We often talk about collaboration on this blog, because it truly is at the heart of what we do.
Over the past few years, we have been able to build up an incredible talent pool of freelancers and small businesses, including developers, photographers, animators, marketers, copywriters and social media experts.
Working in this way has helped us grow and scale sustainably, but it also allows us to serve our clients by selecting the right people for the job every single time.
Today, we’re looking at how collaboration can work for your business, and we’ll be throwing in our best tips for collaboration success, for good measure.
The right people for the right projects.
Mattix specialises in design; branding, web design and graphic design to be precise. It’s our thing and we like to think we’re pretty good at it.
Naturally, however, there are some specific skills that are needed to bring our designs to life.
Development is key because, without it, many of our designs would not see the light of day (or should we say screen?).
Copywriting is crucial because good words and sentences are needed on websites, graphics and branding materials.
Animation injects personality and improves the usability of apps and websites.
You get the picture… But, we can’t be a jack of all trades.
By building a network of freelancers who specialise in these areas, we are able to hand-select the individuals who would be perfect for each project.
For example, a copywriter who specialises in web copy or a specific industry, a photographer who is brilliant at product imagery, or a marketer who knows PPC inside out.
With collaboration, we can ensure our clients get the best people for the job.
Scalable.
It’s no secret that a collaborative model has helped Mattix to scale up sustainably.
Of course, there’s the obvious benefit of working with freelancers in that you don’t need to hire full-time employees. We simply pay for the work we need, which has helped us to lower overhead costs and not worry about having enough each month for each person we employ.
It also means our freelance partners can be busy working with other clients, earning money and developing their experience when we have a quiet moment.
Support the local economy and other businesses.
Hull is thriving with freelancers, startups and small businesses.
And, as we’ve been there ourselves, we like to give back to this community as much as we can.
Collaboration enables us to do this as many of the individuals and businesses we work with are local. It’s people who we know, spend time with and truly value their work.
Tips on how you can collaborate.
Working in this way isn’t unique to Mattix Design; many businesses outsource work to freelancers to help them deliver bigger projects. However, we’d like to give you some tips on how to make sure all parties are happy when collaborating – you, your client and the freelancer.
Create a community.
There is undoubtedly a trend of agencies using freelancer websites to get work done as cheaply and quickly as possible.
While we don’t object to using these websites to get work and grow a network, we urge you to focus on genuine connections with the people you’re going to be working with.
Establish genuine connections.
Approach freelancers whose work you love, or who you know would be perfect for your client. Value them and avoid just going for the cheapest option.
This way, you’ll start to build relationships with people who you can rely on, time and time again to deliver quality for your clients.
Be transparent.
It’s important for us to be open with our clients and describe our collaborative model. We like to talk about it during pitches, and also here on this blog.
But, we’ve also learned that clients love to have one point of contact, so bear that in mind when pitching and try to create a workflow that is as straightforward for your customer as possible.
Who do we work with?
Get to know some of the freelancers and small businesses we work with:
- Garth Lee – 3D Motion Graphics
- Courtney Farrow – Content Writing
- Tom Hurt & TH3 – Web Development & PPC
- Tim Goodfellow – Content Writing
- Matt Johnson – Social Media Management & Personal Branding
- David Gilbey – IT Consultant
- Mark Bucknell – App & Software Developer
- Neil Gibson – Designer
- Georgia Smith – Designer
- David Catley – Business Advisor
Find out more and work with us by getting in touch with a member of our team today.