Small business is still the primary driving force behind the US economy, as over 99 percent of the economy is made up of businesses that employ fewer than 100 people. For this reason, it is important to make small businesses as efficient and simple to manage as possible.
Contract work is one of these ways to benefit small business. Contract workers are ideal resources for small business owners. Some owners are averse to using contract design and marketing services, though. This could be because of stories they heard from colleagues or just from a lack of understanding about how the contractor marketplace works. For any of you who are wondering about using contractor services but aren’t sure, here are some reasons it is a good idea.
You are able to find specialized skills your employees may be lacking.
Your hired workers offer a lot of skills, but they won’t be able to do everything. So the next time you think up that grand marketing campaign with complex videography, decide you need your website overhauled, or realize you need someone to write promotional articles to drive traffic to your site, check the rates of some local contractors. You might be able to pull it off after all.
You are able to lower your risk.
This is especially true when you are a very small business. Hiring a new employee can be a really big deal. If you need help with a part of your business but aren’t ready to hire an employee, a contractor is the way to go. If a contractor doesn’t work out, you aren’t going to have to pay them unemployment. You’ll each just go separate ways.
You can save money.
This is the biggest reason businesses turn to contractors. Yes, contractor rates can sound expensive at first. But when you add up all the other costs an employee incurs (health insurance, Medicare, Social Security, retirement, and more), you will see the savings. This is also why you should not compare a contractor’s hourly rate to your employee’s. A contractor is paying for all of these things from their own earnings. So they will only be pocketing a percentage of their hourly rate.
You don’t have to do as much supervision.
Because of the fact that contractors are representing themselves—and it is much easier for a business to end a relationship with a contractor than to terminate an employee—contractors tend to need very little supervision. In order to be successful at contract work, it requires a great deal of organization, self-motivation, and communication skills. So you are much more likely to receive quality work by the specified deadline.
You have an unlimited hiring pool.
While it is best to hire someone from your geographic area, the fact that most contract work doesn’t require the worker to be physically present means you can technically hire from anywhere in the world. This level of competition brings only the best to the top. There are a number of reasons to hire from your same city, state, or region (see: Five Ways to Find a Reliable Designer), but even broadening your search beyond your city improves your likelihood of finding what you need at a price you can afford.
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Photo: Peter Olexa
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