How to hire creative help for your business

Hi friends! Hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving. I’m getting back into a few digital media projects, like putting the finishing touches on my copywriting portfolio and we’re also building another website (info soon!) so there’s been a ton of coordinating to do. I’ve played a lot of different roles in digital media in the past, from editor to designer (or rather, DIYer…) and more. This time around it’s a bit different, as I’m excited to be investing in some creative help!

There’s nothing like having support when starting a business, but as a creative you might be used to doing literally everything yourself. I will tell you more on why I’ve been able to collaborate with more freelancers later, but for now I want to share how to get started when it comes to hiring creative help—such as designers, developers, copywriters, photographers, and whatever else your business needs.

Prioritize your creative needs

If you’re used to taking on all the creative, it’s probably difficult to think of how to delegate even one task. It’s tough because a lot of us technically *can* do it all so it’s hard to imagine who to hire first. Honestly, I think a lot of it comes with time. Now that I’ve been freelancing for almost five years, I am very familiar with each part of my creative process. So when I decided to enlist creative help, graphic design was first on my list. As much as I’d love to also hire a social media manager (which I’d love to delegate in the future), strong graphic design is a must right now. I chose to collaborate with a designer over a social media manager because the graphic design is something I don’t have the skills to do on my own, while social media is just something that I simply wish I could get off my plate. It’s unlikely that the first time you hire someone you have the budget to hire an entire team, so focus on the #1 thing you simply can’t do without, and tackle that first.

Plan your budget and resources for hiring

Bringing someone else in is intimidating because then you’re also contributing to their livelihood, so you don’t want to make a commitment you can’t keep. That’s why you need to make sure you have the means to support another person, even if it’s just for a few hours a month, before you hire. Comb over every inch of your business and see where you can make room for this expense and how much.

That said, when you’re a creative collaborating with other creatives, it doesn’t have to be all about the physical money. I’m not suggesting you hire an unpaid intern or lowball fellow freelancers, but I’ve noticed that a lot of people are willing to make a relationship work even if it’s with someone that doesn’t have a huge budget… As long as it’s mutually beneficial. For example, I’m in a Facebook group where a woman posted about an exciting project she was working on, and her budget was tiny. I loved the mission behind her project (it was a creative project about marriage equality) so I volunteered to help her out. Turns out, tons of other women had volunteered too, so she was able to choose the best fit. Sometimes you just have to throw it out there and see who’s in.

Another idea is to trade services with a business owner who really needs what you offer. You might be able to do a complete trade, or pay them for some of it while exchanging services for others. I’ve also done this and plan to write a whole post on the experience soon! I just want to say that while it’s always ideal to pay someone for their work (after all, you can’t pay your rent with someone’s services and they sure can’t with yours) there are ways to support each other on the road to success.

Hire the right person/business

You know how when you’re on the job hunt you apply for a zillion jobs before you find the right fit? This is no different, except the roles are shifted a bit. Be prepared to look at a lot of portfolios and have a lot of email exchanges before fully committing (especially if you’re looking for a truly collaborative relationship or someone to have on retainer). It’s exciting when someone shows interest in your business, so express gratitude for everyone, but don’t feel like you need to hire the first person you chat with.

Give them all the info you can

Every creative freelancer has a different process, but a lot of people start off their relationships with questionnaires, introductory calls, or other means of getting to know you. Make sure you give them everything they ask for in as much detail as you possibly can. More details are always going to be more helpful than less. Everything you can give upfront about your business will strengthen the relationship and contribute to a successful partnership long-term.

Let them do the work

Lastly, always remember that you brought them on because you believe in their work and think they’ll be an asset to your business. Give them as many resources as you can but when it comes to doing the actual task you hired them for, let them take it from there. If you’re not happy, you can express (as specifically as possible) why something isn’t quite working, but try not to overstep their process. I’ve been on both ends of this exchange and a lot of times if one person isn’t happy, it’s a communication error (either the way you explained the project or the way they interpreted it) that needs to be solved, not a problem with the quality of work. Try to think of your own process and ideal client, and be that for them!

Have you ever hired creative help for your business? We can’t wait to share more details of our latest projects!