Freelance Writing Business Outsourcing and the Value Add

It’s always interesting to me when I talk to someone who’s not in small business about the freelance writing business. I often also forget just how different the image that most folks have of a “writer” is from what we do. There are so many aspects to the freelance writing business that the average person doesn’t expect that it’s always fun to watch the looks of surprise when I describe how my business works.

Recently, I had a discussion with an old friend about outsourcing. Now, I’ve said it here before: I firmly believe that the freelance writing business that wants to truly be successful will most likely, at some point or another, need to outsource. It’s a normal and natural part of growing this kind of business. It isn’t unique to our business, either. It’s pretty common in small business. It’s akin to a plumber hiring a plumber’s assistant on a per diem basis.

Anyways, this friend asked if I’d ever been hired to write something for someone, only to find out later that my client wasn’t the end client. In other words, he wanted to know if the person or business that needed my copy hired me directly or if there was another layer of writer or business in between – a “middleman” of sorts.

I explained that I absolutely had done business this way, and that it’s normal and natural. He was a little bit surprised that other folks were “taking a cut” of the profits. He seemed to think I should be indignant that someone else was getting a share of my money.

Now, I’ve never felt that way. It’s never bothered me to work for a “middleman” or to hire someone else to do writing for one of my clients. Why? Because I understand something about this process. I understand that each stage along the way adds value to the product.

For example, let’s say I have a contractor who writes an article for me for $20. It takes him 30 minutes to write the article, and he’s happy to receive that wage.

When he turns the article in, I spend a few minutes (we’ll say 5-10) to proofread and edit the copy, make sure it meets my client’s specifications and, in some cases, make improvements. I then charge the client $30 for the article, and she’s happy to pay it.

Have I unfairly made a profit at my contractor’s expense? Of course not. I’ve paid him the same or more than he’s getting from other clients. Am I making more money (per hour) on the work than he is? Arguably, I’m not. I have more overhead into that client – I landed the client, I handle customer service issues, I have advertising expenses that my contractor doesn’t.

What’s my point here? Just that there’s more to the outsourcing process than the raw numbers. That lesson is important both for folks that ask you about the outsourcing aspect of your business, as well as for you when you determine how much you need to make on any given outsourced gig.