I’m a web developer specializing in Shopify, and I’ve written a few blog posts and made some youtube videos that are gaining popularity. Now I’m getting at least 3 people a week emailing me with various questions – technical solutions, recommendations – for their specific situation. I used to answer this stuff via email for…

If you’ve never experienced this type of inflationary pressure when I’m working for an agency, and there is a real problem. So we’re going to talk about why what inflation means to an agency, what we can do, and most importantly, what I think we can do about it, because we do talk about why…

Small business owners. How do you prepare for your employees leaving or getting sick? For example, if you have only one team member for a certain product or service and they can’t work for two weeks, how do you replace them if the company is niche or small? How do you prepare for this? 1.…

Costs are going up for businesses and some agencies and freelancers are likely considering raising their fees in order to cope. But putting the price up is never going to be an easy chat with existing clients and creates a risk to relationships when contracts come up for renewal. How do agencies and freelancers manage…

Question for the web developers in the group and others who have a lot of dealings with web developers: There is some text on our home page which is not editable in the CMS. I want to make a very minor edit to this text (like, reaally minor – switching round a couple of words…

Marketing trends keep changing every year, so the way you do company branding today will become obsolete next year. You should always start working ahead and catch up with the new trends to beat your competitors. Creating business leads does not just depend on your marketing frequency but it mostly depends on what you market.…

Two million low-paid workers could receive statutory sick pay for the first time. Currently, employees must earn at least the equivalent of 14 hours on the minimum wage to qualify. But the government is looking at whether to extend eligibility to those earning below this threshold. There could also be more help for those returning…

The right time to quite your job and go freelance When you have a plan:: even though the best laid plans often go awry, you need a basic outline of what wrk you’ll do and how you’re going to get clients as a freelancer. What work will you do? How will you find new customers? How will…

I’ve been writing a lot about how to make it as a freelance consultant, with posts that are relevant whether you’re trying to make it as a freelance writer, designer or developer. But I haven’t written too directly about own area of expertise, which is as a freelance social media consultant. Now, I know what…

Prioritise Your Course Never lose sight of why you’re at university in the first place. While freelancing alongside studies can bring in some extra cash, ultimately you’re there to get a degree. Don’t forget to actually study. Finding Freelance Work as a Student Sites such as Job Rapido, Brand Republic and the vast Guardian Jobs…

The ability to work as a freelancer creates enormous opportunity for highly-skilled and motivated individuals all over the world. This guide is intended to provide you with everything necessary to get your freelancing career started — now it’s up to you to begin applying for freelance jobs and getting your first freelance clients!  What is…

  Register a domain name Try to get a .com if possible. Try 123 Reg for available domain names. Get Matching Social Media Usernames Also make sure the Twitter username and the Facebook page username of the same name are both free. Buy Hosting Once you’ve bought a domain, you’ll need hosting for the site.…

If you’re wanting to start a freelance business the most pressing challenges typically revolve are in getting new clients. When I initially launched my freelance business I struggled to acquire any customers. However, after a few months of trudging through the traditional channels I discovered a great solution that resulted in generating over two hundred…

Write yourself a business plan Know your ‘pitch’ practise telling the story of what it is you offer and how it’s different from competitors. Price your work or hourly rate: Work out how much you will charge for your products (wholesle and retail) or services on an hourly/daily basis. Promote your products or services: Create a website…

https://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=how+to+be+productive+in+coworking+spaces&btnG=Google+Search&meta=&aq=f&oq=&pws=0&gws_rd=ssl 1. Get a pair of headphones: Noise-cancelling if possible – coworking spaces can get noisy, so it’s great to be able to switch off and focus on your work. Also, headphones acts as a great "Do Not Disturb" sign. 2. Structure your day: There’s nothing worse than co-working and not having a structure to…

Here’s how to work out where leads come from. 1. Login to Google Analytics: https://analytics.google.com/ 2. Click on "Behaviour", then "All pages" from the menu on the left hand side: ​ 3. Find the page that says "thank you for downloading" – this is the conversion confirmation page: ​ 4. Click on the blue link, then…

  What are Instagram Business Profiles? A Business Profile on Instagram will help your customers connect to your business When converting to a Business Profile, you’ll be able to include additional information about your business on your profile. For example, you’ll be able to add a phone number, an email address and your business’s physical…

What is the Filter Bubble? The whole Internet is rapidly being personalized. Nobody can predict what kind of Internet — what kind of world — will emerge when everyone has a unique view of the world that nobody else can share. Companies are aggressively pursuing personalization because it makes users happy. Personalization validates existing beliefs…

it’s too early to say but it will have implications in the sense that there will not be anyone in the european commission to stand up for british businesses when regulations are set; given that a lot of trade is intra european, this will make things more difficult for smaller businesses when they all of…

Just some thoughts straight off the bat. Have clear defined objectives and measurement. It will keep you and the agency (for want of a better term) accountable. Begin building out a brief. Background, objectives, unique value prop for your business, lessons learned from previous efforts, current channel presence, best practice examples if they exist etc.…

Who exactly are Revolut? Launched in July 2015 $1.7 billion valuation (Q1 2018) 850+ employees globally 5,000,000+ retail customers 100,000+ business customers $50+ billion transaction volume | $5.7b monthly Fastest growing FinTech in Europe $336 million raised from leading investors Is Revolut a bank? Revolut is NOT a bank. It is an “Electronic Money Institution”.…

https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/polopoly_fs/1.429180!/file/Working.as.self.employed.or.freelance.pdf https://www.ed.ac.uk/files/imports/fileManager/AGCAS%20Self-employment.pdf Self-employment Why do it? The definition of self-employment is ‘starting and running a successful business or social enterprise’. Many famous companies began this way as visionary men and women patented an invention, created a company or registered a brand. Although an excellent business idea plays a key role in the ultimate success of…

freelancers are unique economic agents in the construction industry. Their work and flexibility add value to businesses that could not be gained from employee labour. In summary Each of the three editions of this report has shown just how important freelancers are to the construction industry. Without them, it would face huge difficulties and many…

Have you dreamed of being a freelance writer? When you are an employee, the independence of a freelance life can sound liberating and adventurous, but is it a siren song? On the other hand, employee life has real benefits, such as regular hours, steady work and vacation, but does it imply living with a lot…

How Freelancers Can Crush the Competition and Win the Clients Being a freelancer is interesting and exciting; it provides an excellent opportunity to work as you wish and earn a handful of income. But, the tight competition makes it tough to succeed in the freelance market. Good numbers of newcomers are really worried about expert…

The Self Assessment Tax Estimator will help you to plan for the tax you may have to pay on your personal income including from sole trade income, salary, dividends and other sources. Please note that the Crunch Personal Tax Estimator will only provide an estimate of your tax liability. It’s designed to show you the tax-efficient amount of…

More Brits than ever before want to start their own business 2019. The survey of 1,000 working British people, carried out by award-winning cloud accounting software provider FreeAgent, found that 8% intend to start their own business within the year of 2019. With over 32 million people currently working in the UK, according to ONS…

There are many reasons why permanent employees go freelancing, and the move to freelancing can be extremely rewarding. Freelancers have more control over their career direction, typically earn more, and have more holiday flexibility than permanent employees. The keys to achieving the financial rewards are: keeping your skills updated to ensure you are marketable. minimising…

Are you just a freelancer? Chances are, the answer to that question, is no. Think about it – you are a freelance business owner and as such, you fulfil many different roles: You are a marketing expert You are an accountant, You are a supervisor. You play some extremely vital parts to run and successfully sustain your…

The U.S. freelance workforce has grown to 56.7 million people, up 3.7 million since 2014, according to the fifth annual Freelancing in America study, commissioned by Upwork and Freelancers Union   When you consider some of the most popular reasons to start a freelance business, it’s no wonder that freelancers are everywhere.   Having a…

 launching a creative start-up – from securing funding to how to make those all-important contacts… GETTING STARTED I’ve got an idea for a web-based service/e-commerce site but finding it hard to start that journey towards making it a reality – and very daunting! Do you have any sources you can share for information and inspiration? Donna…

Become a happier, more productive freelancer today! – Simple, practical advice on being a freelance consultant – In-depth guides on the best strategies for freelancers – Unique insights from other freelancers [mc4wp_form]

Free Ebook: How to Become a Freelance Consultant

If you’re self-employed, your business will have various running costs. You can deduct some of these costs to work out your taxable profit as long as they’re allowable expenses. ExampleYour turnover is £40,000, and you claim £10,000 in allowable expenses. You only pay tax on the remaining £30,000 – known as your taxable profit. Allowable…

Do you want the freedom and flexibility that comes from being your own boss? Do you want to be a creative and productive freelancer? Do you want to build the confidence to finally go freelance? How To Go Freelance is the book to give you the confidence to go freelance – and freelance successfully. In…

Robert Scoble has posted a great answer to a question on Quora: "What is the etiquette to contact a tech journalist about your startup?" You should contact a tech journalist only AFTER you do this: Know and follow at least 50 (I have a list of 600+ tech journalists on Twitter at Tech News People).…

Bookkeeping and financial reporting is not my favourite activity as a freelancer, but thankfully there is a range of fantastic online accounting software to make this stressful part of the job much easier, so you can focus on doing the freelance work you love. The best online accounting software makes it easy for you to…

Are you looking for the fastest WordPress hosting for your website? Doesn’t matter if you’re starting a new business or if you already have one that’s been around for a while, speed is one of the keys to making sure that your site can grow and remain healthy. Bonus point … this will also keep your visitors active. Looking for…

Ecommerce continues to expand in 2018 as more retailers and small business owners join the movement. Today, 11% of smartphone owners admit they shop online weekly, and this number is expected to grow. Although there are many benefits associated with the expansion of ecommerce, it is becoming more difficult for shop owners to stand out.…

Every business, regardless of size or industry, needs online exposure. In 2018, this is no longer just a theory, but a tried and true fact. Most businesses, however, simply don’t know where to begin. Many think that just having an attractive website and listing on Google translates into an ‘online presence’, but with competitiveness rising…

Travel Selfie by Seth Eckert   As a freelancer and small business owner, I find it vitally important to take a regular step back and look at what I’ve been working on for the past year, to help shape the year ahead. I’ve had my head so buried in work in recent months that it’s taken…

I’ve been enjoying reading various 2014 Year in Review posts, including Stephen Waddington, Nathan Barry and Patrick McKenzie, so thought I’d share my own mini review of the year, concentrating on this blog as my main source of online activity (outside of work). Here are the main stats for this blog in 2014.

The good people behind OpenTech 2013 posed a great question as one of their potential sessions for the event happening on 18th May in London: What should a 2013 not-for-profit look like? It caught my eye a few weeks ago and I’ve been pondering it ever since, not only because I’ve had experience in starting…

It’s that time of the year where the good and the great of the social media world come out in force to predict the next-big-thing and sweeping social media, social marketing and social commerce trends that we’ll see in 2012. Below is a constantly updated list of the social media and social commerce trends and…

The founder of Bright One has, at just 25 years of age, already left an indelible mark on the industry. Kate Magee reports.