As a freelancer, you are likely applying for several jobs when searching for more work.
This process can be time consuming and frustrating. What catches a potential client’s attention in one cover letter won’t necessarily receive the same attention from another possible client.
That being said, the hiring process on oDesk can move very quickly. It can be difficult to keep track of which opportunities panned out – and which did not.
If you’d like to get an at-a-glance view of how efficient you are at earning new business, this might be the tool you didn’t know you were looking for.
Prospecting Efficiency Tool
This free spreadsheet was developed for freelancers to see which leads resulted in new business and how much was earned for each hour of prospecting.
Step 1: As you apply for new contracts, enter the date of your application, the number of jobs applied for, the duration of interview time in minutes, and the number of minutes per application into the spreadsheet.
Step 2: Enter the resulting number of interviews, the number of closed-won jobs, and the estimated value of closed-won jobs. Keep in mind that the estimated value will grow over time if you continue to work with the client, so you’ll want to update this number occasionally.
Step 3: Keep an eye on your effectiveness at obtaining interviews and closed-won deals. If this number is lower than you’d like, you should develop some best practices so that future opportunities are more likely to close.
That’s all there is to it! If you find this tool useful, please let me know in the comments below.
