PeoplePerHour.com in the press

Half of Freelancers Dont Plan for Business

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The latest poll on http://www.PeoplePerHour.com, the leading online skills marketplace, shows that just over half of the freelancers polled (51.8%) have a business plan

Just under a third didn’t have a business plan (32.1%.

The 16.1% who ticked the ‘What’s a Business Plan?’ option can probably be added to the ones that don’t plan, making the business plan haves (51.8%) and the have nots  (48.2%) almost equal.

Xenios Thrasyvoulou, CEO of PeoplePerHour.com says: “Conventional wisdom in business says you must plan for success: that failure to plan is planning to fail. But these findings back up earlier polls that indicate that, for around half our freelancers, achieving a work-life balance is an equally important measure of success in life.

“Creating a business plan usually indicates a commitment to more serious business development or intent to secure extra cash to expand.

“Our last poll showed that most freelancers are not in it for the money. Just 22.9% earned more than they did before and 59.3% claimed they went freelance to achieve a better work-life balance.

“But that’s the good thing about setting up in business: you have the freedom to make the life you choose. And small businesses can tap into the skilled people we offer, which includes skilled people who are passionate about doing a good job and who are not just in it for the money.

“There’s also more advanced businesses that use PeoplePerHour to boost their immediate cashflow, thanks to our systems which mean providers get paid days after the job is done, rather than weeks or even months through conventional invoicing.

“There’s a wealth of reasons why skilled people are available on PeoplePerHour.com and eBay-style feedback ratings from other users will help you chose the right people to make your business grow.”

PeoplePerHour.com are already the UK leaders for the online skills market with over 6,000 registered users. To date nearly 2000 projects posted by businesses on PeoplePerHour.com have been successfully completed by registered providers from the UK (49%), and (in decreasing order) from US, India, Argentina and Spain, demonstrating that small businesses are increasingly able to tap into a global labour market.

n       Buyers choose from an average of nine bids per project posted and in many cases can access CV, photo, description, sample work and referee contact details.

n       PeoplePerHour.com ensures service providers get paid fast on completion through a combination of their unique escrow facility plus PayPal.

n       The busiest work categories are (in descending order): web development & programming, design, admin support, writing (including translations and transcriptions), marketing & PR, and research.

n       London-based PeoplePerHour.com's innovative system matches buyers of services to providers directly, through an online bidding system designed to encourage providers to pitch their most effective solutions at their keenest prices. eBay-style user ratings and feedback provide quality control, and PeoplePerHour's unique escrow system provides credit protection to both sides.

For further information, images and interviews please contact Xenios Thrasyvoulou on 02075905295 or email pr@peopleperhour.com