Cold Proposals That Actually Work: Turning LinkedIn Job Ads Into Freelance Clients

You have skills. You have experience. You have zero freelance clients.

No portfolio. No network. No testimonials. Just LinkedIn and determination.

Here's a strategy that actually works: turn LinkedIn job ads into freelance proposals.

The Strategy

Find companies posting remote job ads on LinkedIn. They're already remote-friendly. They already have the need. They're already budgeting for it.

Instead of applying as an employee, propose doing it as a freelancer.

Mathilde Andersen used this exact approach to land her first HR clients. "I was looking through remote job ads on LinkedIn and I wrote them a letter saying I can do that, but as a freelancer."

Not applying for the job. Proposing to do the work as a freelancer instead.

Why This Works

Companies posting remote roles have already crossed the biggest hurdle: accepting location-independent work. They're comfortable with it. They've budgeted for it. They need it done.

Your proposal offers significant advantages over hiring an employee:

No employee costs (health insurance, pension, office space). Set freelancer price with no hidden costs. No long-term commitment. Faster to start. Easy to end if it doesn't work.

Small to medium companies find this particularly attractive. They need the work done but don't want full employee overhead. Your proposal solves that perfectly.

"I have a set price as a freelancer, but that's all the expense you're going to have."

Clear service. Clear price. No complications.

How to Actually Do This

Find remote job postings in your field on LinkedIn. Write a brief proposal (not a cover letter):

Acknowledge their posting: "I saw you're hiring for X position..." Explain alternative: "I can deliver this as a freelancer rather than employee..." Emphasise benefits: "No employee costs, clear project pricing, flexible arrangement..." Demonstrate capability: Brief relevant experience. Clear next step: "Happy to discuss specifics on a call this week."

Three paragraphs maximum. Make it easy to say yes to a conversation.

Adapting to Your Field

This works across fields, not just tech or design.

Sometimes start adjacent to where you want to end up. If HR feels complex to pitch, start with admin work. Once working with the company, transition to what you actually want.

Even traditionally on-site work has remote components. Events need marketing. Restaurants need bookkeeping. Construction needs project coordination. Find the part that could be remote. Propose that specifically.

The key: if they're posting it as remote, they've decided it can be done remotely. You're just offering a different commercial arrangement.

The Proposal Elements

Every effective proposal includes: recognition of their need, your alternative suggestion with benefits, brief capability demonstration, clear commercial terms, easy next step.

What it doesn't include: desperation, your entire life story, lengthy explanations. Make it about solving their problem, not your need for clients.

The Numbers Game

Not every proposal converts. Most won't respond. Some will say no. A few will say yes.

Send volume. Track which companies respond. Which industries. Which role types. Refine based on data.

Start with companies where your proposal solves an obvious problem. Small companies posting senior roles they can't afford as employees. Growing companies needing specialist skills occasionally, not full-time.

The Courage to Start

What stops most people isn't skill. It's courage.

You're proposing to companies that could hire traditionally. You have no portfolio proving you can deliver as a freelancer. You haven't done this before.

But they haven't worked with you as an employee either. Both arrangements require trust. Your proposal just offers better commercial terms for them.

The first proposal is the hardest. You're asking someone to take a chance on you. But you're also solving their problem in a way that's lower risk for them than hiring.

That first payment when it arrives, the first invoice you send, the realisation that this actually works, that makes everything click.

That first payment often comes from a cold proposal.

Start This Week

Find five remote job postings in your field on LinkedIn right now. Not tomorrow. Now.

Write one proposal. Just one. Get it out. See what happens.

Next week, refine based on that first response (or non-response). Send five more.

Track everything. Which industries respond. Which role types. Which proposal elements get replies. Refine systematically.

You don't need a network, a portfolio, or to be in tech. You need LinkedIn, a skill companies need, and the willingness to write: "I can do that, but as a freelancer."

The companies are posting roles right now. The proposals won't write themselves.

Mathilde Andersen built her HR consultancy using this cold proposal strategy. You can hear how she transitioned from Switzerland to location-independent work in: Mathilde's Story

Digital nomads and location-independent professionals featured on Ibi's Digital Nomad Stories podcast share insights into building sustainable remote careers. Listen to all episodes: All Podcasts