Author: Cheptiony Mutai

  • Do You Need a VPN as a Freelancer Really?

    After a complete video review of close to 15 Premium VPN’s with the leading one having 10 Million+ users and others averaging at 1 Million+ users, the question that I have always asked myself during the review process is; do I really need a VPN as a Freelancer living in Africa on a day to day basis?

    Each time I ask myself this question, the absolute answer is No, I don’t. But once in a while, Yes.

    My answer is based on my past VPN usage. I have always downloaded a VPN only and only for use in activities connected to my freelancing business. In this I mean, if I have an assignment that requires me to access information blocked in my country, that is where I find a VPN in handy. And all the time when I am done with the project, I uninstall it.

    The second reason for my No answer is that I was once suspended from a freelancing site for using a VPN. I had used it to make the site think that I was based in US-yet I was not. Being suspended means that you will miss new freelancing opportunities for more than 30 days. This really hurt my earnings. I ended up leaving the site for this same reasons.

    But for a Freelance traveler, the story is different because VPN comes in handy in some countries- which is why in this blog-post, I will share with you 4 uses of a VPN as a Freelancer.

    To Unblock Content Restricted in Your Country

    Content can range from text, photos and videos. Also, it can be games, software’s and mobile applications. Many countries in the west restrict their content for copyright reasons.

    Of-course as freelancer, it is possible to be hired by anyone across the globe. Some assignments may require you to access restricted content. You will not be able to do it without a VPN. A good example of this is reviewing a Mobile application made for users in US only. If you live in Africa, You will not be able to find it when you search on PlayStore. And this is where a VPN come in handy.

    For Entertainment Purposes

    If you are a fun of streaming new movie content on Netflix US, Hulu, AMozon prime and more, you will require a VPN to unblock them unless you are a resident of US. With this said, it is important to note that there some content restricted to some countries like UK, China, Japan, India and more. This thus means that even if you live in US, you will need a VPN to watch them.

    To Stay Anonymous

    Popular browsers like Google chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer are well know for logging users data for business purposes. That is what you get in return for using these browsers for free.

    If you want your usage logs to be kept discreet i.e Sites you visit, and what you access on a regular basis, you will need a VPN. It is important that you check their Privacy policy before going ahead to purchase them. Some VPN’s logs users data and sells them to third party companies.

    For Tor-renting

    If you love to download torrents, then a VPN will come in handy. Browsers like chrome discourage tor-renting for copyright reasons. i.e Downloading software torrents.

    Also, the download speed of torrents with a VPN is very fast. However, I must mention that not all VPNs allow Peer to peer downloading so you must consider this before getting one.

    And that is it!

    These are 4 instances I know that you can use a VPN as a freelancer. Of-course there are many more things that you can do with a VPN.

    My question is, do you use a VPN ? What are some of the reasons you use the VPN that you choose? Share your views in the comments area below.

    And if you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials or any other type of video, let know here.

    Until next time, take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • Scared of Freelance Work Disputes? Here Are Top Tips to Working Around Disputes Before or After it Arises

    When it comes to work disputes, your freelancing experience doesn’t matter. Contract disputes are unpredictable and can come knocking at your door anytime.

    That is why its good to be vigilant from the time a client contacts you. When you do so, you will be able to foresee a problem before a dispute arises.

    Remember, in a situation where a dispute has arose, all the communication you had with the client will be used as evidence and can act against you or in your favor.

    It is therefore important to state your terms clearly and ensure that your client is ok with them- by them writing back to you.

    Also, ensure that the language you use in your communication exchanges with the client is respectful.

    With this said, always try to eliminate predictable disputes by detaching your feelings or personal life with the work/contracts you are engaged in.

    In this blogpost, I will share with you top tips that will help you harmoniously work with clients and never be scared of disputes.

    Disputes are filed by either client or a freelancer if the;

    1. Client is not happy with work delivered by the freelancer and the freelancer wants to be paid.
    2. Freelancer has delivered opposite of what was needed.
    3. Client wants a refund after the freelancer has delivered the service.
    4. Terms of the contract changes along the way and the parties do not agree on additional costs arising from it.

    These are four among other many reasons why people file disputes on contracts assigned to freelancers.

    Here are my top tips to working around disputes before or after it arises.

    BEFORE THE DISPUTE

    Make Your Stand Clear From Start

    Propose a collaboration plan to your client. Be clear on how you work the moment the client expresses their interest in working with you.

    If you are on a different timezone, tell them. Let them decide if they are going ahead to work with you or not.

    If you offer 3 rounds of revisions, say it. Tell them how much they are expected to pay for the 4th round.

    Serious clients love such terms and will help them make a wise hiring decision.

    Be Kind and Professional in Your Communications

    Now, this is the key. Use words that are respectful to the client.

    Let them know that they are safe working with you. Show what you guarantee and stick to your word.

    If the client is mad at you, be sober, take time to look at the issue at hand and explain to them in detail why they shouldn’t be mad.

    You are a salesperson and by all means, you need to be very persuasive in your freelancing business.

    Persuasion should be your cup of tea/coffee.

    WHEN THE DISPUTE ARISES

    Don’t Panic

    I know it’s scary to read an e-mail saying the client has requested a refund.

    That is if you are in a case where you are in good communication with a client today, then the next day when you wake up, he/she has ended the contract with no reason and requested a refund on the funded milestone.

    Many people will panic and worried of what to do next. Freelancing sites will encourage freelancers to communicate with their clients and resolve issues with them before raising a dispute.

    While this is a good idea, if your communication with the client was not clear while on contract, you will proceed and file a dispute.

    But first, put yourself together before doing so. Take a deep breath boy:-)

    Compile Your Evidence

    For your to win a dispute, you need to have evidence.

    As I mentioned at the start of this blog post, if your message exchanges was clear with the client, compiling your evidence will be easier.

    Don’t forget to put your anger aside and stick only to facts supported by evidence.

    Argue Your Case

    Argue your case and let the mediator (which is your freelancing site) to intervene. It’s very important that you don’t digress out of the main topic. Give reasons why your have to be paid .

    Be patient and Wait for a Ruling

    Wait for the mediation representative to rule on your case.

    Don’t bother yourself by contacting Freelancer support team for an update. Once the ruling on your case is reached, your will receive an e-mail on what was decided.

    NOTE: If you feel the decision reached by your mediator is not fair, you can decide to take your case further to be handled by the an arbitrator-who in this case will be someone outside the freelancing site you are working on. This will cost you around $300. In my opinion, this is not a good path to take if the contract in dispute is less than $300.

    What if The Contract in Dispute was Entered Directly With the Client?

    If the client offered you the job directly, it is a different case. The complexity of it depends on the terms you agreed upon when you entered into contract.

    Chances are, you will end up not getting paid if you were not vigilant enough from the beginning to insist that the client makes a down-payment before you start work.

    The down payment is a confirmation that the client is committed to working with you.

    In conclusion, courtesy and clarity should be a way of life in the freelancing business. If you don’t have a clear stand, prospects will take advantage of you.

    That’s it from me here.

    If you need help you create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for your mobile applications, software’s or web apps, let me know here.

    Until next time, take care.
    You can follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • Five Reasons You Should Purchase Genuine Software to use in Your Freelance Business

    As we come to the end of the year 2019, many freelancers are reflecting on how the year was and putting down their resolutions for the coming year 2020.

    One of the driving forces behind putting down the new year resolutions is the ‘misfortunes that begot us’ in the past. In most occasions, the misfortunes is as a result of our negligence to small things that contribute largely to success.

    While some believe that ‘new year resolutions’ idea is a scam concept engineered by motivational experts to grow their businesses, to an extent, its effective if you apply it your own way without following anyone’s script.

    With this said, what many freelancers don’t always realize is that 80% percent of their bad luck is as a result of using pirated software’s to accomplish their work. Now, if you read this post to the end, you will be able to figure out the 80% that I am talking about.

    man using stylus pen for touching the digital tablet screen
    Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com

    Fact is, almost all work done online relies on using a certain software to complete the job. And what does many freelancers use? Counterfeit software’s to complete the job.

    That is why I think purchasing software license should be one of your biggest 2020 resolution.

    In this blogpost, I will share with you five reasons you should prioritize purchasing licences to all the software’s that you use in all your work.

    Also, I will also tell you why this will help appreciate what you are doing more.

    Success Lies On Using Genuine Software

    I have been a victim of pirated software for years. Many IT experts who help install software’s in your computer are the main cause of this.

    You will pay them, and they will install cracked or torrent software in your computer. Owing to the trust you have on them(IT expert in your area), you don’t find out if the software is genuine or not.

    person using macbook pro
    Photo by Lukas on Pexels.com

    When it hangs and crashes, and you call the IT expert who installed it for you, they tell you that its your computer which is slow and needs some upgrade. Other will say its a virus infection.

    Here they will recommend that you purchase an antivirus that they sell. At the end of the day, you will have wasted a lot of time trying to resolve an issue with your computer. Besides, the IT expert will be making money out of your ignorance without any resolution.

    In fact, you may find yourself wanting to purchase another computer. In many years that I have been tricked into this, I have found myself in an endless loop of wanting to purchase a new computer, a new software which in turn got me no where. I mean, you will be broke spending all your money in something not related to the problem being solved.

    Learning to acquire, install and resolve issues with software’s installed in your computer you use for work is very important.

    When you do so, you will be able to quickly resolves issues before they get out of hand.

    Purchasing Genuine Software’s is Connected to Good Luck

    In the spiritual realm, good luck and success come hand in hand with gratitude. When you purchase genuine software’s, you are expressing gratitude to the genius developer who created the software.

    And whenever you do so , good things comes back to you. So if you want good luck in your freelancing business, put your house in place by getting a genuine software before going out to look for work.

    That way, you will be confident in assuring the client that they will get what you promise.

    Peace of Mind

    We all work in order to make money. When we have money enough to gather for our personal needs, our minds are at peace. This is the same with purchasing genuine software’s. You will have peace of mind.

    You will work knowing that if the system crashes regularly as a result of using the software, you will have someone experienced to help you out.

    Since the major interest of the developer is your success, they will help you resolve the issue amicably without tricking you to purchase another plugin or hardware to support it. In this case, the help you will receive will save you a lot of money.

    Quality Assurance

    In any case, before you invest your money in anything, you are aware of all the qualities they offer. Now, what I have found out over years is that pirated software’s or torrents do not deliver what the developer promises.

    cutout paper appliques of insurance inscription under umbrella
    Photo by Monstera on Pexels.com

    That is why you will be lied into thinking that your RAM is not enough, your windows is good thus your computer needs formatting and many more.

    I can tell you for sure that genuine software’s rarely hang or crashes. If it crashes and you send the crash report to the developer, in few days, you will receive a notification that there is an update. That update will resolve your problem.

    So, when I compare the performance of a torrent software and non torrent software installed in the same computer, I am amazed by the performance and quality it delivers. It’s out of this world.

    I now love and enjoy my work more.

    Show of Commitment to Your Success

    We all do what we do because we trust it will lead us to success. Now the question is, what shows you are really committed in succeeding? Having the knowledge in what you do is half the journey.

    So investing money to purchase genuine software despite knowing that you can get counterfeit software is showing full commitment.

    There is no guarantee that you will get job when you purchase genuine software, but why not purchase it anyway?

    There are many more things that comes along with owning a software licence. You will be proud to say you are a freelancer.

    My question is, do you own a genuine software that you use in your Freelancing business? Do you know if the software you are using is genuine?

    Let me know in the comments section below.

    And if you need help to edit video or develop video content for sharing on your website, let me know here.

    Until next time, take care.

    You can follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • 4 Things That Identifies High Budget Gigs

    If you were in the middle of something and you receive a message from a new prospective client; and upon checking, you realize that the client is a fortune 500 company; what will you do?

    Video summary

    Well, in this, reactions will vary depending on your experience in the freelancing business. A common reaction will be excitement. You will stop what you were doing to respond to the e-mail. It’s only the response strategy that will only vary with different freelancers.

    New freelancers will immediately respond to the e-mail without a second thought while on the other hand, seasoned and experienced freelancers will first let the excitement cool down; then analyze the message to make sure that it’s not another ‘spammer‘ claiming to be a fortune 500 company. Once he/she is sure that the mail is real, he will plan to respond.

    We all know that all fortune 500 companies have resources to put into a given project.

    And this takes me to our today’s blog-post.

    How do you identify a high and a low budget gig apart from seeing what the clients’ budget is?

    Clients Brand Name

    You will first tell by looking at the clients’ name. One way to know if you can quote high on a project is by first researching about the company requesting to work with you. Most big brands prefer to pay more for quality work.

    If you have at one time worked on a high budget gig, you will know the real value that one gain from the job.

    It’s good to note that there are some big brands that are less known so your research should not end at just searching on internet about the company.

    On the other hand, projects by new enterprises and individuals are usually low budget because they are after saving money.

    Their Project Description and deliverable’s

    clarity is the key here. High budget gigs are always unique. It is easy to tell this from the title of the job to the project description. If you are prone to shallow descriptions and click bait type of projects, you will quickly notice the difference when you come across one.

    Most freelancers will pass a project like this because of the complex language used to describe the assignment. Also, when they notice that it is a big brand, they are hesitant to bid for the fear of being rejected based on the volume of the applicants who will bid for it.

    Now, anyone who knows the value that comes by working with a fortune 500 enterprise will take the chance and bid anyway.

    Budget For Trial

    On occasions where budget of a given project is high, the client will offer to pay for trial. For example, if a project costs $500 to complete, if they see your potential, they will offer to pay you the $500 to work on the trial.

    If you compare this amount with a low budget gig, it might be 3-5 times more. And mark you, clients with low budget gigs rarely spend money on trial projects. Moreover, they will want their money back if you fail to deliver.

    High reasonable budgets are good as it motivates you as a freelancer to work and give the best that you can to win the full contract.

    Workflow Architecture

    If you get a chance and you are hired to work on one of the high budget gigs, you will realize that they have a clear workflow on what is expected and how it be will delivered.

    You job will only be to focus on the project they have assigned you to complete. You will get a lot of value by working with their team of professionals.

    These are four among other many things which include quality feedback, timelines and longevity of the project being worked on.

    Do you have a way to identify a high value gig? Let me know in the comments below.

    If you need help to create and produce professional quality videos, let me know here.

    Until next time, take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • 3 Platforms Every Freelancer Should Invest in For a Long Term

    If you you ask a full time freelancer the advantages of being one, the most common answer is ‘freedom to work anywhere.’ It is one of powerful selling points of freelancing. What most people fail to share is the solitude that comes in at your initial stages of becoming a freelancer.

    Video Summary

    This is inevitable if you skills revolve around the ‘creative and design‘ space. You will need your time alone or with people who share the same mindset as yourself. As a result, on several occasions, you will be tempted to quit because of spending most of your time alone with your computer.

    Expressing your thoughts and ideas about your journey is the best way to share your feelings with other like minded creatives across the world who are struggling with the same issues as yourself on their journey to becoming a freelancer.

    So, is that all? Well, it’s not. It will matter a lot where or the platform you use to share your feelings/advice. Before you start sharing, here are questions you should ask yourself;

    1. Is what I am sharing truly helpful to the person reading it?
    2. Is social media a good platform to share the information?
    3. What do I expect to gain from it? is it fame, appreciation e.t.c

    When you ask yourself these questions, it will inspire you to take time in putting some thought on what you are going to share. With this said, here are a few ideas on choosing the platform for sharing helpful thoughts with other fellow freelancers.

    Build a Professional Website Blog

    macbook air flower bouquet and magazines on white table
    Photo by Jess Bailey Designs on Pexels.com

    I don’t recommend setting up a free blog for many reasons. One of them is this; ‘the level of commitment you will have is close to none.’ Secondly, you will be lazy in coming up with blog ideas. Most people who own free hosted blogs publish shoddy information because they have nothing to lose.

    That is why I recommend you buy your own domain and hosting. For as low as $1/yr, you can get a custom domain on hostinger. Hosting one website will cost you around $10/yr if you go with the same host. Of-course you can invest more depending on your ability.

    Looking into this, it is very cheap to own a professional blog considering the value you will get by having a domain with your own name. When you share information on social media and point it to your domain, people will be happy to visit your website and learn more.

    Pick Two of Your Preferred Social Media Platforms

    person holding iphone showing social networks folder
    Photo by Tracy Le Blanc on Pexels.com

    I don’t recommend posting ‘the thoughts you value‘ on all social media platforms like a spammer. It will loose it’s value as people will perceive you as someone desperate for attention. For example, I am not a fan of Facebook and Instagram so I rarely share any information pertaining to freelancing there. If you want get my weekly blog-post, follow me on twitter here. But if you love Facebook or Instagram, pick one from the two.

    I share most of valuable information on twitter.

    Let your followers, identify you by what you share.

    Pick One Video Hosting Site of your Choice

    Based on popularity, you-tube is the most sought after as it comes installed on all android phones. Besides, the service is great and free. This means when people feel like they want to watch videos, the first place they visit is Youtube.

    Now, if you prefer other platforms like vimeo or wistia go for it. All content you will share will be based on your blog-post. Once you publish the video, embed it on your blog and share it on social media. Don’t forget to paste a link to your blog in the description area of your video post. This one you back-linking and getting found by search engines.

    Important Note

    While planning and strategizing on building your online presence, its worth checking if the name you choose for your brand is available anywhere online. You can do this on Namechk.com for free. Namechk tool is capable of checking the availability of the username you choose in over 30 domains and more than 90 social media accounts.

    Finally as You Grow Your Blog – Capture Leads

    brown wooden arrow signed
    Photo by Jens Johnsson on Pexels.com

    If you don’t know what leads are, I will tell you in a moment. Let’s say someone visits your blog and they enjoy reading what you share and will want more of it, how will they get it?

    One way is bookmarking your blog. But often times, we rarely visit the sites we have bookmarked on our browser.
    That’s is why having a form on your blog where they can enter their name and e-mail is important.
    This way, you can send an e-mail each time you publish a new blog-post.

    You will be surprised on speed at which your audience will grow. Keep sharing well crafted thoughts and ideas with the world. You never know, one of the readers maybe your next customer.

    It’s ok if no one comments on your posts. Point is, you have done your part. Someone somewhere in need of the same information will find it.

    And that is it from me here.

    If you need help you create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for software’s, mobile apps and web applications, let me know here.
    alternatively, you can send me an e-mail to connect@cheptiony.com

    Until next time, bye bye and take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • Creative Rights Every Freelancer Should Know and How Much to Charge

    When it comes to user rights, not every freelancer know much about them leave alone charging clients for the same. It’s ok to use ‘creative user rights‘ as a marketing tool when you are a newbie in the Freelance marketplace. I mean, you can get people buying from you if you are giving them ‘rights‘ to use your work as a discount.

    Watch Video

    But with time, once you have established yourself, you can introduce a fee for rights to use your work. Again, not every person you serve know or understand anything about rights.

    That is why you need to understand the two common rights that every freelance creative in the audio and visual business should know. This same rights apply to graphics design works as well.

    Commercial Rights

    When you grant your client commercial rights, you allow them to use the audio, video or design you created to market and promote their business, product, or service. They can use it anywhere they choose so long as it is not paid for.

    As a client, when you purchase Commercial Rights; in addition to the basic rights, the Seller grants you the license to use the work they produced for any corporate, promotional and non-broadcast purposes.

    Corporate, promotional and non-broadcast purposes means any business related use for the creation of, or to promote a for-product profit or service.

    This is with the exception of paid marketing channels i.e Explainer videos posted to company websites, social networks or email campaigns, audiobooks, podcast intros, and strictly excludes any illegal, immoral or defamatory purpose. 

    This is the next level of rights transfer. This is for the Buyer who chooses to use the video or VO recording to promote their product/service for profit but with limited public reach.

    Information source: Fiverr Forums

    Full Broadcast Rights

    According to wikipedia, Broadcasting rights are rights which a broadcasting platforms negotiates with a seller with a commercial concern.

    retro radio tape recorder in workshop
    Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

    In short, this is the use of ‘work’ produced to promote product or services in a paid platform. It doesn’t matter if the platform is online or offline so long as it is paid for, the buyer need broadcast rights.

    By purchasing a Full Broadcast Rights (Buy-Out) with your order, the Seller grants you with a license for full broadcasting, which includes internet, radio, and TV “paid channels” including (by way of example): television commercials, radio commercials, internet radio, and music/video streaming platforms, and strictly excludes any illegal, immoral or defamatory purpose. 

    This is for companies who profit from the largest type of public reach.

    Information source: Fiverr Forums

    Why Learning about ‘copyright(s)’ is Important to All Creatives

    With above information in mind, you will be well informed and you will be in a better position to educate and inform your clients on why they are paying for the rights ownership separately.

    On the other hand, you can also use it to market yourself. e.g You can inform your client that you have commercial rights as a package. Then tell them that you will give them the rights for free on their first order and charge them for the proceeding orders.

    This can be another way of growing your income. When you sell commercial rights on top of basic rights, you will be way much better financially.

    How Much Should You Charge?

    Well, it relies on how much you charge for the service you offer. For example, if you charge $50 per Minute of a video produced or $50 per project, it will be fine to charge the same amount for commercial rights and full broadcast rights.

    Note: When charging, have each right(s) priced separately. i.e Commercial rights $50 and Full Broadcast rights $50. This way, if a clients wants both, he/she can purchase them and you will make more from it.

    Also, it is important to note that the rights costs are fixed. This means that if you charge $50 per minute and someone orders a production that runs for 5 Mins, you will charge them the same amount of $50.

    I have seen people charge 2x the amount they charged for the service they offer. For this to work, you must be very creative and convincing to a buyer. When introducing the rights to them, tell them how having the rights will give them peace of mind.

    You can do further research on this topic to learn and understand more. Also seeing the kind of opportunities it presents.

    And that’s it from me today.

    Until next time, bye bye and take care.

    If you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for your website, software or app let me know here.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • How to Deal With Offline Clients Who go For Months or Years Without Paying

    It’s exciting when you hear how people start as freelancers then turn their experience into something beyond just freelancing- an online business enterprise. The beauty about the process is – you never know when it happens because you are having fun while at it.

    Video Summary Part 1

    That’s why if you are freelancer, you should be proud of yourself and what you are doing. It takes courage to commit freelancing as a full time job. In Africa, people will not take you serious if you tell them you are a full time freelancer and you are not attached to any company. Its really hard to explain to everyone what Freelancing is especially to the old school folks aka industrial age guys.

    And this takes me to my point of the today’s blog-posts – dealing with offline clients. In many occasions, you will manage to convince the ‘old school’ folks to give you business by showing them the portfolio of the services that you are providing.

    And when they buy your idea, you carry out the business offline.

    Why You Decide to Handle Their Offers Offline

    Owing to their unwillingness to take time to understand how the online freelance economy works, you offer to serve them offline since they are ready to give you business. Unlike the online platforms where someone funds the escrow before the contract- with the offline ecosystem, you work on a written signed and stamped L.P.O (local purchase order) from the company you are working for. This confirms that you have order with the company you are working with.

    What Makes People Excited to Work on Offline Projects

    There are many reasons to this. One of the the top reasons is because of the budget involved. Usually, offline projects pays 2-3 times the amount you could have received online from a Freelancing site. The risks are less when the project is completed offline and two parties know each other.

    Another reason is – direct human contact. You know where the company offices are and you can go there personally in case there is a payment delay and vice versa.

    The problem comes when people overlook the downside of this type of projects or contracts which is the risky part.

    What People Overlook

    First thing is, the time it takes for one to receive payment after completing the contract. This is not determined when you start the job-you just use estimates. Even if you complete the job to satisfaction, you will still need to give the company a grace period of 30 days to process your payment. The 30 days may extend to even 3 months or 1 year if its a government entity you are dealing with.


    On the other hand, if you are dealing with an individual, then that will depend of many things. Individuals are the most difficult ones. They may take many months or years before they pay you. I have a client who has taken 6 years before coming to take their wedding DVD.

    You can imagine, if 90% percent of the clients you serve don’t pay you on time, how will you survive? It’s really hard. You have bills to pay and new projects to finance.

    Dealing with clients indebted to you

    Video Review

    If it’s a government agency

    First things first, if it’s a government agency, the furthest you can go is writing notification letters to procurement departments to look into your payments as a priority. Make sure you have followed the right procurement procedures like writing a delivery note, and submitting the invoice for your payment to be processed. Sometimes, the approval process is long in some arms of government because of security measures.

    If it’s a private company

    If it’s a private company or an individual, propose to have a non-disclosure contract to be signed by both parties at the beginning of the contract.

    This way, you can have clauses within the contract that defines how you will be paid. You can propose to be paid after certain milestones have been reached.

    Most private companies are flexible when it comes to making payments as long as you have completed work to satisfaction. But an N.D.A is very important to have in handy for reference when requesting for payments.

    Other Approaches to Get you Payment After a Long Duration time – more than 6 months

    1. Don’t get angry. Anger will not get you anywhere unless it’s rightly directed. For example, you cannot start threatening a government Agency or a company because you are desperate for money. If you have to do it, have a plan so that sounds professional.
    2. Give them a window period for them to settle your payment – First, do this on e-mail or physical signed letter then follow it up with a phone call to make them take action on your request. Be as professional in your conversation as you can.
    3. For the cases where you did not deliver final project files – Use them as a hook to demand for payment. If say after 1 year, the client finds an urgency of using the project you completed and starts pressuring you to deliver- ask them to pay you first. That’s the only way you will get paid by this type of client.
    4. Destroy the files or delete them from your system but first inform your client 30 days prior. This way, if you take action, they will be aware of it.
    5. Put a penalty on projects not paid for and collected within your stipulated duration. For instance, you may say – if you don’t pick your project within the next 3 months, it will attract a penalty of 10% every month of the cost of the project.

    This is an issue that requires a lot of creative approach. Otherwise, you will not be paid and you will fall into a lot of debt. Always stay positive and use positive language always.

    And that’s it from me.

    Until next time, bye bye and take care. And if you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast videos, let me know here.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • How to Work With Talented Freelancers With Poor Communication

    We are all wired to look for the best in everything- so long we can afford to pay for it. We feel bad when we fail to find the best or when we are tricked to believe its best when it isn’t.

    Video Summary of the Blogpost

    For instance, let’s say you are shopping on Ebay or Amazon for a good lapel microphone for your DSLR camera with some specific features and you find one within you price range. The packaging and pictures of the product looks good and you are convinced to buy it. The product is shipped to you.

    When you un-box and try it out, the sound it captures is horrible and has some hissing and pops. Alternatively, it may be perfect but not compatible with your DSLR camera as seller claimed online. What do you do?

    working macbook computer keyboard
    Photo by Negative Space on Pexels.com

    The only option you will have in this case is shipping the product back to the seller. While you are guaranteed to get your money back, you will have wasted your time and lost money in the process.

    Such experiences are very common In the Freelancing world but in a different way. A huge percentage of the Freelancing business -is service driven- and relies much on communication. If one of the parties involved in a project fails to communicate, the whole process is delayed and may result in many inconveniences especially when you are working on a deadline.

    In this blog-post, I share how to handle Freelancers with poor communication. If you are a freelancer and is dealing with a client with poor communication, please go and read this blog-post.

    So, how do you deal with good freelancers with poor communication? Well it depends. If you have posted a job and haven’t already hired, here is what I suggest you do in order to hire someone who will not let you down at the middle of the project with poor communication;

    Set your expectations

    In your post, be very clear on what you expect from the freelancer. What will help you catch a freelancer with poor communication is their response to your expectations when bidding. Put the following as your most important expectations from applicants; timeline, cost, revisions and working hours. i.e You can say you are looking for someone who works in your time zone for easy flow of communication.

    Remove applications which does not address the questions on your expectations

    If your offer is good and resonates with most freelancers, you will receive many applications. You will realize that most applications are generic. Sift through them and remove/decline applications which does not address your request. This alone will leave you with 10% of the applicants.

    Test their communication promptness

    Send them a message and ask them simple questions. See how fast they respond. Also, if they only answer your questions but does not ask any questions or clarification on your project, it means that the freelancer is after money than your project.

    Hire the freelancer who convinces you by show of their honest communication

    Many freelancers will pretend to work on weekends if you ask them only to just to please you. But a honest freelancer will tell you they don’t work on weekends and it will be up to you to hire them or not.

    Now, if you have already hired the best freelancer, and now you are finding it difficult to work with them because they are now responding late to your comments or request, here are the steps I recommend you follow to resolve it.

    Give yourself sometime to analyze why they are not responding on time

    Some freelancers will promptly communicate at the beginning of a project but relaxes after working with them for sometime. Their reasons maybe genuine while others are not. For example, a genuine reason maybe sickness or travelling. Them communicating upfront is professional.

    Pressure them to deliver within a timeline

    If the freelancer is swamped up with work, they will honestly tell you they will not. This means that their priority on your project is no longer their concern. This way, you can decide to hire someone else who will work on your terms.

    Analyze how you feel when they delay to communicate

    This is very important. The essence of starting any business endeavor is to get more work done and have freedom and happiness. If you are not feeling good, hire someone else immediately. Make sure you mutually end the contract with the freelancer and give them credit where they deserve.

    Use the experience to hire your next freelancer

    When scouting for your next freelancer, put in practice your experience while sifting through the many applicants. This way, you will be in a position to find the best freelancer.

    And that’s it from me today. And as they say, experience is the best teacher. Use your experience to hire the best freelancer who meets your demand. Don’t forget be kind and reasonable to each other. Let’s make internet safe and reliable market place to do business.

    And if you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for mobile apps, websites and software’s let me know here.

    Until next time, bye and take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • How to Work and Hire at the Same time as a Freelancer

    Many freelancers leave money on the table because they are not able to handle additional tasks proposed to them by their existing clients. Reason? Most of them are worried that they will fail to deliver because they lack the desired skills to do the job. Moreover, they are afraid to hire their fellow freelancers to do the job.

    Watch the video highlight

    But if you think of this and look at it with an entrepreneurial mindset, nothing is impossible. Its just up to the Freelancer to negotiate good terms with the client then find a skilled freelancer providing the service to do the job.

    So how do you do this without violating the terms of your Freelance service provider ? Well first, you need to read and understand the terms of service for each site you are in. The good news is, you can hire and work at the same time using one freelancing account.

    You are free to choose the platform to hire the freelancer. With this said, here are four important things to look at when evaluating the right site to hire on.

    Business model of the Freelancing site

    Currently, there are many online freelancing sites out there. The most common ones which have been in the market for a long time are Upwork, Fiverr, Peopleperhour, Freelancer and guru. All of them share a common goal but their business models differ making each one of them stand out in their way. Almost every freelancer is enrolled in 2 or more of these sites. Take your time to analyze and evaluate a popular site that you like.

    Modes of payment

    The payment method is how you will pay the freelancer you hire. Payment methods vary from country to country. Identifying a site that accepts payments through the method that you use is very important. Also, it will take you less time to verify it.

    Payment protection

    Ensure that the site offers escrow services so that you can pay the freelancer when you are happy with the delivery. Payment protection goes beyond escrow. When you release the payment, the site holds it for up to 5 days before the freelancer can withdraw it to their bank.

    Customer service

    Their customer service needs to be good and available during working hours from Monday to Friday. This way, when you need them they will be there to help.

    With this information at your fingertips, it will be easier to negotiate for a good rate. Here are the steps to take in order to smoothly hire someone else to do the job and make a profit from it.

    NOTE: Someone you have worked for already have trust in you based on the work you delivered to them. It means that whichever price you quote to them will be acceptable. Take time to break down your budget and make it easy for them to assign you the work.

    Examine the project requirements first from the client

    See if the project needs breaking it down into portions and assigning different freelancers to complete it. Reach out to freelancers and find out their rates. Use their pricing to provide cost estimates to the client. Include your fees for managing the project which at the end will be your profit.

    Always go for the best freelancer with low price

    Focus on newbie freelancers who have the skills and are looking to build their profile. Help them by hiring. Give them feedback that will help perfect their skills. This way, you will be helping to better the freelancing community while making money at the same time.

    Ask for a down payment to facilitate the hiring

    This only works if you have a good relationship with the client who is assigning you the project. Just explain to them why you need the payment and be honest.

    Put yourself in the shoe of a client

    Don’t let the freelancer you hire have a feeling that you are a freelancer also. Be keen and demand for the best. Also thoroughly review the work they submit before sharing it with your client.

    Learn from your first hiring experience

    Perfect your hiring based on your first experience. With time, you will find that its easy to juggle between the two positions -as a freelancer and client.

    If you follow these tips, your experience hiring a fellow freelancer will be fruitful. Share any additional tips if you have in the comments are below.

    That’s all from me today.

    If you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for software’s and apps let me know here.

    Until next time, bye bye and take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony

  • How to Differentiate Between Serious Clients and ‘Time Killers’

    These two type of clients have a role they play in the internet business space. If you are a part-time or full time Freelancer, you have met one of them or if not, you are yet to meet them when looking for gigs.

    Watch video to learn more

    So, who is a serious client and who is a time killer? It’s really harder to differentiate the two because both of them will definitely hire and pay you. Most seasoned Freelancers with experience and those who have built a reputation online are the ones who can differentiate the two type of clients.

    Having worked online for now close to 10 years, here is my definition of ‘serious client’ and ‘time killers’;

    Serious Client

    Has defined goals from the time they contact a freelancer. They have outlined instructions on how their project should be completed. They also have a set standard of quality to be met by the Freelancer. At the beginning, their demands may be intimidating and the freelancer will be tempted to walk away but at the end, if you get a chance to work with them, the experience will be worth it.

    Time Killers

    They have a rough idea of what they want and need guidance from an expert in the field they are hiring on. They only have one problem, they are not open enough to be guided. Also, they are not ready hire yet. If you are a serious Freelancer, you will find yourself doing a lot of things beforehand hoping to make the client commit.

    Here are 8 things that differentiates the two.

    Serious Client Time Killer
    Have clearly written down their requirements before contacting a freelancer for work. They just have a rough idea of what they want and expects a freelancer to guide them towards ‘what they really want.’
    They are sure that what they want will work for them thus they commit/hire faster.They are 50/50 and thus they fear to commit. They rely on conviction from the freelancer.
    To show their level of seriousness, they hire a number of Freelancers and pay for a ‘test’ project. They ask for Free tests.
    They address freelancers by their names. They just write ‘hi’ at the beginning of the mails despite knowing the Freelancers name.
    They set timelines and require a Freelancer to commit to it before they hire them. They don’t have any timelines. In most occasions, Freelancers are the ones setting the timelines in order to push them to pay.
    They provide detailed easy to follow feedback once the project is completed. They give shallow feedback which is more generalized. The Freelancer hired is forced to ask them for more clarification.
    They are Flexible on Budget. e.g If there is an additional cost, they are ready to meet. They are are always negotiating. They never accept additional cost if it arises later.
    Once they get what they were looking for, they are happy. They are never happy with the work you deliver to them. They are picky.
    Table comparison between serious clients vs Time killer clients

    These are common differences. There are many more. Who would you like to work with between the two?

    If you enjoyed reading this blog-post, let me know in the comments section below. Also, subscribe to my blog-post to for updates.

    And if you need help to create and produce professional screen-cast video tutorials for your software, app or website, let me know here.
    Until next time. Bye bye and take care.

    Follow me on twitter @cheptiony.