Freelancing marketplaces are jumping up to make recruitment as simple and as quick as purchasing a cup of coffee. The workforce is changing as more individuals swap the security of a 9-to-5 work for the flexibility of freelancing. The independent economy is developing continuously, and with the current buoyancy in tech, the trend will undoubtedly develop more in the coming years.
Twenty to thirty-year-old and UK workforce are confronting substantial lifestyle changes, for example, parenthood, or approaching retirement, and are searching for increasingly adaptable and engaging ways to work. Surprisingly, freelance income contributes almost 5% of the country's GDP, or around $1 trillion. According to this prediction, one out of every two of us working in professional administrations will be freelancing in the following five years. We will deliver our service as a freelancer, and we will need to look for some employment for ourselves as per our aptitudes and skills. Freelancers are pervasive in a wide range of sectors, from scholars and artists to science and engineering professionals.
So, why the number of freelancers are increasing ?
Some of the factors like independence, freedom to choose the kind of work, the people with whom they want to work and better financial prospects are the main reasons behind the increase in freelancers. Another key driving force is flexibility in working hours. Being a freelancer, you can work in a flexible schedule and take a day off whenever you want.
The primary reason why freelancing is so liberating is that it happens remotely. Along with that, the increasing popularity and features of freelancing software and tools such as Slack, Trello, Buffer, Dropbox, and Google Docs, has made freelancing easier than ever before. Since the majority of the employers are now hiring freelance individuals and the availability of freelancing platforms is increasing, it has become easier for freelancers to find work. Hence, more and more freelancers are taking their careers full-time.
As a freelancer, you are mostly helpless before your clients. From paying your bills late to making you mental with second ago demands, the organizations that hire you can influence your overall satisfaction with the freelance business.
To deal with the above-mentioned issues and make the most out of freelancing, here are 25+ easy to use tools for freelancers.
Here are some of the commonly faced problems among freelancers-
Micromanaging Clients
As a freelancer, you need to understand what your clients are looking for before hiring you. Nonetheless, that doesn't mean you need the individual who employs you investigating your shoulder until the task is complete. Clients who micromanage works can leave freelancers feeling stressed and disappointed and keep them from doing their best work. Also, micromanaging destroys a lot of time and kills productivity of individual.
Helpless Communication
If your client can't or won't speak with you, you're likely in for a rocky street. This issue is particularly common among organizations that aren't accustomed to working with freelancers. Mostly, these organizations forget that you are absent in the workplace for important meetings and discussions and probably won't try to circle you in on developments. The chances of error increase when there is a lack of communication.
Late Payment
It's quite upsetting for freelancers to experience a client who pays late or doesn't pay. Most of the time clients pay late because of fundamental confusion or other problems. Notwithstanding, different clients disregard to pay since they do not have the monetary assets to do as such. Some of the clients even think that you will be tired of asking and go away finally. The late payments or NO payment from clients results in a disturbance in workflow and financial issues later.
Filing taxes
Filing taxes correctly is one of the biggest nightmares of freelancers. The battle gets significantly complicated for new freelancers who don't know about their one of a kind tax regulation. It's challenging to deal with your terms like a hefty tax bill from the IRS.
Obscure Requests
Ambiguous assignments don't only burn through freelancer's time; they additionally cost clients more money over a long period. The vast majority of freelancers experience clients who don't know what they exactly need from a project. Sometimes, clients aren't sure of their needs and objectives, and they expect you to identify them. In result, freelancers end up wasting their valuable time in a single project.
Here is the list of 21+ software for the freelancers that can make freelancer's life easier-
Nifty has become the best tools for freelancers to remember in this competitive market of project management tool. It's a software that offers users a diverse range of features that assist both team communication and managing projects. It's a perfect software for business looking to invest in an affordable solution to enhance the productivity of a small team.
Key Features
Invoice Ninja
Invoice Ninja is an open-source platform for managing payment and get paid. It's a the best tools for freelancers to simplify the way they manage invoices , streamline the payment process and get paid. Users can integrate Invoice Ninja with more than 50 payment gateways and channels like Braintree, WePay PayPal, Stripe, Braintree and many more. These great integrations make it easy for clients to pay via their preferred payment gateway that ensures that users get paid in the simplest way possible.
Key features
Hive is a cloud-based project management platform that can easily cater to offering a plethora of features that include file sharing, automated task handling and chat. This project management software is useful tool for freelancers that enables you to create, classify and assign tasks for any member of the project team along with the due date and attached files. This great tool also tracks project status and modify products and variables, and view everything like Kanban dashboard.
Key features
- It offers flexible projects, action templates,
- action cards, action list
- You can create Forms
- Even Facilitates chat and collaboration
- In-built time tracking and resourcing
- Live Project tracking and Gantt chart
- Enables you to do group communication
- Get updated automatically
- Files & folders
- Simplify workflow
- Import tasks and ease integrations
Intheloop.io
Loop email provides a platform to optimize your emails, manage documents and automate the entire workflow for freelance and small business. Using loop email, you can even collaborate with your team members just like you're sitting next to each other. You can share your emails with the team and discuss them right away before replying to the customer. Thus. Your mailbox will not get overflowed with duplicated threads and lost emails.
Being one of the most reliable and all-in-one freelancer apps is going to help you move at a faster pace and keep everything streamlined. This tool acts as a collaboration hub and connects your team to chat, exchange files, and manage shared email inboxes. This is a great tool for freelancers to generate reports to identify blind spots and workflows to measure the performance of your team and collaborate with clients. You can even use the free tool with limited features for managing your freelance work.
Key features
Plutio is one of the most robust and simple tools for freelancers and small businesses. It is is a reliable tool for managing the company that empowers users with managing tasks, work closely with clients, and collaborate with your team all from one platform. The device is famous as a reliable productivity solution that freelancers find it sorted out and simple to use.
Plutio is outstanding among other business management tool for freelancers, social media managers and startups. This tool is among the best freelancer programs that offer task layouts, checklists, agendas, time following, project templates, multiple payment techniques, automation and multilingual support in one place.
Key features
Stuffed with the great features and utilized by over 600,000 freelance business everywhere throughout the world, Shopify gives tools explicitly designed for offline retail. It is one of the best software for e-commerce solution in the market today. It's store management features help you keep track of content detailing and analysis, managing staff, order history, and client handling. You will get a lot of well-established marketing campaigns and excellent user engagement with the Shopify platform.
Key features
- You can easily set up a fast, beautiful and responsive store
- You don't need to worry about the technical glitches, running and maintaining an online store
- Your servers are automatically secure and updated with the latest software.
- Availability of 24/7 customer support
- The software automatically recover abandoned carts
- Software is equipped with powerful marketing and report making features.
- Easy to use tool for freelancers to run secure your payment
- You can buy a Shopify Advanced plan for more useful features.
Time Doctor
Time Doctor is an adaptable solution and one of the most affordable tools for freelancers that gives consistent integration support to 35 CRM and project management platforms. These platforms include Zoho, Teamwork, Freshdesk, and Asana. There's an API accessible too that allows the combination of other software to the framework.
There's even an application for Android and iPhone that gives a part of the desktop version's capacity. It permits time tracking even when you are away from computers and clients can get to their task list through their phone while on the go. They can also make a few reports in a hurry when essential.
This one is one of the best tools for freelancers that accompanies a silent and intuitive adaptation that fits differing freelance business types. The application additionally enables the users to focus by cautioning them when they do non-work related activities while working hours. Moreover, the product allows the client of the users to access framework to check precisely the reports and screen captures of the work given by them.
Key features
- You can track accurate time
- You can easily integrate the software with various project management software and API
- You can evaluate the productivity of employees
- You can breakdown the tasks according to time
- You can provide client access
- The software offers a flexible configuration
- You can generate report and analytics
- You can take screenshot and recording
- You can add payroll feature
- It's GPS tracking feature help you know the location
- Your data is encrypted and All Rights Reserved
- The software is compatible with multiple operating systems
- Free Trial
- Subscription for $10/user/month
MailerLite
MailerLite is the best email marketing service provider that focuses on effortlessness, incredible customer support and excellent email content designs for freelancers. MailerLite's is one of the easiest to use freelance programs that allows you to make your delightful email campaigns quickly, track their outcomes, manage subscribers and unsubscribes, plan custom popups and landing pages, and significantly more.
MailerLite has loads of supportive features and great integrations, yet they figure out how to keep it secure and simple-to-use for everyone. Mailer Lite is at the top of list of amazing tools for freelancers, follow your email statistics. You can also check. It's basic figures and charts demonstrating open rates, clickthrough rates, and so on, furnishing you with the data you have to evaluate the performance of your email marketing efforts. You can also derive great insights into your efforts, allowing you to make the fundamental changes to promote engagement and drive better results every day.
Key features
Hippo Video
Hippo Video is one of the most robust tools for freelance freelancers that enable users to record videos through a web launcher along with the extension for Google Chrome, with choices for webcam, sound, and screen recording. Videos can likewise be imported into Hippo Video from different frameworks for editing purpose. It's speedy editing tool allow users to trim, cut, crop the videos. In contrast, with the pro editing tools, users can include any number of ambient melodies or narration tracks, modify clip settings, and add introduction and end cards.
Videos can be sent out from Hippo Video to Google Drive, YouTube, Vimeo and Google Classroom, and added to help tickets through combinations with Zendesk and Freshdesk. The password protection feature enables users to control who can get to their shared videos. You can add a date of expiration to the shared video links. It'sreal-time analytics allows users to keep track of several views and comments with videos.
Key features
- You can create or record videos from a web browser in a single click
- You can easily capture screenshots, webcam recording and audio
- Easily import videos from mobile and desktop
- Easily trim clips, cut, crop, add text and annotate any part of the video
- Easily add introduction and end cards to the video.
- You can also export videos to G drive, Youtube, Vimeo and Google classroom.
- You can share videos with password protection
- You will get a real-time view of video engagement on the analytics dashboard.
Soapbox is an application designed for managers hoping to have productive one-on-ones and team meetings. Since it is known as one of the easy to use tools for freelancers, teams can make shared plans, take meeting notes, gather input and relegate next steps at one spot. With Soapbox, you don't have to leave the devices you love to start having better meetings. You can easily integrate the software with Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google and so on.
Soapbox is one of the best online tools to record, edit, and share videos effortlessly in only a couple of moments. All you need is to use chrome extension, a webcam and you are all set. When users record videos at that point, they can share a webcam, a screen, or a split-screen view.
Key features
Using Toggl , you can generate reports and time usage graphs with and export time logs in Excel spreadsheets. You can now get weekly reports on email and share public reports links with clients. Toggl also offers web version, desktop versions for a different operating system like Windows/Mac/Linux, and native iOS and Android apps. The software smoothly integrates with invoicing and project management tools without taking much time.
Toggl is a very reliable time tracking app that offers a quick overview of time spent on several tasks. Users can use Toggl in both online and offline modes. Additionally, you can customize this great tool as per your unique requirements, staff member skill levels, budget, and other elements
Key features
DeskTime helps you with an all-in-one dashboard where you can track daily activities, overtimes, and much more from a single place. With this freelance business software, users can save financial resources and a lot of time by making sure that employees are making good use of the working hours in doing their tasks. This Desktime solution also provides aid of several tools like app tracker, website tracker, and offline time tracking.
Key features
Peoplebox is a successful one on one meeting software that help managers at companies to drive powerful outcomes and retention. It 's one of the best project management tools that enables them to fortify their work associations with better one-on-one interactions, automated planning, and appropriate follow-ups.
The product generally helps with suggesting, organizing and driving activities every day. It's a great tool with Artificial Intelligence-driven Action List, Peoplebox lets freelancers communicate well, get constant feedback and close issues effectively followed by meaningful activities.
Adam.ai is a freelancing app designed to push everybody to manage the meeting content and accomplish their objectives fully. It's a meeting management tool that offers an excellent platform for the cutting edge workforce and freelancers to make meetings more beneficial than ever.
Key features
eyeson is an amazing cloud-based video conferencing software that is reasonable for organizations of all sizes. It's a software that provides features like managing document, conversation sheets, managing contacts, and much more help freelancers collaborate better with clients. This is known as one of the best tools for freelancers to integrate with another programming like Jira, Salesforce, Talkdesk, Slack, Trello, Hipchat, Freshdesk, Zendesk and Dropbox. The solution even offers YouTube and Facebook live streaming, and clients can invite anyone to join the meeting without them installing the software.
Key features
Stackby combines the effortlessness of spreadsheets, databases functionality and integrations with best business APIs like YouTube, MailChimp, Clearbit etc. Such features let users design their tools in the way in which they need it. No coding or specific training is required to create these great tools. You can develop your database without any training, import information from previous sources like spreadsheets or Google Sheets, or browse over 75+ pre-built templates over different classes.
The updates are synchronized automatically by the tool so you can communicate in real-time by additionally including agendas, setting reminders and sending Slack notifications.
Vectera is one of the best and easiest freelancing apps that work well for small businesses. It's a great too to schedule appointments and lead secure video meetings for up to 4 individuals. You can create a communication hub for your every single customer. Now you can use this app to get imaginative with whiteboards, co-browsing and document annotation. Also,It's an app that needs a 1-click start, no downloads, and no dissatisfaction feature.
Vectera offers advance video conference with bunches of great tools and features. It's a great app to coordinate with a scheduler and a few white-label options. The software is simple to-utilize interface and simple to join for users as no downloads required. This management tool is suitable for managing sales, the success of customer and training
Key features
- This tool can be customized easily
- Easily collaborate with your team
- Get on-demand recording
- Video Call Recording app
- The app is accessible on mobile
- Discussion boards to work better
- You can check and schedule an appointment using this app
- Presentation tools and screen sharing option
Hubstaff is a popular time tracking and productivity monitoring software that is suitable on desktop, web, and mobile applications. It also has a GPS tracking feature, team scheduling, online timesheets, payroll and task handling tools. With Hubstaff, you can see work in real-time, find and track location with GPS monitoring and much more. The software is available for platforms like Mac, Windows, Linux that makes it one of the best tools for freelancers.
Key features
Streak- CRM for Google
Since the tool is limited to Gmail, Streak is the best tool for freelancers and small company. However, the established companies that depend on Google's email customer will find this module valuable. Indeed, Streak top tech organizations like Uber, Weebly, Twitter and Yelp uses Streak. With this fantastic tool, it's simpler to follow views, sends the bulk email, plan messages and create separate yet related email strings for various teams like marketing, support, product and Human resource.
Key features
NetHunt is one of the most popular customer relationship management (CRM) software solution and best tools for freelancers to help them work closely with Gmail record and Google applications. It enables you to transform your G Suite into a unified CRM hub. NetHunt CRM blends completely with Gmail, placing the full-highlighted CRM directly close to your emails and other G Suite applications, LinkedIn and that's only the tip of the iceberg!
Key features
Promo.com is one of the effective and best tools for freelancers that help with the promotion of business across social media platforms, as well as create campaigns to boost engagement. Freelancers can use this software to reduce cost-per-click, increase traffic, build brand awareness, or promote a product. You will find a library of over 12 million video clips and pre-designed templates which can be edited and enhanced with licensed music and all rights reserved logos. It's s software that enables you to grow your business with the power of video!
Key features
Invoicely carries with it all the fundamental functionality expected of billing and invoicing tools or software. It is one of the most reliable tools for freelancers that includes invoice creation, payment timetables and automatic updates, workflow automation, managing business records, customer data management, as well as data import and export, to name a few.
Key features
Awario is one of the top-notch social media monitoring and listening tools for freelancers. In contrast to other social listening platforms, Awario doesn't source their data from third-party information suppliers. It uses powerful crawlers that sweep and scour more than 13 billion website pages consistently well, giving clients massive coverage and prompt updates at wherever there is a notice of their brand, product, or administration anywhere in the Web and social media.
Key features
NordVPN is a VPN solution for individuals and all type and size of freelance business. NordVPN lets you use public Wi-Fi and work accounts while on the go. Apart from that, software users can keep their browsing history private. It's great software that is compatible with every device and platform like Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Android TV. With a single NordVPN account, you can protect up to six devices all at the same time. Organizations can use NordVPN to do anonymous market research and test their products worldwide.
Key features
We have provided the name, features and pricing of top-notch software and tools for freelancers. You can purchase these tools as per your business requirement and budget. Note that some of the freelancer's tools also offer a free plan with limited features. If you are in the initial phase of freelance business with a tight budget, you should surely find out the software that offers a free plan. These tools are well-designed to ease the life of freelancers and small businesses.
