Resource for Business Owners and Freelancers

One of the objectives of new urbanism is to create sustainable communities. That happens when local businesses are supported and residents have the choice of securing work close to home - ideally in their community. Below is a news release about an excellent resource for business owners looking for online skilled help and contractors (freelancers) looking for a way to market their services.

Shelancers Meet the Needs of Small Business Owners

Online business management expert Nicole Dean and technology consultant Darina Loakman are making sure that business owners have a reliable resource for finding short and long-term help with the recent launch of a directory of professional female freelancers called Shelancers.

“There are a number of freelancer directories in the market place but none that have the unique focus of Shelancers. The name says it all. This is an online directory of female freelancers specializing in everything from graphic design to accounting,” explains Dean.

As business continues to heat up for online companies, managers are feeling the pressure to have quick access to reliable specialists who can

• Update the design of a website
• Write content for web pages, article marketing campaigns and brochures
• Proofread ebooks, manuscripts and promotional copy
• Provide customer service for web based or telephone help centers and
• Manage administrative and accounting tasks with ease and professionalism.

The Shelancers directory includes specialists who can address the needs of most businesses owners, especially those companies doing business online.

“The Internet has created a new and vibrant marketplace generating tremendous workloads for many small, mid-size and larger businesses. We’ve actively sought out and attracted the best people in marketing, graphic design, website management, virtual assistance (administration), public relations, business communications, accounting, business coaching and more. There is no need for business owners to panic about not having appropriate staff–not when there is a comprehensive resource available like Shelancers. Best of all there is no search fee or other cost associated with using this directory,” explains Dean.

Easy access is an attribute of this directory. Each listing provides freelancer contact information and available client feedback to help hiring managers/owners to readily secure references, quotes and samples of relevant work.

Florida resident, Nicole Dean has been helping women work from home since 2004 and is a recognized expert in Online Business and Affiliate Management. A resident of Ireland, Darina Loakman was included in a list of 50 of the most influential women in Ireland as compiled by the Examiner Newspaper (2006). Both entrepreneurial moms are available for media interviews to discuss their joint venture - Shelancers (http://www.shelancers.com). To schedule an interview please contact Sharon McMillan, Media Relations, (905)-472-5384.

Tags: Featured, New Urbanism, Your Work, entrepreneurs, entrepreneur, freelancer, Shelancers, small business

Work Local Option - Freelance

You’ve decided that new urbanism fits with your beliefs and focus on green living and vibrant, local communities. For many of you that means cutting the environmentally unfriendly commute to your daily job so that you can work in your community. The problem is no one is hiring where you live. What are some of your options?

Well the fact that no one is hiring can be a temporary thing. It takes a lot of smart searching and networking to find what you’re looking for and I’ve already posted about some of the strategies to finding a job. There is, however, another option for replacing your income and it depends on the skills you developed in the workforce or your overall training, experience and interests.

I’m talking about freelancing. Let’s say you were a marketing specialist for a firm during your 9-5 life. Perhaps you could promote your marketing strategy development skills as an outside contractor to local entrepreneurs and employers in your region. Replace “marketing specialist” with graphic designer, administrative assistant, customer service specialist, etc. and you’ll soon realize that what you do at your full time job represents a skill-set or specialty that many companies might appreciate on a project or outsource basis.

In many cases it makes better business sense for companies to hire outside contractors than to take on full-time employees - especially in tough economic times.

Many freelancers who market themselves well to business owners are able to replace and even surpass their previous full-time incomes. How much you earn really depends on how much your clients enjoy your work and how well you succeed at marketing yourself.

I’m going to share with you a great way to market yourself and to reach employers who may be local or even thousands of miles away and you won’t necessarily have to step outside your door to do work for them (depending on the type of work you do).

Shelancers is an online directory of professional female freelancers. That’s a unique angle for a freelancer directory and one that is sure to get the attention of your potential future clients. You want to featured in a directory with that kind of promotional appeal.

This directory is being promoted far and wide by the two innovative and leading women entrepreneurs who created Shelancers - Nicole Dean and Darina Loakman.

I’m a member of Shelancers and I can tell you that we have freelancers in various fields from graphic designers to accountants to virtual assistants. Best of all, we have monthly resources to enhance your business, and a great forum called “The Watercooler” where we share ideas, questions, look for partners on projects and generally support one another.

If you’ve made up your mind that now is the time for you to make your move back home to create a lifestyle where you can work where you live instead of 20,30, 40 miles away, then think about freelancing and visit Shelancers by clicking on the graphic above.

Tags: Featured, New Urbanism, entrepreneurs, freelancer, new urbanism, women, work from home