BKA Content, based in Ogden, Utah, adjusts its
use of freelancers depending on its work flow.
“We may only need additional help for a
few months at a time, which doesn’t always
necessitate a new hire,” Secrist says.
There are also practical reasons for using
freelancers — the work some companies need
is so varied that it’s impossible to find a full-time
staffer who can do everything.
“If we wanted to hire a full-time position, we’d
struggle to find someone that can wear multiple
hats,” says Shane Griffiths, co-owner of Clarity
Online, a Seattle-based digital marketing company.
Griffiths and his business partner, Trenton Erker,
juggle tasks including web design, graphic design,
social media, data analysis, copywriting and
account managing, but know they can’t expect
anyone else to have that kind of versatility.
Griffiths and Erker use technology for tasks like
billing, scheduling appointments, tracking the
time they spend on clients’ projects and putting
together reports on visits to client websites.
At some companies, using technology or relying
on freelancers allows owners to actually spend
a little more, paying employees a higher wage
or salary. At Chill-N Nitrogen Ice Cream, a chain
of eight stores in South Florida, new technology
helps employees produce and sell 120 cups of
ice cream an hour, compared to 60 to 70 before
the company upgraded its equipment. That
allows the company to have one less staffer at
each store.
“We can pay the people in the stores more
because we don’t need as many,” co-owner
Daniel Golik says.