 Service providers earn a living by knowing things that other people don’t. Whether you’re a lawyer, financial adviser, social media marketer, or hairstylist, your specialist knowledge is what makes you valuable to your clients. So it may seem like a bad idea to give that knowledge away for free. I mean, if people can learn what you know without paying anything, why would they hire you?
The fact is, there are probably lots of other people offering the same service as you. But many of them don’t know as much about it as you do, so you should let everyone know that you’re the expert they’re looking for. To attract clients, you need to show them that your services are going to be high quality—essentially, that you know your stuff! By giving away tidbits of knowledge that your clients or potential clients will find helpful, you position yourself as an expert in your field, and also as a helpful person who understands what your clients need. For your clients, it shows that you care about them. For potential clients, it tells them that they can trust you to do a good job. Here are a few ways to give away your expertise that can generate new business: Start a blog: Blog posts about topics related to your business are a good way to touch on a small subtopic and keep your website fresh. Has some current event affected your clients? Give them an update on what they should think about doing. Do you get the same question often? Write a blog post that answers it. Remember to share your posts on social media so that more people see them, including potential new clients. If blog posts are too long for your liking, post on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram instead. Just do it regularly and make it helpful. Give a webinar or seminar: Putting together a presentation on a topic that you know a lot about is a great way to convince people that you’re a sought-after expert. Part of your message can focus on when expert advice or services are necessary, so that you alert attendees to when they should contact you about your services. But this isn’t a sales pitch—give them information they can use on their own, or help them to understand a topic that they might be confused about. Offer free consultations: If someone isn’t sure how to find the right service provider, they often get a few quotes and choose based on price. Of course, they often end up disappointed with the results. Having a conversation before there’s any commitment is very helpful for both parties. A free consultation gives you a great opportunity to explain to potential clients what you can do for them. Once they hear about the work you’ll do, they may understand why your quote is higher than some of the alternatives. Send out a newsletter: If you’re good at keeping to a schedule, consider having a monthly (or even weekly) newsletter that your clients can subscribe to. You can write short articles about timely topics and send them links to articles you’ve found that would be of interest to them. A newsletter doesn’t have to be a lot of work, but it does take some commitment on your part to send it out regularly. Make videos: Whether you choose YouTube, TikTok, or Facebook Live, video gives your prospective clients a glimpse at the person they would be working with. Nothing displays your personality quite like video. And if showing your face to the world is a bit too daunting, you can post explainer videos to help viewers understand something about the business you work in. Giving away your expertise usually doesn’t result in instant sales. This is more of a long game, but one that pays off. If you want to start giving out free advice to attract and retain clients but you just don’t have time to produce content yourself, I’d be happy to help you out. Contact me to discuss the knowledge you want to share.
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 When you’re self-employed (like me), you tend to feel like you need to do everything for your business yourself. After all, who else is going to do it? But some tasks are outside your expertise and are better left to others who have the skills, experience, and interest in doing them well. Even in large companies, sometimes a specialized task should be outsourced to an expert.
You have a job that you’re great at, but spending your time on unrelated tasks gets in the way of doing that job. And that can mean less income for your business! When you find yourself spending a lot of time on tasks that don’t pay, think about what it’s worth to you and your business to have somebody else take care of them. In other words, how much is your time worth to you? Almost any task can be outsourced, and these days the “gig economy” makes it easy to find professionals in specific niches to tackle every job on your list. (For more on how to find the best contractor for a given job, see my post on finding the perfect freelancer.) So how do you know which tasks to keep on your own to-do list, and which ones you should be paying someone else to take off your hands? Here are some times when you should think about outsourcing a task.
 In my first article, I provided some ideas for finding the perfect creative freelancer for your project. Now that you’ve found them, let’s look at how to get the best results with the least stress.
Tell them about your business In order to match your brand and tone, the freelancer needs to know what you do, how you position your company, and what your key messages are. A quick overview of your business, and any significant changes that the current project is part of, will help your freelancer set the right tone with their work. Some things to provide (if you have them) include:
Tell them about your project Gather all of the relevant information about the project before your freelancer starts, and either have a quick meeting to go through it or let the freelancer read it through and ask questions. Be sure to include all of these details (if they aren’t already in the agreement your freelancer signed):
Tell them what you want Be clear about the style, tone, messaging, and other details of what you want them to create. Creative freelancers are not mind readers, so the more clearly you can express what you’re hoping for, the better the results will be. Many companies give a freelancer little guidance and then get annoyed that the product is “not what they pictured.” Share your mental picture so that the freelancer doesn’t have to guess what it is. Share examples from within your company of materials that reflect the tone and/or look you’re after. But if you’re trying to break away from old habits, look for examples from other companies that your freelancer should use for inspiration. Tell them what you think Agree with your freelancer on various stages where you will get together (virtually or in person) to review the work so far. There’s no need to constantly check in, but don’t wait until the final due date to see how things are looking. If something is worrying you about the first draft you see, tell them what it is. You should address any issues and decide on a path forward together as early as possible. This will save you both time and money. It’s important to be clear about what you like and what you don’t like rather than leaving the freelancer to guess. If someone higher up in the organization needs to sign off on the project, see if you can get their approval of the freelancer’s creative concept early on. Some executives want to see only the final product, but this can lead to a total loss if they don’t approve it. Tell them how they did When the project is complete, let the freelancer know if they met your expectations, or better yet, exceeded them. If they did a great job, offer to provide a testimonial or review—these are worth a lot to freelancers. Often a one-time project is the starting point for a productive long-term relationship. Once you’ve found a freelancer who delivers what you need, it saves a lot of time and stress to book the same person for future projects. It means that you won’t need to search for another great freelancer and invest time in getting them up to speed about your business. Freelancers also love repeat business. It helps to stabilize their income and reduce the amount of time they spend on unpaid marketing tasks. If their first project with you is a positive experience, they will prioritize your business in the future. It’s a win-win when a company and a freelancer work together productively for great results.  In this article, I’ll discuss how to find qualified and dependable freelance help for your marketing and communications projects. In my second article, I’ll discuss how to work effectively with those freelancers to get the best possible results with the least stress.
Why use freelancers? More and more, in-house teams are looking for outside specialists to take on projects they don’t have the time or expertise for. Anything from a social media campaign to a total rebrand can be outsourced, or contractors can work in tandem with your in-house team to accelerate your schedule. Many creative professionals offering their services on contract have years (or decades) of experience. Some have moved away from staff roles to give them more flexibility. Others have decided to explore their entrepreneurial side or follow their passion. Being self-employed is not a sign that someone is unemployable or hard to work with—in fact, working on contract requires great people skills and a strong work ethic. Self-employment is a career path that a growing number of creative professionals are choosing. The good news for you is that you can pick and choose the perfect creative specialist for every project, rather than trying to hire someone full-time who can do a bit of everything. This approach will give you better results, more flexibility, and lower costs than adding another staff member. Where can you find great freelancers? Referrals: The best source of freelancers is always direct referrals or “word of mouth.” Ask your colleagues and business network whether they’ve worked with anyone who has the skills you’re after. A first-hand recommendation gives you the chance to ask questions about what the person did and what they were like to work with, even before you decide whether to contact them. Directories: If you can’t find a referral, many professional associations for different types of creative work have online directories.* Their members can create a listing that describes their services and areas of expertise. If someone joins a professional association, they consider the field to be their career, not just a way to make a few bucks on the side. The people listed in these targeted directories are much more likely to be pros than the ones you’ll find on general freelancing websites like Upwork or Fivrr. Agencies: There are also employment agencies that specialize in creative contractors.** They have pre-screened everyone on their roster, so you know you’ll get someone qualified. This saves you the trouble of meeting several prospective freelancers and checking their histories, portfolios, and references. The downside is that you’ll be paying a premium price compared to hiring directly, since the agency will add their percentage to the freelancer’s rate. "You can hire someone with exactly the skills you need for exactly as long as you need them." How do you choose the right freelancer? The best thing about bringing in freelance help is that you can hire someone with exactly the skills you need for exactly as long as you need them. Want a new logo? Hire a graphic designer. Need to improve your website stats? Bring in an SEO specialist. Got a blog that’s languishing? Put a content writer on a monthly retainer to keep the posts rolling in. The first step is to define in detail what you want a freelancer to do. Be as precise as possible. Here are some of the details to decide before your search:
The more you know about what you need, the easier it will be to determine whether you’ve found the right contractor. When you look into candidates who have been recommended, or seem like a possible match from directories or agencies, get a feel for their work by looking at their:
When you contact the freelancer, ask for relevant samples of their work. Once you explain your project, they should be able to point you to examples of the kind of look/tone/style you would get from them. When you find someone who seems like a good match, you can move forward with negotiations. How should you contract and pay freelancers? You should always use a written agreement with your freelancers that includes the following details:
Your company may have a standard contractor agreement. Often, these are designed by lawyers for full-time contract work carried out at your premises, and they contain clauses that are not appropriate for a freelancer working from their home. If your HR or legal department says you must use it anyway, try to be flexible about clauses that can be struck out because they do not apply in this situation—for example, a requirement for workplace liability insurance. Finding the best freelancer for the job, and communicating your needs and expectations up front, will give you a great start to your project. To keep things running smoothly throughout the project and get the best results, be sure to read the second post on this topic: Working with Creative Freelancers: Part 2—Getting the best results. *Canadian associations include: Canadian Freelance Guild Editors Canada Association of Registered Graphic Designers **Creative agencies operating in Canada include: Creative Circle Creative Niche Vitamin T |
AuthorMichelle Waitzman, plain language specialist, shares her tips and perspectives on clear, powerful communication. Archives
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