the long term relationships and connections you develop from existing clients are the most essential things.

gettig your first clients is the hardest part.

2 things that can help you get some initial clients:

1) create a blog that shows your knowledge, skills and expertise.

2) side project(s) that demonstrate what you can do.

if your blog and projects look impressive it can be a way around that initial hurdle of getting your first clients who will be the ones to refer you or repeat hire you.

don't use price point as a way to lure clients unless the context is right for that. most of the time people are looking for someone good ahead of cheap. someone good does it right, and efficiently.

yes. there are plenty of people who make a good living freelancing. you'll likely find a good market if you can connect professionals with a need with quality professional freelancers.

but, its difficult to make a living freelancing via things like elance.com and similar sites, though, because those are typically about bidding the lowest. those lowest bids usually come from foreign outsourcing companies.

the key here that will likely contribute to your success is to avoid the models like elance and connect good freelancers with clients who are willing to pay well for quality work. perhaps something that is more about building longer-term relationships instead of one-off projects.

If you're in the US, it's going to be tough unless you have a solid portfolio and connections.

On the freelancing sites, you're going to be competing with people who live in areas that have a significantly lower cost of living. As such, they are going to be able to underbid what you'd need to make just to feed yourself.

The only way you can counteract this is to turn yourself into a brand - market yourself as a quality alternative instead of being the economical choice.

Good luck!