5-Step Process To Find Freelancers Who Can Help Your Business Succeed
by Poppy Williams (Guest Blogger)
According to research, about 41 million Americans work as solopreneurs. When you started your small business, you may have taken on all of the tasks of running it to minimize costs. Now that your business is growing, it is getting harder to manage everything on your own. The good news is, you don’t have to. Freelancers can help you expand your business without the need to hire permanent staff. Here are some tips to help you find the perfect freelancers for your team.
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Choose Which Tasks To Delegate
Many business owners like to be in total control; however, trying to manage every aspect of a growing business is a recipe for failure. Identify the tasks that either can only be done by you or can benefit the most from your skill set and knowledge, and delegate the rest. This allows you to focus on the aspects of your business that most need your attention.
A number of tasks, such as administrative support, data entry, customer service and calendar management, can often be handled by virtual assistants that you can find and hire from online job boards. You can also work with a staffing agency to hire short-term help as needed.
Set Your Budget
Once you have figured out what jobs you would like for freelancers to do, the next step is to set your budget for hiring them. The average rate for a freelancer in America in 2020 was $19 per hour; however, costs can vary depending on what you are hiring them to do and how much experience they have doing it. Expect to pay higher rates for highly technical tasks or jobs that require advanced education or many years of experience. Entry-level jobs and jobs requiring less specialized knowledge and skills usually demand lower rates.
Check the Job Boards
Online job boards are a good place to start looking for freelance help. Popular boards include UpWork, Freelancer, LinkedInProFinder, Contently and Quickbooks. You can read reviews, find out about rates, and learn about skills that freelancers possess. Social media can also be a good place to search for certain types of help. For example, if you are looking for someone to do photography or graphic design, visually-oriented platforms such as Instagram are popular places for freelancers to show off their work.
Interview Candidates
Once you have identified some candidates that you like, you need to start contacting them. When reaching out to freelancers, include a brief introduction to your company and what it does, describe the scope of the project and what you want the worker to do, set a target completion date for the project and any milestones, and explain how often you expect to receive progress updates.
Once the candidates have reviewed this information, ask if they are interested in working on the project, when they would be available to start and if they have any additional questions.
Conduct an Onboarding Call
Once you make your hires, set up a video call to go over the project, talk about your work and communication preferences and hash out any other details of the project. Make sure to solicit questions so that you can ensure everyone is on the same page.
Hiring freelance workers can be a great way to take advantage of a wide array of professional expertise and free yourself up to do what you do best. Following these steps can make the hiring process as smooth as possible.
