11 Proven Ways to Turn Your Business Around

Image by Terry Bain via Flickr

A few years ago, my sister’s house had a big problem with its foundation. A crack was forming right down the middle of their living room, which caused their tile floor to crack with it.

At first, their insurance company offered to replace their tile floor. But my sister insisted that the problem was more severe than it appeared. So she hired a specialist who confirmed that if the foundation wasn’t addressed, the problem would continue.

The specialist was right. They fixed the foundation and the problem was solved.

If you’re a freelancer or solo professional and your business has taken a beating in the last year or two, you may be in a similar situation. You certainly can work harder to make improvements in key areas of your business — things such as your marketing, work habits, pricing, and so forth.

But the impact of these changes will be short-lived if there’s a deeper problem you’re not addressing.

Intrigued by this idea, I recently set out to interview dozens of freelancers who had faced such a conundrum in the last few years. Their businesses had dried up. They could no longer command respectable fees for their work. And the marketing efforts that had once worked were no longer effective.

Yet they were still able to turn their businesses around.

When I studied what they did to get out of a bad situation, I realized that they creatively employed one of more of these 11 strategies:

Strategy #1: Follow the Flow

There’s nothing wrong with putting together a brilliant business plan. But in life and in business, we often have to improvise. We have to follow our instincts and see where they take us. I talked to a few freelancers that did just that and are now at the top of their field.

Strategy #2: Carve out a niche

Positioning yourself as an expert in a particular industry, skill, or type of project can help you stand out in a crowd of “me too” service providers. But you must be careful not to carve out too narrow a niche. Or to target markets that don’t really use freelancers.

Strategy #3: Diversify your clients and projects

Doing the opposite of niching can transform your business, too. Becoming a savvy generalist can keep your business humming along profitably, while others struggle. There can definitely be strength in diversity.

Strategy #4: Teach what you know

Teaching is a great why to expand your business and generate a good second income stream. Plus, it can also help you with strategy #6 below. I bet you have skills and talents others want to learn and would be willing to pay you for.

Strategy #5: Employ smarter marketing tactics

If marketing as usual isn’t working for you anymore, it’s time to do something daring and different. That means looking at what other successful freelancers are doing, getting out of your comfort zone and trying new approaches.

Strategy #6: Position yourself as the expert in your field.

In any market, the go-to experts tend to get the best clients and earn the highest fees. You don’t have to be the most well known, make an appearance on CNN or get quoted in The Wall Street Journal. You just have to be perceived as someone who knows the business better than many of your competitors.

Strategy #7: Turn a hobby into a business

If the freelance work you’re currently doing isn’t fun anymore, it might be time to make a big change. I talked to a few solo professionals who had created successful businesses out of their hobbies or interests. This is not for everyone, but it’s certainly a viable strategy if you have good business sense and can figure out a way to monetize one or more of your passions.

Strategy #8: Go to “hungrier” markets

Pick up your pail and shovel — and take your freelance talents to a new market, where your talents are valued more and the income potential is much higher. As I learned from some of the freelancers I interviewed, sometimes you have to go to markets that are willing to pay higher fees. Yes, they’re out there!

Strategy #9: Take a fresh approach to a traditional profession

Who says you have to provide and talk about your services in the same way everyone else in your profession or market does? Dare to do something unique and bold, and new clients may just stampede to your doorstep.

Strategy #10: Start a Side Business

Two businesses can be better than one. This is a very “do-able” strategy these days — and one that can significantly increase and stabilize your cash flow. In fact, for some of the freelancers I spoke with, their sideline ended up becoming their main (or at least a very important) income source.

Strategy #11: Reinvent yourself by taking a broader look at your skills

Quite often, your core skills can be applied in ways that can yield a better income, more stability and greater competitive advantage. The freelancers who used this strategy dug deep into their skills inventory, discovered what they REALLY did well, and figured out ways to apply those core skills to boost their income.

Intrigued? Need Ideas and Inspiration?

If you’re looking for smart and creative ideas (and good inspiration) to help turn your business around, I’ll be leading a teleclass this week that will expand on these 11 strategies. You’ll walk away with proven, tested, “people-have-really-done-this” strategies that can rapidly take your business from a slump to a sizzling success.

Just as important you’ll hear 20 examples from real freelancers who have deployed one or more of these ideas.

The teleclass is called “Extreme Makeover: 11 Proven Ways to Redeploy Your Freelance Talents.” And if you sign up by Thursday, you’ll get $10 off.

Either way, I’d like to hear from you…

How have you turned your business around? What creative strategies, methods or approaches have you implemented to get your income back on track?

Please share your thoughts and ideas below.

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Ed Gandia is co-author of The Wealthy Freelancer: 12 Secrets to a Great Income and an Enviable Lifestyle (Penguin/Alpha). To grab 3 free chapters of his book and a complimentary copy of his Freelancer’s Income Expander Kit (containing 4 reports worth $126), visit www.TheWealthyFreelancer.com/bonus