Web Designer Fifa Tran shares how she uses networking, community and micro-blogging to get clients and build her personal brand. Plus, she gives us super honest details about the challenges of being a new freelancer, and what she’s done to deal with it. Read her interview below.
What is your name & your business name? What do you do for your clients?
My name is Fifa Tran and my business is called FeiModern Creative Studio. I’m a web designer, brand stylist as well as the Creative Director behind a growing community of female entrepreneurs called Boss Babe Imperial. I help service-based female entrepreneurs create intentional brands and launch their dream website using clean, minimal, and modern designs.
How long have you been freelancing? What were you doing before and what was your transition into freelancing like?
I’ve been freelancing for close to 3 years now. I started while I was working at my 9-to-5 as a travel coordinator and then fully transitioned to full-time in June of 2019. I didn’t intend to leave my job before at least ensuring my freelance income was sustainable enough to pay the bills but it kind of just happened unexpectedly that I was let go. I was always eager to leave my job one day so I can go full-time with my business but I didn’t expect it to be this soon.
To be honest, when you first start off it’s really challenging. After having a routine for so long from school to working full-time at a job for many years, you’re used to always having a structure. The moment you go full-time with freelancing, it’s a whole different ball game. You need to learn how to become self-motivated, self-sufficient and master time management skills otherwise you’ll get absolutely nothing done.
The pressure becomes real when your survivability fully starts to depend on the amount of clients you’re able to bring in month after month. I felt like I wanted to give up so many times.. There would be moments where I’d land clients and other times I’d hear crickets. Luckily, I had savings on the side but the game becomes serious when your livelihood depends on it. I was stubborn and pretty adamant of not going back to a 9-to-5, so I forced myself to make it work. It’s been a little over a year now and I’m still able to sustain myself with of course the help of my supportive boyfriend. Even after spontaneously deciding to move to Toronto, one of the most expensive cities in Canada. Not exactly sure what I was thinking but we decided to take that leap anyway and here we are!
What is your favourite part of being a freelancer/business owner?
The ability to build something out of nothing and proving to myself that I can truly get through anything I set my mind to. I love figuring out all the moving parts of how a business functions and I love every bit of the journey both the good and bad. I truly believe everything that happens regardless if it’s perceived as bad, happens for a reason and always ends up becoming a valuable lesson learned. I’ve also learned to trust the timing of the universe. Not only has becoming a freelancer taught me to be resilient, it’s also taught me how to become more self-aware and has allowed me to build strong leadership skills. The amount of personal growth I’ve experienced since I made the decision to embark on this journey has been absolutely priceless.
Not only has becoming a freelancer taught me to be resilient, it’s also taught me how to become more self-aware and has allowed me to build strong leadership skills.
How do you get most of your clients? What are your most effective marketing strategies?
Instagram and referrals are where most of my clients come from. Instagram has to be my most favorite platform when it comes to content marketing. I love being able to express myself on the platform and connect with my audience on a personal level. Even though at times it can be quite draining and frustrating trying to always figure out the algorithm, I’ve since stopped focusing on the vanity metrics and now dedicate my attention to putting out valuable content that will help educate my followers. Instagram was where I got started ‘micro-blogging’ and building my personal brand. It’s opened many doors for me hence why I won’t be giving up on it just yet.
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Another effective marketing strategy that’s worked for me is building an online presence both online and offline. Going to networking events helps a lot and giving value whenever you can without expecting anything in return has really helped me plant many seeds for my business. People know me as being the positive one in the room, I guess you can say it’s an integral part of my personal branding and has allowed me to build meaningful relationships with so many inspiring people.
Is there something you know now that you wish you would have known when you were first starting out? And do you have one piece of advice for freelancers just getting their start?
Start building your personal brand and developing an online presence if you haven’t already! I started on Instagram sharing bits and pieces of my journey, both the good and the ugly. But because I continued to do that on a consistent basis (posting every single day or multiple times a week for a year), I started developing a loyal community of genuine supporters who eagerly awaited to hear about my next move and looked forward to seeing new content on my account for inspiration.
There are so many ways you can build your personal brand. My ‘secret’ blog which I eventually mustered up the courage to reveal months after starting was eventually transferred over to Instagram and became my primary platform of expression. I’ve pivoted so many times and changed business after business to try to see what would stick. And throughout my entire journey, I always had my community who chose to support me no matter what it was that I did. That support alone has been pivotal to my success and has become the primary reason why Vimy and I are so motivated to continue building Boss Babe Imperial as a support network for other women out there who may be lacking it.
You also run a community for women entrepreneurs in Montreal called Boss Babe Imperial. Can you share a bit about it, what inspired you to start the group, and how it has helped you on your entrepreneurial journey?
When I first started getting into entrepreneurship, there weren’t many people around who I could talk to in regards to this topic. My network was comprised of people who were all comfortable in their jobs, seeking no challenges outside of their career nor looking to expand on their own personal growth. It was depressing and I had absolutely no one to talk to besides my one best friend who was just as into it as much as I was.
As I started experimenting with different projects and taking on freelancing for the first time, I started to feel really lonely. That’s when I decided to start attending more networking events to seek like minded people who I could share and expand my knowledge with. The groups I found at the time either didn’t resonate with me or ended up dying out eventually. So I decided to experiment with a new project; building a community of like minded female entrepreneurs where we can all support one another on our entrepreneurial journey, share resources and all help each other grow.
I knew I couldn’t do this alone so I asked one of my closest friends whether or not she wanted to do this with me and she said yes! What started out as a fun pilot project quickly turned into a potential business model and now here we are today.
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What resources and investments have made the biggest difference for you?
Learning from successful people who have treaded the path you’re currently on and have already overcome it, is the key. There are different ways of doing it like either hiring a coach or seeking the information you need through books, podcasts, videos, etc.
But without a doubt, one of the best investments I’ve ever made has to be hiring my first mindset and business coach, Tracey Nguyen. Immediately after, I invested in two other coaches the same year. Jessie Lim, who taught me how to set up systems and scale a design business and Andrea Feris (my current business coach) who is teaching me all about launches and sales strategy. I’m not going to lie, it’s a huge investment to make upfront but if you want to skip years of trying and testing things out for yourself, then I recommend you to invest in a coach. I am 100% confident that it is going to change your life for the better (if you hire a good coach). They’ve each taught me the things I needed to learn at different stages of my business and that alone is priceless.
Learning from successful people who have treaded the path you’re currently on and have already overcome it, is the key.
Of course, the other alternative would be to seek the information you need through books as I mentioned. The difference between coaches and books is that a coach is going to help you see the things you can’t see for yourself, ask you the hard questions, and hold you accountable to it (which books cannot do). But if you have great discipline and are able to take action after consuming the information, then by all means, stick to that method if it works for you. But once you have the money to invest in a coach, take your time to do the proper research and try it out at least once in your life! It’s a huge transformation waiting to happen.
Anything else you want to share? What’s next on the horizon for you?
This is only the beginning and I’m confident in my abilities to scale my business, move away from freelancing to becoming a business owner, and eventually build and lead my own team. I also want to continue building my impact to empower other women to step into their power and fulfill my mission to build Boss Babe Imperial to become a safe, inclusive and collaborative space for women everywhere. I’m excited for what lies ahead of me and for all the opportunities coming my way!
