[ghc]

As someone who has, at one time or another, failed at some or all of these points, I wish I'd seen this before I started out.

It's tempting to devalue yourself when you're new to freelancing or consulting in order to get business. But I'd take it all back and do it the right way after what I've seen.

The first time you make a serious mistake or don't get paid because you didn't ask for payment up front, you learn the hard way that business is, in fact, brutal and you don't get anywhere by being accommodating or nice; you can only go far by being professional and proactive.

[yen223]

I'd like to know: without selling yourself cheap, what's the way to get that first client?

[ghc]

It's not easy, even if you sell yourself cheap. It can be done, however. I never asked for references or kept a portfolio of my past work.

To get that first client:

1. Advertise and be picky about where. There are lists of freelancers who are specialized in certain kinds of work. Put yourself on them. You will get desperate people who can't find anyone to take on their job. Some of these jobs will be pretty bad. DO NOT take them, even as a way to build your portfolio. I learned this the hard way. You may think you are superhuman, but burnout is your enemy. Forget oDesk or similar. For example, if you know Django, put yourself into Django people. I got lots of clients that way when I first started out.

2. Use your connections, and build more connections. While I would never sell to friends and family, you can find clients through them. When I was a teenager I started a successful custom PC business this way. You never know who your acquaintances might know and what problems they might have that you can solve.

3. Deny everything. Do not act like you are new. You have to have confidence in being enough of an expert to do the job for anyone to take you seriously. Be the kind of person who doesn't need to give references to get a client. References have only rarely come up for me because I would always demonstrate a firm grasp of what the problem that needed to be solved was and I could offer a careful plan of attack.

4. Sell yourself. I don't mean by blogging or having a website. When you talk to client over the phone or meet them in person, you need to sell yourself as a competent worker. If you've worked on projects that have something to do with the project a client is proposing, say so. You don't need to add qualifiers about it being a hobby project or open source contribution. If you can solve your client's problem your job is to make sure you make them believe that you're the person to do it. Everything else is just details.

5. Avoid LinkedIn. This was easier when I started...it might be harder now. Connecting with potential clients on LinkedIn could expose you as inexperienced (or help if you have lots of corporate experience). Take on small enough projects to start that this doesn't come up. This almost always means your first clients will be small businesses.

6. Repeat to yourself before meeting with a client: "This person will judge me based on our interaction. They will only know my experience level based on this. I am only inexperienced if I lead them to believe it."

[danielweber]

Hell, I'd like to know how to get that first client even if you are selling yourself cheap.

Patio11 has a good answer here: offer to lower the rate in exchange for permission to write up a case study on their situation.

[sherm8n]

I made all those mistakes too. And I learned from them quickly. You can not be nice as a freelancer. People will try to treat you like a piece of meat.