Pros and cons of hiring freelancers

‍The freelance economy is booming. More than half of all U.S. workers are freelancers, and that number is only expected to grow in the coming years. This shift toward a freelance economy has many positive benefits for businesses that embrace it, but it also comes with its fair share of challenges and risks as well.

To get the most out of hiring freelancers, you need to know both their pros and cons so you can make the right decision for your company going forward. If you’re ready to explore more about hiring freelancers as a business strategy, keep reading because we have some insight into each side of this equation that might help you make up your mind about hiring freelancers as a company strategy.

What are the benefits of hiring freelancers?

When you decide to become a freelancer, your business has several advantages over traditional businesses that choose to hire employees. The freelance economy has grown dramatically in a short period, but it makes sense. The fabric of a society where a large percentage of the workforce is freelance is already in place in many industries, so it’s just a matter of making the transition. This is good news for businesses that don’t want to change their existing way of doing things, but it’s also great news for freelancers because there is so much more opportunity than ever before in the modern world. To take advantage of the benefits of hiring freelancers, though, you’ll need to know what they are. Here are some of the most important benefits for businesses that come with hiring freelancers:

- Fewer overheads

- By hiring someone full-time, you’re increasing your costs. This is true for your business in general, but when you’re hiring freelancers, you’re also increasing your savings.

Pros and cons of hiring freelancers

No two freelancers are created equal, but the same is generally not true when it comes to freelancing as a business strategy. As a business owner who is researching hiring freelancers, you’ll want to keep an eye out for the traits of the best freelancers in the industry and make sure you’re hiring people who have those talents. The top-quality freelancers will have strong skills that are applicable to your specific business needs, along with the experience and credentials to back up their skills. While the benefits for a business of hiring freelancers are numerous, you’ll also want to keep an eye out for the following cons to make sure you don’t fall into any of them:

Freelance pros

- Flexibility: As the freelance economy becomes more common and more established, more people are choosing to freelance. With more people available to work on demand, you can have a more flexible schedule and work from home as often as you want.
- Lower overhead costs - Freelancers avoid the high overhead costs of hiring full-time employees in a traditional office space. Instead, they may have a computer, internet connection, and other basic equipment at home. This can save money compared to hiring an employee in an office or using a service like virtual office space.
- Synergistic creativity - The flexibility of freelancing can lead to a more creative atmosphere than would often be found in an office environment. Individuals working as freelance consultants can offer their services on a project-by-project basis, as well as zoom in or zoom out based on their own schedules. This can lead to fresh, creative pairings of talents that may not exist in an office setting.

Freelance cons

- Risk - The freelance economy comes with more risk for both freelancers and the companies that hire them than a traditional employment model. A freelancer may have no job if the work dries up, so they may be more willing to accept projects that are lower risk and that pay less.
- Lower income - While the freelance model can provide flexibility and lower overhead costs, it also means earning less money as a freelancer than you would as a salaried employee.
- Risk of fraud - The same flexibility that can lead to fresh pairings of talents can also lead to fraud, fraud that is more likely to occur in an environment where freelancing is a secondary income stream. That’s why it’s important to hire freelancers you can trust, and that may mean skipping a few that you’d otherwise hire in a traditional office setting.

What to take into account when creating a freelancer contract

Hiring freelancers is a great way to bring in extra help, but it’s also important to note that freelancers aren’t employees of your company. You’ll need to keep this distinction in mind when creating a freelancer contract. A typical freelance contract will include the following elements:
Details on compensation: This is one of the most crucial parts of any freelance contract, because it’s here that you’ll be able to set the baseline for compensation for your freelancers. As a business owner, you’ll want to make sure that you’re able to pay your freelancers fairly and regularly. Doing so allows you to hire freelancers when you need them and fire them when you don’t, avoiding the high costs associated with hiring full-time employees.

What are global contractors?

Offshore contracting has become an increasingly popular way for many companies to save money, but the same can be said for the freelancing market. Outsourcing some of your work has become much easier thanks to the growth of the global freelancing market. For many businesses, freelancers in this market are much easier to find and work with than those in the traditional workforce. In order to take advantage of the strength of this market, you’ll need to make sure that your hiring guidelines allow for the use of global contractors. Just like with a regular contractor, you’ll need to make sure that you have documentation that proves that the contract was made between two parties, and make sure you have details about the work that is being outsourced.

Conclusion

When you hire freelancers, you increase your access to talent, reduce overhead costs, and have greater flexibility. However, hiring freelancers also has some cons, such as having to manage more people, having fewer benefits, and dealing with the high risk of freelancers not completing work. If you’re ready to explore more about hiring freelancers as a business strategy, we have a few final points to share that might help you make up your mind about hiring freelancers as a company strategy.