The freelancer visibility paradox
When you need to be visible to succeed but you're scared to be seen
In my 1:1 work with freelancers one thing comes up time and again: I know I need to post on social but what if I suck at it?
Good news! Everyone sucks to start with. That’s how developing a new skill works. It may feel cringe and anxiety-inducing but it’s an important part of learning. As much as the term “mindset shift” feels like wanky hustlebro bullshit, it is unfortunately time to look at it.
5 things that make posting on social less scary
If your post tanks, good news, no one saw it anyway
Posting on LinkedIn in particular feels really competitive. You may see people in your industry thriving. Super high engagement all the time. But here’s the thing. If one of their posts tanked, you won’t have seen it anyway.
In fact, I posted on Monday about how your website can pre-qualify leads and it fucking tanked. Hard. I mean 2 reactions and one AI-generated slop comment kind of tanked. But I really don’t care. I will share other content that will get more engagement. And, as of writing, a whopping 187 people have scrolled on past it.
Why don’t I care? Because it doesn’t matter. I’ll rework the post in a couple of weeks and it’ll probably be fine.
No one sees all of your content but you
Thanks to the algorithms and, you know, everyone having their own shit to worry about, no one sees everything you publish except for you. So repeat yourself. When you run out of ideas, just copy and paste a post from a few months ago, or rework one from a couple of weeks ago. I promise no one will remember.
Posting on social is a long game
Sure, some posts will lead to immediate conversions. But that is rare. Building your social media presence is a slow burn. And the more traction you get, the more people see you, the larger your referral network is.
Keep banging on about the same things and people will come to associate you with those things. Thus, when someone in your network needs to refer a client or a lead to a website copywriter, an SEO, a photographer, a designer, there you are at the top of their mind.
You do not need to post every day
No matter what the hustle bros tell you, you don’t need to post every day. I tried it in February as part of my year of experiments and it was great for a while. Until I started running out of ideas and my posts started tanking. The last week of posts in February were pretty devoid of anything helpful. Not something I want to do again.
Decide what consistency looks like to you
For some people consistent means constant. But it doesn’t need to. Set yourself a minimum schedule for when your brain/heart’s just not in it, when you’re flaring up, exhausted, or too busy with client work. My minimum posting schedule for LinkedIn is once per week. And sometimes I don’t manage it. No one cares or notices and that’s just fine by me.
Right now, I have three weeks of content (2-3 posts per week) scheduled up for the next 3 weeks because I got a sudden burst of ideas. Now I don’t need to think about it for a while. Work with your brain on this one. Not against it.
You just need to break the ice
As much as so many freelancers hate it, we do need to be visible. Yes, in-person networking and word of mouth can be a goldmine. But for a sustainable, long term income that isn’t impacted by illness, injury, or anything else that may prevent you from physically turning up to events, social is a great way to supplement your marketing.
Pick a platform, any platform. Well, one where your audience will be. And just start posting. If you need some ideas, I wrote about where to find inspiration for LinkedIn content and some ideas to get you started.
Need some ideas generated for you?
If you want something a bit more personal, book a one off 1:1 with me and I’ll interview you. Afterwards I’ll give you a shit ton of post ideas about your business, your work, your outlook, and anything else that feels relevant.
I help freelancers like you shed your anxiety and finally build a business that works for you. Find out more about weekly 1:1s for freelancers.