Freelancers: How to Make the 80/20 Rule Work For You

The 80/20 rule, or Pareto Principle, suggests that 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts.

Or, if you look at the negative version of 80/20, 80% of your problems come from 20% of situations or people.

As a freelancer, it’s worth analyzing how the 80/20 rule applies to your business.

Usually, you should aim to get the 80/20 rule working for you.

In other cases, make sure it isn’t working against you.

Let’s have a look.

80% of Your Growth Will Come From 20% of Your Clients

Here, the 80/20 rule says that just a few of your clients will have the most potential for more projects and greater revenue.

If you’ve been freelancing for a while, you’ve worked for a variety of clients. Many of them were “one-off clients”. In other words, they needed a job done, you did it, and that was the end of the relationship.

As long as they’re profitable, one-off clients are fine, but a steady stream of them is a challenging way to grow a business.

If you’re looking for growth, your goal is to find the 20% that have the potential to give you many profitable projects. Find clients who need a lot of what you do, whether that’s writing, designing, or development.

If you talk to successful freelancers, most have one thing in common—they have steady clients. They spend more time on billable work, less time chasing every random lead.

Your goal: get more work from your best clients. How? Give more to get more. Be more helpful. Offer greater value. Build deeper relationships. That’s where you’ll find your growth.

80% of Your Client Issues Will Come From 20% of Your Clients (not the same ones)

The negative side of the 80/20 rule is that just a few of your clients will create the most problems for you.

They’re slow to pay.

They push for constant scope creep.

They send you weekend emails expecting a response.

Think hard about whether you want to continue with them. Cutting them loose will make most of your problems disappear.

If you do wish to continue, you need to have a talk with them. They have to learn how to behave like good clients.

It’s not good for your business if they’re sucking up more time than they’re worth.

80% of Your Best Projects Come From 20% of The Types of Projects You Take On

This applies mainly to “generalist” freelancers. Although you are capable of delivering many types of projects, you excel in just a few of them.

Look at the services you currently provide. Which ones are you best at? Which are most profitable?

Focus there. Narrow down the types of projects you accept.

Promote your areas of excellence. Make it crystal clear to potential clients. Then, learn to say no to the rest. That’s the path to better, more profitable projects.

80% of Your Leads Come From 20% of Your Marketing Channels

Any marketing channel can be successful. For some, leads come from social media. Others swear by email or referrals from their networks.

Figure out what works for you and do more of that. Fine-tune, adjust, and measure. Lead generation is a game of numbers.

Pick your best channel and keep at it.

80% of Your Referrals Will Come From 20% of Your Network

How robust is your network? Do you keep them up-to-date with what you’re doing?

Pay attention to where you’re getting your referrals. Likely, it will be a few people who are your biggest fans.

If it’s someone local, thank them by taking them out to coffee/lunch/a sporting event—whatever makes sense.

If they’re not local, gift cards are usually appreciated.

Yes, you should keep building your network, but remember to nurture those closest to you.

There’s more about networking and the 80/20 rule in both of my books.

New Book For Freelancers

I’ve just published How to Become a Successful Creative Freelancer. It’s the essential business guide for freelance writers, designers, developers, filmmakers, and photographers.

Whether you’re just starting as a freelancer or have years of experience, you’ll learn a lot from this book.

It’s broken down into easy-to-understand chapters with strategies and tips you can use today. Not just “what to do”, but also “how to do it”.

It’s available now in Kindle ebook and paperback on Amazon.

Want to Grow An Agency? The Agency Book is For You

If you’re looking for tips on how to build and grow your agency, you’ll want to read How to Start a Successful Creative Agency.

Available at Amazon (Paper & Kindle), Kobo (ebook), Apple Books (ebook), and Gumroad (PDF).

The book is packed with useful information to help creatives start and grow their business.

 From Twitter:

“Currently half-way through reading “How to Start a Successful Creative Agency” by @StroteBook—so many pearls of wisdom so far. Genuine value from a true practitioner.”

Nick Wells

Want a Free Taste First?

Sure! Sign up in the footer below to get a free PDF of Chapter 14, Working With Clients.

This chapter covers essential areas such as Clients vs. Projects, Corporate Clients vs. Small Business Clients, How to Create an Opportunity Document, Benefits of Finding a Niche… and much more.

Questions?

If you’re on Bluesky, I’m ‪@strotebook.bsky.social. Ask me anything.

On Twitter, I’m @StroteBook. D.M.s are always open.

On LinkedIn, I’m Andy Strote. Ask away.