The 5 Best Tools for the 2020 Freelancer

Freelancing. We all dream of doing it and experiencing the liberating feeling of being our own bosses. While it is an exciting path to take, many of the challenges of freelancing can be daunting. So how do we overcome this?

We are two decades into the 21st Century and technology shows no sign of slowing down. Everything is ruled by the cloud, causing paper storage and other physical media to become virtually extinct. By using the latest trends and services, freelancers are able to better manage their time, their money, and their overall workflow.

Lucky for you, we’ve done the research for you and assembled a handful of tools that will make your life a lot easier.

Photo by Brooke Cagle / Unsplash

Mobile Banking

Sometimes freelancing is more than just a side gig for extra cash. Maybe you have a task so involved you call in reinforcements, or maybe you’ve decided it’s time to create that business bank account. Enter the online mobile bank.

Every function is designed for ease of use and maximum efficiency. Scheduling appointments to add someone to the account is a thing of the past. With mobile banking, immediate access to funds, tracking, sharing, and data storage are a finger touch away. Save yourself a trip to a physical bank by embracing the portability of a totally online bank. Added bonus? Saying you have your bank in your pocket is just plain cool.

If that’s not enough, features like mobile card management, ATM access across the country for cash deposits and withdrawals and added bookkeeping services allow you to manage your business finances in one, user-friendly space. Here’s an example of a digital bank geared for small business owners and freelancers that has all the above features and actual human customer service 24/7. Take that, robots.

Teleconference Tools

Being able to communicate with clients and collaborators regardless of what device they are using makes everyone’s lives a lot easier. Teleconference tools, like this one, can do just that.

Take the headache out of coordinating meetings in person, especially when location becomes a hurdle. The flexibility of teleconferencing allows you to schedule a time that works for all of your clients and collaborators. You can even have your conferences be a mix of video and phone calls depending on everyone’s personal preference. Many of these teleconferencing services allow you to use your own equipment or purchase their gear if you desire to have designated appliances.

Features such as co-annotation across a shared document, app, or screen, high quality video conference calling, active speaker view, and the ability to split your meetings across a desired schedule can save you and your clients time and money. Many of these teleconference tools are actually free. For more advanced features, most services do offer a paid option.

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Invoicing and Time Tracking Software

Do you ever forget to log a couple working hours here and there? If so, when it comes time to fill out invoices, you probably spend too much time triple checking everything to make sure you kept an accurate account of your time completing designated tasks.

An online invoicing and time tracking software might be just what you need. They take you step by step through very user-friendly interfaces to create a unique invoice to help you stand out. Client portal access makes contact with customers a breeze. Payments and expenses are easily logged and organized, saving you time which always equals money.

With the extra perks of bulk emailing, flash exporting, and even built in translation functions, you will have more time actually operating your business instead of your calculator.

Digitally Seal the Deal

Your business options will increase when you can sign legally-binding contracts, proposals, and agreements across a digital platform like this one. Many of these platforms are integrated with all of your favorite cloud tools such as Dropbox, Google Docs, Oracle, Salesforce, Slack, and more allowing for an even more efficient workflow.

From onboarding and sales to financial agreements, escrow, and insurance documents all of your important paperwork is signed, sealed and delivered in one convenient place. Best part of this is you can use the service’s interface or integrate it into your own company’s website.

Photo by John Schnobrich / Unsplash

Ecommerce

So, you have started your own business or freelance operation, you have set up your online business bank account, you have discussed business operations in your teleconferences, managed all of your time and documents. Now you are looking to sell your product online. You could do it on your own, but let’s face it: getting your product out there is much easier with a little help.

Here at Rebel, we will get you on the right track to start your ecommerce journey. We offer a variety of helpful built-in tools to help make your online store an affordable asset including over 60 templates for a streamlined and professional site. Security is one of our priorities.

We will make sure your online store is safe, easy to edit and operate, has flexible integration with your favorite apps, is mobile friendly, and more. Take a look. We think you’ll agree this is the easiest way to get your site online.

These are just some of the many services out there designed to help the efficiency of your freelancing endeavors. Technology will continue to advance; may as well get in on the latest trends now to make your business stand out.