By Kayla Matthews
If you’re a growing business, you can easily find yourself with more work than your team can handle.
While busy times may come and go, biting off more than you can chew can cause your work to suffer. If your team becomes overwhelmed, they could rush projects or make mistakes.
Outsourcing some of your work is a great way to take some of the pressure off your team without having to stunt the growth of your business. However, if you’re hiring freelancers, you want to make sure you’re working with the right individuals.
As a representation of your company and brand, you need to be sure you’re working with experts and professionals.
If you’re about to hire some freelancers, here are a few tips you should follow to ensure you’re only working with the best of the best.
1. Use Your Network
As a business owner, you’re probably in contact with at least a few other entrepreneurs in your space or area. When looking for a high-quality freelancer, your best bet in finding someone who will fit your needs and provide you with excellent service is to get a referral.
Ask around to see if anyone knows of freelancers in the area. Getting the stamp of approval from a trusted friend, family member or business connection can reduce some of the risk you take when hiring freelancers.
2. Check Your Expectations
One of the biggest struggles of working with freelancers is determining a rate you’re both happy with. As a small business, you may be a bit strapped for cash. However, when it comes to freelancing, you’re going to get what you pay for. Keep in mind that you’re saving money on payroll fees, healthcare and other costs that explain why many small organizations can’t afford to hire new team members.
Finding the right freelancer for your budget and needs will depend on your expectations. If you’re approaching freelancers with unrealistic expectations for the amount you’re willing to spend, you’re going to struggle to find someone you’re happy with. Instead, check your expectations to ensure you’re on the right path.
3. Know Your Needs
While you may know you need someone to take a project off your hands, you need to understand what expertise is needed to get that task completed. If you don’t know what you’re looking for in a freelance writer, you’re going to struggle to find someone who can get the job done.
Before reaching out to any potential freelancers, make a list of the skills you need to have in the freelancer you hire. Having this list of requirements will make it easier for you to know who’s right and wrong for you when you start interviewing.
4. Post a Gig Description
While you can turn to many gig websites to find freelancers, you’ll typically find the best quality workers through submitting a gig description of your own. However, you must craft your job description to ensure you’re only attracting qualified individuals.
Just as you would with a traditional job description, you need to make it clear what you’re looking for and what expectations you have. If you have any requirements for your freelancers, make them known in the description to weed out individuals who may not fit your needs.
5. Provide Clear Communication
When you’re talking with potential freelancers, communication is essential. Both you and the people you’re talking with need to understand what you’re looking for in this partnership. With the right communication, you can build a healthy relationship with your external worker.
Clearly explain what you’re looking for and what direction you hope the relationship goes. Whether you’re looking for a one-off project or someone you can keep on retainer, you need to ensure both you and your potential freelancers are looking for the same level of commitment. Clear communication can ensure this happens.
Hiring freelancers can be a great way to take some stress off your hands. However, if you hire the wrong external team, you may end up with even more stress than you thought.
You’ll save time and headaches by going through the appropriate processes to ensure you’re working with a high-quality individual.
Follow these five tips the next time you’re looking to hire a freelance team to make sure they complete your projects promptly and to your satisfaction.
About the Author: Kayla Matthews writes about communication and workplace productivity on her blog, Productivity Theory. Her work has also appeared on Talent Culture, MakeUseOf, The Muse and Fast Company.
Featured image by rawpixel.com on Unsplash
