A freelancer may be the person you need to finish your project, do certain tasks and improve the efficiency of some of your company’s processes. There are several advantages of hiring freelancers, but not all of them are equal, some are always missing deadlines, some provide low quality output, and others simply disappear. You can encounter many bad freelancers, that’s why you need to know the signs of one to avoid them.
Here are the ways to identify a bad freelancer.
Raises Fee After Receiving the Project
In some cases, it is a good idea to outsource some projects and tasks. However, the quality of the output you’ll get will depend on the freelancer you hire. One of the red flags of bad freelancers is they suddenly increase the fee once they get the project. This cloak and dagger approach may catch some business owners by surprise and may force them to accept the new terms.
There should be little variance in the payment because you’ve discussed the phases and the requirements upfront. The freelancer may have just displayed lower fees to entice you to choose them over the others. This is a bad practice and shouldn’t be rewarded with your project.
Doesn’t Listen to Feedback
Feedback is important to any business partnership. If the freelancer you hired doesn’t implement corrections and doesn’t listen to feedback, then it’s time to re-assess your partnership with them. An experienced and top-notch freelancer has an overarching vision about the project you pitch to them. However, what distinguishes the best from the rest is the former’s flexibility and receptiveness to feedback. They can alter their vision to fit the needs and wants of their clients.
Absent or Late to Meetings
In any business partnership, professionalism is important and expected from both sides. A freelancer that is always late, reschedules often or is absent from meetings without reason is not one worth hiring. In some cases, prospective freelancers are on time and show their best behaviour, but once you award the work to them, they’re tardy often and fail to provide output on the deadline. Before hiring them, read reviews about their punctuality and professionalism. This helps you hire the right freelancer.
Too Eager to Work with You
Enthusiasm is a good trait to have; a freelancer needs to follow up with potential clients to know the status of their application. Over eagerness for your project is a red flag and is often a sign of desperation. This may be because of their lack of experience or poor reviews from their previous clients.
These are just a few of the red flags that a bad freelancer shows. Identify these to avoid hiring them and the headache of dealing with them. Follow the right tips for hiring freelancers to get top talent to join your team. If you need help finding first-rate virtual accountants and bookkeepers, feel free to contact us here at Robookkeeper. We can connect you with the right outsourced accountants that meet your standards.
