Why Hiring Entrepreneurs Is A Great Move For Your Business

For the second time this month, I received a call from a fellow small business owner asking me how to respond to a recent job offer. In both cases, what started out as a contractual relationship has become an opportunity for the the business they were working for to grab a hold of top talent.


The question that deserves pondering is would you hire someone that has a consulting or freelancing business on the side?
In the past, many employers would say “No way!” After all, if that person is focused on their own business, they won’t be focused on mine...right? 


I say...Wrong.


There are huge benefits to hiring marketers, copywriters, designers, SEO experts, analysts and other professional freelancers while they continue to run their own freelancing business on the side. Here are just a few.

1. They have their own established brand
This is perhaps the biggest mind-shift employers will have to make. Hiring an expert in a field will bring additional value to your brand. One manufacturer actually hired a reigning beauty pageant winner as an international sales rep for her region because it brought visibility for their brand.


2. They are known experts
They have clients that have chosen them for something—in fact, it’s probably the same reason you are entertaining the idea of hiring them. Having them engaged on other client projects (during their own time, of course) will bring new ideas to your business.

3. They are current and will stay current on the hot trends
Having an active freelancer as an actual employee guarantees that this person hasn’t stopped and will not stop learning and applying the latest in methods and technology that are in their field—as opposed to employees who only work for you and don’t really have a need to exploring new things because they are currently not required.


4. They are great time managers
If you have a person on your staff that has clients to take care of when they are not working for you—you’d better believe they will get the most out of their work day with you. They are more likely to be focused just on your projects during the time that they are with you—so that they can focus on their other clients when they are on their own time.

5. They are your farm team for future clients
Most freelancers and consultants service companies that might be too small to be your customers. Instead of viewing them as a competitor, consider them part of your “farm team” where they guide and develop customers to a point where your larger organization can take over.


The economy has changed. The market has changed. Our assumptions need to change too.
Over half a million people go into business for themselves each month. And since over 20 million small businesses have no employees, they become easy targets for larger organizations to gobble up when looking to add top talent to their team. Instead of treating them as an employee, consider the relationship more like a merger between your business and theirs.