Author: Kara Copple

Research shows that more and more SMEs are turning to freelancers to fill skills gaps and perform short-term, one off or infrequent tasks.

Quoting for work and negotiating fees comes way down on most freelancers’ lists of freelancing highlights.

Email marketing can be an effective strategy for not just gaining new work and clients, but for keeping in touch with existing clients too.

With the Spring Budget in March and an Autumn Budget set for the 22nd of November 2017 you could be forgiven for losing track in what has been a bumper year for Budgets.

I don’t normally advocate working for free. All too often, freelancers are persuaded to do a certain amount of free work ‘for exposure’ – when actually, ‘for exploitation’ would be nearer the truth.

A growth in freelancing and remote working has opened up opportunities around the world. This sounds great, but the downside for freelancers in developed countries is that they can find themselves competing with freelancers for whom a payrate of $5 USD an hour is big bucks.

The freelance life can seem idyllic, but most freelancers would admit it’s not without its problems – even if they love the lifestyle.

At some stage, the majority of freelancers will experience difficulties getting work. They’ll also spend a fair proportion of their time trying to find more work – the next project or the magical new client that will pay them well and assign them regular projects.

Successful freelancing requires a whole set of personal attributes, including flexibility, business sense, confidence, organisational skills and motivation.

As a freelancer, you may find that some of the clients you work with have never had experience working with a freelancer before.