One of the things about freelancing that’s both helpful and harmful, is that once you get the business going, it pretty much runs itself. Once you’ve gone over that first hump of finding those first few clients, if you provide great service and work, you often don’t even require to marketing or look for clients much.

You began last year with a set of goals. They were short – a few words in bullet points – but they nonetheless cemented your plans, imaginations, ideas and dreams for your freelance business.

What can you do to further grow your business? What did not work last year, and what would you like to work on this time around? What steps should you take to boost your income, attract more clients and win more projects?Who can you increase the productivity of your freelance business according to the latest needs of market.

Here are 10 great ways to boost up your freelance career taking small but essential steps toward success.

Raise your rates

If you know you’re doing great work, charge for it. Aim for three digits. You should raise your rates as per market conditions and your expertise that you are using to fulfill your job.

Move away from trouble clients

Stop taking their work, even if you “need” them to survive. There are other clients out there that will treat you better and pay you more for it too. You need to search out new clients in the market that can easily build beneficial environment for you.

Invest in professional development

Read business books, test out new strategies, buy better equipment, enroll in online courses, and develop new and marketable skills. As a result, you will be able to add to your services.

Offer new or additional services

If you used to turn down requests for search engine optimized copywriting, imagine how happy clients will be when you add it to your list of services.

You could also consider repackaging your current services into an affordable bundle that new and regular clients will have a hard time refusing.

Expand, Expand, And Expand!

If you’re feeling particularly hardy in the coming year, why not take the opportunity to expand your freelancing business into new areas? For example, how many clients in 2011 asked you to host their web site? If you’re like most of us, you simply didn’t have the capability, and couldn’t afford to do the job yourself.

So in the current year, why not consider a reseller hosting plan? If you have such a service under your belt, your clients have even more reason to stick with you, and will very likely be quite pleased with the additional functionality.

Take on larger long-term projects

Small projects were initially a big help for gathering feedback and building your reputation. Now, it is time to load the big guns and aim for bigger and longer projects.

Build strong relationships with existing clients

This will encourage them to either return for more business or to refer you to other people. Strive to make every project a success and your work memorable.

Cut unnecessary costs

Monthly subscriptions, unpaid projects, excess office expenses – these extra costs may be the reason your business has not reached its full potential yet.

Make a list of all the business costs you have incurred throughout the year and cut items you do not need.

Connect with other freelancers

Working solo can get lonely sometimes. Take some time off to attend local or national conferences, major events, or small gatherings or meet-ups with other fellow freelancers. It’s a great way to meet new people and to bond with freelancers of your field.

Learn from your mistakes

Was a client able to get one over on you? How could you have prevented that? Make sure you update policies or the way you work to make sure you never make the same mistakes twice.