Nation1099 Report Highlights the Challenges of Freelancing
It’s no secret that MojoMediaPros supports the greater freelance community. Nearly all of our Pros are independent contractors. So we were intrigued to see a recent report that shines a light on the growing gig economy.
According to The Career Freelancer Status Report 2018, many full-time freelancers say they’re satisfied with their career...
Nation1099 Report Highlights the Challenges of Freelancing
It’s no secret that MojoMediaPros supports the greater freelance community. Nearly all of our Pros are independent contractors. So we were intrigued to see a recent report that shines a light on the growing gig economy.
According to The Career Freelancer Status Report 2018, many full-time freelancers say they’re satisfied with their career choices but worry about business development. Their incomes are comparable to their peers in traditional full-time jobs, yet they struggle to take their businesses to the next level.
The report uncovers a gap between independent contractors just starting out and ones who become truly accomplished. It summarizes the findings of a survey, conducted earlier this year, of active freelancers and independent consultants. The report was published in August.
“These findings paint a picture of career freelancers who get a good start in the early stages of independent work but who hit a plateau after about five years,” said Robert McGuire, publisher of Nation1099, a web publication that provides career and business advice for experienced freelancers and consultants. Nation1099 commissioned the survey and report.
Most survey respondents (65%) consider themselves “career freelancers,” meaning they do so full time. Other respondents identified themselves as primarily part-time freelancers (15%) or have a traditional full-time job but freelance on the side (20%).
However, business development emerged as the top concern of survey respondents, especially after about five years. The report found that career freelancers otherwise mostly feel competent at running their businesses.
“The career freelancer needs opportunities to improve their business skills and needs better information and support as they gain more experience,” he added. “My interpretation of the data is that ‘career freelancer’ is one of the fastest-growing jobs out there, but that they face an information gap between starting and truly professionalizing.”
Other findings include:
- Career freelancers report relying heavily on online resources for information, but they say online job boards and gig-matching websites don’t have the right opportunities for their experience level and qualifications.
- Information sources do not appear to vary greatly by experience level, suggesting that as people get more experienced, they don’t find new sources of business information.
- A majority of respondents (55%) also say they use personal networks to get information about freelancing.
MojoMediaPros’ team of freelance professionals was developed over time. When one of our “Pros” is booked up and unavailable, we celebrate that success – and get a great referral. Our on-demand team model has delivered exceptional results for our clients at an exceptional value while providing interesting and rewarding work for our Pros.
We believe a thriving freelance ecosystem can benefit any industry, and with our team model, we practice what we preach. We were encouraged by the new report and look forward to what Nation1099 comes up with next.
Here’s a link to download your own copy of The Career Freelancer Status Report 2018.
About the survey
The survey, conducted during May and June of 2018, was distributed to subscriber lists, forums and social media followers of service providers and consultants who work primarily with independent providers of creative and professional services. It was also promoted to visitors of Nation1099. As such, respondents were likely freelancers actively looking for career or business information.
Survey distribution was mostly, but not exclusively, in the United States.
About Nation1099
Nation1099 caters to professional freelancers, including “analysts, artists, architects, consultants, designers, developers, illustrators, marketers, videographers, writers and other creative professionals who are eager to succeed on their own terms.”