In today’s marketplace, designers and writers are essential. Especially in small business, designers and writers are invaluable to making sure your business remains profitable. You may only need a small job done once or many jobs done over a long period of time, but you will still ask the same question: How do I find a reliable designer or writer?
There are dozens of sites such as freelancer.com or upwork.com that advertise themselves as the go-to place for finding the right worker. And it is sometimes the case that you will find good workers on these sites. But the problem is you have to wade through thousands of designers and writers who are either underqualified, unreliable, desperate for work or out of touch with what it is you are needing. This is why generally it is best to avoid these kinds of sites.
Look locally
The first tip to finding a good designer or writer is to look locally. If you find a local designer, you will be much more able to communicate with them consistently and maybe even face to face. Grab a coffee or meet at the library! This will help when you are trying to ensure they know what it is you need.
Also, a local designer will be more in touch with the local culture, which could be beneficial to your business if you are looking for someone to write about something local or advertise to a local audience.
Get referrals
You are not the only person in your area looking for or working with designers. This is why it is a good idea to reach out to people you know or who have businesses similar to yours to see who they work with. If they have worked with designers or writers consistently, they may be able to tell you who is reliable and warn you who to avoid. Designers and writers generally work with multiple clients, so you probably won’t have an issue hiring the same worker as another business.
Use social media
Designers and writers have to do much more than just the work they receive from their clients. They also have to advertise. Social media is one of the most financially effective advertisement tools right now, and designers and writers use it prolifically. If you are looking for a designer, Instagram is filled with designers displaying their work. LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest and Behance also have workers publishing their writing and design for others to see.
Even if you don’t need any work at the moment, if you anticipate ever needing some in the future it is a good idea to follow some designers on Instagram or LinkedIn just so you can see their work and keep track of them. Then when you do need someone to do a job for you, you won’t be scrambling. You can just direct message the ones you already know.
Ask the designer or writer for references
Designers work with many clients, so it shouldn’t be hard for them to give you references from some of these clients. If a worker is unable to produce a reference, treat this as a caution signal.
It doesn’t always mean they are bad at the job. It may mean they are just starting out. But it could be a sign they are not performing what they are asked to do or that they are not building solid relationships with their clients, both of which are aspects you want to avoid.
Start with a small job
After you have vetted your prospective worker, you could start by giving them a small job first. This can test their reliability on a small scale so that if things go poorly, neither of you end up getting hurt too badly. If they perform well, then you can begin to give them the more important work and start a long-term relationship that will be good for both of you.
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Next time you ask yourself how you find a reliable designer, you have five steps to follow:
- Look locally
- Get referrals
- Check out social media
- Ask for references
- Start with a small job.
These steps will save you some headaches and make your small business more efficient.
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If you would like to learn more about our design and writing work, check out our work page, meet our team, and contact or email us at info@exploringcreative.com.