Alice Weightman, founder of The Work Crowd, explains what you should consider when hiring the right PR.
For many tech startups, marketing and PR is top of their ‘to do’ list once the first round of seed funding has hit the bank account.
Whether you’re looking to launch your product or service, drive more hits to your website, or create some buzz on social media, you now have some funds to make it happen.
Plus, with investors on board, you need to show some progress – and fast!
But, while you’ve now got some cash to play with, you definitely can’t go crazy.
Money can quickly get gobbled up by ineffective PR and marketing strategies, hiring the wrong people or with agencies that are beyond your means at this stage of your growth.
And while you might consider doing some activities yourself, there comes a point where you simply won’t have the time to squeeze it all in.
There are only so many jobs and activities an entrepreneur, or small team, can manage on their own.
Plus, for many aspects of PR and marketing, it helps enormously to have specialist expertise and experience.
Otherwise, you could find yourself wasting a lot of your own time (and energy) working it out – or getting it wrong!
‘The solution’
With these challenges in mind, an increasing number of startups are now looking to freelancers to help them out on a project and more flexible basis.
This can be the perfect solution, giving them the specialist experience, expertise and contacts they are looking for, at a fraction of the cost of a fully-fledged agency.
As the majority of PR and marketing freelancers having worked for both agencies and in-house over the years, they invariably have a wealth of experience.
You might be surprised by the talent you can find!
Freelancers now make up 6% of the UK’s workforce, a 36 % rise since 2008, and with the use of the Internet, work is no longer limited by location, or even time.
You can now attract, interview and hire a fantastic freelancer, all from the comfort of your desk – giving you a much wider pool to choose from.
So, if you’re looking to supercharge your PR and marketing, here’s a few pieces of advice on hiring freelancers:
• Create a clear brief – take some time to decide exactly what you need, how long for and what are you prepared to pay? Also think about whether you’re happy to work with a remote freelancer, or would rather meet face-to-face.
• Don’t just go for the cheapest option – before you snap up that copywriter for £2.50 an hour, remember that a slightly higher budget is likely to mean higher quality work, service and ultimately better results.
• Interview a shortlist – It might be tempting to pick your freelancer quickly, particularly if you’re short of time. But try to take the time to speak to your top three choices, either by phone, face to face, or videoconference, so you can get a better feel for their fit.
• Ask for references – Make sure the freelancer can provide local references of work that they have done in the market you’re focused on. Hiring a PR and marketing person, is very different to hiring a developer for example – understanding the local culture is vital.
• Set a trial period – Many clients choose to set an initial trial project or period for their freelancer (paid of course!), to check that their work and the relationship is what they’re looking for.
• Set milestones – Set some targets and milestones for the project, so you have a way to plan, track and approve project deadlines.