In the modern world of business, entrepreneurs and freelancers work together in harmony. Whenever there is a budding entrepreneur looking for help with their business, there are also several skilled digital nomads, who are thriving in the gig economy, and can offer their services.
As an ecommerce entrepreneur, this offers you a great opportunity. You can utilize freelancers to assist your business with a variety of different tasks, whether that’s design, copywriting, customer service, or otherwise. In fact, Nike’s logo, which is now known all over the globe, wasn’t slaved over for months by a team of in-house designers, but instead was created by a freelancer. This is testament to the quality that is available when you utilize freelancers for your business.
As the number of freelance websites continues to grow, it can be difficult for an entrepreneur, like yourself, to find the best freelancers to help your business grow. We’ve created this article to help you find the best freelancers for the tasks you need help with. At the end of this article, you’ll be equipped with all the resources that you need to find freelance help.
Let’s get started!
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What is a Freelancer?
Before we dive into our list of the best freelance websites for entrepreneurs, it’s important that we first define what a freelancer is, and how they will function when working with you and your business.
A freelancer is typically a self-employed, skilled professional who offers their services on a contract basis. Most freelancers specialize in a certain field, such as design, as this helps them to build their clientele, and establish authority over their craft. However, you’ll also be able to find freelancers who aren’t specialized, and have a much broader skillset, who can assist your business with a wide array of tasks.
If you do decide to utilize freelancers to grow your business, it’s likely that they’ll be working remotely, especially if you’re running a dropshipping business with Shopify. With this in mind, it’s important that you maintain an open channel for communication, so we recommend using Slack, a communication tool for businesses. Also, it’s a great idea to use task management tools like Asana or Trello so you can keep up to date with the ongoing tasks that are assigned to your freelancers.
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Why Use Freelancers for Your Business?
If you ever need help with a task for your business, or you find that specific tasks take up too much of your valuable time, freelancers can help you to maintain a steady workflow. Freelancers are generally cheaper than hiring a full-time employee, so you’ll be able to retain valuable business funds that you can use to continue building and growing your business.
Thankfully, when you’re running a dropshipping business with Shopify, you’ll never need to worry about shipping or order fulfillment, so you’ll be able to focus on tasks that help you to grow your business. However, marketing, design, copywriting, and customer service are difficult tasks, so freelancers can help you succeed as an entrepreneur.
Before you enroll on any freelance websites, it’s a great idea to first assess your own strengths and weaknesses. Think about the tasks that you’re currently undertaking, and ask yourself: ‘would somebody else hire me to do that task for their business based on my current performance?’. If the answer is no, it could be time to find freelancers to assist you, at least until you’re more confident in that field. On the other hand, if you believe that you’re excelling in a particular task, like customer service, then continue to dedicate your time to these tasks.
How to Find Freelancers – Top 10 Freelance Websites
Now that we’ve covered how freelancers can benefit your business, it’s time to provide you with the platform to reap those benefits. As an ecommerce entrepreneur, there are a wide variety of great freelance websites that you can utilize to gain freelance help with running and growing your business.
Each website on our list has a host of highly qualified freelancers who will be a welcome addition to your team. It’s essential that you find the best freelancers to cater to the needs of your business, so you can sign up to as many of these freelance websites as you see fit.
Upwork
Upwork, formerly known as oDesk, is one of the largest freelancer websites, boasting a client base in the millions. Upwork is a comprehensive platform which entrepreneurs can use to hire freelancers on a per-project or a per-hour basis. You’ll find that the skill level of the freelancers on Upwork ranges from beginners to experts, so you’ll be able to recruit the appropriate freelance help based on both your needs and funds.
Once you’ve created an account on Upwork, you’ll need to create a job listing which details the exact requirements for the task – this ensures that freelancers with the required skillset apply to your post. After some time, freelancers will see your listing, and if they’re interested they’ll respond with a price (based on an hourly or per-project rate, depending on your listing). You can then request to have a short interview with them, or you can proceed straight to making a decision on their offer. Once you’ve agreed on compensation, you can set milestones and begin to work together with said freelancer.
Toptal
If you’re looking to recruit the best of the best, Toptal is the freelance website for you. As a freelancer, you can only access job listings on Toptal if you’ve been invited to the platform, and you can get an invite if you’re in the top 3% of freelancers. With this in mind, we highly recommend Toptal if you’re looking for assistance with complex development tasks, or you need precise financial assistance, as you’ll find the best freelancers to help you with these tasks.
It’s important to note that Toptal is a premium freelance website, and as such the prices that you’ll pay on this platform will be on the higher end of the spectrum. In light of this, we don’t recommend Toptal for entrepreneurs who are just starting out with their business, and operating with a shoestring budget.
99designs
99designs is, as suggested by the company name, the go-to freelance website if you’re looking for assistance with design. Whether you’re looking for a high-quality, professional company logo, or you need help with web design, a 99designs freelancer will be able to help you.
This freelance website functions in a unique way, which ensures that you only receive the highest quality design work. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll need to create a design brief, which includes some information about your business, and a detailed explanation of the work that you’re looking to receive. Then, you’ll need to select your design package (the amount of money that you’re willing to pay).
Once this is set, you’ll launch a ‘contest’, and a variety of freelancers will send you their answer to your request. You can provide them with feedback, and after 7 days you’ll need to pick a winner. The freelancer who wins will receive full payment, and you’ll receive the design and full copyright.
Freelancer
Freelancer is another fantastic platform that entrepreneurs can use to recruit freelance work. With Freelancer, you can find a wide variety of talented freelancers to help you with a multitude of different tasks.
As with the other freelance websites on this list, you can simply create a job listing on Freelancer and wait for members to reply to you with their rates. However, Freelancer also offer a ‘Recruiter Project’ feature, which enables entrepreneurs to create a listing and they’ll assist you with finding the perfect freelancer – this way you’ll have one less thing to worry about.
We recommend this freelance website if you’re looking for freelance work and you’d like some guidance with choosing the best person for the job.
PeoplePerHour
We’ve found that the freelancers on PeoplePerHour offer exceptional work in both SEO and web design, so if you’re looking for assistance in either of these fields we strongly recommend this freelance website. It’s simple to list a job, and you can also reach out directly to freelancers that pique your interest in just a few clicks.
PeoplePerHour’s most notable feature is called ‘WorkStream’, which allows a seamless payment experience for businesses and freelancers alike. Not only does WorkStream help you to collate all of your listings, it also ensures that paying for work is a simple process.
Hired
If it’s tech talent that you need to help build and grow your store, Hired could be the perfect freelance website for you. Hired boasts an applicant base of more than 70,000 freelancers every month, so you’ll always find fresh freelancers to provide their services. Huge tech companies like Facebook and Github already use the platform, so you can rest assured that this is a high-quality freelance website. Much like Toptal, we recommend recruiting freelance work from Hired if you need help with complex development tasks.
Fiverr
Fiverr is a freelance website which is aimed at lean entrepreneurs. If you’re looking to build or grow your ecommerce business with freelance work that you can source at an affordable price point, we highly recommend this platform. Whilst you may not always find industry veterans on this freelance website, like you would with Toptal or Hired, the freelancers who engage with this platform are still highly competent and can help you on your entrepreneurial journey.
WeGrowth
Crew
Many freelancers on Crew’s platform specialize in web design, especially design for ecommerce websites. This freelance website promises to match a freelancer to your project in less than 24 hours, making it perfect for tasks which need a quick resolution. However, this setup might not be ideal if you’re looking for freelance help with a large project.
CollegeRecruiter
If you’re running your ecommerce store on a shoestring budget but you feel like you need freelance help, we recommend CollegeRecruiter. This freelance website offers a range of entry-level candidates who can help you to build and grow your own business. It’s important to note that, whilst these freelancers may be entry-level in experience, they’re certainly capable of helping you with your tasks. There are a wide variety of freelancers from a range of different backgrounds on this platform, so we’re certain that you’ll be able to find the right person for your job listing.
Growing Your Business With Freelancers
Now we’ve covered everything you need to know about finding freelance help and working with freelancers, so it’s time to start growing your business. Before you set off on your journey to find freelance help, we’ve got a few top tips for working with freelancers:
- Create clear, detailed job listings on various freelance websites to increase your pool of candidates.
- Maintain an open channel for communication with all freelancers you work with.
- Check on the performance of your freelancers. Praise them if they’re doing a great job, and work with them to see how they can improve if you feel that they’re underperforming.
- Trust them to achieve their goals – you’re on the same team.
That’s it – now you’re all set! If you have any questions about freelancers, or entrepreneurship in general, leave a comment below, we’re happy to help you on your entrepreneurial journey.
Want to Learn More?
- What is Self Employment: Everything You Need to Know
- How I launched my eCommerce store in less than 30 minutes (with products)
- How To Select Dropshipping Suppliers
- What Should You Sell Online?
- 10 Online Stores to Use as Inspiration for Your First Store
