Still haven't cracked the code to getting clients

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Seekehr

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I've invested around 40-50 bucks insofar, which isn't much but it's a lot in my currency as a loan from my father. I spent 25 bucks on upwork (premium + connects), and the rest I spent getting 2 domains and a digitalocean droplet to host one of my websites to bring in some customers. Thing is, neither upwork nor discord (trying to bond with a niche community by giving them a website to work with) has brought me any clients and my mental health is really bringing me down. I truly don't know what I'm doing wrong

My skillset is React + NextJS and Express but I also code a lot in Golang and have some projects there. I don't understand how to find a niche that'd generate me money, and I can't seem to find a partner that'd market for me and split revenue
 
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have you tried sending messages to local recruitment firms that deal with coding jobs. I'm currently doing this, just compiling a record of the companies for the new year, and I have a finished cv/ fun eye catching idea to get my details and email in front of the people willing to hire someone with my skills.
Places like upwork, are desined to keep you if you are a noob buying credits in the hope you land a big client some day, or loads of regular weekly ones.

Trouble is you are competing agains't millions of other similar noobs. look in every free place that is possible, and position yourself differently than just people with a basic website and portfolio, program something of substancial quality tht you can put down in job applications, and produce, as being a true measure of your talents, so people can see exatcly what you are about, and also link your github, that should ahve daily/weekly submits.

Take to socials and promote your projects there, along with your willingness to take waht you show and leared and apply to a company that needs similar.
 
A lot of people struggle at the start, so don’t take it as a sign you’re doing something wrong. Technical skills alone rarely bring clients — consistent outreach does. Instead of spreading yourself thin, pick one niche and build a simple portfolio showing real problems you solved. Then message people directly with personalized offers. Upwork and Discord are slow at first, but once you have 1–2 solid case studies, clients come way faster. Don’t give up — this stage is normal.
 
Panther28 said:
have you tried sending messages to local recruitment firms that deal with coding jobs. I'm currently doing this, just compiling a record of the companies for the new year, and I have a finished cv/ fun eye catching idea to get my details and email in front of the people willing to hire someone with my skills.
Places like upwork, are desined to keep you if you are a noob buying credits in the hope you land a big client some day, or loads of regular weekly ones.

Trouble is you are competing agains't millions of other similar noobs. look in every free place that is possible, and position yourself differently than just people with a basic website and portfolio, program something of substancial quality tht you can put down in job applications, and produce, as being a true measure of your talents, so people can see exatcly what you are about, and also link your github, that should ahve daily/weekly submits.

Take to socials and promote your projects there, along with your willingness to take waht you show and leared and apply to a company that needs similar.
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i live in pakistan and idk any such firms here honestly. that's true man but easier said than done when you're desperate for money, i try to promote on X but i get 0 engagement.
Herry412 said:
A lot of people struggle at the start, so don’t take it as a sign you’re doing something wrong. Technical skills alone rarely bring clients — consistent outreach does. Instead of spreading yourself thin, pick one niche and build a simple portfolio showing real problems you solved. Then message people directly with personalized offers. Upwork and Discord are slow at first, but once you have 1–2 solid case studies, clients come way faster. Don’t give up — this stage is normal.
Click to expand...
thing is im not a business owner. i don't know what real problems there are and idk how to find out. ive ironically gained clients from this forum rather than upwork on discord but only because they felt bad and wanted to give me some work
 
Seekehr said:
I've invested around 40-50 bucks insofar, which isn't much but it's a lot in my currency as a loan from my father. I spent 25 bucks on upwork (premium + connects), and the rest I spent getting 2 domains and a digitalocean droplet to host one of my websites to bring in some customers. Thing is, neither upwork nor discord (trying to bond with a niche community by giving them a website to work with) has brought me any clients and my mental health is really bringing me down. I truly don't know what I'm doing wrong

My skillset is React + NextJS and Express but I also code a lot in Golang and have some projects there. I don't understand how to find a niche that'd generate me money, and I can't seem to find a partner that'd market for me and split revenue
Click to expand...
Offer a specific service to a clear audience, showcase 1 2 strong projects, contact potential clients directly. Early setbacks are just feedback stay simple and consistent.
 
Money loves money, so go show people how great of a developer you are and I promise you the money will find you. The trick is gaining clout and getting people to believe in you. People don't like losers and failures, they want to see winners, people to look up to and aspire to be. This is where "fake it til you make it" comes into play and is the hardest part. If you present yourself as an authority and a knowledgeable person, eventually you'll get somebody to take a chance with you and when you do, use that time to under promise and over deliver. Eventually you will make it and find a formula that works for you. Over time, if you keep communicating with your clients and prospects, you will start to hear of their needs and new ideas and business opportunities will arise. It's not easy, but get yourself out there on social media, write guest posts/content for related websites, opensource projects you've worked on, let people know what you have done to give them confidence you are the man!
 
I think if you’re just starting out and struggling to find direct clients, one of the best moves is to work with small agencies. Agencies already have clients but are constantly stretched thin, and they outsource a lot of dev tasks.
 
Stop spending and shift your focus: your tech stack is solid, so immediately build one specific, public-facing tool (e.g., a free SEO audit tool) to demonstrate value and attract inbound leads, as cold outreach on Upwork is saturated. Partner with a non-technical founder in a niche like e-commerce or local SEO by offering on forums; they need your skills to build their vision, which is more effective than you finding the niche alone.
 
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