About 25–35 minutes to read and work through fully; 10 minutes if skimming.
How to narrow down what you offer, what to start with, and how to turn your services into something clients can actually say yes to.
Start with one to three services (max)
I know it's tempting to offer everything. If you can write blog posts AND do social media AND manage email AND do SEO strategy, why not offer all of it?
Because clients don't hire someone who does everything. They hire someone who does the thing they need, really well.
Starting with one to three services keeps your portfolio focused, your pitches sharp, and your learning curve manageable. You can always add more later — and honestly, once you're actually working with clients, you'll figure out pretty fast which services you love and which ones drain you.
That's valuable information you can only get by doing it.
Take the quiz first
Not sure which services are the right fit for you? Start with the Services Quiz — it takes about five minutes and helps you figure out which direction makes the most sense based on your strengths and interests.
Then come back here to plan your next steps.
Popular services for new freelancers
Digital marketing is a wide category. Here's a snapshot of what new freelancers most commonly offer and what to know about each:
Content writing / SEO blogging Long-form articles and blog posts, usually optimized for search. One of the most common starting points because the barrier to entry is lower and the demand is steady. Getting good at SEO makes your work significantly more valuable.
Email copywriting Writing emails for newsletters, sequences, promotional campaigns, and automations. Tends to pay well because it's directly tied to revenue. More technical than blogging but very learnable.
Social media management Writing captions, planning content calendars, sometimes scheduling and reporting. Can be done as a standalone service or bundled with content strategy.
SEO strategy Keyword research, content audits, content planning. Usually a higher-ticket service because it requires more expertise. Can be a natural add-on once you've been doing SEO writing for a while.
Website copywriting Writing homepage, about page, services pages, and landing pages. Tends to be project-based rather than ongoing. Great for building portfolio pieces fast.
Brand voice and messaging Developing the language, tone, and positioning for a brand. Often done as part of a larger strategy engagement. Higher-level work that gets easier to sell as you build a track record.
This list is not exhaustive — there are plenty of other directions you can go. The quiz will help you narrow it down.
How to define your service as an offer
Knowing you want to "do SEO blogging" is a start. But what a client actually needs to see is what that looks like from them — what they get, how it works, and roughly what it costs.
Here's a simple framework for defining one service:
- What is it? (The deliverable — e.g., "two 1,500-word SEO blog posts per month")
- Who is it for? (The client type — e.g., "outdoor gear brands trying to grow organic traffic")
- What does it include? (e.g., keyword research, one round of revisions, delivered in Google Docs)
- What does it cost? (You'll set your rates in Week 5 — for now, just note what you're thinking)
You don't need a full pricing guide yet. You just need enough clarity to describe what you do when someone asks.
The Services Workbook will walk you through this for each service you want to offer. ✏️
A note on packages
You'll hear a lot about "packages" in freelancing. A package is just a bundle of deliverables priced at a flat rate — instead of charging per piece, you charge for a set scope of work.
Packages are great for income stability (you know what you're making each month), easier to pitch, and help clients commit to ongoing work rather than one-off projects.
We cover packages in depth in the Freelance Resource Library — including how to price them, what to include, and how to present them to clients. For now, just know they exist and we'll get there.
Your action item this week
- Take the Services Quiz
- Open the Services Workbook and fill in your one to three services
- For each service: write out what it is, who it's for, and what it includes
That's your offer in its earliest form. It'll get sharper over time.
Looking for something else?
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