Freelance Heroes

Hi Dennis,

That is an excellent idea, thank you for sharing. I am new to freelancing and writing contracts, so I wasn't sure how to protect myself against a future client contacting me months down the road requesting changes for free because the project goal wasn't met. 

Thanks again!

Alyssa

I just stumbled onto this thread. Is there another location for the Freelance Heroes? Last comment is 4 years old so I wonder if this group still exists.

Hi, Kim: The people on this thread still exist, but there's a technical
glitch that multiplies responses. If you have a question regarding
freelancing, I'd post it in the course building forum.

Hello, I am not sure how active this thread is, but it was recommended by a staff member. 

After a very lengthy assignment, I am in transition again.  I would like to know what percentage of your work comes to you via "agencies" versus, what percentage do you generate on your own?

I have been working as a freelancer for almost five years and I have found that companies seem to prefer to work through agencies.  I have no problem finding work through agencies, but would like that balance of work that I can find on my own.  When the contract ends, I still have my own work.   

Is this now the trend?  What has been your experience? 

Thanks for your response. 

I've never worked through an agency, and I've been freelancing for five years. All of my work thus far has been referrals by clients and former employers. I also belong to my local chapter of ATD, which is a great place to network. I've done some volunteer work that has led to paid work, too.

Sent from my iPhone
Please excuse any typos.

Hi, Terra: I was a freelancer for something like six years. I got most of
my own gigs--word of mouth, exposure on this forum and twitter, etc.
Suggest helping out on this forum, and putting your stuff out there.

Thank you Daniel and Jeanne.  Just to get me going, I started by placement of a few agencies.  After a few short assignments, I have worked every day!  That is the good news, but the not so good news is that I have not been able to network as well as I would prefer.  Networking, marketing  myself is also just very hard for me.  It's very uncomfortable, so I have found the agency placement route easy since they do the marketing for me.  Yet, I want to be able to have ongoing work that is always there when the agency placement ends. 

In my local area, it seems that the larger companies always direct me to their agency for ID work.  They do this as a company directive to standardize and maintain costs.   

After hearing from both of you, I am still wondering the direction of the market for ID work.  Are most companies working through agencies as a way to standardize and control costs?  That has been my experience.  Any other comments about this is appreciated.  Thanks! 

Hi Terra - I don't consider myself a freelancer, but have been operating my own boutique firm for the past 9+ years. 

I would imagine there's some geographic influences involved - some areas might be heavily geared toward agencies and others might be less so. I have found that's the case with larger organizations as well. I live in BC, Canada and there has been a shift lately - there was a swing towards agencies or "systems integrators" getting the contracts so that the client had fewer people to deal with, but as with anything there's pros and cons to that model. Today that seems to be swinging back favoring a variety of vendors. There's also the option to seek out smaller organizations who aren't as likely to use agencies.

Some ideas for you:

• Explore getting on a preferred suppliers/vendor list for state government or large institutions (utilities, telcos, etc) to give yourself options. (and not sure of how this works outside of Canada)
• Find an association that you can participate in and contribute. This type of exposure can connect you to all kinds of organizations. I used to do a lot of work with the local HR association and got lots of referrals that way.
• Find a local partner who you can work with - perhaps that person is a good networker, giving you the freedom to do the development work.

Hope that helps!

Holly

Thank you so much.

That is great advice. I have not been good at getting more involved in our local chapter - on and off when I get so busy. That would be an easy commitment to make. And the government route is also a nice thought. I do realize that networking is important. I fall short of that, I realize. Such a flaming introvert that I am -

When I try to tap the smaller companies, I find they don't have the budgets to afford me. LOL. Therefore, the larger companies that tend to need help are the ones that work through agencies.

On another note, I think I read that this type of discussion is best handled on another thread. I would love to feel more connected to other freelancers so will seek that out on eHeroes.

Terra

The bulk of my work is with smaller organizations and higher education institutions that don't have agency relationships.

Sent from my iPad

There is an awesome group that I'm connected with you can network with remotely. I haven't been as active lately because I'm swamped with work, but they are a talented and friendly bunch! I've pasted an email communication from Patti Bryant (patti@learningreinvented.net) below for you.

Hello all! I hope you’re having a wonderful week. ;)

Just a quick reminder for COMMUNITY HOUR THURSDAY! 

What is Community Hour?

An hour where we discuss a problem, question, or something you would like to brainstorm. We’ll get through as many of these as possible, during the meeting, and you can leave with solutions. (Example: Susie keeps having scope creep, but isn’t sure why. Others will chime in with how they avoid this.) This heavily relies on community participation.

What do you need to do?

·         Come prepared with questions you may have, a topic you would like to discuss, or something you’re struggling with, so we can help you!

·         During the meeting, we’ll all pitch in with answers, if we have experience on a topic. However, we also have a strong panel that will help answer questions.

TO JOIN

Meeting URL: https://zoom.us/j/441997134  

Or join by phone:

    +1 646 558 8656 (US Toll) or +1 408 638 0968 (US Toll)

    Meeting ID: 441 997 134 

    International numbers available: https://zoom.us/ zoomconference?m=4IIlhvR_ wWlUHTKPdjNT2iNEPVcus_eF  

DON’T FORGET TO…

Easily SHARE Thursday’s meeting! Simply copy the snippet below in Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.

Are you a #training #freelancer? Join a #community of folks - live Thursdays 9am MT/4pm GMT – register here: http://bit.ly/ONILPweekly   

JOIN SLACK

What about questions you have throughout the week? We have a lively chat going on in the community on Slack. Interested in joining the conversation? Reply to me or email Ant Pugh atant@elearningarchitect.co.uk to get the invite (it’s super top secret and invite only - so you can feel comfortable asking questions you might not post on LinkedIn).

CONTACT ME TO PRESENT and SHARE THE GROUP!

I hope to ‘see’ you tomorrow, or a future Thursday! 

Keepin’ the joy,

Patti Bryant

LearningReinvented.net

Hi Terra, I see the same trends that you are with regard agency work. It is certainly easier to get but then ties up your time to look for other direct projects. It may be necessary to try and reduce your agency work a little in the short run to free up some time for the networking activities (online and offline) as described above.

I started out on my own now have a small agency doing customised design. A  challenge I found was finding the time away from safer agency contracts to search for projects and have faith that they will come. 

(I'm involved in the group Tammy mentioned above, join on slack! I find it very valuable :-))

HI Tammy,

Thank you and I love this idea!  I will for sure get involved.  Looks like I don't have to send a personal note to Patti, but just join at the Thursday time. 

Terra

Thanks, Sean.  Yes, my recent contract went over 3 1/2 years!  Unusual, I know, but it created safety for me, while I also was aware that I was taking a risk by not having the time to network outside of this work.  It is now changing to part time and I am trying to piece this together. 

Terra

It's a really supportive group of folks, Terra. You can absolutely join at the Thurs. timeframe, but you'll want to connect with Patti to get added to the mail list and calendar invitation.

Hi everyone, 

I'm just launching out as a freelancer.  As I'm setting up my business and getting ready to submit my final work product to a client, it's been heavily recommended that I purchase E&O business insurance and hire a business lawyer to draw up my contracts.  How are others handling the nuts and bolts aspect of freelancing? 

Tamera,

Maybe I'm misunderstanding your post. You say you are "getting ready to submit my final work product to a client". To me, that infers you are past the "draw up your contracts" stage of things. I always write a Statement of Work before I start working on a client's project. Hopefully, I misunderstood your post. :)

As far as learning more about the "nuts and bolts" aspect of freelancing, please feel free to read some of my articles. Perhaps they will help you fill in some of the gaps in regards to freelancing in the e-Learning field. You can find them here if you are interested.

In regard to E&O, some larger clients will require it. Others will require you to carry general liability insurance as well. In most cases, general liability is needed if you will have clients in your office and you are concerned about bodily or property damage. If the client you are working with requires E&O, you may be able to negotiate the amount of coverage the client asks for. Premiums for E&O can range from $450 - $1500 annually so you'll need to budget for this closely. I've also had situations where a company who was subcontracting out to me covered me under their E&O and I paid a fee for the benefit.

I've found that freelancers who work with smaller companies on projects with limited risks, don't need E&O that much. While those who work with larger clients, do. Others may provide more insight but it's probably prudent you talk with an insurance broker for your specific situation.  Each freelancer works a little differently and takes on different types of projects. Someone who does not understand your specific business situation or the types of projects you are taking on, shouldn't be giving you too much advice in this area.

Also, are you engaging with your clients under a business name (e.g., Inc., LLC.)? If not, that is a big mistake when it comes to liability issues. But, that conversation should be left for another day.

Richard

Hi,
It also varies by region. I have only been required to hold insurance of
any sort in UK/Europe twice in 8 years, even when working for US companies.
Bruce

I've been freelancing for over 5 years.  I create a Statement of Work for every project and, for most of my smaller clients, that's the extent of it - no formal contract.  I've had a few clients over the years provide their own contracts for me to sign, but I've never had to hire a lawyer to draw up contracts for me.  I've also never been required to have liability insurance. I primarily work here in the US, but I have done work for a company in the UK, too.

what is the best size font and best size graphics to use inside of articulate studio engagements?

Hi, Diane:

As far as fonts, most people go with 20-24 title font and body font of 18
or so. Of course it depends on the font itself. As far as graphics go,
there's no standard size. Though I'd err on the larger side of things.

We are in need of a freelance course developer to help us with a steady stream of projects we want done over the next couple of years. We also need this awesome designer to help us develop design standards that we can work within so we’re not custom designing new courses from scratch each time. We’ll collaborate on the most efficient way to get you content so we avoid unnecessary sorting and organizing on your end.
Our firm is new to eLearning so we need someone with a few years of experience that ideally works in Storyline. Our LMS will launch in June so we’d like to get started on course dev soon and if we like your work and you like our projects we have a pretty steady diet of course dev we can keep you busy with.

Dave Angers
Extended Learning Director

Home Franchise Concepts

Hi Dave,

I am interested in this opportunity.  I am expert level in all articulate applications and currently utilize the adobe creative suite.  I have been developing training for 20+ years and developing elearning courses since 2005.  If  your interested in learning more, please respond using Albergo3@aol.com.

KIndest regards,

Cynthia