Having an online presence is imperative for anyone with a freelance career. It’s an opportunity to showcase your skills and knowledge. It also makes it easy for prospects to find you and connect with you. However, not all websites are created equal and a blog may be a much more effective and efficient means of connecting with prospects. Here’s how to build your freelance blog.

#1 Choose your platform. Most experts and bloggers will advise going with WordPress. It’s the most commonly used blogging platform. It’s easy to use and customize yourself – you don’t have to hire a pro to get the job done.

Additionally, there are more widgets and plug-ins available for WordPress than any other blogging platform. This means you can basically ask a WordPress blog to do just about anything you need it to do. Finally, WordPress is free, and although you do have to pay a few dollars to host it yourself rather than on WordPress, it’s worth the money to have your own URL. You can also find quality WordPress templates for free, or you can buy a predesigned template that fits your needs.

If you don’t want to use WordPress, take a look at Blogger, Typepad, and Tumblr. There are many free and paid blogging platforms to choose from.

#2 Decide what you want your blog to accomplish BEFORE you begin creating it. What do you want your blog to focus on? Presumably, you’re marketing your services as a freelancer, right? What static pages do you want to have? For example, you probably need a bio, a rates page, and a contact page.

What else do you need? Plan your blog before you create it. What categories will you post your content in? What sites will you link to, if any? Will you integrate your social networking activities into your blog? Answer these questions before you create your blog and it’ll look a lot more put together.

#3 Start posting. Make sure each post is relevant to your audience. Each post should have a purpose. The purpose can be to drive traffic, to make an announcement or to highlight a promotion. It can also be simply to provide valuable information to your audience or to solve a problem they have. Consider creating a content plan and plan a month’s worth of posts in advance. That way, you’re never at a loss for what to write about – you’ve already brainstormed a solution.

Note that it’s also a nice idea to find guest bloggers to help you out. It adds value to your blog and helps position you as a credible resource in your industry.

Blogging is one of the best ways to build your freelance business. It helps drive traffic to your site and increase awareness. It also helps establish your credibility. If you’re not blogging yet, consider adding one to your current website or changing your website to a blog.

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Marketing is an integral aspect of any small business success. As a direct sales consultant, marketing your business and website helps you achieve your sales goals. The more people who are aware of your business and products, the more success you’ll have. Here are ten great marketing ideas to help you get started.

#1 Offer a free newsletter – On your website or off you can offer a newsletter. You can email it or print and mail it. Email is a better option generally. It’s inexpensive and can lead to immediate click-through sales. In your newsletter, provide information that helps your recipients. Include promotions or special offers and link to your website.

#2 Advertise – Online or off you there are a number of advertising options available. You can take advantage of classified ads, online banner ads, text ads and pay-per-click (PPC) ads.

#3 Social networking – Social networking has become a really effective marketing tool. You can use it to drive traffic to your website. Announce special promotions or invite people to attend online or offline parties.
 
#4 Publish – You can write and publish articles for your local paper, online newsletter or article directories. If you’re publishing on line, make sure to include a clickable link to your website. If you’re publishing offline, make sure to include contact information including your website address. What do you write about? Anything that’s relevant to your industry. For example, if you sell outdoor gear then write articles about outdoor fitness or survival.

#5 Printing – Make flyers, brochures and business cards and post them around town. Post them in coffee shops. Ask physicians, dentists and other service providers if you can leave them for their clients. Post them on community boards and in places of worship.

#6 Partnering – Partner with other direct sales consultants and promote each other. You can even have double parties.

#7 Charity – Participate or host charity drives or fundraisers. Donate a portion of your profits to charity.

#8 Swag – Use your own products and use them blatantly. Don’t hesitate to share the swag. Help your customers promote you by offering them conversation pieces. For example, a nice tote bag with your business name on it can help spread the word. Also the happier your customers are, the more likely they will be to spread the word.

#9 Referrals – Consider offering customers rewards for referring new customers. Maybe they receive a free product or credit on their next purchase. Additionally, offer incentives for referring a party host.

#10 Networking – Don’t forget the value of your local small business association, chamber of commerce and other networking groups. These groups are great for making connections and learning better ways of doing business.
   
When it comes to marketing your direct sales business, use your imagination. Take advantage of your resources too. These ten ideas are just the beginning.

Many direct sales companies offer a tiered system. A tiered system means you can recruit other consultants. Each new consultant you recruit then becomes part of your team. They work independently. However, you can mentor them and help them succeed. You’re invested in their success. Each sale they make gives you a commission.

For example, you have five consultants you recruited and you earn a 5% commission on their sales. If they each sell $1000 in products next month, you earn an extra $250. Twelve months of this means you earn an extra $3000. And if each of your recruits then recruits five more people your income will continue to grow. It’s an amazing opportunity to profit.

While each company offers their own commission scale and incentives, this example demonstrates the potential a tier-based system offers. It also demonstrates the importance of helping your team prosper and sell. Here are just some of the ways you can help them sell more products.

* Mentor them by creating a website and marketing that site. Many people are unfamiliar with the concept of internet marketing. Yet the internet may account for half of your sales. It can be a huge profit maker.

* Assist them with their first couple of parties. Party planning and hosting can be extremely nerve-racking the first time you do it. Having someone who knows what to expect can be invaluable.

* Be a motivational coach. Owning a business has its ups and downs. If you can be there to support and motivate your team members, they’ll be much more successful. You can actually get together to have brainstorming and support sessions as a group. Make it part social, part business and have fun.

* Share any time management tips and organization strategies you’ve learned. If your team members are able to optimize their business, they’ll have more energy and time to sell. They make more money. You make more money. It’s a win-win situation.

* Help them recruit new consultants too. Share with them the potential profit a tier-based system offers. You still earn a commission when your recruits find new consultants and they earn a commission too. Help them learn how to pinpoint people who have the skills and motivation to be good direct sales consultants. Help them learn how to sell the opportunity. Together you can really grow your business.

Direct selling offers a number of business-building opportunities. Tier-based systems can really amplify your income. If your company offers a tier-based system and a good compensation package, start recruiting today. Plan how you can support your recruits to succeed and be the best business owner and direct sales consultant possible.