With more companies turning to a remote workforce to save costs and secure their growth, demand is likely to increase for freelancers and contractors.
This is good news across the board, as working remotely can prove to have higher productivity, which generates efficiency for the company and flexibility for the freelancer.
But freelance work has always been overshadowed by some concern: a sense of insecurity as to how long the job will last, the lack of benefits an employee has access to, and, of course, not knowing if you will get paid in time — or if you will get paid at all!
Luckily, there are a few things you can do to minimize payment delays and the risk of missing payments. Below are our tips.
1. Choose the right payment method
As a freelancer, you can get paid in a variety of ways, from direct funds transfer to freelancing platforms or accounting software that have built-in payment options.
It all depends on how you choose to work — if you will be signing a contract directly with your client(s) or will prefer to use a third-party platform (such as Upwork or Fiverr, for example).
If the former, there are a few things to keep in mind when deciding on a payment method:
- Availability
Make sure the method you choose is easily available in yours and your clients’ countries — if you will be working with companies outside your country.
This avoids your client(s) having to go to extra lengths or through complicated procedures like opening new accounts or issuing new cards to send your payment.
Methods such as bank transfers or PayPal are usually globally available and secure if you’re willing to accept some downsides (such as long processing times and high costs).
Fin.do’s instant money transfer platform works by linking existing cards into the app, making it easy to send and receive money using any preferred payment method, without having to top up an account or open a new one.
- Fees
Transfer fees are one of the most crucial aspects to factor in — especially since you’ll most likely be the one footing the bill!
Do plenty of research to understand how transfer fees work, especially if you will be paid frequently or if you anticipate to invoice relatively small amounts of money. A bank transfer might not be your best choice, so take a look into payment apps and platforms that offer lower fees.
- Currency exchange
The good thing about freelancing is that you can work with clients all around the world. When it comes to payment, however, this can complicate things.
If you and your client have different local currencies, then you stand to lose quite a lot on foreign currency exchange — depending on the currencies, location, and payment method used.
Fin.do money transfer app, for instance, performs direct currency conversion between more than 150 currencies, meaning you get the best exchange rate between any two supported currencies, with no additional fees or double currency conversion costs.
- Transfer time
When you work on a project or hourly basis, getting paid fast is of the essence. Traditional payment methods may take days to complete a transfer — which may not sound long, but when you think about invoice verification and approval, or delays caused by lengthy payment procedures, it all adds to the cost and insecurity.
The good news is, the availability of instant payment solutions is on the rise. They process payment in near real-time, which means that you can receive your payment the same day it has been initiated by the client. And with Fin.do, this applies even when your transfer comes from across the border.
2. What if you have limited options?
If you work and get paid through a third-party platform such as Upwork, some of your ‘getting paid’ concerns will easily fade, because your payment will be safely held in an escrow and released periodically.
The downsides, however, are that it will take a relatively long time for your money to be released, and you are likely going to get paid in USD no matter your local currency (causing you to lose on currency conversion).
Other restrictions can apply, such as you might only be able to withdraw your money to a standard option such as a PayPal or bank account, which makes the process longer and costs even higher.
On the good side, if you hold cards in more than one currency, you can use a low-fee money transfer app to then exchange money from the account you got paid in to the one you want to use or withdraw money from. Fin.do allows this with no currency exchange fees.
3. A few extra-tips
Of course, freelancing successfully and without any hurdles is not entirely under your control. Be careful when selecting the companies you work with, and try to set best practices that will help the relationship go on smoothly.
For example, use a tracking/invoicing system so that both you and the client(s) can constantly have visibility (and accountability!) of what is being done.
Also, invoicing more frequently (for example twice a month) can minimize the risk of things going south and losing an entire month’s worth of work.
Lastly, remember: try and trust will move mountains!
If you haven’t decided on the best way to get paid reliably by your clients, give Fin.do a try.
Fin.do enables instant transfers across more than 150 currencies, with no currency exchange fees, and with full transparency.
