▷ How do I find my clients as a freelance community manager?

Being a freelance community manager means enjoying a free and fulfilling job. You must still have a loyal customer! With the growing need for companies to maintain their online presence, getting a contract as a web community manager has become a real obstacle course… unless you know how to optimize your client portfolio as a freelance community manager…

Where to find your first customers?

Finding clients as a community manager in freelancing is above all a matter of action plan and marketing strategy.

It involves several parameters.

Learn the CM market in the field of freelancing

Analyzing the business environment is the first step in finding customers. Generally, big brands have a team of community managers inside. Independent CM’s premium clients are start-ups and small structures with large enough turnover to outsource web community management. Note that many self-employed workers also use the services of CM.

Target customers as a freelance CM

Targeting is defining the type of customers you want to work with. Among e-commerce startups, web entrepreneurs, and brick-and-mortar businesses, an independent CM should bet on clients who are not only developing their activities locally, but are interested in marketing their concept through social networks. In addition, it is advisable to choose a single niche, preparing an individual offer for a category of customers. Faced with the number of CM profiles in the market, customers prefer to work with CMs who are experts in their fields of activity.

Choosing the right exploration methods

Often, it’s enough to do your research to identify companies that fit a fixed target, then contact them individually. From this social media education “Develop your business with web marketing” course prepares you to achieve your goals. Between email, phone, blogging, and advertising, a freelance CM, beginner or senior, should at least know:

• The hot scouting : this is the ideal strategy for searching on social networks. It is about starting discussions and stimulating exchanges by creating publications that respond to the problems of communities;
• The cold intelligence : it is a matter of starting exchanges with unknown prospects or who are not part of CM’s online communities. Email marketing campaign and phone prospecting are currently the most common cold prospecting tools.

Improve your personal branding

It’s all about creating a digital storefront to enhance your experience, image and reputation as a freelance web community manager.

Work on your social selling

Creating accounts on social networks is the first good tip to gain fame as a freelance CM. All e-commerce startups, even brick-and-mortar businesses, put these tools at the center of their customer acquisition system. In community management, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram are important platforms to market your expertise. With so many competitors out there, CM needs to be more proactive in engaging with its community and demonstrate originality and value in its content.

Create a content marketing strategy

Posting content on blogs, websites or page uploads ensures long-term good visibility on the internet. In this case, specialization and positioning are key assets to differentiate from competitors. Create high value-added content that is tailored to your targeted niche topic and highlights your activities and expertise.

Increase your client portfolio

Businesses are meant to grow, and freelancer CM is no exception.

Expand your network

Once you’ve completed the prospecting and contract signing course, deploy marketing strategies that optimize the conversion of prospects into customers:

• Attend trade shows, forums or seminars : the field approach is a powerful strategy for improving your network by meeting directly with prospects and discussing their needs in the real world;
• Trust word of mouth : Between customer reviews and peer referrals, getting people in your community to talk about you is an ideal strategy for growing your customer base locally.

Build customer loyalty

Building customer loyalty means developing your relationship with existing customers. Selling your service to companies that have already bought it is easier than finding new customers. In addition, a long-term commitment with customers guarantees the stability of turnover and the survival of the company.