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In this article Source, the creative recruitment specialists, look at the advantages and disadvantages of going down the freelance route.
Freelance input has been an active part of agency life for many decades, and still is. But just what are the realities of choosing freelance as a career? Some thoughts below – and please add your own experiences in the comments.
Permanent Freelancing As a Career Choice
The greatest advantage of freelancing is, of course, the freedom to widen your remit at random and gain a broader range of experience and expertise than you might as a staffer.
“Like many creatives, I have a low boredom threshold,” says UK-based freelance copywriter Paula Hanson. “Freelancing has meant that the client base I work for ranges from excitingly talented SMEs to grand major corporates – a wider range than I would work on as a staffer in an agency. And that huge variety really does keep me on my toes.”
Permanent freelancing really can be attractive if you’re relatively adventurous and like the cut and thrust of a whole new range of challenges most Monday mornings. Whether you’re a creative, techie, geek or other discipline, you need to be someone – like Paula – who believes that variety is the spice of life. You also need to be prepared to take some knocks when you choose freelance as a career.
Congratulations: You Are Now Becoming a “Small Business”
The random nature of freelance as a career does not always sit too comfortably with you when you undertake it as a small business on a long-term basis. However it is something you (like everyone else starting out as a sole trader) need to get a grip of and face the fact that your income is likely to be intermittent, rather than steady. Try if you can to create a financial “cushion” before you start out to keep you going over any rough patches, especially if you have bills to pay and mouths to feed.
Should you be considering long-term freelance as a career, you really need to seek business advice from a friendly accountant, small business government help, your bank, and other worthy resources. Much as these issues may not seem as exciting or creative as your new business itself, by sorting out the admin, banking, finances, company or sole-tradership setup, tax, VAT and contributions, etc. right from the beginning you will be saving yourself a whole load of angst and aggravation later on.
Marketing: a Key Consideration
Don’t forget, too, that unless you know you’re starting out with bullet-proof long-term work contracts, a significant part of your working day when you choose freelance as a career will be taken up with marketing yourself. Use all or any of the following to get you started:
Business cards
Website preferably with your own blog
Mailing list built from website
LinkedIn profile
Personal contacts
Face to face networking in carefully targeted groups Social media marketing: targeted groups on LinkedIn and Facebook, Google Plus communities, etc.
And remember, no matter how busy you are with your day-to-day work now, never forget that you may not be so busy in three months’ time. Never fall into the trap of looking upon marketing as an occasional burst of activity when things are a bit slow: it takes weeks and months to build up your marketing momentum so for it to work, it’s a daily part of your life, for life.
What If You’re Just Freelancing Between Permanent Jobs, or “Moonlighting?”
Freelancing between permanent jobs is a useful way to keep the financial show on the road, but if you are considering this route be sure to treat it as a temporary phase of self-employment, so your clients realize that you’re serious about it. Some agencies and other employers are nervous of freelancers who are actually job seekers too, because they know your real priority is to get another permanent job and you may not put all your efforts into your freelance work.
If you are between permanent jobs, and/or if you’re “moonlighting” to supplement your salaried income, you still must consider yourself as running a micro-business. Although you don’t need to go about setting your micro-business up in quite such a structured way as if you were going full-time freelance, you still need to make sure that your tax and other financial affairs are in order and fully declare whatever income you make. Alternatively you can use a recruitment agency that is geared up to pay you on a PAYE basis
In a nutshell, freelancing as a career can be very satisfying, if a trifle insecure, and can certainly help to keep the wolf from the door when you haven’t sufficient income. But be sure always to treat freelance as a career as a business, not a paid hobby or cash-in-hand side job: not only can this get you into trouble with the tax man, but also it will make you look unprofessional to your clients.
Top image from Imgembed.
This piece is cross-posted from Source—a London based recruitment agency specializing in advertising and creative roles.