Hiring a freelance market researcher can be a cost-effective way to get specialized expertise or additional capacity for your projects without increasing overhead. And these days, who isn’t looking at their budgets carefully? However, finding the right freelancer who meets, or better still exceeds, your expectations can be risky. Like any other strategic decision a team leader makes, there are always pros and cons. So, let’s take a frank look at six things to know before hiring a market research freelancer.
- There is a veritable feast of research talent available by the hour, offering you, as the client, a wide array of options. There’s no need to settle for second best; with a bit of effort, you can find researchers who possess the precise methodologies, analysis techniques, industry-specific knowledge, and software tool expertise you may be seeking. Whether you require qualitative or quantitative research, concept testing or segmentation, text coding or MaxDiff, there are freelancers available with the combination you seek.
- An experienced freelancer can enhance research design and analysis. While you may also be an expert, be open to the freelancer’s recommendations and expertise. Let them know this type of collaboration is welcome, and you may very well find that they suggest alternatives or best practices that will enhance your project’s success.
- Work window mismatches between the freelancer and client can derail projects. Freelancers often juggle multiple clients, so it’s essential to confirm their availability before work starts. Ensure they have the capacity to dedicate the necessary time to your project work within your desired timeline. One of the things we do to mitigate schedule risks is that we only work with full-time freelancers; we do not work with moonlighters.
- Extended payment terms create cash flow burdens for freelancers. If your company requires extended payment terms, such as 60 days or more, this can create cash flow challenges for the freelancer. Discuss payment terms early on and consider offering more favorable terms to attract and retain top talent. In our Rent-a-Researcher service, freelancers who work with our clients are paid every two weeks during their engagements, even if our client is paying on longer terms. We consider this an important service we provide to our freelancers.
- Professional style mismatches can undermine an otherwise skilled freelancer’s value. It happens; a technically qualified freelancer does not necessarily have the professional style, communication skills, or level of collaboration you may prefer. It can be easy to get excited when you find that market research freelancer with the exact skills you want, but if they are unable to effectively communicate findings or adequately collaborate with your team, it can lead to disaster. As a staffing agency, this is something we must assess and support too. For example, freelancers in our Junior Researcher program are all required to participate in a Zoom onboarding call when they first join our program so we can coach them on business communications best practices
- Poorly vetted freelancers can waste time and money, even if they are well-intentioned. Sometimes people just don’t know what they don’t know. We once had a staffing client call us for a rush gig because the freelancer, they hired through an unvetted gig site had claimed to be a survey researcher with advanced SPSS expertise; but once work started, the client found out the freelancer didn’t know the basics of how to clean and weigh data! When hiring freelancers directly (versus using a staffing service), time must be spent to verify credentials and expertise. For “hard” skills like data analysis, a test or expert interview is highly recommended. For example, we have a standard set of interview questions for assessing a researcher’s factual knowledge about quantitative data analysis. When asked during a real-time interview, it quickly becomes apparent if they cannot answer the questions.
Helping Your New Market Research Freelancer Succeed
Once you hire that , be sure to start strong. Here’s a tip that, if executed completely, just about guarantees the project will go well:
The first time you are working with a new-to-you freelancer, give them actual examples of similar work your team has done or received before. The examples could be “good examples” (such as a finished research report that had a style and format you liked), or a “bad” one (such as a questionnaire that was too onerous for your target populations). While you will always onboard your freelancer with verbal or even written descriptions about your standards and specifications, there is nothing like seeing an actual example to reduce the risk of misunderstanding. “see it to believe understand it".
Whether you need help for an hour, a day, or an entire project, we can match you with a qualified market researcher from our pool of 150+ fully vetted Research Rockstars. Our Rent-a-Researcher clients enjoy the flexibility of temporarily extending their staff with the exact skills they need, for as long as they need. To learn how we can help you manage your budget, visit us. Thanks!
