Why Corporate Hiring Strategies Don’t Work with Freelancers
As a freelancer, you have likely experienced firsthand some of the most common hiring mistakes digital businesses make… vague job postings, unclear expectations, and poor — or nonexistent — communication with applicants.
And, if you have a background in management — whether it’s at a large corporation or a retail store — you probably also have some experience hiring and onboarding team members.
So whether you’re a project manager, online business manager, or digital business manager for an online business and you’re taking on hiring for your clients, it’s easy to think you have all the experience you need.
And you’re half right. Your experience will definitely get you started on the right foot.
But, there are some things that are different about recruiting freelancers.
For starters, you can’t rely on the tactics, strategies, and processes that large companies do. Because, here’s the thing… they can do whatever they want.
Take Amazon, for example. They are so big that everyone knows who they are. And when they have an opening, many people apply. Depending on the role, they could get dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of applications.
That means the formula they use to create their job postings, and even the hiring process they employ, just isn’t going to work for finding high-performing freelancers.
So if you have corporate or retail hiring experience, here’s what you need to do differently to find the best freelancers for your clients… or yourself.
Create a job posting that’s super attractive to freelancers.
If you’ve tried to hire freelancers in the past and thought the options were limited or lackluster, the job posting is probably to blame.
Using a job posting outline based on what big companies are doing isn’t going to work for your clients, so you need a job posting formula that’s designed for them.
Where an Amazon may be able to rely on its reputation to attract candidates, small businesses need to focus on the job itself to appeal to the most desirable freelancers.
Freelancers are extremely selective about the positions they apply for. So they will be looking at your posting to decide if they can do the job and if they want to do the job.
Here are a few questions you want to make sure the job posting answers:
What needs to be done on a daily and weekly basis?
What kind of experience should the freelancer have?
What type of client and business is hiring them?
Don’t worry, you don’t have to figure out everything else your job posting needs to include. I’ve done all that work for you on my free job posting template. You can grab it right here.
Check your credibility.
If I were a betting person, I would bet that you have had one (or a few) rough experiences as a freelancer.
Maybe a client ghosted on you. Maybe their expectations were unrealistic. And I know you’ve submitted applications and never heard anything from the business owner.
That’s why credibility is king.
And freelancers will be looking for clues that your client is a credible and stable company to work for.
If your client has an outdated website, isn’t on social media, and puts out a vague job posting, they are not going to get the best freelancers to apply.
The best freelancers are highly attuned to these warning signs. And if they are at all wary of a posting, they will be far less likely to pursue them.
So my advice to you is to take a look around… and if things aren’t looking all that credible, you can call them out in the job posting (maybe even with a bit of humor). This is especially important if these aspects are relevant to the role itself.
For example, if your client needs a writer, you could mention that the website needs a facelift. Or throw in that Instagram has been neglected for a bit too long if your client is looking for a social media manager.
2 things to change in the hiring process.
While the job posting is important, as you know, it’s only the beginning of the hiring process.
The traditional hiring process involves… posting a job, reviewing applications, and interviewing candidates.
But when you’re looking for the best freelancers for your clients, you won’t be able to rely on this model.
Freelancers apply to jobs regularly, so some have become very good at applying. But that doesn’t mean they really are the right fit.
And since you’re going to be looking for someone with a very specific skill set, you will be evaluating candidates by a very different measuring stick than a large company.
These are two things you can do instead.
1. Make cover letters optional.
One of the many problems with cover letters is that everyone says different things, which makes it really difficult to compare candidates.
So, I recommend not asking for cover letters. Instead, ask all candidates the same 3-5 questions so you can analyze all the applicants based on an equal set of criteria.
Not only will you get more relevant information that actually pertains to the job, but you can use this as a pre-screening tool to sort through applications.
2. Request a work sample before deciding whom to interview.
Work samples are fairly common in the freelancing space — maybe you’ve been asked for one as well.
When you ask the top 5 to 10 candidates for a work sample, you’re cutting through what they say they can do and asking them to show you.
Asking for a work sample is also a great tactic to use if your client has a hard time handing off tasks. They will actually be able to see how awesome the top candidates are.
Just make sure the work sample is simple and relevant to the work the freelancer would be doing.
For example, you could have potential social media managers create three days of content for Instagram for your client. But asking virtual assistants to write a blog post isn’t going to show you how well they can perform the types of tasks you’ll actually be asking them to do.
Typically, most freelancers don’t mind providing this, and offering a flat fee of $20 or $30 for their time is a great way to honor them.
Find the best freelancers
If you’re recruiting freelancers for a client — or your own business — you don’t have time to figure out the best way to attract, interview, and hire the very best talent out there.
Allow me to introduce you to The Hiring Fix. It’s a plug-and-play hiring process using my time-tested hiring process as a professional organizational strategist. It includes short videos, templates, and exercises that will help you recruit, hire, and onboard high-performing freelancers.
