Allie is a Raleigh-based freelancer with 10+ years of experience, ranging from IT consulting to social media management. While working for a consulting firm, Allie started a life and style blog, Allie Wears which sparked her creativity and interest in helping others achieve success online. Since moving to the area in 2018, she has used her skills and experience in business, technology and blogging to serve Raleigh-Durham businesses.
Read how she got into freelancing and her perspective on freelancing below!
How long have you been freelancing?
I started freelance writing in 2018 to make some extra money before I made the move from California to Raleigh. Once I moved to Raleigh, I became a part-time contractor which gave me the flexibility to freelance more, taking on several clients and projects that range from IT consulting to social media management.
What do you do? Share your work history and skills.
I have 10 years of experience as a Business and Technology Consultant, working specifically with clients in the retail industry. As a consultant, I define and deliver innovative technology solutions and business processes to support consumer facing websites, platforms and applications. While I was kickstarting my consulting career, I started a life and style blog, Allie Wears, that has now turned into a brand and business. I really enjoy the creative side of blogging, such as writing blog posts, developing websites, creating engaging content, and managing social media. Upon moving to Raleigh, I decided to offer these types of services to local businesses… and my freelance journey began!
What is your “exit” story? Why did you decide to freelance?
Thankfully, I had no choice.. in the best way possible. When I moved to Raleigh, my company said I could no longer stay on as a full-time employee, but they’d be happy to hire me on a per project basis. Contracting part-time gives me the flexibility to take on freelance work, so I joined Uncompany to help me bring on additional clients.
Share how freelancing has been great and/or how it has been hard. (positives vs. painpoints)
Freelancing can be hard (and stressful!) if you do not have your ducks in a row. For me, I like to map out the tasks, the deliverables, and the timeline to ensure everything is accounted for. I want to deliver a project that I am proud of and not one that I threw together the night before.
What are some things you wish you would have known when you started out?
It is crucial to have an efficient process to track expenses, invoices and payments. Take the time to input data each day, like the hours you worked on a project or an expense towards your business. Plus, it makes tax season a breeze.
What is some advice you would share with soon-to-be or wish-to-be freelancers?
For future freelancers, I would suggest streamlining the applications you use with your clients. The less applications you need to learn and manage, the better. For example, if a client wants to communicate with you, suggest a platform you already use, like Slack. The majority of businesses, both small and large, already use Slack as a collaborative software so no need to download and/or familiarize yourself with another app.
What is some advice you would share with clients on how to best work with freelancers?
My advice for clients working with freelancers is: have some faith! It can be scary hiring someone who you have never worked with before to step in and deliver but, we want to impress you just as much as you want us to.
What are your favorite tools/apps/platforms?
Slack for communicating and collaborating; Later for social media management; Bonsai for invoicing and time tracking.
You can learn more about Allie and follow her blog Allie Wears here!