How companies can help increase freelancer productivity

 In Small Businesses & Startups

Even if you’re self-employed, there are numerous steps your clients can take that will help increase freelancer productivity.

Companies often use freelancers as strategic assets to support their existing processes and staff, with an additional specialist skill set.

However, businesses operate in different ways, and some common practices or oversights can easily sap a freelancer’s productive capabilities.

Here, we’ll look at advice freelancers can give their clients that will allow them to maximise their output.

4 tips to increase freelancer productivity

Try tactfully recommending these points to your clients to help streamline your working processes:

1. Communicate the brief clearly and comprehensively

Some clients will brief at length, others will look to get through this process as quickly as possible. Ultimately, the briefing stage will define the success of your project, so the latter option just won’t cut it!

Encourage clients to brief you comprehensively about company structure, ethos, the project and their customer base (if applicable). Try creating a list of questions to tease out details from clients who aren’t particularly forthcoming.

2. Adhere to deadlines for issuing feedback

When working to tight deadlines, clients may inadvertently begin moving intermediary deadlines due to internal pressures.

Chances are you’re dividing your time between several clients. Therefore, delays receiving feedback may mean that any revisions need to be re-scheduled, increasing pressure on the final deadline.

Ask your clients if they’d agree to explain which staff member is due to review work, and when. Recommend integrating this record with their work calendar and setting up reminders as prompts.

3. Treat freelancers in the same way as in-house staff

Independence is an important aspect of freelance life, but a freelancer can sometimes feel out on a limb in terms of team morale and information sharing.

Knowing exactly what you’re aiming to achieve, and having the drive to push on until you get there, will undoubtedly help increase your freelance output.

Explain to your clients the level of involvement you’d like to have at the start of each project, and discuss what they can do to make this happen. Suggest setting up project-specific group communications and arranging occasional semi-formal meet-ups with the internal staff you’ll be working with.

4. Create and update style guides

Communicating every detail about a company and project at the outset can be time-consuming and complex. There’s also potential for different staff members to provide conflicting information.

Clients who document house style and provide reference material (such as a preferred colour palette or writers’ style guide), can really help freelancers gain a clearer picture faster.

Request a pack of relevant information at the briefing stage and develop your own style guide if one doesn’t already exist. Feedback to clients the observations you make during the project, and encourage them to compile their own guides for future work.

Persuading your clients to adopt these practices will enable them to increase freelancer productivity, ensuring they get real value for money from all their freelance staff.

Enhance the productivity of your freelance network and get the accountancy support you need by calling on the friendly 3 Wise Bears team.

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