Want to freelance successfully? Write a business plan! [Sample]

July 8, 2013

Do you want to start your freelance career off on the right foot?

Of course you do!

And even if you’ve already started, a business plan is worth spending the small amount of time to create.

I don’t want you to spend too much time on this though, so I’ve broken down how you can create a freelance business plan in just three simple sections.

With a traditional business plan, you’d imagine it’s pages of text with charts and numbers, but that’s not what you’re going to be creating.

The key with this simple freelance business plan is to force yourself to answer some basic important questions that'll help you better understand your freelance business.

I guarantee that after you complete your freelance business plan you’ll have a better understanding of your goals and you’ll feel motivated to take action!

Here’s the 3 section guide to creating your freelance business plan:

Open up your favorite text editor, type out the three section headers below and summarize your answers in detail.

My Freelance Business

  • What’s your business name and location?
  • What do you specialize in?
  • How will you make money?
  • Who are your clients?

My Marketing Plan

  • How will you find your clients?
  • What type of marketing will you do to get your name out there?
  • What results are you looking for with your marketing? (Number of clients or projects per month)

My Financial Plan

  • How much will you charge?
  • How many days of the week will you work?
  • How many hours per week do you expect to be billable?
  • What are your expenses?
  • How will you diversify your income?

Taking the time to answer most of these questions in detail will hopefully help you better understand your freelance business.

Download my sample freelance business plan to get a better understanding of the format and length »

Please do not blatantly copy my sample freelance business plan!

Copying my sample will get you and your business nowhere. Honestly, if you do happen to copy my sample I’m providing you for reference, then I’m pretty confident you won’t go anywhere with your “freelance career”, because cutting corners and blatantly ripping others off is no way to run a successful business.

Truly take the time to answer those questions for yourself. I guarantee you’ll feel motivated to meet your goals after you’ve written them out in detail.

Once you’ve finished your freelance business plan, reopen it at least once every few months to see how well you’re staying on track with your plans, or if you need to make some revisions.

See my latest work and more on Instagram @BrentGalloway