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Posts Tagged ‘freelance’
The Surprisingly Lucrative Career of a Freelancer
2/2/2012 3:39 PM By Artisan
When most people tell their friends that they are freelancers, the response is sometimes a thinly disguised concern that you aren’t making enough to support yourself. Then they often follow up with something about how great it is that you’re following your dreams and wish they had the freedom that you do. What they don’t know (and we should probably keep this just between us) is that “creative staffing” freelancers can make a very good living and that their gigs can be just as demanding as professionals with fulltime jobs.
“Creative staffing” is a pretty broad term that basically applies to anybody who gets paid to create something, from writing to web design to information architecture to anything in between. How much they get paid to create something varies based on their experience, level of skills, contacts and, most of all, what their client is willing to pay.
As you would imagine, with so many variables you can have some creative freelancers who are doing extremely well for themselves and others living paycheck to paycheck. In order to get the highest pay possible (and more consistent work), it would be advisable to get in touch with a freelance job agencies, as they can expose you to a wider group of clients.
In terms of an average salary for creative staffing, it is hard to calculate because of the range of jobs and level of experience involved, but there are some accepted ranges. For instance, according to the New Jersey Creatives Network, a person who writes advertising copy could make between $33 and $120 per hour. Clearly, the high end of that scale is nothing to sneeze at. The average, however, is in the $50 to $60 per hour range – a pretty well paying gig by anyone’s definition.
Roger C is a freelance writer available on WriterAccess, a marketplace where clients and expert writers connect for assignments.
The Employer’s Dilemma: Should You Only Hire Freelancers Who Can Work Onsite?
12/20/2011 12:26 PM By Vince Font
Freelance job agencies like Artisan are here to help you hire top-notch freelancers that are uniquely qualified for the work you need done. The benefits of working with freelance staffing agencies include not having to worry about performing background checks, past employment verification or initial interviews. But even with all of this convenient automation, there are still some things that only you as a hiring employer can do, such as deciding whether or not you’ll make a position geographically open.
This means determining if you want to hire freelancers who’ll be required to work onsite, or if they’ll be permitted to work remotely. For either alternative, there are pros and cons that might sway your decision.
• Since many A-list freelancers are scattered throughout the country, you may be limiting your available pool of talent by requiring freelancers to work onsite.
• By having a freelancer work onsite, you can ensure that the individual stays emotionally and intellectually invested in the project they’ve been hired to complete.
• Giving a freelancer the freedom to work remotely might produce better results, especially if the talent in question works better in his or her own space and does not perform as well in formal environments.
• Are there security concerns in giving access to proprietary databases and systems to freelancers? If so, there may be no option but to have them work in-house.
Remember, the reason you hire freelancers in the first place is to broaden the scope talent available to you. By working with freelance job agencies, you can gain access to a vast cross-section of professionals—but by limiting yourself only to those who can work onsite, you’re also giving yourself far fewer professionals to choose from.
3 Important Things to Know Before Pursuing a Freelance Marketing Career
12/15/2011 3:11 PM By Vince Font
Marketing Director jobs aren’t exactly what you’d call a dime a dozen, but there are ways that you can improve your chances of finding work if you’re willing to explore the opportunities that exist in the freelance world. Being successful at finding freelance work, however, depends on knowing three very important things.
- You won’t always be your own boss. In fact, you’ll have many different bosses as you move from one project with one company to a different project with another company. If you don’t thrive on constant change, perhaps freelancing isn’t your bag.
- Just because you no longer work for “the man” doesn’t mean you’ll suddenly have a lot of free time on your hands. Quite the contrary—because your success rate at lining
up future assignments is dependent on your work quality, you may find that you’re putting in more hours than you would in a permanent office environment. - Finding work will become a full-time job in addition to your marketing director duties. You can make this a lot simpler, however, by working with a third party creative staffing agency like Artisan, which will help you line up assignments that you’re uniquely qualified for.
Working in the freelance world can be just the thing the doctor ordered for many fledgling marketing careers. Not only will it open the doors to a whole slew of employment opportunities you otherwise wouldn’t have had access to, but it’ll also help you rack up the kind of experience that it takes many people years to accumulate. If you want to try your hand at starting a freelance marketing career, don’t hesitate to contact us.
Google NY Business Website Program Likely to Spur Web Design Job Market
12/14/2011 11:29 AM By Vince FontThe recent news that Google is unveiling a new program called New York Get Your Business Online will no doubt create tons of new opportunities for those seeking fulltime web design jobs. But rather than hitting the wanted ads and trying to get hired for a permanent position at a corporation, Web Designers are being urged to look into the boundless job opportunities they can find by working through a New York creative staffing agency.
One such agency that web designers are suggested to register with is Artisan, an agency that’s been in business over 20 years connecting job seekers with unique skills with high profile companies and agencies. With locations throughout the United States, Artisan is not only a NYC creative staffing agency but is also a viable job resource for freelancers living near the major metro areas of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Chicago and Washington, D.C.
For more information about getting registered with Artisan and to be referred to numerous high profile freelance and fulltime web design jobs, professionals are urged to visit www.artisantalent.com. New York based businesses interested in taking advantage of Google’s brand new offer can find more information by visiting www.newyorkgetonline.com.
The Delicate Balance of a Freelance Art Director
11/29/2011 4:36 PM By Vince Font
Are you the kind of creative that’s always had a gift for telling people how they can improve their work? If so, you might be ideally suited for a career as a freelance Art Director. But beyond having a great eye for good design and art direction, there’s one more thing that anyone in a Creative Director position needs to have if they want to separate themselves from the rest of the pack of hungry freelance job hunters: tact.
Let’s face it, the job of the Art Director is to be the strong guiding hand that reels in all of the wayward brushstrokes and off-the-mark design attempts that can steer a marketing campaign in the wrong direction. But when it comes to telling Designers that they’re doing something wrong, certain approaches have to be taken to ensure minimal offense.
The best suggestion? Accentuate the positive. Never tell someone they’re “not doing it right” if you don’t want to deal with a passive aggressive work relationship in the future. Instead, take a constructive approach of informing them of how close they are to hitting a creative bull’s-eye. This kind of feedback will go a lot further in the long run.
There’s a reason Art Director freelance careers are typically occupied by professionals with equal amounts of artistic talent and interpersonal skills. Without that delicate balance, nothing would ever get accomplished. If you think you’ve got that balance, seek out our latest opportunities at http://www.artisantalent.com/.
Reel in New Opportunities As Others Stay Put
8/29/2011 1:41 PM By Vince Font
In hard times, people have a tendency to hunker down. They don’t spend as much and consequently don’t dream as much. You don’t see that many people chasing their passion during economic uncertainty – which is all the more reason why you should. Dream of becoming a graphic designer for a major firm? Have you wanted to land a job as an interactive marketing manager? When you sense that a field is a bit emptier, that’s the best time to take advantage.
But don’t get the wrong impression. It’s not as if there’s a deficit of people seeking jobs as social media community managers or marketing managers. Remember, we’re in the midst of a social media revolution that’s increased the demand for talented people to fill these positions. You’ll have your work cut out for you, that’s for sure. Working with a creative staffing agency, however, can help you grow your sphere of influence to hit upon opportunities you might not otherwise have been able to tap into.
The fact is, staffing agencies are a bit more plugged in to the heart of the job market. If there’s an opening for an interactive marketing manager or a social media marketing guru, they’ll often know about it before the word even hits the job boards. In many cases, the word won’t get out at all – a large percentage of available jobs are never publicly advertised. That’s not to say that you should abandon your networking contacts as a means of learning about job opportunities or that more traditional methods of finding work aren’t effective. It just means that maybe expanding your horizons isn’t a terrible idea.
If you want work, consider including the use of a creative staffing agency to help you find opportunities. You don’t have to sign away your rights to carrying out a good old fashioned job hunt, and there’s no stigma involved. In fact, there are plenty of companies out there that prefer to work with staffing agencies because there’s less work for them to do in the way of pre-screening job applicants.
In the end, the more lines you throw into the water, the greater your chances of landing a big fish. Now all that’s left to do is bait your hook.
Why Hiring a Freelance Designer Can Help Your Project Succeed
8/2/2011 2:46 PM By William PirragliaMany small businesses would never consider hiring a full-time designer for their company. However, some growing businesses find the need to turn to designers more frequently and begin to question whether they should hire someone full time or if bringing in a freelancer is a better choice. These reasons strongly support turning to freelance designers as a solution.
Flexible staffing
When you hire a permanent employee for design work you are locked into that individual’s skill set. So while they may be an outstanding graphic designer, their web design skills may not be as strong. Using freelance designers allows you to match an individual’s strong points to your different projects.
A fresh perspective
Salaried employees make decisions based on what is best for their careers and are sometimes afraid to be honest for fear of losing a job or promotion. Freelance workers can bring not only honesty without fear of backlash, but they also bring with them new ideas and experiences that can help drive a project forward.
Focus on the project
Freelance designers know that you are their client and if they want repeat business or recommendations, they need to remain focused 100% on the project they are working on. Unfortunately for salaried employees, they are often given a multitude of different projects to work on simultaneously so they cannot dedicate their time entirely to one over another.
Cost savings
Business success depends on capital resources. Salaries are usually one of the greatest expenses that a business has to contend with. However, by using freelance talent you can pay the market price for quality workers while still saving money that can be used to grow your business.
The Evolutionary Role of the Interactive Designer
7/11/2011 1:59 PM By William PirragliaWhether you are a freelance or full-time interactive designer, be aware that your professional role is constantly evolving. Coined in the late 1980s, the term “interaction design” was intended to express a combination of the concepts of industrial and user interface design. Fast forward to the present, and you’ll find a growing need for interactivity with both websites and social media, rapid technological advances and expanding e-commerce organizations.
New web developer careers demand more than impressive CSS/HTML skills, design talent, JavaScript skills and raw technical ability. Interactive designers must now understand their employer’s business objectives, be able to create an appealing design and know how to construct a platform that is reliable on a 24/7 basis.
The job focus has evolved from melding hardware and software technology into user and audience interface targets. The traditional human-computer interaction now stresses the “human component” first. Designers then adapt the technology to the person - not vice versa.
A salaried full-time interactive designer will usually be responsible for maintenance and updates on a long-term basis. An effective user-friendly design can serve companies for years that requires more fresh content and tweaking rather than massive core design changes.
The strong influence of social media has modified the interactive definition to include the requirement to inform and entertain visitors. Using social networks as sales channels requires engaging prospects and giving them reasons to care about the company and its products or services. Only then will the prospect consider becoming a paying customer.
These days, successful interactive professionals are part web designers, engineers, information architects and strategy “interpreters.” If you’re a freelancer, you can decide to be one of these specialists, or take on the role of a fulltime designer employee serving the entire spectrum of duties.
Why Using a Creative Staffing Agency Makes Sense
6/16/2011 3:47 PM By Jeff OrloffWhen a company is looking for a freelancer or full-time employee to join their team, it’s understandable why one of the first places they go is a creative recruiting firm. By promoting an open position or project through an established staffing agency, a company is able to attract some of the best freelance talent out there.
As a freelancer, it’s important to make use of the tools an agency like Artisan offers to help you find work. Whether you are a professional copywriter, web designer or interactive project manager you can take advantage of all the following resources:
Web Presence
Freelance talent agencies use their websites to post jobs and the even better ones provide profiles and portfolios of the talent they represent. With the latter, a website can be a great resource for freelancers since companies looking for talent are likely to learn about your background and work experience. This allows freelancers to dedicate more time to lucrative assignments and less time looking for work.
Education
Another thing that quality freelance talent agencies offer is education. A good agency will offer valuable training or information on topics such as finding new clients, time management, marketing yourself, etc. Talent representatives can make wonderful advocates for talented professionals.
Security
Most importantly, using a freelance talent agency helps both the company and the candidate gain the peace of mind that comes with knowing the person they’ll be working with has been screened by a recruiter. Payment and deliverables are more likely to be transferred in a timely fashion and to the expectations of the contract when there is a third party involved who has vouched for both sides.
