VAT number or withholding tax: if you want to increase your business output in Italy - after starting out and have customers apply withholding tax – you’ll need to open a VAT number, opting initially for the simplest forms. If someone in your family already works as a professional or has a company, you can turn to the family accountant, otherwise it would be advisable to contact a professional accountant. This won’t cost you much and when you’re starting out, this service will ensure you won’t make mistakes and allow you to focus on your “core” business, rather than having to lose sleep over what is a very complex subject matter in Italy.

Business card: you can make these yourself and print them off … There are websites that show you how to produce business cards (and other marketing tools like brochures or flyers) on different quality paper, in different formats and with different logos and colours. I’ve been using Vistaprint for years. Even here I suggest turning to someone who knows what they’re doing and concentrating on your own business!

Curriculum vitae: you’ll always need a CV. What do you say to someone who doesn’t know you? What do you send them? It’s best to have a summary document describing what you can offer, even if this doesn’t cover absolutely everything - it’s a good means of introducing yourself in the best possible manner to someone who knows you and even to someone who doesn’t, who you may have come into contact with through a mutual acquaintance.

At GoodGoing! we are experts in producing CVs in different formats based on people’s requirements thanks to our extensive experience as professionals, employees, entrepreneurs , etc. in this specific case I recommend a cv for areas of competence or functional areas.

The CV can then be used to produce a flyer or brochure that can be produced through your business card supplier (see above). For more sophisticated requirements you can turn to a (freelance ) graphic designer: you won’t need a communications agency!

Nowadays most people are familiar with LinkedIn even if they work in sectors that have nothing to do with IT, digital technology or management consulting. Even Cinzia wanted to have her own LinkedIn profile.
That’s what GoodGoing! is here for. All Cinzia needed was a well-executed LinkedIn page with her name, maybe a photo, a background that is inspirational or connected to her line of work – for example the Eiffel Tower to show she is an expert French speaker. Some people recommend an additional page, but in my experience that’s just not necessary. Only when Cinzia creates her own company with other people with its own logo will it be worth having a second LinkedIn page.

Depending on the type of work, it might be worth thinking about other social media sites: Facebook is good if you work with individuals, Instagram is more suited for creative and visual activities, etc.

What about a website??? A website isn’t always necessary. There are millions of them on the Internet and if you want to start your own freelance business you won’t necessarily require one. It’s certainly not an absolute priority in terms of developing your business. It might be worth looking at the websites of your competitors to get a better idea of what you might like to do in the future and it’s probably worth seeking some professional guidance even here.

Consistency is key: if you are a professional, you need to present yourself to the market professionally. You can tell a homemade website a mile off! ☹ even though it may have cost you loads of money.

Where do we find customers?

Think about how you found them in the past: through contacts, by seizing opportunities you read about in articles or newsletters? Try for more of the same.

I’m such a firm believer in professional networking that I even wrote a book about it “Connecting Dots – Il networking questo sconosciuto”.

The type of actions I do not recommend are those involving cold-calling. Nowadays writing or phoning someone you don’t know is a waste of time.

Did I forget to mention an office? No, I didn’t forget, as it is simply no longer required. You can work from home, from your husband’s or wife’s office, from the offices of the family business, from a co-working space or a café, even if it’s not Starbucks.