On the one hand, working with freelancers can be difficult. On the other hand, it allows you to quickly gather a team of specialists. If you are launching a startup or a small business and have a limited budget, you won’t be able to succeed in all of the tasks required without the help of freelancers.
Managing a proficient team of freelancers is not a myth. To make it possible, you need to attentively choose your specialists and organize their work process carefully.
In this article, we want to share with you some insights on how to find good freelancers, work with them, and avoid disrupting any deadlines.
1. List your requirements from the very beginning.
Right from the start, you must discuss your terms and the scope of work to avoid any misunderstandings. If you cannot accurately determine the amount of work that may be required, it’s better to discuss this at the start as well. Also, pay attention to the work plan and distribution of tasks among your freelance team.
Take care of the project documentation. To receive exactly what you want from freelancers, you need to describe their tasks as clearly as possible. The freelancer should have the opportunity to improve their understanding of the project and how their work will be helpful.
2. Attentively recruit freelancers to your team.
You can evaluate professional qualities from portfolios, tests, and direct communication. Sometimes, candidates will provide fake portfolios of work. Usually, you can distinguish the borrowed works by the style. Regardless if you catch their truth-bending at the outset, you will easily be able to expose them after they submit a test job or after their first task for the project is complete.
Generally, you can spot a freelancer’s level of self-motivation from the very beginning. Provide full information about the project and specify the requirements for the task. Then ask the freelancer to evaluate the task and provide their approximate cost and deadline. You will see that many freelancers skip giving an answer to this question, which may signal that the person is not interested in your project.
3. Stick to clear communication principles and require reports.
From the very beginning of the collaboration, state your requirements for communication about the work status. For example, you can use email, Skype, or special services to monitor the deadlines and readiness.
Alex Sanders, the product manager from AnswerShark, says that the key to a great freelance team is communication. His service hires freelance writers to pay to write college essays. To monitor their activity, every writing department has a mentor who coordinates their workload, monitors performance, and evaluates the quality of their works.
4. Plan wisely.
Create a schedule for all tasks and mention the people involved in its implementation. Also, it’s highly important to keep all participants up to date, as many freelancers may work for other projects at the same time.
Also, don’t let your freelance team members delay the project. If the specialist delays the work multiple times, you need to start thinking about replacing such an employee. Test every new employee with a simple task to make sure that they are punctual.
5. Always have a backup plan.
When you work with freelancers, you should definitely have a reserve specialist who you can count on for designated tasks if you’re in a time crunch or an emergency situation. Anything can happen, and freelancers may not always be available. There may be hundreds of reasons: the internet provider may have trouble with the connection, their computer was broken, or they might be injured or sick. You should always have an additional backup option on hand for each member of your team. That way, there will always be someone to cover you when you need extra help or quick assistance.
6. Don’t argue about the budget.
The price of freelancing services is a very subjective thing. You can receive high-quality work for little money or complete trash with a high budget. The prices may vary by region, the freelancer’s experience, or simply the situation. If the price doesn’t fit your budget, don’t try to ask for a discount or manipulate the freelancer. State the facts about your limited budget and wait to see what the freelancer thinks about it.
A list of signals that should alarm you:
— The freelancer has negative feedback or there is no feedback at all. This isn’t always an accurate indicator, but if you see a lot of negative reviews – beware.
— The freelancer has no specialization in their profile. If the freelancer offers a massive list of various services, it’s fair to doubt the quality of their mentioned services.
— Refusal to give additional means of communication. This may signal that the freelancer is not sure everything will be completed on time.
— Receiving a template response. This will mean that your request wasn’t even read.
— The price is too low. This indicator is not crucial, as many novice freelancers strive to secure their first job as soon as possible.
— They don’t ask any questions about the project. Even if you have compiled detailed project documentation, an experienced freelancer will definitely ask additional questions.
Take it as a fact – working with freelancers can be challenging. But utilizing a freelancing team may become a seamless part of your company and save you lots of money. Become a good mentor for your freelancers and see what miracles they work do for you!
