Finding your freelance niche

Kicking off today’s issue with a hot take: I don’t think you need a niche.

Alright, let me back up a few steps.

Yes, having a niche is important as a freelancer. Your niche is your specialty. It’s what people know you for and why clients hire you. For example, my niche is writing long-form content for B2B SaaS companies in marketing tech. That’s a fancy way of saying I write blog posts for tech companies.

But it took me a long time to land on this niche. About three years, to be exact.

In my early days of freelancing, I read a ton of resources suggesting you MUST find a niche or a specialty to succeed as a freelancer. People said that having a niche is required if you want to reach your ideal clients, become an expert in your field, and command higher rates.

That’s all true when you’re a few years into freelancing. But if you’re new to the freelance world (or you’re like me and jumped in without much work experience to begin with), you might not have a clue what you want to do yet. So hearing that you NEED to figure out a specific skill set, industry, or ideal client to succeed adds a ton of pressure to an already daunting venture.

Before I settled on long-form blog writing for tech companies, I dabbled in a little bit of everything. Here are some things I did:

• Social media management for small businesses

• Shopping content for media brands (i.e., articles like “Best Moisturizers for 2024” for People Magazine, Real Simple, etc.)

• Website copywriting projects for agencies

• Local journalism

• Email marketing

• Ran my own blog

I’m probably missing a few things, but you get the gist.

Writing was at the core of almost everything I did, but I still felt all over the place. I didn’t have a neat and tidy way to explain what I did. I found myself applying to social media, copywriting, and email marketing gigs and feeling like I wasn’t fully qualified for any of them.

I didn’t want to focus on just one of those things out of fear that I’d be limiting myself or missing out on potential work. This led to some pretty hectic workloads (and an admittedly jumbled portfolio).

While it felt a little chaotic not to have a niche for a few years, I don’t regret building my freelance career this way. Getting experience in a wide range of marketing and writing helped me figure out what I like, what I’m good at, and what types of clients I want to work with.

I know some people dive into freelancing knowing exactly what they want their niche to be, and it’s usually related to what they did for their full-time jobs. I genuinely admire people who take this path!

But if you’re like me and didn’t have a long career before pursuing freelance work, you might not know what you want to do at first. If you’re unsure, don’t sweat it. Take time to explore what you’re interested in, figure out what there’s demand for, and hone your skills over time.

Also important to note: You’re not locked in forever. You can change niches at any point. The niche I started with is not the niche I have now. And who knows, I may change my current niche at some point. That’s half the fun in freelancing — there’s so much opportunity to explore new skills or industries and keep your work interesting.

Is there a freelance topic you want to hear more about? Let me know by replying to this email! I have a ton of stories from my 5+ years of freelancing, and I hope to share the ones that are most helpful to you.

Have a great rest of your week! I’ll be back in your inbox on Tuesday, December 17th.

-Sam

Rough Draft is a bi-weekly newsletter where I share tips and musings on creating a freelance career from scratch. Subscribe here. You can also find me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Threads, or my website. 👋