Freelance Interview Series – Hiring Freelancers With Jimmy Daly

Freelance Interview Series – Hiring Freelancers With Jimmy Daly

by | Jan 21, 2022 | Blog, Resources

Jimmy Daly is the co-founder of Superpath, a digital community that helps over 5,000 content marketers and creators connect and grow their careers together. Before founding Superpath, Jimmy spent over five years managing content marketing programs at companies like Animalz, QuickBooks, and Vero. He has a wide range of experience working with freelancers—and a bit of experience as a freelancer himself.

We interviewed Jimmy to find out what the freelance hiring process is like on the other side. He gave us the scoop and shared his best tips on how to navigate it more smoothly and build trust with your clients as a freelancer.

Hiring Freelancers with Jimmy Daly

1. What criteria do you use to determine if you should hire a freelancer vs a full-time employee? 

What I’ve found in my work at Superpath—and before that at Animalz—is that this is not always the question that companies are trying to assess. Sometimes they’re trying to decide if they should hire a full-time content person or an agency. But the most common scenario I find is that companies bring on a content manager or a content lead and then let that person figure out how to actually execute the work.

The content leader then goes out and assesses: Should we bring on a content creator in-house? Should we bring on a freelancer or a couple of freelancers? Or should we hire an agency? And then usually they end up with a mix of those three things. So if you’re deciding between hiring a freelancer or a full-time employee, I would say don’t hire freelancers to write until you have someone that can manage those freelancers.

I’ve seen quite a few arrangements go badly when a marketing director hires freelance writers and just isn’t able to give them enough guidance for them to be successful. So let the in-house content person figure out how to run the process, how to create content briefs, who’s going to do the work, etc. Let someone who really has expertise in that area and time focus on it.

2. When you start looking for a new freelancer, where do you go to find them?

Personally, I go to our Slack community, because there are lots of freelancers participating and I’ve had quite a bit of success finding good folks there. If you work in content marketing or you’re a freelance writer, the community is a valuable place to hang out because it’s easy to make those connections.

Before I had that, I relied on LinkedIn and Twitter. Generally, networking with people is a good way to find freelancers. I have used job boards to hire freelancers as well, with mixed results. You just run into the same problem that you do when you’re hiring anyone: You’re likely to get a bunch of applications and then you have to sort through them and vet them. It’s a little cumbersome. The networking approach is nice because you can just rely on word of mouth. It’s a great way to validate whether or not a person has a track record of doing good work.

This is part of the reason we’re launching a marketplace at Superpath. We’re connecting companies to freelancers and we’re doing the vetting for you. We’re also running everything through a process that we’ve tested and know for a fact generates good content on a regular basis. So we can take some of that off your plate—finding the people, vetting them, and making sure the processes are sound.

3. Give us an example of a way you’ve improved your process of working with freelancers over time?

At one point I had a team of 15 freelancers, and I learned pretty quickly that if you don’t set very, very, very clear expectations and give the writer everything you could possibly give them, you will likely be frustrated with the end result. Without those clear expectations, and without a great deal of context, the freelancer is forced to go out and figure it all out on their own. It doesn’t mean they can’t create good work. It just means it may not meet your expectations.

So we started off with these very basic outlines that I would send freelancers, and over time those developed into very robust content briefs. As that process improved, it significantly reduced the number of revisions and back-and-forths. In the beginning, I would get a lot of articles back where I was like, Oh my gosh, I’m supposed to publish this in two days. It has to be totally ripped apart.

After a few months, that just wasn’t happening anymore. You get to know freelancers, you work better together, and you get through that learning curve. But a good process makes those relationships work so much more smoothly.

4. If you could give freelancers looking for a new gig advice, what would you tell them?

Tip #1: Pick relevant work samples and offer context.

I’m on the hunt for freelancers right now for our marketplace. I’m collecting writing samples, and so many people just send me a link to a portfolio with a dozen things. That’s not helpful to me at all. So I changed the copy in our intake form to say: Send me three links to published pieces but don’t send me a portfolio. Show me your best work. Show me where it’s been published.
Also, give me some context. Who else was involved in this? I find that some freelancers want their portfolios to speak for itself. I disagree because I don’t know who else was involved with the projects in your portfolio. I don’t know if you came up with this amazing idea on your own and did the heavy lifting, or if you were handed an awesome idea. Be honest with your context, it’ll make the relationship go a lot smoother.

Tip #2: Diversify your income.

This is actually coming from my own experience as a freelancer, which was a disaster. I left a job to pursue freelancing and realized quickly that it was not for me. The takeaway for me was that freelancers should aim to create a few different sources of income. I found myself just selling my time constantly. I was writing so much trying to earn the same amount of money that I was earning at the job I had just left.

Had I pursued freelancing for a longer period of time, I would have started by building out courses, eBooks, coaching… There are so many different ways that you can earn revenue beyond writing. I would encourage freelancers to think about building some of those out from the very beginning, especially as they develop expertise in certain areas. Be thinking early on about how you can diversify what you offer. That will create a buffer that makes it easier for you to be very picky about the projects you work on.

Check out the latest on Superpath’s new marketplace here or follow Jimmy on Twitter to follow along. 

What is Work-Life Harmony? (and how you can achieve it!)

What is Work-Life Harmony? (and how you can achieve it!)

by | Jan 18, 2022 | Blog, Resources

This guest post is contributed by Afoma Umesi. Afoma Umesi is a freelance B2B writer and editor for marketing and productivity Saas brands. When she’s not working, you’ll find her cooking, procrastinating on Twitter, or immersed in a good book. Say hi on Twitter.

Work-life balance can seem impossible to achieve as a freelancer. After all, you are your business. Your freelance business depends on your skills, time, energy, and marketing. How could you possibly also balance a social life, rest, physical activity, and just living?

There’s no one-size-fits-all formula. Many even argue that a “work-life harmony” approach is more feasible and beneficial than grasping at the elusive “balance.”

Work-life harmony means that work and life fit into each other in a complementary way.

Work-life harmony means that work and life fit into each other in a complementary way. Instead of a “balance” where each facet of your life receives equal attention every day, work-life harmony involves meeting your needs as they come up. It requires a flexible mindset, contrary to the rigid distinction between work and life that work-life balance entails.

If, for example, you have small children and run a business in a pandemic, work-life harmony may be less oppressive and more achievable for you. But if you have fewer responsibilities, you might be able to find a more structured sense of balance.

I practice a mix of work-life balance and work-life harmony (and I recommend it if your circumstances allow). Here are five tips that keep me sane and centered while running a freelance business.

Get enough rest

I’m a firm believer in Amy Poehler’s hallowed words “Sleep helps you win at life.” Most people need a minimum of seven hours of sleep per night — yes, you too. After years of sleeping five-hour nights (thanks, med school), I was sure I only needed five or six hours to get by. But getting seven hours of rest consistently in the past year has been a game-changer. I feel more awake at my desk, less prone to meltdowns, more able to handle curveballs, and less crabby to my friends and partner after a hectic day.

Practice deep work

Starting the day well-rested works wonders, but only if you use it well. Focus on the task at hand. Don’t waste your best hours scrolling mindlessly on social media or searching for jobs (when you’re already overloaded with work) on LinkedIn. In the last six months, I’ve worked between 20-30 hours every week while managing a freelance business and single-handedly creating content for an affiliate website. My only hack is focusing on tasks. You complete work quicker when you’re giving it your full attention, even if it’s for focus sprints, like with the Pomodoro technique.

Use a to-do list

Having trouble focusing? Try a to-do list. I used to be a pen-and-paper girl, but I’m a digital to-do list convert. Find a to-do list app you can use on your laptop and mobile devices. I’ve found a mobile app helpful for adding tasks that pop into my head during non-working hours. If you want an effective to-do list, keep your list to 3-5 items. You’ll feel satisfied when you tick all of them off, and managing your workload realistically will save you from burnout.

Set daily boundaries with work

While vacations or breaks during your workday are helpful for maintaining balance, setting boundaries goes a step further. Good boundaries with work allow you to have mental time-off from work every day. For example, some people stop working at a particular time daily and designate their evenings as work-free periods during which they don’t check email or think about work. Two boundaries I’ve set are deleting my work email from my phone and setting my Slack notifications to ping within working hours only.

Be flexible

This tip is for work-life harmony adherents — and people with a myriad of life responsibilities that don’t always fit neatly into work and life buckets. In busy seasons, I find myself in this category, torn between life responsibilities and pressing errands that fracture my workday into hours working from multiple locations and devices. I like to remind myself that losing balance occasionally is part of living a balanced life. Give yourself grace and allow yourself to fit work in wherever you can. The catch? Be present when you’re not working. Try not to fret about work while you’re fixing quick dinners or running errands. Then when you’re at your desk for one or two hours, focus on your work.

 

Work-life balance is challenging to attain, but it is possible. A key fact to remember is that you can’t fulfill all your responsibilities equally every single day, but you can maintain harmony over periods. Build time into your schedule for adequate physical and mental rest, reduce distractions while you work, use a to-do list, and be flexible on days when things go off the rails. You’re doing your best.

 

Freelance Interview Series – Parental Leave With Kat Boogaard

Freelance Interview Series – Parental Leave With Kat Boogaard

by | Jan 11, 2022 | Blog, Resources

Kat Boogaard is a freelance writer who specializes in creating digital content around careers, productivity, entrepreneurship, and self-development. With years of experience as a solopreneur, Kat is highly in tune with the ins and outs of freelancing. Outside of her client work, she creates incredible resources to help other freelancers grow their businesses and manages a weekly newsletter where she shares project leads, tips, and tools for freelancing smarter.

In April 2020, in the thick of the pandemic, Kat had her first child. She’d been planning her freelance maternity leave for months—creating detailed checklists, readying her clients, and ensuring all her projects could wrap up in advance of her due date. Nothing prepares you to navigate a pandemic with a newborn, but Kat’s careful preparation made a world of difference, and today she’s sharing her hard-earned wisdom on how to handle maternity leave as a freelancer.

Parental Leave with Kat Boogaard

1. How did you approach your maternity leave with your clients? For freelancers with retainer-based clients, there is a fear that they will lose clients if they take 3 months off. Was that a concern for you?

 

I feel fortunate that I work with the majority of my clients on a steady, recurring basis—like one blog post per week or two blog posts per month, for example. With that said, I don’t actually have any “retainer-based” clients in the true sense of the word. Even those regular and steady clients pay me project rates.

Both times I’ve planned my maternity leave, I’ve taken a similar approach. I look at my list of current clients and break them into two groups:

Group A: Clients that work with me on a regular schedule.Group B: Clients that occasionally send me projects on a sporadic schedule.

For clients in “Group B,” figuring out how to handle my leave was pretty easy. I simply sent them an email telling them the dates I’d be taking maternity leave, that I’d be unavailable to contribute content during that time, and that I’d reconnect with them when I returned. That hasn’t been a big deal, as those clients don’t rely on me steadily anyway.But, for clients in “Group A,” I send them an email that spells out some options: They can either press “pause” on receiving content from me during my leave and I’ll resume when I return, or they can opt to have me work ahead on content to cover my own leave. I give them a firm timeline of when I’d need advanced assignments and work closely with them to make sure we both get what we need.

Fair warning: The bulk of my clients opt to work ahead (which I understand), and it makes for a wild few months before I sign off. But, it’s worth it to know that I’m approaching my leave as strategically as possible—and earning a big chunk of money before I sign off for a few months.

As far as the fear of losing clients, I think that’s always there for any freelancer. The first time I took leave, I really worried that all of my best clients would replace me or drop me while I was out and those fears were compounded by the fact that my leave lined up exactly with the early days of the pandemic.But, that didn’t happen. And in fact, my business bounced back from my leave even stronger than it was before. So, I have some newfound confidence as I approach my parental leave this time!

2. How did you decide on the amount of time you’d take off for leave?

 

This was a big struggle for me the first time around. Obviously, I had never had a baby before and had no clue what to expect. I remember originally thinking that I’d take two or three weeks off before getting back to work and I laugh hysterically at the thought now. I can’t even imagine.

I ended up taking about two and a half months off for my first leave and am planning to take about the same amount of time off this time (likely a little closer to a full three months).

I think three months is often looked at as the “standard” for most people who take parental leave. But, when I was figuring out how much time I’d need the first time, I actually crowdsourced opinions on Twitter. As you’d expect, people’s opinions and experiences ran the gamut—some took weeks and others took an entire year or more.

However, one thing I took away from that input was that the best thing I could do was plan for more time than I thought I’d need. That’s what encouraged and inspired me to up my plans from two weeks to over two months. I doubted I’d take the whole time at first, but I did and I needed every second of it!

3. How did you plan financially for your time off? Most freelancers express nervousness about the lack of income during parental leave.

 

This was another big concern for me. I’m fortunate that my husband has a traditional full-time job that’s steady and comes with a great income. But, that doesn’t mean that my income is nothin’ but frosting for us.

Most people who don’t understand freelance life are usually surprised to learn that my husband and I are pretty much equal earners for our family. I guess I technically earn more, but he carries our benefits which are obviously huge.Because I contribute financially to our family in a pretty significant way (and am happy and proud to!), it’s not necessarily realistic for me to not earn anything for a three-month span of time—even longer, when you consider that it takes a while to get back into the work groove, deliver work to clients, actually invoice for it, and then receive those payments in your bank account.

That’s exactly why I extended the option to “work ahead” to many of my clients. That not only allows me to “cover” my own leave so they don’t need to find a replacement or alternative arrangements while I’m out (they just publish the backlog of work I submitted ahead of time), but it also gives me the chance to rake in way more income in those last couple of months before my leave.

I stash that money in a dedicated savings account so that we can draw from that as my “income” during the course of my leave. My husband and I are super honest and upfront communicators about money, so we sat down together with a spreadsheet (he’s an actuary, so he loves a good spreadsheet) to come up with a savings goal for how much we’d need for us to feel comfortable during my time off.

It gives us both some much-needed peace of mind! Bringing a new baby home is stressful enough, so we do everything we can to work out the financial logistics ahead of time.

4. How did you feel on your return from leave? Did you ease into things or go back into freelancing full time after your time months off?

 

The first time I took leave, I was almost ready to go back. I probably could’ve gone for another week or two of time off, but all in all, I feel like the time I took off was pretty satisfactory.

I was excited to get back into the swing of things! Granted, my “work-life” was still a little bizarre at that point. I went back to work in July of 2020, which meant my husband and I were both sharing our home office and kept our baby in that same office between us (since we weren’t yet comfortable sending him to daycare in those early months of the pandemic). Even with those bizarre circumstances, I jumped right back in full force. I wanted my clients to know that I was coming back swinging and I was also eager to start bringing in some income again.

This time around, I think I’ll resist the urge to shout, “I’M BAAAAAACK! GIVE ME WORK!!!” from the mountaintops and take a slightly slower, more deliberate approach to fill my plate again. We’ll see how that goes!

5. What additional advice do you have for freelancers who are taking maternity & paternity leave?

 

Oh gosh, there are so many things I could say. But, here are a few important nuggets I want to remind people of:

Plan early. I notified my clients about my pregnancy right around the same time I shared the news publicly with everyone else. Shortly after, I sent an email announcing my intentions for my leave—despite the fact that it was still months away. All of my clients appreciate the clear communication and advanced planning, and it saves us all from a frantic scramble.

Don’t apologize. Taking an extended break from work can sometimes inspire some feelings of guilt or shame, and I think that’s especially true when you’re a freelancer who feels obligated to serve your clients above all else. But, welcoming a new member to your family (however it happens) is a huge deal, and you deserve to enjoy that time completely guilt-free. Don’t apologize for taking the time you need, whatever that looks like for you.

Roll with the punches. I planned my first maternity leave to the letter. Detailed timelines, canned email responses—you name it, I had it queued up and ready to go. And then? I had my son an entire month early at the start of a global pandemic. Two things I definitely didn’t see coming. There’s a lot to be said for careful planning (hey, I’m a planner to my very core). But you also need to recognize that babies have their own plans and schedules, and you’re going to need to be willing to release your grip on those carefully-crafted plans and remain a little flexible.

Read Kat’s full post on her maternity leave here or follow her on Twitter to follow along with her daily wisdom and advice for freelancers.

8 Legal Mistakes New Freelancers Make (and how to avoid them!)

8 Legal Mistakes New Freelancers Make (and how to avoid them!)

by | Dec 21, 2021 | Blog, Resources

This guest post is contributed by Brittany Ratelle. Brittany Ratelle is an attorney that helps modern online entrepreneurs become more confident business owners. Follow along with her on instagram.

New (and even veteran) freelancers have to wear a ton of hats – and that usually includes wearing the “legal” one, especially at the beginning of their entrepreneurial journey. But, have you ever wondered what you’re supposed to do to protect yourself as a freelancer and thus – a business owner? How can you go from “I don’t know what I don’t know” to getting “legally legit”? How can you protect your revenue streams and serve your clients with confidence and make sure you aren’t coming off as a hobbyist or amateur? Read through to hear about what you can do as a freelancer to protect your profit, your boundaries, (and your sanity!) when working with clients as a modern business owner.

Freelancers have to wear a ton of hats – and that usually includes wearing the “legal” one.

Mistake #1: You delay (or outright skip) on setting up your legal foundation.

Having a legal foundation means registering or incorporating your business (both used interchangeably) as a LLC or C-corp (a sole proprietorship doesn’t give you any legal protection, it’s what you are automatically if you run a business!) And that usually means you need to set up your LLC! The law doesn’t care whether you make $1,000 or $1 million – if you get in trouble and someone sues you they will have access to ALL of your money and assets, if you don’t have a business entity set up (and nope, a DBA or sole proprietorship isn’t the same thing as a limited liability company). Make sure you build a secure foundation for your business and set up as a limited liability company with your state (LLCs are usually the best fit for 99% of freelancing businesses, but check with a business attorney if you have any questions).

Mistake #2: You don’t separate your personal money from your business money.

Look, the only place your assets should commingle is on the dance floor, ok? Because if you mix your personal money with your business money (including sharing one account, or one credit card, one Paypal email) then all of that money is part of the same big bucket. Keeping your money separate not only protects you on the liability front – it also makes it so much easier to manage your business finances and to stay on top of bookkeeping and taxes. Nothing will help you say “no” to a discount or an offer of “exposure” in lieu of payment then knowing exactly how much money you are (or aren’t) making! The ideal workflow for a freelancer would be to set up an LLC, get a EIN/Tax ID and then use those documents to set up a separate business bank account and online payment processing.

Mistake #3: You are using unprofessional/unbranded email and payment processing details.

A modern small business needs to look cohesive and professional – and a professional email account that matches its domain and its branding inspires confidence in new customers. One study found that 75 percent of ecommerce customers thought a domain-based email that matched a website was a “very important factor” when it came to trusting an online small business. Same with payment details – you want your payment processing to be clear, professional and consistent with your branding – otherwise you are practically begging for the client to flag your charge when they don’t recognize your name on their statement.

Mistake #4: You don’t use a contract (or you don’t know what your contract actually says).

Clear contracts protect both sides of a deal and are nothing to fear. A solid freelancer contract should help address the expected (the what, how, and when of services), but also what to expect when the unexpected happens – like cancellations, people stonewalling, payment delays, pandemics, etc. A well-thought out and professional contract also signals to the client that you are intentional in your business and that you know what you’re doing from the first conversation to the last deliverable. Make sure your contract spells out exactly how you should be paid (are you invoicing them? How many days do they have to pay? Are there late penalties? If they need to send a check, made out to who and sent to what address? Note* – larger companies still favor checks, I don’t make the rules here…so you may have to go with it!) Contracts should also have all of the official legalese to make sure they qualify as a real contract that can be enforced (if they ever need to be).

Mistake #5: Vague (or no) scope of work.

A solid proposal and/or contract should include a detailed scope of work about what the freelancer is doing, especially as part of a flat-fee project or package. Scope creep is a real and scary beast and it can quickly eat into your profits and calendar if you don’t have clear boundaries with your client. Hot tip – make sure you have a timeline of when the client is supposed to do their homework and what the freelancer should do if client approvals are dragging (or getting stuck with too many stakeholders, ideally you should have ONE contact person named in your proposal!).

Mistake #6: You wait for one big check.

While this may not seem like a legal issue per se, money issues are usually what start most legal issues (or aggravate them!). It is somewhat of a Murphy’s law of freelancer work that the bigger the check for a job, the higher the chance that the client just isn’t “feeling” it. Don’t do this to yourself! Structure your contract so that you have payment milestones and keep everyone motivated to keep working, reviewing, editing, and doing their part to push the project over the finish line (but also make sure you are getting paid for all of the great work you are doing along the way!)

Mistake #7: You had a bad feeling about the client and you signed them anyway.

If a client is showing you some red flags in your initial consult conversations, including saying things like “I’m so glad I found you because everyone else I have used has just been garbage” (the flatterer) or “I could do it myself, but I guess you know what you’re doing and this will be worth it (the DIY-er) or the worst – “This is all really organic and free-flowing and I’m not sure what it will all look like, but I KNOW you should be involved (the existential wanderer) – RUN. Protect your boundaries and your sanity and when someone shows you their true colors – believe them. Remember that it’s a good practice to collect something from a client at the outset of the engagement to make sure you are both serious about working together and to protect your limited time and resources.

Mistake #8: Nobody talks about intellectual property.

If you are a freelancer who is providing deliverables to a client of any type (or just providing consulting services), then it’s likely the most important product you are selling is intellectual property – the designs, sketches, copywriting, wire frames, slide decks, org charts, etc. that you are putting together because of your expertise. Don’t assume that you and your client are on the same page in terms of who owns what and what you can each do with anything that is produced from your working relationship. Make sure your contract has protected you and that your proprietary materials and processes are protected after the project is done.

 

Video: 4 Tips for New Freelancers

Video: 4 Tips for New Freelancers

by | Dec 16, 2021 | Blog, Resources

Making the leap from a full-time job to freelancing can be intimidating. Marketing yourself?! Naming your rate?! It sounds like a LOT when you’re leaving the security of a full-time job. But if you’re passionate about working for yourself, I’m here to tell you: It’s very doable. And it’s absolutely worth the effort.

Planning ahead and putting some careful thought into your offerings, your lifestyle, and your needs can make a world of difference, setting you up for success from the start. Here are four tips to consider as you begin your freelance journey.

 

Transcript

Hi! This is Andrea from Harlow and today I want to talk about my four tips if you’re just getting started freelancing.

Making the leap from a full-time job to freelancing can be intimidating. I’ve done this four times in my career I know all the unwanted feelings that can pop up. Am I going to be good enough? Will I be able to pay my bills? Can I find clients? Freelancing is definitely hard & it’s not for everybody but if you’re passionate about getting started freelancing I’m here to tell you it’s very doable.

My first tip for you as you’re just getting started is to define your offering and find your niche. I know a lot of freelancers don’t like this advice but I will say it has served me very well in my career and I highly recommend going through this exercise. Really think about the services that you offer and what makes them unique and your offering special and what differentiates you.

Early on you might actually want to take a bunch of different types of projects to figure out what it is that you’re good at and what it is that you actually like doing but it’s really hard to be everything to everybody so getting a little bit more specific about your offering will help you find the right projects. For example, rather than going out and saying, “I’m a content writer & I’ll write any type of content for you.” Maybe you say, “I am a content writer who specializes in long-form content with a heavy research component.” That specificity is going to actually help you find those projects that are a better fit.

And as you’re thinking about niching down it doesn’t necessarily have to be a functional niche either. For example, I’m a demand gen marketer and so I don’t actually need to specify that I’m only going to focus in SEO or SEM, in fact quite the opposite. My business partner and I stayed generalists & we offered a variety of demand gen services but our niche was early-stage technology companies that were just bringing on their first head of marketing and they were looking for help for three to six months. Shorter project-based work was a great niche for us and it really helped us to find that ideal client.

That brings me to my next point which is to find your people. So, I don’t mean just your target audience here but also your community which I have found has been really really important. Freelancing can be lonely and it can be really isolating and it’s important to have people around you that you can ask for advice and help when you need it but also people around to help you celebrate your wins. There are really robust freelance communities on twitter, facebook and reddit and I highly recommend engaging there and just starting to build that community of people you can learn from.

I also want to say that other freelancers are not your competition! I highly recommend you embrace the freelance community and really look at other freelancers as a source of help & information but also potential referrals. You know, these other freelancers deeply understand what it is that you do and there are a lot of them that have prospective contacts and clients reaching out to them and they might not have the capacity so that can be a great source of business for you. I would say if you’re ever in the position where you can’t take on clients it’s always a good move to try and refer out other freelancers that maybe could use the work as well.

My third tip is to figure out your pricing. This one is really hard and obviously, we don’t have all the time in the world here to dive into all of the nuances about this. Your pricing is going to change over time, as it should, but if you’re just getting started I recommend starting by doing some research. Figure out what is average in your industry based on your skillset and your level. Next, I would sit down and do some math – first of all, what is the target income that you need to meet in order to sustain your lifestyle? Realistically how many days of the year are you going to be able to work? And don’t forget holidays don’t forget vacations and don’t forget sick days. Even though you’re a freelancer you’re still gonna be sick, unfortunately. Don’t forget your kids’ spring break- things like that.

Be really be realistic about how many days of the year you’re actually going to be able to work and then think about how many hours of the day are actually billable. It is not possible for me personally to build eight hours a day. That is just way too much. Don’t forget you also have other aspects of your business that aren’t billable – invoicing your clients, putting together a statement of work, trying to market yourself, all of that. So again, be really realistic about how many hours the day you can actually spend on client work and then that will help you back into what an hourly rate needs to be.

Now, this isn’t to say that that has to be your hourly rate or that you should charge hourly but it gives you a baseline so then you can start to package your services and make sure that you’re hitting your minimum income threshold. I will say, as you’re thinking about your pricing whether it’s hourly, retainer-based or project-based don’t forget that it should also reflect everything that you bring to the table. So it’s not just the hours in the day it’s all of the years of experience that you have and your unique perspective – all of that stuff. Be sure to charge for that.

If you’re still unsure of what your rate should be there’s an awesome tool out there called www.saymyrate.com it’s backed by actual humans you input your information give them a couple of days and they’ll come back with what a reasonable rate actually would be for your skillset.

So my last tip for you is to put it in writing. No matter what, make sure you have a contract in place. It can be so tempting when you land the first client – say it’s your friend or maybe it’s even your old employer – to just go ahead and do the work and get the money in your bank account. Do not do that. Make sure you have a contract in place. Anyone that’s been freelancing for a while will definitely tell you a story of getting burned by not having the right contract or contract terms in place.

You can find contracts online and I highly recommend consulting a lawyer if that’s available to you. Your contract should include the scope of work and what the exact deliverables are to ensure that you’re going to get paid and then what your payment terms are. With payment terms, indicate whether you’re going to be paid upfront for the work or perhaps you’re going to invoice afterward and the terms are maybe net 15 net 30. Also, be sure to include any clause if there is a penalty for not paying on time and I highly recommend including a termination clause as well so that if needed you can get out of this contract or your customer can get out. But again, I highly recommend that you make sure that you’ve got a contract in place.

So those are my four tips for you:

1. Define your offering find your niche
2. Find your people
3. Figure out your pricing
4. Do not forget that contract

Key Elements of a Great Freelancer Contract

Key Elements of a Great Freelancer Contract

by | Dec 2, 2021 | Blog, Resources

You’ve landed a client! Please take a beat to celebrate your radness before reading on. Ready? Cool. Once festivities are complete, it’s time to talk about contracts: what they are, what they include, and how to create them. Below, we’ll answer all your essential questions about freelance contracts, so you can get to work ASAP.

It’s time to talk about contracts

What is a contract?

First, let’s clarify something: Contracts and proposals are not the same thing. Although they’re often used interchangeably, these two documents serve very different purposes. A freelance proposal acts as an extension of your pitch. It summarizes your action plan and outlines your pricing structure. It’s the step you take before sending over an official contract, and it gives potential clients the opportunity to ask questions and make changes.

A freelance contract is a legally binding agreement required to kick off a business relationship with a client. It will generally reiterate the statement of work included in the proposal, and include all the additional fine print that ensures you get paid. Contracts protect you from liability too, including terms and agreements around payment, confidentiality, intellectual property, and so on. It’s crucial because it removes ambiguity and prevents misunderstandings. Plus, it protects you in the event something bad happens.

Some freelancers do choose to combine their contracts and proposals, so if that works for you, go for it. We prefer to keep them separate, because sending the proposal first encourages a pause—you and your client can consider the scope of work and nail down the plan before proceeding to all the fine print. Plus, combining them can be a bit overwhelming.

Creating a Good Freelancer Contract

The number one rule of thumb: Be as specific as possible. Contracts are designed to protect you, but if you omit important details, they aren’t enforceable. So be thoughtful about the clauses and conditions you state. Once it’s signed by both parties and work commences, you’re on the hook for whatever you’ve promised in writing.

Here are the key elements of a good freelance contract:

  • Name the parties.
  • Include your scope of work (which is usually in the proposal).
  • Include price, payment terms, and penalties for late payment.
  • Name deadlines, especially if payment is tied to product milestones (e.g. “25% on December 10 after the first wireframe is delivered; 25% on January 5 when the landing page is live”).
  • Define copyright ownership: Who owns the IP?
  • Include a termination clause for both you and the client, stating how many days notice is required in order to end the contract.
    Include an indemnity clause.
  • Require a signature by both parties.

Your freelance contract won’t cover everything, so your client may ask you to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), a non-compete, or a data protection agreement (DPA) as well. What you sign is always up to you. Just be sure to communicate clearly about what the expectations are. And read the fine print before signing! Unlike every other online contract we mindlessly agree to—you didn’t read your cell phone company’s contract either, did you?—this one is super important, and has very real legal implications. So pop on your reading glasses and get to it.

Have additional questions about how to create a freelance contract? Not sure where to start? It never hurts to contact a lawyer. We’re huge fans of Brittany Ratelle. A talented lawyer for creatives, Brittany can help get your business legally legit without all the confusion and painstaking Googling. Give her a shout if you’re in need of support.

If you’re a Harlow user, you can also use our contract template to make sure you’re covering your bases. You can sign up to use the product here.