Everybody is looking to make additional income – including government workers.

According to The Washington Post, many federal workers are using freelancing as a temporary solution while they transition.

Even if you’re a federal worker who’s recently been laid off, freelancing is a very powerful option for you.

Why? Because it gives you a chance to charge what you’re worth based on your strengths.

While government agencies are going through chaos, there are other organizations who are willing to pay for the experience you have.

You just need to know how to transform those skills into essential freelancing services.

Here are some practical tips that can help you translate your government experience into a steady freelance foundation.

Define Your Transferable Skills

The first step you need to take is defining your skills.

One of the advantages you have as a government worker is specialized knowledge. You probably have experience in areas that many organizations struggle with, like:

• Compliance
• Policy
• Grant writing
• Budgeting
• Research
• Project management
• Communications
• Information Technology (IT).

These are skills that small businesses, nonprofits, and other companies can use.

You first have to define what skills you’re capable of based on your experience.

Let’s say that you are a policy analyst. The best skills for you to highlight would be research and writing skills.

Or if you’re a procurement analyst, procurement consulting would be a great transferable skill.

Create Sellable Services

Once your skills have been defined, you want to turn them into sellable services.

This is where the shift in mindset comes in. You shouldn’t think of your services as brief summary descriptions.

Instead, you want to create services that are based around your clients’ problems.

Let’s say that you are a policy analyst with experience in writing policy briefs. You could offer grant writing services to nonprofit organizations.

The key here is to put yourself in the mind of a business owner. What problems are your clients facing, and how can your services solve those problems?

Once you’ve answered those questions, you want to structure your services around the value that they provide.

For example, many freelancers offer packaged services that focus on client needs and benefits. These packages could be either flat rates for deliverables or retainers for continuous support.

It all depends on the best solution for the clients.

And that leads into the next tip: developing a niche.

Choose a Niche

Now that your services have been selected, it’s time to choose your niche.

A niche is a specific segment of a larger market where certain products or services are offered. Why do you need to choose a niche?

Three reasons:

• Clarity
• Higher rates
• Easier marketing.

When it comes to freelancing, clarity is power. People need to know who you specifically help and how you specifically help them. Narrowing down your niche makes it easier for you to market yourself and your services.

It also makes it easier for your clients to find you. Instead of being general with your services, you stand out when you specialize in a particular area.

Let’s say that you are a technical writer for defense contractors. Specializing in this particular niche shows that you are a subject matter expert in it.

Because of this, you can charge higher rates. Organizations are willing to pay for specialized expertise.

How do you narrow down your niche? Again, start with your past government experience.

What agency have you worked for? What industries align with your past or current experience? Who can benefit from your expertise?

In addition to these questions, consider your passions. What are your interests outside of your position? What organizations would you like to work with, now that you have the choice to do so?

Thinking about these questions can help you brainstorm the best niche for you.

Create Samples and Social Proof

After selecting your niche, your next step is to create a portfolio and gather testimonials.

There’s a saying that writers live by: show, don’t tell. It’s not just enough to write about what you do. You must show your clients what you’ve done and what they can expect if they work with you.

Does that mean that you have to create brand new samples? Not necessarily.

Think back to any past reports, white papers, or presentations you’ve done for your agency. These are great samples you can use for your portfolio.

What if those samples show any confidential information in them? No worries. You can spend additional time redacting information before posting the samples to your LinkedIn page or website.

In addition to samples, you can ask your past or current colleagues for reviews or testimonials. Remember, you want to show your potential clients that you’ve created results for other people.

Other great examples of social proof are past performance evaluations and case studies. These types of social proof can be used to show how you’ve led projects and saved your agency time and money.

Build Your Brand and Market It

Once your portfolio and testimonials are established, you want to build your brand.

Your brand is completely different from your title. In fact, it can have absolutely nothing to do with your title.

A brand is your client’s perception of the services that you offer.

One of the ways that you can distinguish your brand from your position (and other freelancers) is through different types of advertising efforts.

What does that look like?

• Rewriting your LinkedIn page to cater to your future clients.
• Launching a portfolio page.
• Launching a website.
• Sharing content about your niche.

When potential clients think about your niche, you want to be the first person that pops up in their mind. That’s the power of branding.

Equally important is how you market that brand. Marketing involves more than just an active social media presence.

You must find out where to meet your target audience and what they must know before doing business with you.

After defining your target audience and creating your marketing strategy, it’s time for the final step: networking.

Network Your Services

You didn’t create samples, redesign your LinkedIn profile, and gather social proof just to be a secret.

Now that you’ve built your freelancing foundation, it’s time to network your services. This doesn’t have to be scary. You can start with your own network of current and former colleagues.

Think about any past coworkers or supervisors you’ve worked with. Reach out to them and offer your freelance services.

Next, think about any former vendors or colleagues you’ve worked with throughout your career. Reach out to them and let them know about your services.

Another great way to network is by joining different LinkedIn groups. Search for any specialized groups of niche freelancers or other government employees and request to join.

Final Thoughts

Again, there’s no such thing as job security – even in government. Your next move may be the very thing you never thought of.

You have the skills, perspective, and purpose to make freelancing successful. You just need the right mindset.

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