Last week in our blog post, we discussed what skills are important in the professional world and how you can build upon them. Unique skills are a great thing to have in your toolbox. It’s also necessary to have a diverse set of skills that can be applied broadly to any position you may encounter. This week, we will dive into what skills are important for entrepreneurs, freelancers, marketers, content creators, and writers and what recruiters in those industries look for. Keep reading to see what future skills you may need for the industries you're interested in.
Entrepreneurship
I started my conversation with Kevin by asking him about his experience as an entrepreneur. What skills are necessary for starting your own business and what skills has he acquired along the way? The first thing he mentioned was finances. Although eventually you may be able to hire an accountant, you still need to have a basic understanding of your finances, such as cash flow and profitability. Kevin recommends FreshBooks, an accounting and invoice system that helps him run his business.
Another skill you’ll need is knowing how to make a sale. Whether you're selling a product or offering a service, you’re still selling something to a client. You’ll need to understand the marketing methods and business development for your product or service. Different products and services require different sales channels and outreach. Knowing what type is appropriate for your business will help you succeed.
A less technical but equally as important skill for entrepreneurs is... “being able to be told no or to be ghosted.” Being rejected or flat out ignored will always be tough, but if your business holds value and you're confident in what you’re selling, you’ll be able to move past rejection and adapt.
Another soft skill that entrepreneurs need to harness is being ready to make a good first impression.
“I’m interviewing every single day. Everything I post on LinkedIn, every piece of content The Niche Movement puts out, every phone call I have with a potential client, a new client, a recurring client, pitching, following up, is coming from an interview state. You’re always pretty much ready for a first impression.”
Entrepreneurs need to give a good first impression because you never know who might be a potential client. Not only do first impressions matter whether they’re in person or over the phone, but it’s also important to remember that the content you put on your LinkedIn and other social media can make an impact too. You don’t have to be the most sociable person, but be ready to represent yourself and make a good impression. If you’re wondering what other skills entrepreneurs should have, this Forbes article has great advice.
Freelancing
Being a freelancer is similar to an entrepreneur in the sense that you’re selling your work or services and need to be confident in what you’re producing. But since freelancing is project-based, you may have periods with one or even no projects and then suddenly, you’ll have four or five projects with overlap. Therefore, you need to have great project and time management skills. Beyond organization and time management skills is knowing the worth of your time, skills, and product or service.
“You need to be confident to speak up to yourself. Sometimes freelancers get taken advantage of, for example people want to find the quickest, cheapest option and you may not be that, so it can be tough. As a freelancer you need to figure out how to brand and market yourself and provide something different that allows you to charge more than others.”
Providing something unique that people want to purchase is one step, and then determining how much to charge for that service and your time is the next. Start by researching what others in your field are charging so you can get a sense of the average rate and price your services accordingly. If someone can’t afford your service, you shouldn’t feel like you’re charging too much if you’ve taken the time to price yourself and your service at a worthy price. Freelancers need to have the confidence in themselves and their work to know their worth and to not be taken advantage of. Read more about what to know as a freelancer in this Medium article.
Marketing & Storytelling
Working in marketing and using storytelling in your work can be very hands-on and there are a lot of useful skill sets you’ll need to know. Here we’ll discuss different areas of marketing and storytelling, like analytics and content creation.
Analytics
Like we mentioned in last week’s post, understanding SEO and social media advertisements is very important in today’s digital world. SEO stands for “search engine optimization,” and is important for your website if you want to generate more traffic. Improving your SEO will rank your website higher on the user’s search engine, and in return will draw more clicks to your page. Paid ad campaigns can also be difficult to utilize if you don’t have the right knowledge. Marketing entrepreneur Neil Patel shares his recipe for success on his website. Read his posts about SEO or paid advertisements to learn more.
Understanding the analytics behind targeted campaigns and SEO is important, but the next step is knowing what to do with the data and performance of your ads. Different media ads, like Facebook and Google, will give you different metrics and reference points. You need to know what each one means and what to do with that information. Ultimately in marketing, you will have a budget and you’ll need to know how to run a successful campaign for your company to succeed.
Content Creation
As we know, our world is moving more and more online, and the more you know about communicating information virtually, the better. If you are able to understand the analytics and data sets, that’s great, and it’s even better if you can communicate that information into a report, a quick video, or a slide-deck. Take advantage of creative courses that focus on synthesizing information in a more engaging way, such as graphic design, storytelling, visualization, or video editing. It’s important to know the best way to display information for people to remember and understand it.
Writing
“Writing is an underrated skill.” People use it everyday in many different forms, but it’s often overlooked. In the professional world, you’ll be writing emails, pitches, slide-decks, reports, social media posts, campaigns… the list goes on. It’s important to have the basics of writing under your belt so you can switch your style depending on your subject or audience. As mentioned above, it’s all about synthesizing information in a short, readable way for people to understand the information or point you're trying to convey. Kevin suggests taking as many courses on writing as you can to improve on your skills. Being a good writer can separate you from other candidates and make a difference in your standing in the professional world. Grammarly suggests 15 tips to improve your writing–check them out here.
There are many desirable skills across all industries and there is quite a bit of overlap. This post isn’t the end-all-be-all for industry-specific skill sets, but it’s a good place to start if you’re wondering what skills might be useful in a potential industry. If you don’t have the skills yet for your desired industry or you could use some brushing up, challenge yourself to learn more, maybe for an hour each week and you’ll get better! If you didn’t read the first part of this blog, check it out here.
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