Consider these benefits to hiring freelancers to help your company.

Working remotely is forever shifting the way that talent and businesses interact. Whether as a full time employee or as a freelancer, enterprises and workers are experiencing new ways they can interact, produce and team up for different tasks.

It’s just one step from working remotely to be a solopreneur as a freelancer: learn a skill and get your first job online. And for companies, there has never been an easier time to hire highly skilled freelancers online and on-demand.

In a recent report, Freelancer.com found that many businesses were turning to freelancers to address tech skills shortages following global layoffs in mid-2022. Jobs such as software development, coding, and Android app development saw major increases year-on-year and from the previous quarter as businesses looked to plug skills gaps. Employers were also hiring for support in customer service roles and marketing related activities as they paused paid advertising as a way of reducing costs.

But freelancers aren’t just a way for businesses to hire support during tough times or downturns. Hiring freelancers is an effective way for any organisation, regardless of size or budget, to offload tasks or specific skills that may not be available in-house. Enterprises can also rely on freelancers to rapidly grow their workforce if a new business opportunity shows up, among many other situations.

So, when it’s time for businesses to look for additional talent or support on projects, then freelancing could easily be the answer.

What benefits can freelancers provide?

There are several benefits for hiring freelancers on both a short-term and long-term basis. The first one is that there are no restrictions on where and when freelancers can work.

Businesses can hire a freelancer from their own region or draw on expertise from freelancers across the world, meaning projects could get done overnight by a freelancer based in another time zone.

Another key benefit is that businesses can hire freelancers that have specific, unique or niche skills that can help plug skills gaps or solve immediate issues within the organisation.

For example, if there’s a specific issue with the company website and the internal team only has a basic understanding of WordPress, then hiring a freelancer would be the perfect solution to receive support on-demand. Having access to thousands of highly skilled freelancers means they are also up-to-date with the latest trends and best practice.

Freelancing can also help businesses save money. When businesses hire freelancers, it often costs less and takes less time than hiring and training a full-time employee. There are also additional cost savers, such as not requiring benefits like lease costs where a company can dramatically reduce its space expenses, stationary, cleaning or even meals.

Finally, the main benefit is that freelancing can be tailored to fit any business’s needs. Businesses can choose the freelancers they work with based on their budget, timeline, skills and project requirements. Therefore, partnering with a freelancer becomes a possibility for businesses all the way from startups to large enterprises.

What can freelancers do for businesses?

There are plenty of different tasks, skills and projects that are well-suited towards on-demand freelance talent. The main skills most businesses turn to freelancers include:

• Graphic design: Freelancers can create logos, graphics and other visual elements for websites and marketing materials. This is one of the most popular project types on the platform;
• Writing: Freelancers can write website copy, blog posts and articles, translate text and more;
• Programming: Freelancers can develop websites, mobile apps, code or support with any software related issues;
• Photography: Freelancers can take photographs for marketing materials and website content. It’s also possible to hire local freelancers – photographers within your area; and
• Audio/video production: Freelancers can create audio and video content for websites, social media and marketing materials.

Find skilled and reliable freelancers

When it comes to finding skilled and reliable freelancers, there are a few considerations businesses should keep in mind. Firstly, it’s important to make sure that freelancers have the correct skills and experience required for the project. This is established by reviewing a freelancer’s portfolio and past work or looking through client reviews.

It’s also important to make sure that freelancers are a good fit for the business and align with the project’s objective. A few questions that can be asked during the bidding process could include:

• Does the freelancer understand the brief and the expectations for the project?
• Are the prices reasonable and in line with the project budget?
• Will the freelancers be able to meet deadlines? Is there proof of this from the past? and
• Does the freelancer’s reviews and portfolio demonstrate the quality of work desired?

Once a business finds a freelancer that’s a good fit for the project, it’s important to establish a good working relationship and set the freelancer up for success. This includes applying processes that any organisation would follow for onboarding a full-time employee, but less time intensive. For example, setting clear expectations for the project, establishing deadlines and communicating regularly. It’s also important to give regular, constructive feedback.

By following these tips, businesses can nurture powerful relationships with talented freelancers – levelling up both the freelancer’s portfolio and also achieving (perhaps even surpassing) the business’s goals.

Now, there are a number of places freelancers can be found, including online job boards, freelancer marketplaces and social media websites. However, for the purposes of providing a clear space where, as a business, you can easily set the expectations of the project, receive bids, communicate and pay the freelancer only once the project has been completed.

It’s also possible, as a business, to search through verified freelancers who have gone through quality and identification checks, as well as select freelancers who have certifications in certain skills or qualifications.

So what now?

Freelancers can provide support for virtually any task, from any location in the world, and at almost any budget. They’re an effective way to continue getting work down through tough times or an easy way to get niche projects completed by highly skilled remote workers. By following these tips, businesses can have the best chance of hiring reliable, high-quality freelancers for any upcoming projects.

Marko Zitko is the Communications Manager at Freelancer.com in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.