The 6 tips to manage a freelancer in your business
Bringing anyone new into your business can be a daunting thing, not only are you opening yourself and your brand up to outsiders, but you also have to act as a leader, director, and manager all in one. Managing a team, and more specifically, managing a freelancer, is not an easy thing to do, but neither is being a freelancer.
This is exactly why I want to open up this conversation. To talk MORE about the relationship between freelancer and entrepreneur. We are a team! We work together. So let's create this community.
I reached out to some freelancers and got some key points for entrepreneurs looking to outsource. These are very important even if you currently outsource and for the freelancer, these can be super helpful for boundary setting and managing your clients!
The 6 tips to manage a freelancer in business
1. Have really good processes
Having processes and procedures in place really helps with the transition of bringing a new person on board, the Content Queen Content Strategy Template is awesome for setting these up). Things such as pre-recorded video training and project management tools (such as Clickup) to delegate tasks are awesome when trying to merge your business and the help of a freelancer and making the transition process that much smoother.
We want these systems and processes in place before the onboarding process even begins so that the freelancer has a clear understanding of what they need to do. To make the most out of both the business owner's and freelancers' time, we need to make sure we know the goals and are ready to delegate tasks to get there!
I talk more about finding the right systems for your business in a podcast episode on the Content Queen podcast with Nicole Smith, if you’d like to learn more, check that out here.
2. Respect time/they work with other clients
It’s important to remember that the freelancer you hire may not just be working with you, they probably have a few clients that they are working with and that need to be respected.
Be mindful of the deadlines you set up and stick to these. Also canceling/rearranging meetings at the last minute shouldn't become a habit, everyone’s time needs to be valued.
3. Pay your invoices on time
This one may seem straightforward but can often be forgotten or marked as “whenever I get around to it”.
It’s essential to work out your payment schedule and communicate with the freelancer, for example, if you do your finances every Thursday, let your freelancer know so they can invoice in time for you to pay it
4. Communication is key
Find a communication channel that works for both parties and stick to it!
Make sure to tell your freelancer what is going on in your business and the direction you’re wanting to go just in case changes need to be made.
Also, be mindful of timezones and messaging on weekends. Check if you can schedule emails or messages to be sent Monday rather than on the weekend, everyone deserves a day off.
5. Tell your freelancer how much you appreciate their work
We underestimate how much kind words can mean. It is such a nice feeling to receive praise so make sure you take that extra time to say how much you appreciate them, a great time to do this is when you pay their invoice or when you can see that they’ve gone above and beyond what was required.
Remember that they can also use this as a testimonial to attract new clients, so make your words count.
6. Be clear with feedback/your expectations
Set expectations from the beginning and continue to communicate them, everyone needs reminding every now and then, especially when we get into a flow, we can forget the exact expectations.
When you do have feedback, no matter right or wrong, make sure to communicate that straight away, don’t just leave it or keep it to yourself. Be specific and let them know, that this is the only way something can be fixed and avoided for next time!
BONUS tip
If there is one thing you take away from this blog, it should be the keyword DELEGATION.
Delegation isn’t about delegating a task just for it to end up back on your desk. What’s the point in that? Delegation means also delegating the decision (which comes with trust).
Once you have built up that trust, do you need to approve everything your freelancer writes or creates? Can you allow things to just get done? Ask yourself this and allow yourself to release that responsibility.
At the end of the day, it’s just content!
Final thoughts
Having things like processes in place, open communication, feedback, and appreciation for your freelancers can make the biggest difference between a positive experience outsourcing or a negative one.
If you think you’re ready to outsource, first ask yourself if you have a strategy in place first. No? Then click here to download our Content Queen Content Strategy template to help you set off on the right foot to working with your next freelancer!