As a freelancer in the digital age, you evolve your skills to meet the needs of your market. You remain agile and educated on new tools, tactics, and strategies. Whether it’s the hot new thing in content marketing or the latest design trend, you need to be ready to adapt to the trends that will have the highest return for your clients.
On a broader level, you need to know what businesses are hiring for – what skills are in demand. Over the years, we’ve seen waves of companies hiring for SEO, WordPress, social media, then content marketing, then graphic designing. Every few years, there’s a new product or marketing technique that gains popularity and causes a spike in hiring, in products, in experts.
We analyzed hundreds of jobs to determine the most in-demand freelance skills of 2017. Here are the most in-demand freelance skills of 2017.
Content writing
For every word written online or offline, there’s someone sitting in front of his computer and bleeding his heart out. With hundreds of thousands of websites, numerous newspapers, blogs, and magazines out there, imagine the kind of opportunities you have as a content writer. Just polish your writing skills, improve your grammar and learn how to write content that sells. An average freelance writer in India earns around Rs 1.8 lakhs annually, but this figure can go 10-15 times higher for those who know their way around with words.
Graphic designing
Just like content writing, graphic designing is another freelance skill in demand. Many digital marketing companies, blogs, newspapers and magazines are on the constant lookout for talented graphic designers who can design beautiful graphics in minimum time. All you need to do is learn Photoshop and other relevant software to cash in the opportunities available in this field.
Blogging
Either you can start a blog or associate with someone else as a blogger and make money. There are different niches like technology, internet marketing, fashion, travel, entertainment and personal finance that you can learn about and explore as per your interests. As far as earnings are concerned, the sky is the limit. You can make more than $100K per year, and I know many bloggers who make this much money every month.
Social media marketing
Over the past decade, sites like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Reddit have emerged as major social media platforms. Businesses want to interact with potential customers at these social media sites, and for this they need experts. That’s where a social media marketer can leverage his skills, help brands increase user engagement and make some money in return. You don’t need any technical expertise for this role as long as you’re able to interact with the audience.
Web development
With so many websites up and running, businesses need someone to handle the backend process and ensure the website doesn’t go down or load slowly. That’s where a web developer comes into the picture. Web development is a freelance skill that you can master and make a significant amount of money by working few hours daily.
Voiceover artists
Got a voice that can catch people’s attention? From radio advertisements to corporate videos, there’s a huge demand for VO artists. Not to mention the pay is very handsome. So, if you think you’ve good communication skills and a beautiful voice, try the VO field. It’s full of opportunities for youngsters.
Search engine optimisation
In order to survive and make money online, websites need traffic, and search engines like Yahoo, Bing, Google, along with social media sites, are major sources of that traffic. They hire freelance SEO experts from time to time to rank on the first page of search engines. Lack of money won’t haunt you ever if you can master this skill and get good exposure.
Translation
If you can read, write and speak more than one language, translation field has immense opportunities in store for you. A good understanding of regional languages and foreign languages can help you make decent money by taking freelance translation assignments.
Virtual Assistant
VA jobs are some of the most in-demand jobs in 2017. These jobs are in high demand due to the startup revolution that is happening, and the business owners want to focus their time on core tasks that make them money, while they delegate the rest.
Ecommerce Specialist
E-commerce refers to any form of commercial transaction conducted over the internet. It can also involve the buying and selling of goods online. Popular e-commerce platforms include Shopify, Magento and WooCommerce.
Clients are looking for ecommerce specialists who can help them increase sales and profits. A passion for digital marketing is a must. You will also need analytical skills to help your clients grow their ecommerce stores. You also need to demonstrate to your clients that you are up-to-date with industry trends.
As you can see, there has never been a better time to become a freelancer. The online work revolution is happening and you can become a part of it.
And if you already are, learn some new skills because technology, just like time, waits for no one!
The Most In-demand Freelance Skills of 2017 