helpful in improving your interactions with customers.
- Provide consistent, dependable contact channels
- Let your customers know what you’re doing for them
- Keep your messaging simple and easy to understand
- Demonstrate empathy when communicating with customers
- Empower your agents with accurate information on customers and their issues
- Give personalized attention to each customer interaction
It is also important that you take steps to ensure that all of the channels through which you communicate with customers (e-mail, phone, live chat) are easily accessible and seamless between platforms: if they can’t find what they’re looking for quickly enough or if they have trouble getting in touch via one channel, they’ll likely switch over to a different channel or abandon their efforts altogether (and possibly any potential business opportunities).
Additionally, while this article focuses on providing great support it’s helpful not just during interactions with current clients but also while prospecting new ones.
Further Reading
Here are some additional resources to further expand your knowledge on freelance customer care and related topics:
How to Get Freelance Clients: A Beginner’s Guide: Learn effective strategies and tips for acquiring freelance clients and building a successful client base.
Freelancing Beginner’s Guide: Get started in the world of freelancing with this comprehensive guide that covers various aspects, including finding clients, setting rates, and managing projects.
How to Freelance: A Comprehensive Guide: Explore this guide to gain insights into the freelancing world, including how to market yourself, handle contracts, and manage finances.
People Also Ask
What Are Some Good Ways To Start Out In Customer Care?
One of the best ways to get started in freelance customer care is to work for an established company that already has a client base and can provide you with training. For example, we offer a free online course that teaches you everything you need to know about providing great customer service.
By starting as part of a team or agency, you’ll gain valuable experience that will prepare you for working independently in the future. You’ll also have the opportunity to ask questions and make mistakes without the pressure of being responsible for an entire client base.
What Are Some Good Places To Look For Customer Care Jobs?
Some popular job sites where you can find freelance customer service jobs include Upwork, Freelancer, and WeWorkRemotely. There are also some really amazing Facebook groups that act as job boards specifically for virtual assistants and freelancers—here are just a few:
- Virtual Assistant Networking Group
- VA – VA Conference Group
- Freelance Helpers Job Board
What Should I Include In My Customer Care Package?
When putting together your first package of services, it’s important not to promise too much or charge too little. That’s a recipe for burnout. Make sure the scope of work is clear from the beginning so there aren’t any surprises down the road. It’s also important that your packages include only what you’re comfortable offering (and not what others will pay more money per hour).
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.