There are many benefits to working as a freelancer. Not least, getting to be your own boss and knowing that all the hard work you put in is lining your pockets with profits rather than someone else's. However, ensuring your business is profitable is not always easy. The good news is that you can get some helpful suggestions on how to maximize profit below.

Keep your costs low

It's simple math, but keeping your outgoings as low as possible will ensure that your profits remain high. In particular, drop any unnecessary costs like:

Sharing an office when you can just as efficiently work from home
Buying tech you don’t really need like expensive cameras for photos or fancy printers
Traveling to do an interview when you can Skype or email
Buying reference guides when you can look the information up online
Getting a fancy desk when grandma’s old desk will do

Avoid being scammed

It's not a lot of fun to think about, but there is a heck of a lot of people out there that do not recognize the hard work and hustle that freelancers do to survive. Unfortunately, it is these people that see freelancers as an easy mark for fleecing and scams.

In fact, freelancers tend to be scammed in several ways, from clients refusing to pay once they have completed the work to clients using rough drafts and proofs rather than settling the full invoice.

One way to avoid this is to use freelancer websites that will broker payment for you. However, if you go it alone, be sure to ask for at least a 50% deposit before beginning a job. Then, have specific completion points where the remainder of the fees are paid. Also, share drafts as locked Google Docs or PDFs that can’t be copy and pasted onto a scammer’s website without payment.

Oh, and if a client won't agree to this, it's best to walk in the other direction, because you will usually end up spending precious and profitable time chasing them for payment!

Invest any additional profits

Many people think of their profits from freelance work as an end goal. However, this isn't necessarily the case. After all, you can make your money work even harder by investing it wisely.

For some people, this will mean investing in their business or even getting more training to do what they do better. While for others, investing in the stock market is the most profitable option.

Of course, before you even consider financial investment, it's wise to take some time to familiarize yourself with all the different types of products from Share CFDs to penny stocks. Only then, once you understand the market and the particular types of investment you will be using, should you start to use your hard-earned freelance profits.

Subcontract the extra work

If you think that being a freelancer is about doing everything yourself, you are in for a shock. After all, it's standard practice for those freelancing to subcontract out work or parts of projects that they either do not specialize in or do not have time to do.

The great thing about subcontracting extra work is that it can help rather than hinder your profits. The reason is that you can offer a much more comprehensive service to your client, thus making you much more likely to get more significant and more profitable contracts. Plus, hiring out saves you time and time equals profits.