What do you think freelancers need to do to stand out from the pack in this immensely competitive COVID-19 environment right now?

Regardless of the environment, you need to understand your target customer very very well, perhaps better than they understand themselves. Understand their emotions, mindsets, attitudes, likes and dislikes, the way they speak etc. Once you can completely immerse yourself in their shoes, you will do much better at sales and marketing, and that's how you can compete better.

Covid is a hard hit for most businesses and freelancers.

Depending on which industry you're in, it would be good to keep yourself relevant and updated with new skillsets. Make use of the skills future credits to learn a new skill set. An upside of being a freelancer is that you have control over your own time, so 1 thing you may consider is to explore other industries as well.

Digitalisation and being adaptable to changes in this pandemic environment is also crucial. Businesses who failed during this period, are those that stick to old ways and not move and change with market conditions. There are businesses who continue to thrive in this covid situation cause of innovation, adapting to changes and staying on top of market trends.