Category: Resources

We don’t need to tell you that effective marketing is crucial for success. Especially in today’s fast-paced and competitive business landscape.

Whether you’re a seasoned retail veteran or about to launch your first start-up, you’re guaranteed to come up against all sorts of challenges. And often, you’ll lack the resources or the in-house expertise to handle all aspects of your business, whether it’s marketing campaigns or web development. This is where freelancers can be a huge asset. Hiring a freelance marketer or website developer can provide the expertise and flexibility needed to grow your brand without breaking the bank.

In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of hiring a freelancer and provide you with a step-by-step guide to finding and hiring the right freelancer for your marketing needs.

How to hire a freelancer in 7 steps

1. Define your goals

Before diving into the hiring process, it’s essential to establish clear marketing or business goals. Outline your objectives, target audience, and the specific tasks you require assistance with. Whether you need help with content creation, social media management, SEO optimisation, or overall strategy, a well-defined scope will help you find the right freelancer who fits your requirements.

2. Craft a compelling job description or brief

Crafting a clear and detailed job description or brief is essential to attract qualified freelancers. Outline the project scope, required skills, and deliverables you expect. Be specific about the level of expertise you are seeking and the time commitment required. Highlight any preferred qualifications or industry experience that may be relevant to your specific business needs.

3. Review freelancer profiles

Once you start receiving proposals from interested freelancers, you should take some time to thoroughly review their profiles, portfolios, and ratings. Look for freelancers who have relevant experience, positive reviews, and a portfolio that showcases their skills in your desired marketing areas. This step will help you shortlist the most suitable candidates.

4. Conduct interviews & assess communication skills

To ensure a good fit, conduct interviews with the shortlisted freelancers. Use this opportunity to assess their communication skills, professionalism, and overall compatibility with your organisation’s culture. Ask questions related to their experience, approach to problem-solving, and how they would handle specific challenges. A strong communicator who understands your goals will likely be a valuable asset to your team.

5. Discuss rates & project terms

Once you’ve identified a freelancer who meets your criteria, have a candid conversation about rates and project terms. Discuss their pricing structure, whether it’s an hourly rate, a fixed fee, or a retainer. Make sure you understand what’s included in the scope of work and if there are any additional costs for revisions or extra services. Negotiate and reach a mutually beneficial agreement that fits within your budget.

6. Establish clear expectations

To ensure a successful working relationship, clearly define project timelines, milestones, and deliverables. Communicate your expectations regarding communication frequency, progress updates, and reporting. Provide access to necessary tools, platforms, and any branding or style guidelines that the freelancer needs to adhere to. Setting clear expectations from the beginning will help avoid misunderstandings and ensure a smooth collaboration.

7. Monitor progress & provide feedback

Throughout the project, maintain open lines of communication with your freelancer. Regularly check in on progress and provide constructive feedback. Encourage them to ask questions and seek clarification when needed. Frequent communication will help you stay informed about the project’s status and address any concerns promptly.

Where to find freelancers

To find suitable freelancers, you need to identify the platforms where they congregate. While there are various marketplaces out there designed to connect entrepreneurs with freelancers, they pose a series of risks and challenges due to a lack of any vetting process. That’s where Flow comes in.

An exclusive network of top freelance ecommerce developers, designers, digital marketing specialists and business experts, Flow takes the hard work out of sourcing the right freelancers for your ecommerce business by carefully selecting the right person for the job, from a pool of fully vetted professionals. This means there’s no uncertainty about the freelancer’s credentials or skillset, you needn’t spend valuable time going through the recruitment process. Simply tell us about your needs and goals, and we’ll arrange a discovery call and connect you with a reliable expert. 

Simply fill out this form to get started.

Many businesses decide to outsource their marketing efforts at some point. From substantial and rapid growth to simply needing some extra help while your attention is needed elsewhere, there are many reasons why you may require additional support. 

And that’s when the agency vs freelancer debate comes into play.

There’s a lot of great marketing talent out there, in both the agency and freelancer spaces, and it can be difficult to determine which is going to be the best fit. Getting it wrong can lead to wasted time and wasted money, so it’s important to make an informed decision and weigh up your options before rushing to sign on the dotted line.

Agencies: the pros & cons

Pros

Comprehensive services: Marketing agencies typically offer a wide range of services, including branding, digital marketing, social media management, content creation, and more. They have a team of professionals who specialise in different areas, which means they can offer comprehensive solutions to businesses.

Experience: Agencies have a wealth of experience working with different types of businesses across industries. They have a proven track record of success, which can be reassuring for businesses looking for a reliable marketing partner.

Scalability: Marketing agencies have the resources to handle large-scale projects and campaigns. They can scale up or down based on the needs of the business, which is particularly beneficial for growing businesses.

Cons

Cost: Agencies are typically more expensive than freelancers. They have higher overhead costs, such as salaries, rent, and equipment, which are passed on to the client. This can be a deterrent for small businesses with limited budgets.

Communication: Agencies can sometimes be less responsive than freelancers, particularly if they have a large client roster. This can be frustrating for businesses that need immediate assistance or have urgent requests.

Lack of personalisation: Agencies often work with multiple clients at once, which can make it challenging to offer a personalised approach. Some businesses may feel like they are just another client in a long list, rather than receiving individual attention.

When should you hire an agency?

It may be time to hire an agency when:

• The project is complex, large and time-consuming (for example, a website build or re-platform)
• The project requires several areas of expertise, or more than one person to deliver it
• The deadline is tight
• You don’t have the time (or skills) to manage the project yourself or to manage a freelancer
• You don’t want to be very involved in the project

Freelancers: the pros & cons

Pros

Cost-effective: Freelancers typically charge lower rates than agencies since they have fewer overhead costs. This can be particularly appealing for small businesses with limited marketing budgets.

Flexibility: Freelancers can offer a lot of flexibility in terms of work hours and project timelines. They can often work around the schedules of the business, which is beneficial for businesses with strict deadlines.

Personalised attention: Freelancers can offer more personalised attention since they typically work with fewer clients at once. They can often provide a more customised approach to meet the specific needs of the business.

Cons

Limited resources: Freelancers have limited resources compared to agencies. They may not have access to the same tools, technologies, or team members, which can limit their ability to offer comprehensive solutions.

Limited experience: Freelancers may not have the same level of experience as agencies. While some may have a proven track record of success, others may be new to the industry.

Limited scalability: Freelancers may not have the resources to handle large-scale projects or campaigns. This can be a drawback for businesses that need to scale up quickly or handle a large workload.

When should you hire a freelancer?

While sometimes the right choice comes down to individual circumstances, in general, you should consider hiring a freelance when: 

• The project is relatively small
• You have the time or capacity to manage a freelancer (or multiple freelancers)
• You don’t have the budget to hire an agency
• You want to be fairly involved or hands-on with the project
• The project can easily be carried out by a remote worker 

Questions to ask yourself

Does my business operate within a niche sector or industry?

Marketing and ecommerce professionals are not one-size-fits-all. Many freelancers choose to operate within a particular industry or niche based on their past experience and clientele, which can help you decide if they’re the right person for the job.

How much am I willing to pay?

We’ve already touched on this, but budget is a huge factor when deciding between hiring a freelancer or an agency. Generally speaking, an agency is going to cost a lot more, so if you don’t have the funds then you could be wasting time seeking out agency proposals.

What do I want to achieve?

You need to consider your short and long-term goals. If you’ve got the budget then it comes down to what you’re looking to achieve. If you’re thinking about a long-term partnership that can accelerate business growth at a quicker pace, then you may want to begin working with an agency sooner rather than later. If you simply want an extra pair of hands to complete a few one-off projects, then this type of work is more suited to a freelancer, as you won’t be tied into lengthy contracts or costly retainers.

What do I want to get out of this?

An extension of your in-house team? A contact you can call upon as and when you need them? Make sure you know exactly what you’re looking to gain from this partnership before moving forward. 

Still not sure?

Ultimately, it’s essential to do your research and carefully evaluate your options before making a decision. Look for agencies or freelancers with a proven track record of success, and be sure to ask for references and portfolios.

If you’d like someone to do the hard work for you, Flow can assist with finding the best fit based on your specific goals and needs. We work with fully-vetted freelancers and can match your business with the right person for the job, based on their experience, portfolio and reviews. On the other hand, our sister brand is an award-winning ecommerce agency, so if we think you’d be a good fit for them then we’ll get the ball rolling and a proposal in the works. 

All you have to do is fill out a form and we’ll do the rest.

Over the last few years, the ecommerce industry has skyrocketed. According to Statista, there are 60 million ecommerce users in the UK. This statistic alone proves that the ecommerce industry is vast, and that a large number of the population shop online.

Research by Statista and eMarketer predicts that online retail sales will reach $6.51 trillion in 2023 (worldwide), with ecommerce websites taking up 22.3% of total retail sales. Although recent forecasts have indicated a slight decline in global growth, this decline is said to be minimal in the coming years. 

The ecommerce industry is constantly evolving, and online retailers must continue to adapt and innovate to drive further growth, which starts with identifying market trends. This blog will cover everything you need to know about upcoming ecommerce trends that will shape 2023 and beyond.

The rise of mobile commerce

Often labelled ‘m-commerce’, mobile commerce involves selling and purchasing via handheld devices. It is quickly becoming customers’ preferred method of shopping due to the convenience of buying their desired items on the go with ease. According to Statista, mobile devices account for 71% of retail traffic, and generate 61% of online shopping orders. 

While the rise in shopping via mobile has been in progress for some time, 2023 is going to be a significant year for mobile commerce, with an estimated 8% of all online retail transactions to take place on mobile devices. The majority of customers have mobile phones, and often use them as part of a ‘pre-shop’ process in which they research products before making a purchase. Shoppers are seeking a stress-free shopping experience that gives them access to their favourite products with the touch of a screen, so it’s crucial that ecommerce businesses adapt to this shift and prioritise making their website mobile-friendly. 

Increase in omnichannel selling

Omnichannel selling refers to a business having multiple channels that give their customers access to products, offers and support, be it online or in-store. It is a method of communication that aids in keeping customers connected to a brand. With the rise of mobile commerce and online shopping, trends and statistics solidify that consumers often feel most comfortable shopping online. 

Omnichannel selling comes with an array of benefits; greater reach, increase in profits due to customers being able to purchase desired items at their leisure on multiple platforms, which will lead to an increase in customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Nearly 75% of buyers use multiple channels before making a purchase, so if your business doesn’t already have multiple platforms, 2023 is the perfect time to launch them. These multiple platforms could include a website, social media accounts (LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook), apps and more. Your activity on these platforms should be consistent, as should your messaging. Ultimately, the main focus is to provide your customers with a fluid online experience.

Varying payment methods

When it comes to online shopping, customers are seeking more flexible methods of payment. Having to type out a long card number every time they purchase a product isn’t the most convenient, especially if customers are doing this on the go. 

No matter what your business is, your customers should always be at the heart of everything you do. With this in mind, providing them with excellent customer service is crucial. If customers have a negative experience buying from you, it’s highly unlikely that they will return or purchase something from you again. 

With this in mind, many customers have shifted to using payment services such as Apple Pay, PayPal and Google Pay for a faster method of payment. Customers want to check out quickly and securely, so online retailers should be offering more payment options to accommodate this. It will also help increase sales conversion rates, and lessen the likelihood of shopping cart abandonment.

Rise in environmental consciousness 

Now more than ever, customers are becoming more and more conscious of their impact on the environment, and want brands to be accountable for theirs, and adopt more sustainable practices. They are also monitoring business values, and seeking brands that prioritise carbon neutrality, fair trade, sustainability and a positive company culture. 

Keep this in mind to incorporate into your brand values and messaging, but be sure not to over-promise and underdeliver to avoid ‘greenwashing’. The information you promote in regards to sustainability should be completely honest and accurate to ensure consumer’s deem your brand trustworthy.

Social media selling

Having a social media presence as a business is an integral part of creating brand awareness, and social media selling has taken this a step further. This year the medium is set to generate $30.73 billion in sales. Retailers are now able to sell their products to their customers via social media thanks to the introduction of shoppable ads. 

These features are now available on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Twitter. Ensuring that your social media platforms are set up for this can really help businesses increase sales. According to Forbes, 68% of users have reported that they use social media to purchase their products. 

It’s worth noting that social media selling may not work for every ecommerce business, so conducting research to identify the needs of your target audience is crucial.

AI Usage 

Artificial intelligence is a powerful tool that can aid in e-commerce personalisation. It allows businesses to collect extensive customer data, which enables them to tailor product recommendations, discounts and more to suit the needs of their audience. 60% of consumers have said they would become repeat customers after being provided a personalised shopping experience, which demonstrates that AI can and will drive immense growth in 2023 and beyond.

Chatbots are also driven by AI, and are very efficient when it comes to providing rapid and accurate customer service. With the voice search component, as well as the voice-enabled shopping via voice assistants, shopping has never been easier for customers. They also have the potential to save businesses as much as 30% of customer support costs.

AI can also be used throughout the supply chain to assist in making logical decisions, which can increase profit and productivity. In 2023, we can expect to see personalised ecommerce experiences for customers, as well as algorithmically-managed supply chains for retailers.

Subscription ecommerce

Without customers, businesses would cease to exist. The main goals of any business should be retaining customers and nurturing those relationships to turn one-time customers into repeat customers, so it makes sense as to why subscription ecommerce is going to be one of the driving trends of 2023.

As mentioned above, customers are seeking a stress-free, convenient shopping experience, and a subscription can provide this. If a customer regularly purchases a certain product, a subscription allows them to get a repeat of that without the stress of ordering it manually every time they run out. Subscriptions offer customers a seamless experience, but bear in mind that flexibility is key to ensure customers aren’t turned-off by long-term tie-ins. 

The trends listed are some of many that await businesses and entrepreneurs in the new year, so having a solid understanding of them will put you ahead of the competition.

Get started today by hiring our expert freelancers from Flow to help your business flourish in the ever-changing world of online shopping.

Guest piece by Rob Mitchell of Sugarcoat

As a software engineer and director at Sugarcoat, people often come to me with ideas for businesses (some good, some… questionable). More often than not they involve selling some sort of product or a service online and the question inevitably comes up “how do I get started?”. A quick web search for anything along those lines and you’re immediately down the rabbit hole of paid ads, technology vendors and click bait to “get rich quick” articles but if you take an idea to its foundations of; what are you trying to sell? Who are you trying to sell it to? and what is your budget to get started? Then “getting started” is usually a choice between having something custom made for you or buying something “off the shelf”, but which is right for your business?

If you’re a hobbyist or self-funded without a chunk of change to invest in your project, you’re likely going to have to work within the confines of an off the shelf solution, one where you don’t need a developer (or anyone for that matter) to get up and running. This will allow you to get your idea to market quickly and if it is a good one (perhaps with some shrewd investment into social marketing or advertising) you might start to turn a profit. 

Start-ups will instinctively opt for what they deem the quickest or cheapest or solution without consideration for the pitfalls of compromising so early on and how it can potentially undermine or limit the potential of their business. It begs the question, if you’re an entrepreneur with a vision, who wants their business to thrive then why compromise from the start unless you absolutely have to? The results of such an approach can be:

• Rushing a substandard solution to market which harms future growth or the ability to pivot
• Using a templated solution makes it difficult for your business to stand out visually or functionally in the market reducing the likelihood of growth or success
• Liable to outgrow the chosen solution, forcing the need to enhance (if possible) or rebuild very quickly at cost and time

There is often an assumption it’s cheaper to use ready made solutions which might be true initially but isn’t necessarily cost effective in the long term. Say business X is starting up and purchases some essentials in year 1: 

– 1x Website Template – ~£100

– 1x Yearly Subscription to a eCommerce Platform – ~£350

Admittedly a very modest initial outlay but let’s say year 1 has gone better than expected and they now need to make some enhancements to their offering in year 2. They now need to invest in development time if they can afford it or maybe install a few plugins incurring license fees, say 3x plugins at ~£360 per year.

Come year 3 they are now in a situation where any other enhancements will require them to invest more and more in bolt-ons but it is increasingly likely they’ll now rely on external expertise to take their adulterated solution and change it to their new requirements, assuming it’s possible at all. Being optimistic, let’s say it is feasible and this buys them more time. The problem is they will continue to repeat this onerous process frequently. In turn, their business will never reach its full potential as it has been built on unsuitable foundations for growth from day one. Given this scenario, most developers would probably advise doing something bespoke at this point because working on an existing, Frankenstein-like codebase and trying to craft it into something else can be more difficult than just starting again and tailoring to the specific needs. 

In this hypothetical situation, you can see how in 3 short years, business X’s costs have gone up either on plugins or on development time and they may or may not need a complete overhaul costing them potential earnings with a prolonged wait for the development to be done to create something bespoke. It seems inevitable for any online business to be truly successful that it will require a tailored solution. I believe wholeheartedly that bespoke is best and starting off the right path is the key to success, saving both time and money as well as putting you in a position of strength in the market. There are many ways to achieve a bespoke solution but a headless commerce platform is increasingly the preferred approach offering benefits such as:

• Cross platform and cross channel selling opportunities
• Integrations with other systems
• Pivot into new technologies and markets
• Flexibility
• Maintainability

At Sugarcoat our philosophy is ‘if you can dream it; you can build it’. Regardless of your idea, big or small, you should be able to build a custom solution from day one. Our focus is helping you achieve your vision through our headless technonology and, by working with our expert partners, create a solution specific to your purpose and within your budget. The end result will be superior to ‘off the shelf’ products and will not require continued investment to help your business succeed and grow.

To take it back to the start, like most things in life, with eCommerce solutions you often get what you pay for however there is usually someone who can within your budget to help you achieve your vision while having something designed, visually and technically, to your specification by experts in their field (many of which can be found on this site). So, if your project has any form of complexity or innovation involved or you have a few quid to spend, then do yourself a favour and invest in something bespoke from the start, as after all, this is the foundations of your business and hopefully your income stream so you’d want it to be as good as it can from the start and for the future, don’t compromise.

Partner Links:

– Venture Stream

– Bloom

When executed well, dropshipping can be your gateway to ecommerce success. While it’s proven to be an effective and profitable means of selling online for many businesses, dropshipping in 2021 is also extremely competitive and full of pitfalls that many budding ecommerce entrepreneurs fall into. 

The COVID-19 pandemic forced lots of us to stay in our homes, boosting online spending and sparking a permanent shift in buyer habits, making now the perfect time to invest in dropshipping. 

The good news for those wanting to dropship is that getting set up is easier than ever. Just ask one of our experts for help, and you’ll be launching an ecommerce site quicker than ever. But the bad news is that because of how much more commonplace dropshipping has become, you’ll need a niche to stand out from the crowd. 

Here’s our guide to some of the best industries to dropship in so that you can make money without having to incur the cost of holding stock. 

Idea 1: Jewellery 

The jewellery world has exploded into an ecommerce revolution. Where customers once needed to try rings and necklaces in a store, digital familiarity, lack of sales-person pressure, and ease of selection have meant buying jewellery online is now a preferred choice for many younger people. 

In addition, trends have seen a decline in ‘luxury’ jewellery such as diamond rings and a rise in more affordable, everyday jewellery. This is where dropshipping becomes lucrative – as you won’t need to hold expensive stock and can easily source a wide range of designs and materials from global markets. Your site can offer a whole jewellery shop’s worth of choice without you ever having to stock a thing. 

Better still, ecommerce capabilities allow you to give customers new experiences they won’t find in store. For example, you can leverage technologies like 3D visualisation and AR to show jewellery on fingers, write content marketing blogs such as matching a ring to a skin tone, or even create a bespoke customisation service if you agree on a system with your dropshipping partner. 

Idea 2: Sports equipment

If lockdown taught us anything, it’s that people will go above and beyond for their fitness routines. From Zoom workout classes to the price of dumbbells skyrocketing, technology has helped fuel the growth and interest of fitness across the globe. 

As an ecommerce business, why not invest in sports equipment? Ordinarily, sports gear requires a large facility for storage since many items are on the larger side – but if you find a dropshipping partner, you won’t need to worry about that. Instead, you can focus on providing quality products, great customer service, and even potentially creating your own bespoke lines of equipment if you’re already an expert in the niche. 

For example, if you were a football enthusiast, you could have a freelance designer create a new brand that you knew there was a market for, then arrange for a dropshipping partner to create those products for you. For those with the drive and desire, dropshipping has made launching passion projects more achievable (and far less risky) than ever before. 

Idea 3: Pet products

Britain is a nation of pet lovers. 51% of UK adults own a pet, with over 9.6 million pet dogs, 10.7 million pet cats and 900,000 pet rabbits in our country alone. The pandemic also caused a rise in pet ownership and spending on pets. 

UK pet owners typically look to lavish their pets with treats and accessories – from the everyday necessities such as dog food and treats, all the way through to coats for winter walkies. 

As a budding ecommerce entrepreneur, you could dropship pet supplies of all kinds. Suppose you focus on a specific area, such as pet clothing. In that case, you can refine your search for a dropship supplier – but you could also be ambitious and build relationships with multiple suppliers to offer food, treats, dog beds, pet clothing and more. 

Idea 4: Health accessories

As discussed, the pandemic saw a meteoric rise in digital spending in all things fitness. In addition, people became more likely to invest in personal healthcare items online – with a massive surge in interest around electric and bamboo toothbrushes, massage guns, face masks, sleep gummies and vitamins. 

This offers a few different dropshipping opportunities. You can either create a general health product site or focus on specific niches/needs such as sleep aids, dental hygiene, face masks and more. 

Idea 5: Beauty & cosmetics

The best dropshipping products are those that facilitate impulse buying but have clear market demand. Beauty products are just that – with interest fuelled by YouTube make-up tutorials, traditional advertising, cultural values and even just a personal desire to look good. 

Beauty is a versatile sector on which to base an ecommerce site – with a comprehensive suite of products you can choose to offer and market according to season. So, for example, you could prioritise dropshipping haircare and sunscreen in summer, then switch to serums and moisturisers in winter. 

Our favourite dropshipping solutions

In the early days of dropshipping, an ecommerce business had to do all the work themselves. From enquiring with suppliers to arranging deals to managing the entire process, it was a daunting challenge.

Now, specialist dropshipping technology platforms have made it simple for new businesses to get set up and start selling. Zendrop, for example, makes finding products to sell simple with an online catalogue of over 1,000,000 products. 

Spocket and eprolo also offer similar services – with a one-stop solution for dropshipping that allows you to integrate the product catalogue with a Shopify store. But, of course, you’ll need a great freelance Shopify developer to build a storefront that helps you stand out. 

Tips on effective dropshipping

With all dropshipping businesses, remember that the only real way to differentiate yourself is through customer experiences. You are competing with other dropshippers and offering similar products at similar costs – so the things that can help you get ahead are: 

• Having a well-designed website optimised for customer experiences
• Ensuring amazing, responsive customer service
• Listening to customer feedback and visibly responding to it with changes
• Investment in paid marketing such as PPC and Google Shopping
• Regular email newsletters that feature enticing discounts and genuine value to a reader
• Staying ahead of trends to beat other dropshipping businesses to key markets (think of the pandemic and face masks, for example.) 

By picking the right niche and using one of the suggested dropshipping platforms above, you’re off to a good start. But if you really stand out in the market, enlist the help of our expert freelancers here at Flow. From a freelance Shopify developer to a paid marketing expert, get in touch today to find someone who can help you get ahead of the competition.

Freelancers

In the ever-competitive world of ecommerce, you’ve got to stay one step ahead. As tempting as it is, you simply can’t do it all yourself. From digital marketing to copywriting, CRO, web design to UX, you’ll need specialists in each area to keep you at the top of your game. Hiring freelancers is the optimum way to get the very best talent whilst remaining agile and within budget – but with over 2 million freelancers in the UK market, how do you choose the right one and, more importantly, how do you make sure the partnership works for you?

Hiring a full team of freelancers complicates things further. Firstly, you have to find the right specialists with the right skill sets – no easy task. Secondly, you have to then manage these freelancers and give them the right tasks to help you accomplish what you mean to. Finally, you need to ensure there is an excellent communication flow occurring between you and your freelancers (and often, between your freelancers themselves).

So, how do you manage all of that? In this article, we’re sharing our top tips to drive success when working with ecommerce freelancers.

Choose trustworthy freelancers

The UK’s freelance talent pool is expansive and has increased by 46% from 2008 to 2017. This leads to market saturation – making it difficult to know which specialist is right for you. As in any industry, for every expert, you’ll find a ‘cowboy’ who overcharges and underdelivers. This is complicated by the fact that most freelancers are recommended through referrals – which can be an issue when it’s someone recommending a friend or someone they’ve not actually worked with.

At Flow, we’ve developed a platform that matches you with fully-vetted and trustworthy freelancers who we’ve already formed a strong relationship with. These specialists are industry professionals with experience across a wide range of sectors. Each individual is handpicked based on a longstanding working relationship.

Use a collaborative work platform

As soon as you get to a point where you’re working with more than one freelancer, you need a way to unify and track work. Otherwise, the time saved by outsourcing work will soon be sucked into managing your network of freelancers.

Even working with just one external resource can become hard to manage, so investing in some form of collaborative project management tool early is a good idea. Tools such as Asana, Monday and Basecamp all have free trials or versions.

Define what success looks like

When you set out to hire a freelancer, you’ll want to define early what it is you’re aiming to achieve. Success metrics can be anything from total revenue and ROI to UX-based habits such as bounce rate and basket abandonment.

Your freelancers must know what it is they’re expected to do and what they’ll be tracked on. Without these defined metrics, you run the risk of paying for work that isn’t driving the results you need. Of course, it’s always a bonus if your freelancer is driving growth across multiple areas, for example, ROI and total visitors to a page – but if it’s ROI you hired them for, that’s what they’re accountable to.

Maintain open communication throughout the project

Communication is a must in any project, but when it comes to relationships between you and a freelancer, communication issues can quickly lead to real problems. You need to be clear and transparent in your goals (see the point above) – but you also need an open line of communication that allows the freelancer to ask questions and for you to check on the work. However, this should be a managed system as otherwise you or the freelancer may end up overwhelmed by the demands of communication.

Without a platform to manage this for you, you should set an agreement whereby you only use emails to communicate unless something requires an urgent phone call. Limit your email comms to work hours and respect the freelancer’s time. You should also consider where your freelancer is located, as geographic differences can lead to vastly different time zones which may be a problem.

Flow’s platform makes communication easier – we’ll manage the relationship to ensure the freelancer is held accountable to your goals without bogging you down with questions. We’ll also help make your briefs clearer to them and prevent them from feeling like they have their client ‘on their back’.

Select the right skill set for your project

If you’re already a good marketer, don’t bother with the expense of hiring a freelancer. Instead, hire to complement your skills and to bolster your weaknesses. For example, if you’re not great at paid advertisements, hire a PPC expert and watch as your ROI soars. Conversely, appoint a project manager if you have the skills but lack the structure required to make it a success.

You need to choose a freelancer whose skills make sense for your project. Some freelancers have a wide skill set that allows them to handle a lot more, whereas specialists who focus on specific areas may be perfect for your project if you have a specific need or problem such as poor return on ad spend (RoAS).

Choose freelancers who know your market

Sometimes, choosing a freelancer who is an expert in a key field such as PPC is not the best choice. If you were, for example, an e-commerce retailer in a very niche field such as martial arts apparel or tabletop gaming, a freelancer who is more generalist but knows your field inside and out may be the better choice.

Take this with a pinch of salt, many freelancers can bring their skill sets to any field and drive results – but if it’s a choice of a few freelancers who share similar skills but one of them lives and breathes your market, it’s sensible to choose them.

To finish things up, let’s recap on what’s most important when working with e-commerce freelancers.

1. Choose a trusted freelancer whose reputation isn’t based solely on hearsay or who gave them the most tags on LinkedIn.
2. Establish clear communications that make briefs transparent.
3. Set metrics or goals that will be used to measure success and agree on them with your freelancer. This can be as simple as ‘produce X piece of work’ through to ‘Improve ROI by %’.
4. Use a project management tool or a project manager to keep the entire project on track and to avoid you or the freelancer becoming bogged down in communications.

Popular eCommerce Freelance Roles

Content Marketers and Copywriters

From your products to your category pages, your site needs descriptions which hook people in and entice them to become customers. A copywriter or content marketer can help form a content strategy that enhances your site’s SEO and gives your customers more context.

Graphic Designers

Need something to look better? A graphic designer can work wizardry with existing imagery, web pages and social media imagery to create a better visual presence. They can also build your brand from the ground-up to make it instantly recognisable to your customers.

Email Marketing Manager

Email newsletters allow you to advertise new products, promote sales and discounts or keep your customers in the know. Managing them, however, is easier said than done. A dedicated email marketing manager can get your campaigns converting quickly and effectively.

Social Media Manager

If you want to stand out, you have to be on social media. A social manager can take care of all of your social media activity. Try to find a social media expert who is skilled in both paid and organic social so that you can get more for your investment.

Ad Campaign Manager

Google shopping and pay per click advertising require a real specialist to generate effective ROI – otherwise, you risk pouring your money into ads that don’t actually win you any sales. eComm Specialists: Inventory Managers, Order Fulfillment & Customer Service Managers

We’re lumping three distinct roles into one heading here – but all three of these specialists serve niche requirements for your business that you will choose based on your own situation. If you find yourself dealing with lots of customers, hire a customer service manager. If you’re struggling to fulfil orders, hire a freelancer. These roles are all great at fixing your own flaws or bolstering areas you’re not great at.

Website Manager

As an eCommerce business, your website is your living. You cannot afford for it to go down, for orders to fail or for any issues to prevent customers from accessing products. For that reason, a website manager is always a good idea: whether that’s to provide ongoing maintenance or updates and upgrades – you need a specialist who you can trust.

Find the right freelancer

Whichever type of freelancer you’re looking for to help you deliver your goals and support your business growth, you’ve come to the right place. Click here to meet our ecommerce freelancers today.

With the general population staying home for most of 2020, it’s fair to say that ecommerce businesses that capitalised on the opportunity had a profitable year. In fact, retail ecommerce sales completely surpassed expectations to grow by 27.6% – despite initial assessments forecasting just a 16.5% growth.

Despite higher digital adoption, research shows that bricks and mortar shops re-opening in 2021 should lead to a slowdown of ecommerce growth. It’s difficult to predict anything in the current climate, but one thing’s for sure: more people than ever are shopping online.

Google reported a 2x increase in searches around ‘how to shop online’, showing that people seek to educate themselves in ecommerce and begin online adoption. 2021 is the year of ecommerce as the standard – where the majority of people’s spending takes place online. So, what does this mean for your ecommerce business? Here are some top ecommerce trends for 2021.

Multi-channel browsing

A product is no longer just a product. You’re buying into a story, or even a lifestyle, that a brand sells to you across a variety of media. From sponsored posts to third-party reviews, product marketing materials and even YouTube unboxings, it’s this type of experiential marketing that empowers consumers to make choices that suit them.

As an ecommerce business, your job is to represent your brand at each stage of the multi-channel journey. Consider where your audience hangs out online and become a part of those spaces. And that counts for not only owned media but for paid and earned, too. Grow your social media presence, actively engage on TrustPilot, develop your own YouTube channel… the list goes on. Customers research even the smallest purchases, so positioning yourself in their space from the outset is a must in 2021.

Free & faster delivery options

Online shoppers have always valued immediacy – hence the unstoppable rise of Amazon Prime’s next day delivery service. Now, however, lockdown habits have forced delivery expectations to become higher and higher. An ecommerce business should be able to make sure stock is displayed on-site, delivery times are precise, and there are various shipping options to choose from. Free delivery is always a preference – so if you can bake it into a product’s cost, it’s a good way to get ahead.

Local pickup for physical shops

Run an ecommerce business that also has a brick and mortar shop? You could be missing out on big revenue by not offering local pickup.
Fuelled by takeaways and ‘essential businesses’ offering click and collect, online buyers tend to favour the option to collect locally where possible. This will continue in 2021, and Shopify even recommends connecting online checkouts to local POS systems if you have a physical shop.

Social media and shoppable ads

Advertisements are getting smarter and smarter. Thanks to the age of influencers, it’s now possible to advertise products away from the confines of a traditional advertisement. Instead, influencers can wear your brand or use it on video. Invest in social media to help diversify your ads and then get clever with how the ads themselves work.

Influencer and social media marketing in general is wasted if it’s not convenient for the customer to buy straight from the ad itself. Whether you’re producing a normal ad for your own business or working with an influencer, exploring shoppable ads which allow customers to purchase with ease is essential.

Remember: shoppers in 2021 now expect speed, convenience and simplicity – so make sure your ads reflect that or you’re wasting time. Our paid advertisement freelancers can help you, click here to get started.

Optimise performance & purchases

The world’s rapid uptake of ecommerce means that customers have less patience than ever when shopping online. Use a digital marketing or analytics freelancer to ensure your site is optimised properly at every level and has no weaknesses in terms of load speeds, checkout process and bounce rate.

Once your site is as good as it can be, try to improve purchase paths – which means:

• Better search functions for people trying to find products
• Stronger filters for finding the right size and colour variants
• A smooth checkout process for easy buying
• Multiple ways to pay for a product – consider bank, PayPal, Klarna and other methods
• A simple and effective returns process ReCommerce & sustainable shopping

As most traditional shops moved online in 2020, the battle for customer attention is more competitive than ever. While this leads to an inevitable price battle, it also means customers can be more selective over who they buy from. So, how do you stand out from your competitors? Surprisingly, 65% of buyers indicated they’d choose to make purchases from businesses that aim for sustainability.

Sustainability also extends to the idea of recommerce – reselling second-hand items through vintage stores and other second-hand retailers has become popular during 2020 and will continue in 2021. This appeals to customers for two reasons: a more sustainable choice and often, a reduced cost versus buying new.

Audit your existing products and see if there are ways to become more sustainable. How are you currently packaging your products? And do your suppliers mirror your values? Could you offer second-hand products?

Investing becoming a more sustainable business may involve a cost but could potentially pay for itself quickly through an increase in customers who want to shop more ethically.

AR integration

Always the bridesmaid, it’s time for Augmented Reality (AR) to be the bride in 2021. As customers begin to blur the lines between shopping, both in-store and online, AR allows you to create digital experiences in a physical space – an invaluable experience during the current climate. AR provides endless possibilities for brands in 2021. 360-degree AR try-ons are already commonplace among opticians; we expect this trend will continue to grow in popularity this year.

Virtual experiences

2020 blurred the line between digital and physical shopping. In 2021, virtual experiences will become more useful than ever for customers who seek to buy online. AI-powered shopping assistants on apps such as Facebook are one example of this. As an ecommerce business, are you creating better virtual shopping experiences for customers? Start with a chat-bot or interactive sizing chart and grow from there.

Cookieless marketing

While the UK may have officially left the EU, GDPR is still a pressing demand on businesses. GDPR rules is incorporated into UK data protection laws, so the same regulations apply as always.

GDPR is just one example of user privacy demands increasing. As technology evolves, businesses are expected to adopt a privacy-first approach, meaning minimal use of cookies or any other behaviour tracking tools. This can lead to challenges with marketing – where many styles of paid ad are reliant on cookies.

To future proof yourself, begin investing in a marketing strategy that doesn’t rely on third-party cookies and instead collects the right consent from the outset. You can invest in first-party data by offering value to customers in exchange for data. For example, you could create a discount code in exchange for opting-in an email address – remember to always include a clear unsubscribe button in all email communications. A strategy like this allows you to build trust with your consumers and prepare your business for a cookieless world.

Stay on top of the trends with Flow

With these emerging trends set to dominate 2021’s ecommerce market, it’s important to stay ahead of the competition. Hire freelancers from Flow to help your business flourish in the ever-changing world of online shopping.

When selling products online, Shopify is often the first port-of-call for businesses of all shapes and sizes. With a whopping 20% market share, Shopify is a very powerful tool that empowers many brands to take their products to the masses.

From drop-shipping empires to small creative businesses, Shopify is an excellent scalable solution. With brands worth over $1billion such as Gymshark using Shopify Plus through to small businesses launching niche ecommerce sites with a standard Shopify site, the platform offers an effective selling solution for small, medium, large and enterprise-level businesses. There’s a lot to love about Shopify’s CMS. Unlike many other popular platforms, Shopify is designed specifically for ecommerce, making it an ideal solution for businesses looking to sell products online.

Founded in 2004, Shopify has seen exponential growth. What makes Shopify so popular, and how has it become a leading force in ecommerce? Let’s take a closer look at its monumental success.

Affordable plans

One of the most significant benefits of choosing Shopify’s ecommerce platform is that of value for money. With affordable monthly plans to suit most budgets, Shopify is a great gateway to selling online for a business starting from scratch.

Shopify differs from its biggest competitor WooCommerce (WordPress’ solution) in a number of ways, primarily in that is it an ecommerce platform as standard. Businesses that opt for WordPress can host their stores with whichever host they want, but the initial setup and ongoing maintenance is more advanced than Shopify.

Shopify is the third largest online retailer after eBay and Amazon, with over half a million active stores on its platform. With a platform of this size comes market-leading help and support, as well as optimisation and customisation. It’s not just Shopify that invests into the growth and development of its platform. In recent years, we’ve seen a rise of third-party ecommerce consultants who can help businesses to grow their revenue and harness the power of Shopify. Expert ecommerce consultants

Shopify is a top choice for ecommerce consultants, with many experts specialising in helping online shops to boost their sales, develop their offering and perfect their design. The exponential growth of Shopify makes it a fantastic platform for your online store, but it can also be challenging to keep up with the updates and new tools and functionalities.

While Shopify is an accessible tool for beginners, it also has vast potential that requires consistent and expert nurturing to unlock. That’s where your ecommerce consultant comes in. Meet our Shopify ecommerce experts and find out how they can help take your online shop to the next level.

Huge design capability

Some of the world’s biggest online retailers use Shopify. With over 350,000 paid themes purchased by merchants, Shopify boasts an incredible design capability, especially for those with the expertise to adapt components or even build your own bespoke design themes. There are a huge amount of beautiful Shopify websites which showcase the tool’s amazing design potential – and it’s not just small and medium businesses that embrace the power of Shopify. Gymshark, Stussy and Steve Madden are among some of the most successful Shopify websites processing thousands of orders a day.

As with any CMS, Shopify really comes into its own when you invest in making it work for you – this includes hiring a graphic designer and web developer to take your online shopfront from a standard Shopify store to one that parallels the aforementioned world-famous brands. Need a web developer, graphic designer or marketing consultant? Meet the Flow experts.

Shopify Plus: the premium option

Shopify Plus is an enterprise-level upgrade to your Shopify site which unlocks a variety of key features that make selling more successful. It’s so good, in fact, that many of the world’s biggest brands use it: Heinz, Gymshark, Lindt, Staples, JB-Hifi and more all call Shopify Plus their home.

Why is that? Shopify Plus offers a suite of features such as a ‘launch engineer’ – a personal assistant for your store, full API integration access, exclusive apps, wholesale channels and in-depth analytics. Put simply, it’s a far more serious solution for when your business reaches enterprise-level and requires a full management solution that both sell your products and keeps your business running.

Profitable affiliate programme

Another significant benefit of Shopify is the affiliate programme. Once your online business grows, and you become more influential in your space, you can support fledgling companies and enjoy a kickback with Shopify’s affiliate plan.

This is likely one of Shopify’s critical drivers of success as it encourages active users to refer friends and colleagues, further contributing to the channel’s significant growth over recent years. To benefit from Shopify’s affiliate programme, you have to have a dedicated audience in the market to start their own businesses. While not for everyone, if you qualify and are accepted to the programme, it’s a fantastic way to make an additional income on top of your existing ecommerce business.

So, those are just a few contributing factors to Shopify’s incredible success. Whether you are starting a new ecommerce business, taking your brick-and-mortar store online or looking to transfer your shop from another platform, Shopify is a fantastic choice. Don’t try and do it all yourself, find the experts to help drive your business forward with Flow.

Business growth requires effort and investment. In ecommerce, the best marketing plan is the one that attracts new customers, increases conversions and ultimately, grows your business.

With that in mind, you need a marketing plan that you can stick to, which will drive tangible results. Don’t worry – this is where the guide steps in. We’ll take you step-by-step through the process of building a solid marketing plan that produces reliable, measurable results that take your ecommerce business from the garden shed start-up to the shopping centre staple.

Nail your strategy

A marketing plan has to follow your strategy – but actually putting that down on paper may be more complicated than you’d expect. Rather than a strategy that’s simply ‘sell more products’, you need to define a clear outline of how you’ll attain results. To do that, follow the following steps:

1. Define your core Unique Selling Points (USPs) – what is it that makes your brand unique? Do you offer a product no-one else does? Do you have access to a service no competitor is offering? You need to know what makes you different so you can market accurately to customers.
2. Outline your customer types – chances are, you’ll have multiple ‘types’ of customer – this could be as simple as male and female customers for a fashion shop. Taking this further, you should outline rough customer ‘personas’ – how old are they, what motivates them + how does your business help them?
3. What resources do you have? – list out employees, their strengths and backgrounds, any paid subscriptions you have, networks you’re a part of and more. Essentially, anything that you think may help your marketing efforts.
4. Top priorities for growth – what areas are you looking to grow? Try not to be too broad and focus on specific products you want to push or services you want to sell. Going too broad can mean you spread yourself too thin.

Assess competitors

Your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses should directly influence your goals and tactics – as you’ll be able to spot opportunities even from a cursory level of competitor research. What’s the best way to go about this? It’s simple:

1. To get started, note down your top three competitors. If you don’t know who they are, try a tool such as similarweb.com and put in your own web address or a larger-scale competitor.
2. Look through each competitor’s website. You don’t need to be an expert here – just look at what they’re doing, how their site is structured and how it ‘feels’ to use. Pay close attention to:
   1. Do they have well-categorised products?
   2. What kind of filters do they use to browse through products?
   3. How does navigation work on-site?
   4. What on-site marketing happens during a session? Do they use pop-up alerts, live chat notifications etc.?
   5. How does their checkout process work? What level of data capture happens when you complete a purchase and which payment systems do they use?
3. Visit each competitor’s social media channels to assess what they’re posting, howregularly they’re posting and what sort of content they post.

Outline trackable goals

Goals without metrics to measure them are essentially useless. They may seem like a way to motivate yourself, but you need KPIs to track your goals against – otherwise how will you know if you’re heading in the right direction?

Create a list of goals which have KPIs against them that can be tracked and measured. For example, if you set three goals, you could have:

Goal 1: Increased conversions on site
KPIs: 100 + checkout completions each month

Goal 2: Increased ROI from paid advertising
KPIs: RoAS improved by 10%

Goal 3: Raise brand awareness in new territories
KPIs: Increase web traffic in the new region by 30%

By assigning KPIs to track your goals, you’re giving yourself, your employees and any freelancers you work with something tangible to aim towards and be measured against – this is where you’ll start to see growth.

Determine your approach

Marketing is a field both broad and varied. Some businesses spread themselves thin, trying to be ‘present’ everywhere without doing enough to achieve results elsewhere.

Instead, focus on key areas where you can ensure your attention drives results. For example, instead of trying to be present on every social channel you own/want to own – why not spend a month focusing entirely on Facebook.

To get this done, create a list of your main channels and what your priorities are. It could look something like this:

Whatever you decide, ensure you’ve listed each channel you’ll use and then map these to the goals you outlined above.

Create an acquisition model

An acquisition model allows you to map the impact of your activities against goals in a measurable way. It may sound complex, but all you need to do is use any existing data to show which channels are best for your brand.

For example, a one month model where you’ve set your goals as being traffic and conversions would involve logging into your Analytics and ad accounts to pull data relevant to those goals; you could visualise the data on a table or graph such as the following:

Channel Tactics Audience
Facebook Paid advertising, 3 x organic posts a week Millennial buyers

Google Shopping
Work with a paid shopping freelancer to boost product sales

All shoppers
Email marketing
One newsletter per month + new product promos

Older buyers
Acquisition
Method
Total spend

Approx impressions
Clicks Transactions

Social media £1000 9000 2000 50
Email marketing £200 800 450 200
Google shopping £2000 10,000 370 160

Once created, this model allows you to see at-a-glance which methods are successful for you and how you might model future growth. For example, if email marketing is already successful, you can safely increase your budget and expect to see better results. If you’re spending a lot of money on Google advertising and it’s not driving much return, you’ll be able to factor that into your marketing plan.

Create the marketing plan

Using all of the above information, create a document that outlines your marketing plan. It should list:

1. Your strategy & users
2. Your marketing methods/areas of focus
3. Your goals & KPIs
4. Acquisition model – which you’ll use to help shape your future approach

Using this information, create a month-by-month map of your business marketing activity which includes the above information. This document’s actual set-up will depend on your business, but it’s generally best to use a cloud-hosted table such as Google Sheets. A format could look as follows:

January Marketing Plan
Method Activity Spend Revenue (or any other goal you’ve set)
Clicks (or any other goal)
Facebook marketing
Paid ads, organic posting
1000 xxx xxx

Of course, knowing how to create a marketing plan and having experience in creating effective, results-driven plans are two different things. Work with our team of freelance marketing experts today, and we can help take your ecommerce store through a far more trackable, well-planned and successful year. Get in touch to find out more.