5 Things You Should Do When Hiring a New Freelancer

Hiring the right freelance journalist or filmmaker will make sure your production runs smoothly. However, when you’re hiring someone you’ve never worked with before, it can be tricky to know whether they can handle the project. Here are five things you can do to make sure you hire talented freelancers and build a solid relationship with them:

1. Write a clear project brief.

Your project brief should make everything explicit in terms of what you need for the production. This should include the type of equipment you require, any important dates or deadlines, the number of revisions expected if they’re editing the footage, video examples of what you like, as well as any other requirements your company might have.

2. Deep dive into their video portfolio.

Before hiring a freelancer, you should watch their reel or video samples to assess whether their past work meets your expectations. When doing this, you should look at what role they had in the production to see if their experience lines up with what you need. You should also ask them to confirm what their role was.

3. Set up an interview.

If you have the time and your project isn’t urgent, you should always interview a freelancer you’re working with for the first time. This is your opportunity to inform them about your brand or style and make sure they understand it. If you’re not convinced that they do, don’t hire them. You can also use this time to chat about their video samples and the plan for the project.

4. If necessary, ask for a video treatment.

If your project calls for it, ask the freelancer to write a video treatment. They should describe the concept of the film, characters, locations, visual style and tone, and the equipment they will use to shoot it. This will ensure that their vision for the production is aligned with yours before filming begins, which will mitigate any issues that come up later on.

5. Communicate frequently.

Communication is one of the most important aspects to making sure a production goes smoothly. If you’re working with a freelancer you don’t know that well, make sure that they have an easy way to reach you and that they communicate early and often about the project status. Communicating well and frequently will help you and the freelancer build a solid working relationship.

Do you have a different approach to hiring a freelancer for the first time? Tell us in the comments below!

By D. Simone Kovacs, Storyhunter Editor