You have been freelancing for awhile now and are getting the hang of things such as acquiring new clients, doing the work, and getting paid. But you’re not being paid the amount that you want.

This is likely because you’re not attracting the right type of clients, or you’re not

convincing them that you’re worth the extra budget, or you’re simply not firm in asking for more, afraid that they’ll find someone cheaper.

The process of going to the next stage is far from easy, but it is definitely well worth it if you want to pursue it as a serious professional career that you, your family and your wallet can be proud of. Let’s first look at the face of your brand – your website, and how you can make your website command higher prices for you.

When was the last time you updated your website? Does it look outdated compared to today’s standards? Does it help you differentiate yourself from your competitors? Your website is often the first impression that others have of you, so it can’t just look good, it needs to look absolutely outstanding.

Here are 6 tips to help your website and your brand look credible. The goal is to make your clients feel that it is worth paying you a premium, and also give you the confidence of charging higher prices as well.

1. Make your brand message clear.

Make sure you have a clear positioning statement. Your clients need to clearly understand what you do the first thing they see or within the first scroll. This includes the services that you offer, the industry and target segment that you serve, the clients that you have serviced, and your differentiating factor if any.

It is also important to keep it simple and spacious. Ensure there’s plenty of white space and that your website isn’t too cluttered. If you’re not a designer or are not sure, a good rule of thumb is to double all your paddings and white space. Avoid listing every single service you provide in a bullet form as it makes you look

like a jack of trade without any specialization. If possible, identify a possible niche that you can focus and specialize in. Specialists are often able to charge a higher premium because they are the best in class at what they do for a particular area.

Bad example: Generic and cluttered branding that makes it seem low-class

Source: http://www.toonexplainers.com/singapore/

Good examples: Clear and unique look that exudes credibility and feels premium

Source: https://fireart.studio

 

Source: https://paperpillar.com

Source: https://gram.com.sg

 

2.Showcase your impressive track record.

The clientele you display is incredibly important, you want to display established brands as much as possible. Unfortunately, the business world is sometimes also a shallow one. Just as how some people judge the success of others based on the company that they are working in, a large portion of first impressions is based on the clients that you have served before. So avoid brands that you think people are not sure of or are too small to prevent diluting your clientele. It is okay to include start-ups if they are doing well or if you have a great case study for them.

Good example:

Source: https://highspark.co

3.Share your interesting case studies.

Case studies are a great way to tell others that you know how to walk your talk and showcase how you have helped your clients solved their problems. This is important to your future clients because choosing a service provider is often plagued by doubts. They always wonder ‘how do I know that this is the right guy’?

Well the simple truth is that they will easily know by reading your case study. Guide potential clients on how you helped your past clients. Take them through the process from point A – the problem phase, to point B – after implementing your solution.

The more they know more about you and your processes, the less risky it is. It is just like investments, the most people investments are risky, but that is because they don’t know anything so it appears risky. But the more they know about it, the less risky it will seem.

Hopefully you’ve had some projects that can be turned into interesting case studies. If you think that you have not had the chance to work on any case-study worthy projects, start thinking about how you can form a more elaborated process to better justify your actions and output. Then document the entire project process, from why the client decided to choose you, the mission of the project, the challenges that you faced, what you did, the outcome, and the things that your client’s testimonial should include. This becomes your case study template for every project.

Good example: Detailed and interesting explanation of how the projects are tackled

Source: https://focuslabllc.com/case-studies/frame-io-1

 

4.Work on your visibility.

Most people now navigate the web on their mobile, so if your website is still not mobile-responsive, your clients are going to think you are a dinosaur. Nobody wants to work with a dinosaur. It is time to sink in some money for that investment, it’ll go a long way in getting you more traffic and therefore clients. Clients intrinsically trust that companies on the first page of Google are established businesses and will command a certain pricing as well.

Being mobile-responsive is also mandatory for your search engine optimization (SEO). There is no point have an impressive website without visitors, it’s like having a beautiful art piece that no one but you will ever see. Spend some time learning how to optimize the SEO of your website, then choose to either do it yourself or ask someone do it for you.

If you are interested in doing it yourself, you can start off with steps as simple as including keywords that your clients will search for. For example, I run a corporate video production company, and I make that as one of my headers. You should also give your pictures relevant names such as “Singapore Corporate Video” instead of just “untitled1”. In short, make it easier for Google to find your website.

5.Social-proof your company.

Speaking of making it easier for Google to find your website, have you registered your google my business? This helps you appear on google maps, boosts your SEO, and also gives you a google business page. The big benefit is that others can start leaving reviews on your google business page.

If you have been doing a good job with your projects, encourage your clients to leave a positive review. We have probably gotten several big projects and could justify higher prices because of the consistent 5-star customer satisfaction that we have provided.

Be sure to include social-proof on your homepage to boost credibility. Most people feel more assured if they know others have had a positive experience with you.

Example:

6.Write thought-leadership articles.

You want your clients to know that you are the expert because clients usually pay experts higher prices They believe they can do a better job which makes it more worth it, and for good reason. An expert has a lot more experience and can often achieve the desired result with much greater ease and consistency.

So how do you let your clients know you are an expert? Writing case studies is definitely one way, writing thought-leadership articles is another. This includes articles could be about your thoughts on certain processes, industry news, or just general tips like this article.

7.Bonus tip: Get a good camera.

Having your own content is a sure way to make you unique and stand out from your competitors. Consider investing in a DSLR and start taking professional looking photos for your website and social media to make them more interesting.

Don’t have enough budget for a camera right now? You can try renting them from your local camera rental store. If you’re in Singapore, https://jrc.sg is a good place to rent all the equipment you can possibly need for the best bang for your buck. You can even rent a studio space or a photographer to help you capture professional photos of yourself. A professional headshot will definitely go a long way in establishing you as a professional.

Another plus point is that you’ll also pick up several skills with a camera, including being more aware about colors, spacing, composition, lighting, and photo and videography. The Canon 80D and Sony A6300 with a 50mm prime lens is a cheap and good DSLR package to start off with.

Source: https://jrc.sg

In conclusion, you want your website to be clear, memorable, and establishes you as a credible and reliable expert preferably in a certain niche. This would help you appear like a ‘specialist’ which can help you command higher prices.

Here’s a summary of the tips again:

1. Make your brand message clear.
2. Showcase your impressive track record.
3. Share your interesting case studies.
4. Work on your visibility.
5. Social-proof your company.
6. Write thought-leadership articles.
7. Get a good camera.

Congratulations for making it this far, you’re probably having many ideas on improving your own website. Never stop trying to improve and you will do just fine. We wish you all the best!