Top Interview Tips for Freelancers in 2024

Interviewing is a critical skill for freelancers. After you look through the posted jobs, pick out your favorites, and submit proposals, interested clients will ask to schedule an interview. Learning how to interview effectively as a freelancer is how you start winning proposals. Clients want to find the right independent talent for their projects, and the interview is your chance to demonstrate that you're the best person for the job.

Interviews are also an important opportunity for you to ask questions and get more information about a project to make sure it's the right fit, something you really want to do. Being able to choose the projects and clients you work with is why many people decide to freelance.

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Top 9 interview tips for freelancers:

1. Research the company
2. Practice common interview questions 
3. Showcase your expertise
4. Tailor your portfolio
5. Create opportunities to talk about specific projects
6. Demonstrate problem-solving skills
7. Explain your fees
8. Be ready to ask questions
9. Follow up after the interview

1. Research the company

Before your interview, you’ll want to take some time to research the company or client. Familiarize yourself with their products or services along with the company's mission statement, values, and principles. Pay special attention to your anticipated role and how it fits into the organization's overall goals.

A social media manager may look at a company's social media channels and prepare recommendations or insights. A UX designer could navigate the website or app beforehand and take notes.

Some job postings don’t include specific information about the company or industry. If you aren't sure exactly who you're interviewing for, send a quick message beforehand and ask for the company name so you can do some quick research.

Asking insightful questions that show you've done your research can help you stand out. Doing this research demonstrates that you’re invested in the company and interested in the position. Be prepared to answer questions relating to the company and the job.

Potential interview questions from clients:

• What do you know about our company?
• Which of our values do you align with most and why?

2. Practice common interview questions

When preparing for an interview, practice common interview questions. This can help you feel more ready and confident. Start with standard questions that let the interviewer get to know you and then dive deeper into common interview questions for your specific role or industry. 

Your interviewer likely has a set of questions that they’ll ask each candidate to make the evaluations easier. Rehearsing answers to different questions ahead of time can help you feel more prepared. You’ll have ready answers that you can adjust based on the wording of the questions. 

These are some common interview questions for freelancers that you can practice with: 

• Why did you become a freelancer? 
• What are your typical working hours?
• How do you prefer to communicate with clients? 
• How many clients do you typically work with at one time? 
• What motivates you as a freelancer?
• How do you decide which projects to accept? 
• Can you tell me about a time you disagreed with a client? 
• How do you use AI in your work? 
• Can you walk me through your process of starting a new project? 
• How do you manage client expectations? 
• What tools do you use to stay organized and manage your time efficiently? 
• Can you tell me about a time you had to learn a new skill or tool to complete a project? 
• How do you handle feedback and revisions? 
• What would you do if you realized you couldn’t meet a deadline? 
• Can you tell me about a time that you exceeded a client’s expectations? 
• How do you prioritize tasks when working on multiple projects at once? 
• What would you need from us to complete this project successfully? 
• When can you get started on this project? 

3. Showcase your expertise

Before your interview, take time to write down all of your hard and soft skills and the different projects you've worked on. This list will help you answer questions during the freelancer interview process.

Whenever your interviewer asks a question, take a second to think about what they're really asking and how you can pull from your past experiences to answer and showcase your expertise.

A helpful interview tip for freelancers is to use the STAR method and organize your answers in a story format. This approach is great for talking about past experiences or answering interview questions that start with "Tell me about a time when..."

How to use the STAR method for interviewing:

• Situation. Set the scene and give context for the example.
• Task. Describe your responsibility and the task or goal.
• Action. Explain how you overcame an obstacle or challenge.
• Result. Finish with the final outcome and what you accomplished and learned.

Potential interview questions from clients:

• Can you tell me about yourself?
• What's your greatest professional achievement?

4. Tailor your portfolio

As a freelancer, your portfolio is how you demonstrate your skills to clients with examples of past projects you’ve worked on. Clients like seeing that you’ve had projects similar to theirs. Before or after the interview, a client may ask to see your portfolio. You can add links to specific projects that you want to highlight and include projects that aren’t on your main portfolio if they’re relevant to the job. 

On Upwork, your portfolio is an optional aspect of your profile. Clients can see your portfolio when you submit a proposal. Each item you add has a link so that you can send it directly to your clients. This is helpful if you have many projects in your portfolio and you want to make sure that the potential client sees the most relevant ones. Review your portfolio regularly and put the most relevant projects in the first positions in the list.

If you have more than one skill that you want to offer clients, you can create up to two specialized profiles on Upwork. These profiles are in addition to your main profile and have separate portfolios. You can choose which projects you want to display on each portfolio. 

You can take the Upwork Academy course on Building a Freelancer Portfolio for more tips. 

Potential client interview questions: 

• Have you worked on any projects similar to this before? 
• Do you have any past work samples you can share with us?  

5. Create opportunities to talk about specific projects

Think of the projects you've worked on and would like to mention for each specific interview. Choose projects that highlight the top skills each client is looking for. Practice using the STAR method and turn them into brief but engaging anecdotes.

If a relevant project doesn't come up naturally, work it into your questions at the end. Most interviewers leave time at the end of the interview for questions. You can use this time to learn more and work in anything else you'd like to add. 

Let's say you worked on a project that used specific software; you could ask, "Do you use X software? I found it very helpful when I was doing Y project for Z company," and go into details about the project.

Potential interview questions from clients:

• Can you tell me about a difficult work situation and how you overcame it?
• What project are you most proud of?

6. Demonstrate problem-solving skills 

As a freelancer, demonstrating problem-solving skills in the interview lets clients know that you’re able to handle varied issues that may come up. This is a valuable soft skill that clients look for in independent professionals–being able to identify an issue, analyze the situation, and then find a solution. Having problem-solving skills gives clients the confidence that you’re adaptable and can work independently. 

When demonstrating your problem-solving skills, walk clients through your process. Showing the thought process behind your solution is just as important as the solution itself. They want to see how you decided on the best course of action. 

Choose examples that are the most relevant to the role and project you’re interviewing for. Highlighting the skills and tools you used, like creativity or resourcefulness, could be helpful for the client. Try to quantify your results and how the solution helped previous clients or employers. 

Potential interview questions from clients: 

• Can you tell me about a challenging project you’ve worked on recently and how you overcame the obstacles? 
• Can you tell me about a time when a project didn’t go as planned? 

7. Explain your fees

When freelancing on Upwork, clients can see your hourly rate on your profile. You may want to lower or raise your rate based on the project. Clients will be able to see your hourly rate or fixed project price in your proposal as well. 

During the interview, clients may want more clarification. The client may want to see what you charge for recurring or non-hourly work (e.g., by project or with a weekly retainer). As a freelancer, you get to choose your rates for different jobs based on what you think is fair for you and the client.

Be prepared to explain your fees and negotiate pricing. You may want to wait until you know more about the position or project before giving a firm quote, but many clients will ask for at least a price range. 

If you’re not sure what to charge, the hourly rate guide can be a good place to start so you know that your rates align with what other freelancers currently charge on average.

When you tell a client how much your typical hourly or by-project rate is, demonstrate your value based on the following:

• Experience
• Skills
• Client feedback
• Talent Badges
• Job Success Score
• Certifications

If you charge a higher rate because you're truly an expert in your field, let clients know! Try to think from the client's point of view and explain how your work will help their company and the overall ROI.

Breaking down how much time each part of the project will take and related costs can be helpful for clients, especially when they think the total project quote seems high. The parts that a client may assume are quick and easy could actually be time-consuming on your end. Explaining that helps to justify the price.

Potential interview questions from clients:

• Is your rate flexible?
• What would you charge for a project like this?

8. Be ready to ask questions

Remember, you're interviewing the client just as much as they're interviewing you. Freelancers should ask clients questions to help figure out if they want to work together. Asking questions also shows that you're interested in the position.

The job or project may initially sound interesting, but when you ask more questions, you may discover signs the client isn’t a great fit or the job description doesn't match what the actual role would entail. Before accepting an offer on Upwork, you want to be clear on the full scope of the project and the work it requires. Making sure you're on the same page with the client leads to more successful relationships.

Potential client interview questions:

• Do you have any questions for me?
• What do you need to get started?

Examples of questions freelancers should ask clients in an interview:

• When do you need this completed by?
• What is your budget for the project?
• Can you show me any examples of past projects or similar projects?
• What is the approval process like?
• Why did you decide to post this project?
• How will you use the final deliverables?

9. Follow up after the interview 

After an interview, if you’re still interested in the project or role, send a follow-up. This can be an email or quick note that expresses your interest and reinforces why the client should hire you over other freelancers. Following up after an interview helps to keep you fresh in the client’s mind and hopefully sets you apart from other candidates. 

Ideally, you want to send the follow-up the same day as your interview. You can wait a few hours or if necessary, send it the next day. The follow-up should be a short note saying thank you for the interview, repeating your interest and enthusiasm to work on the project, and providing a brief overview of your skills and qualifications relevant for the task. 

Clients on Upwork often have an immediate need for freelancers and are looking to hire quickly. You can send a message through Upwork Messages immediately after your interview. 

Example of a freelancer follow-up email or message: 

Hi Mary,

I really enjoyed talking with you today about your rebranding project. I’ve worked on successful rebrands before and can help expand your brand’s reach and connect with a wider audience. I’m passionate about branding and already have some ideas about how to modernize your existing brand identity and grow awareness. 

If you have any more questions for me, please let me know! I hope we can work together soon. 

Thank you for your time,

Sam

Upwork, your home for freelancing

As a freelancer, you get to decide when and where you work. Instead of being assigned tasks by a manager, you have to actively market your services, pitch clients, and submit proposals for projects and jobs. This gives you more control over your career. On Upwork, you can see available jobs, submit proposals, communicate with clients, promote your services, and get paid, all within the platform. 

Global Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, and startups turn to freelancers on Upwork to access a wider talent pool. Upwork’s Talent Marketplace is where you find the type of clients you've dreamed about working with. There are thousands of opportunities every day. Choose what projects you want to work on and start building a career that you're passionate about!