I am frequently asked this question when a company realizes that they are not doing enough marketing, or enough public relations, or enough website maintenance. They want to know why, when they could hire a regular employee who they see every day, they would want to hire a freelancer instead.

After all, if I have an employee sitting in an office down the hall, I can check up on her regularly. In fact, I probably know virtually all of the things my employee does on a day-to-day basis. Why would I want to give up this level of control to an outsider?

First, let’s talk money. Obviously, you’ve already decided that you need additional manpower to accomplish a goal. In deciding whether to hire an employee or a freelancer, consider the following questions:
ú How many hours a week of work do you need?
ú Do you have enough space for another employee?
ú What is your budget for this goal?
ú Is this something that can be done from anywhere, or does it require in-person meetings?

Keep in mind that employees have many costs beside salary. They require payroll taxes, workers’ compensation insurance, health insurance, and other benefits. They also use company resources in the form of space, electricity, computers, and more.

A freelancer, on the other hand, is paid only by the hour or by the project. There are no hidden costs to hiring this person. While their hourly fee is likely to be higher than an employee’s salary, the overall cost may be much lower. And if your needs are really for individual projects, you’ll be able to hire the freelancer for projects only, and avoid paying a salary between projects.

Finally, consider the skills that you require to accomplish your goal. An experienced consultant will have worked on a variety of projects in a number of industries, giving them insight into every aspect of their business. A good consultant will be constantly updating her skills, meaning you get more bang for your buck. And perhaps more importantly, a consultant is likely to have a network of other local professionals on whom they can call to complete parts of the project, meaning you get the benefit of very specialized knowledge.

Next time you need more manpower, consider the savings in time, space, and cash that comes from hiring a freelancer.

bio = Sadie Designs & Marketing Consulting, a San Diego marketing consultant, has been helping Southern California clients increase sales since 2000. The company specializes in web marketing, marketing planning, and public relations campaigns. The website, http://www.sadiedesigns.com, offers tips about San Diego marketing, web marketing, and promotions.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, July 27th, 2006 at 9:08 am and is filed under General marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.