If freelancing was really so easy how come we’re all not just working for ourselves? Well, of course, no one ever said working for yourself would be easy. There are advantages over being employed by someone else, but there are also many problems that will need motivation and energy to overcome. Her are 5 major problems:
1) When is the right time to start?
If you have a good idea and little experience should you just bash on and hope that hard work will sort everything out? Or do you wait longer honing your skills and undertaking training perhaps, in order to increase your chances of success? There is no one answer to this, but if you haven’t done enough research to do a business plan for your first year, then you aren’t really ready for the launch. You need to look at your competition (and if you haven’t any, is this because there is not market?) and work out your costs and how you are going to live until anything sells! You may need plenty of time to make your stock or put together your portfolios, or your idea might just be ready NOW. It’s up to you to make the call.
2) Marketing
Its often not the product or service that is the problem long term, it’s the sales and marketing, and not everybody is good at both ends of the business. Do some research and keep your nose to the grindstone when it comes to undertaking your marketing calls.
3) Getting paid
The problems of all small businesses are getting paid and many accounts departments just seem to be set up to delay payments to you as long as possible. Freelancers need to be able to have plans for getting money in, from an initial agreement of payment terms when you undertake to do the work to a schedule for reminding finance departments when payments are late.
4) Keeping customers
Some Freelancers learn the secret of getting repeat work some don’t. Learn what is important to customers and deliver to their needs not your ego.
5) Keeping deadlines
So you took on lots of work because you were frightened to turn work down and now you have problems in getting it done on time (see 4). The trick is not to promise deadlines you can’t meet and even add a few days cushion if you can. It’s always better to deliver earlier than later.