After Hours© 008

Welcome back to After Hours, where we put in the hours required to get better at freelancing or running a studio.

I’m genuinely impressed by how many submissions we get each week for topics to cover. I thought it would make choosing a topic easier, but it’s actually made it harder because I want to answer all of you.

So today, I’ve grouped a topic that comes up again and again.

Todays topic: Finding clients
Estimated read time: ~4 minutes (Skim time: ~90 seconds)

What kind of problem is this?

Finding clients is a direction + momentum problem.

Looking for clients and helping clients find you comes down to consistency and scheduling the time.

It’s not an economy problem. It’s not even a confidence problem.

You literally just need to do it and keep doing it.

Types of marketing

You can find clients through two main types of marketing.

Inbound marketing and outbound marketing.

Inbound marketing is clients coming to you.
Client sees you → trusts you → hires you.

Inbound marketing examples include:

• Social media content
• SEO (your website’s visibility on Google)
• Freelance platforms like Gumroad, Fiverr, or job profile platforms

Outbound marketing is you going to clients.
You find clients → pitch them → hope it lands.

Outbound marketing examples include:

• Cold emails, DMs, messages, or calls
• Google or Meta ads

There are also methods that sit somewhere in the middle, like podcasts or PR.

Boring Studios first client

Our very first client came from outbound marketing.

We sent a cold message to everyone we knew. A friend of a friend replied:

“Hey, I got your contact from [friend’s name]. How can I book in a call?”

We nailed that call and landed our first client.

Our second potential client came the same way, although we didn’t land them. After that, we started getting clients through inbound marketing.

Solution to finding clients

Marketing.

You can’t expect clients to appear out of thin air. You need to be marketing.

Use a mix of inbound and outbound marketing every single week. Even when your month is fully booked, you still need to be marketing.

This week you will

Step one: Outbound marketing — your network

Message your friends, family, and social network. You can use this or your own variation:

Hey [Name],
I hope you’re well.
I’m officially working with clients for [offer]. If anyone in your world needs help with [problem or result], I’d really appreciate the referral.
You can share my link with them: [link].
Thanks for supporting what I do.

Step two: Outbound marketing — cold clients

• Make a list of clients who could genuinely benefit from your services
• Don’t message anyone and everyone. Be specific
• Outbound marketing is a numbers game. For every 99 no’s, you’ll get one yes

Send a message like this:

Hi [Name],
I came across [their business or project] and noticed [specific observation].
I work with [type of clients] on [service], and thought this could be useful since you’re currently [context].
If you’re open to it, I’d be happy to share a quick idea or example. No pressure at all.
Best,
[Your name]

Step three: Inbound marketing

• Pick one social media platform
• Write opinions or problem-to-solution ideas
• Turn those into 3–5 pieces of content
• Post 3–5 times per week

Step four: Make a weekly plan and repeat

Your marketing output should take up roughly half of your working time as a freelancer or studio owner.

If it doesn’t, you’re not doing enough marketing. And no, I will not listen to complaints about not having clients.

Aim for 6–8 hours per week on marketing. Mix inbound and outbound. Spread it across the week or do it in two focused days. Just schedule it and treat it as seriously as client work.

Clients don’t appear out of nowhere.

If you’re not putting in the hours to find clients or help clients find you, it’s unrealistic to expect consistent work.

Put in those 6–8 hours every week, then tell me you have no clients. You won’t be able to.

See you next week,

Penelope
Co-Founder of Boring Studios, Writer