Communication.

Yep, that’s the secret – communication.  Now, communication doesn’t simply mean telling the freelancer what to do.  It is a two-way street, passing thoughts, ideas and so on back and forth.  There is also a way to communicate – and a definite way not to.

The best way to start, continue and finish a project with communication is by setting the tone in the first place.  When hiring a freelancer, you have to remember that you aren’t the boss (this may be hard for some of you, but stick with me here); you’re the client.  The difference is that, if the freelancer doesn’t care for your tone, they can end their services right then and there.  Granted, they’ll have to return the fee if they’ve been paid, but you’ll have wasted a lot of time.

From the outset, it’s best to look at the freelancer as a partner in a joint project.  You have the idea; they have the skills to make the idea reality.  Be respectful of their skills and what went into attaining those skills, and they’ll treat you with respect in return.

In addition, don’t be derogatory if they turn in something you don’t like.  There’s no reason to defame their skills; simply explain what it is you aren’t happy with.  When there are issues, they’re generally due to a miscommunication or misunderstanding of what was wanted.  Remember – these freelancers are trying to run a business.  To deliberately ignore what a client wants would be sabotaging themselves, and most – if not all – are more than willing to work with you to get you what you want.

1. Portfolio – A freelancer’s portfolio is the lifeline to their work.  Believe it or not, many freelancers spend a lot of time on building up a portfolio because this is as good as a resume’.  Whether the freelancer performs web site development, writes content or any number of other things, a well-established freelancer will have that information in their portfolio.  
2. Samples – on occasion even well established reliance’s won’t have a portfolio.  If this is the case don’t be alarmed; this doesn’t necessarily mean that they haven’t done anything. It may very well mean that their clients preferred not to be mentioned in their resume or portfolio.  If you come across a freelancer whose pricing is good, but they don’t have a portfolio, ask them for samples.  Don’t expect the samples to go along with what your project is, however.  Many freelancers are wary of people stealing their work (it does happen), and will most likely give you a sample about something else.  What samples they do send though, should give you an indication of the type of work and the quality of work that they do. 
3. Questions – If you get past the reading stage and on to the interview stage, pay attention to how the freelancer answers your questions.  For that matter, listen for questions that they may ask you.  No matter how careful you are in your project outline, most people will not be able to give you exactly what you want without asking clarification questions.  Therefore, if you’re interviewing a freelancer and they ask no questions, or they seem to assume automatically that they know what you want, the chances are 50/50 that you will not have a pleasant experience.

By keeping just these three things in mind, you can turn a problem project into an excellent working relationship.

Freelancer: Do I really need to include the specifics for the job?

Not at all.  For instance, if the project is something simple like “optimized articles”, and you and the owner know what it means, why bother writing it down?  Of course, they could always argue that they needed six when you turned in four, or they were all supposed to be 600 words instead of 400, but who’s counting when you really get down to it?

Business Owner: Why should I make sure I have full rights for the deliverables?

You don’t have to.  You can always assume that you’re buying full rights to any deliverables. 

Freelancer:  Do I really need to bother with a contract?

Nope.  You and the business owner talked about the specifics of the job and have a verbal agreement on what you’re doing and what you’re getting paid for it.  There’s no reason to write it down, because you know for sure the business owner will follow through.

Business Owner:  Do I really need to sign this contract?

No.  You can assume the freelancer fully understands everything about the contract, and that they will adhere to the things you agreed on in PM, email, IM or on the phone.  Of course, if they don’t, you’ll have no recourse to get your money back if you’ve paid them ahead of time, but that won’t happen.

It’s been said that a little sarcasm goes a long way, and it’s true.  The reality of the situation is that contracts protect the business owner and the freelancer both.  As much as you might hate the thought of signing a legal document – no matter which side you’re on – a good motivation is remembering the money involved, whether it’s money you’re making (as the freelancer) or money you’re spending (as the business owner).

Before starting any project, make sure you read over the contract carefully and then, if you agree with the terms, sign on that dotted line!

When looking through freelancers and deciding which one to hire, here are few things to keep in mind and consider before choosing the one to match your project:

• Education doesn’t necessarily equal know how.  There are several very qualified freelancers with no higher education who are self-taught.  In fact, these might actually be better for your project because self-taught individuals are generally more willing to try different or unique methods then someone who is taught in a structured, college atmosphere.

• Low pricing doesn’t necessarily mean the best deal.  As you gain more experience with hiring freelancers, you find that the best bet is a normally a mix between pricing and performance.  Most freelancing sites, including YesFreelance, have ratings for freelancers that show how they have performed in the past. 

When you choose specifically on low pricing, what you generally end up getting is low quality as well as low price.  In effect, what happens is that you end up spending more money because you now have to hire someone else to make up for the low quality deliverables of the first person; you lose time and money.  Therefore, as you look through the bids, make sure that you don’t just look at price – look at everything.

• Never be afraid of the questions.  If you look over a freelancer’s resume or portfolio and you feel that there is information missing or something else that you’d like to know about, ask questions.  You’ll never know if you have the right freelancer – until it’s too late – if you don’t learn everything that you can about them. 

Hiring a freelancer can be a great thing for your company, but if you’re not careful, it can end up being the same thing as hiring a bad employee.  Pay attention to what each portfolio says and what it doesn’t, while keeping these three things in mind.  Happy hunting!

• Project title
•  Project overview
•  Project background (what brought the project into being i.e. established company needing a web presence)
•  Project specifications (exactly what you need, point by point)
•  Project constraints (Do you need the files in a certain format?  What’s your deadline?  Things like this should be included in this section)
•  RFP Requirements (what you would look for when looking through responses)

Why so detailed?  Remember that you may have hundreds of people looking at your project before you select someone.  The less clear your project is, the more questions for clarification you’ll receive.  What if you weren’t able to go back into the project and update it?  You’d continually be answering the same questions. 

If a project is as detailed as you can make it, chances are potential freelancers will be able to bid subjectively, rather than guessing at what they think the project is worth.  Generally, people will post higher bids when they aren’t sure what all a project will entail.  The more details, the more realistic the bids. 

One of the things to keep in mind while writing a RFP for freelance work is realistic deadlines.  If need be, look over previous projects similar to yours.  Most freelancers prefer at least a five-business day delivery time, no matter what the project, because they may have other clients as well.  With five days, they have the ability to deliver high quality materials to all of their clients without rushing any one.

By following the outline above and then carefully looking over the freelancers you’re thinking of hiring, your chances of having a good experience are much higher.  Good luck on your next project!

When creating a contract, you want to set the general wording in place, with areas that can be changed per client.  In addition, you want to make sure the contract has:

•  Your business logo
•  Your business address
•  Date you send out the contract
•  Client name and address
•  Project scope – The project scope covers everything you’ll be doing for the client, including the project start date and the date of completion.  If you give your clients the chance for revisions, you add the specifications here, as well (i.e. client has three days for revisions, etc)
•  Deliverables – This is an outline of how the completed work will be delivered to the client.  More simply, you are telling the client, “each piece of work will be delivered on its respective due date.  You’ll tell me if you accept/reject the delivered piece”, and then go about informing them how you would deal with an acceptance or rejection.
•  Payment terms – Do you expect payment upfront or upon delivery?  Maybe 50% deposit, then the remainder upon delivery?  However you expect the payment(s) to be made, this is where you put it, along with what the cost is.
•  Ownership of Final Product – Most freelance work is considered “work for hire”, which means the clients owns full copyrights upon payment.  Here is where you legally pass on the copyrights, or set which copyrights the clients will own upon payment.
•  Term and termination – What if you or the client want to cancel the project before it’s finished?  Here’s where you set the terms on what happens.
• Change order amendment – If the client wants to change the scope of the project halfway through, they’ll need to know how to do it and what’s involved.  Here’s where you tell them.

Remember to be detailed and precise.  Dot all your “i”s, cross all your “t”s; timeframes, payment, terms – every detail is important.  Once you get started, you may find yourself referring to the contracts to make sure that you’re sticking to it.  A contract is the freelancer’s MasterCard – don’t start work without it!

Competition is fierce

You’re not the first person to pack up their proverbial bags and take their act on the road.  Whatever it is you’re skilled at, there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of freelancers out there – just.  like.  you.  So what is that sets you apart from the competition?  What will make you stand out from the rest?  It’s time you figured it out.

You need a web presence

Most freelancers work online, whether they also go to physical sites or not.  Because most of your contacts will probably also come from online (at least at the start), it’s best to have a website; otherwise, you’re pretty much invisible.  Now, the website isn’t really for people to find it on a search engine and hire you.  It can be a very simple site, with a page that outlines what you do and examples of your work.

Whatever you have on your website, this becomes part of your signature.  Any time you post a comment on a blog, send an email, build an account for any online site that allows a website link, add your website.

Use your contacts

Contacts aren’t necessarily people in your business.  Your contacts are everyone you know.  Let them know you’re available for work in your field and let them spread the word.

Build that blog

If you can manage a website, you can manage to write one blog a week, at least.  Let people inside; let them see what you’re interested in, or talented at.  Tell them about completed projects or that you’re available for more work.

Sell yourself

If you really want to get out there and be known as “the person to go to” in your field, you have to actually, well, get out there.  Physically.  Go to conferences related to what you do and introduce yourself around.  Shake hands, be friendly, share your expertise with those who ask, and listen to those who might know more than you. 

The marketing never stops as a freelancer.  How do you know you’ve “made it”?  When you can start paying other people to market for you.

Enter the Gunslingers of the Business World

Freelancers are the business support line to everything from building a web presence, to maintaining it, to gaining visibility to creating the content you need to improve your traffic and gain sales.

Freelancers are the same people who you meet in the course of ordinary business duties and have hired in the past to be a personal presence in your company, only they do it all from a computer screen.

What Kind of Services Do Freelancers Provide?

The answer to that almost defies definition, as there is virtually no end to the types of skills that can be recreated as a virtual skill. Freelance software development and freelance marketing employment as well as management and general office help are readily available online. There’s no end to the talent you can find by outsourcing. However, some of the most common types of work employed online are:

·         Virtual Assistants

·         IT and Web Developers

·         Content Development

·         Freelance Video Software Development

And a final point is the most important aspect of what makes online freelancing such a wonderful option for businesses. In real life person-to-person, you are often limited to what talents you have available in a certain part of the world where you work. Online, you have access to talent from all across the globe to get exactly what you need, when you need it.

Surely, anyone can imagine that being in control of your own schedule, deciding what work you want to do and when you want to do it is a good thing. There are a lot of other benefits of freelancing, ranging from the obvious to more esoteric aspects that might be hard to spot until you actually take the plunge, but we’ll try to highlight some of the biggest ones here:

·         Save gas and save the planet: Graphic design jobs for freelancers may mean you have to exert a little personal energy when you commute from your bedroom to the living room, or a dedicated office room in your home, but your car will never leave the garage.

·         Flexible hours: Whether you live alone or have an active family and young children, the abilities to work from home and be able to run errands, catch your favorite TV show, or have coffee with a friend whenever you want to have definite benefits.

·         Choose your pay scale: How many 9 to 5 jobs let YOU set the rates you feel you deserve?

·         Take full advantage of all of your abilities: Working for an employer full-time often means being pigeonholed into a certain skill set. You may start out with limited abilities but over time, as you develop your skills and learn new things, unless there is unlimited room for advancement (rare) you won’t get to use them unless you look for another job—and then get typecast into that role.

By becoming a freelancer, you find out how many more truly wonderful benefits there are, from personal to professional.

When you hire a freelancer you are getting the BEST person for that specific job. You only have to pay THEM and not everyone else an independent company needs to pay to keep it running, from secretaries to owners. Being able to select different individuals for each project also gives you a greater flexibility than you would have if you hired one person to do it all and kept them on your payroll whether you needed them or not. If your work is varied that could mean needing to hire an entire office full of employees—along with having the facilities to put them up, keep them working, provide their supplies, computers and other necessities of doing business.

The ability to hire freelancers is also a boon to those enterprising individuals who operate successful home businesses. If you have a project, you can’t hire someone and put them in your living room while they do the work, but when you hire a freelancer the work is done off-site and delivered to you electronically with no hassle.  Being an independent company working from home also means needing to keep your budget low, so hiring a staffing company to complete your projects is likely to be out of your price range and unnecessary if you don’t have a constant supply of work.

Online freelancing is productive for both parties, and your company will reap all the benefits – which include keeping as much money as possible in your pocket where it belongs.