What is the Future of Freelancing?

You’re almost ready to leave your nine-to-five job and devote yourself to the world of freelancing. But the doubts keep popping up.

Does freelancing have any future? Will you be able to make long-term sustainable income through freelancing? What is freelancing going to be like 8 years from now?

Honestly, the future is always uncertain, whether it’s freelancing or your new energetic pooping puppy – you never know what’s really around the corner. Fortunately, in these advanced times, we can often predict how a trend, an idea, or a product will morph, and for how long it will persist.

So, if you are wondering what the future of freelancing is going to be like, look no further because this post is going to answer it for you!

1.   No More Nine-to-Five And Neckties

According to World Bank, there are 1.56 billion freelancers around the world – including part-time and full-time workers. This number has been on a continuous rise in the past years and is predicted to soon surpass the traditional nine-to-five corporate workers.

The reason is pretty clear: People can work from the comfort of their homes, save the cost of traveling, the hassle of dressing up every day, and socializing with boorish colleagues.. Not to mention, the workplace politics and dishonest flattery to climb up the corporate ladder then why would they choose something else?

The post-pandemic world knows how rewarding it is to work with flexible schedules, multiple paying clients, and the freedom to choose your own projects, which is why almost everyone you know is eager to become a freelancer, and so should you!

2.   Companies will prefer Freelancers

The pandemic has not only revolutionized the workforce, it has changed the hiring habits of companies too. Did you know that corporate giants like Google, Walmart, and Apple are increasingly interested in freelance workers rather than on-site staff? Fun fact: Google now has a higher percentage of freelance remote workers than full-time individuals.

A report published by Fiverr in 2022 states that 78% of companies are interested in relying on freelancers to fill their workforce gaps. The same report discusses that business owners have found freelance workers to be more efficient.

Since freelancers define their own schedules, they are less likely to burn out, perform poor-quality work or fail to deliver the promised work. Companies hiring freelancers also save the onboarding time and budget, food charges, full-time employee benefits, and relocation charges in some cases. Furthermore, hiring freelancers gives businesses the freedom to acquire the best talent from all over the globe without geographic constraints.

With so many benefits in view and the perceived taboo of hiring remote workers broken by the pandemic, it’s easy to predict that companies large and small are likely to prefer freelancers in the future.

3.   Primary Income Source

Demand for remote workers increased during the pandemic, and freelancers were ready for it. Nowadays, people can hardly distinguish between a freelancer and a remote worker.

Since freelancers are free from bonds, contracts, and other things that make a traditional employee stay stuck in a company, large enterprises were initially wary of them. Most freelancers were part-timers, making it hard for giant businesses to get a supple inflow of quality work.

However, 2023 saw a 59% rise in full-time freelancers, alleviating the concern of big enterprises. Corporations today can easily rely on freelancers to complete dozens of projects back to back and build long-term relationships.

In fact, 70% of full-time independent workers prefer freelancing over traditional jobs due to better work-life balance and more career satisfaction. Freelancing can be expected to become the primary source of income for Millennial and Gen Z workers.

4.   Freelance Job Trends

This is the age of digitization and work opportunities are not far behind. With artificial intelligence technologies now breaking the internet, many new jobs have opened up!

Nowadays, many firms are preferring freelancers for their projects instead of traditional full-time hires. This is the reason platforms like Upwork have grown to an annual revenue of a whopping $610 million, more than double the revenue it had in 2019 ($300 million)!

Many firms have also improvised the way they do certain tasks. For example, there was a time when people used to draw everything by hand (not that you can’t do that now), but graphic design has changed the way most industries do marketing. Instead of physical learning, companies hire freelancers to create e-courses and online content for them which they can utilize for much longer.

After the pandemic, many organizations shifted towards online meetings and WFH (Work-From-Home), which led to a further acceptance of hiring freelancers on a project basis. Projects, such as application and web development,  UI/UX improvements, pipeline automation, and many more, are now done by freelancers worldwide since all you need is a laptop, a good internet connection, and of course, some skills.

Apart from the already available jobs, numerous new opportunities have emerged. The most important ones among those are tasks related to AI. These range from content generation for blog posts to checking and correcting AI content found in written texts. Jobs related to machine learning, data analytics, robotics, data science, and more are expected to boom. Interesting to observe that many freelance platforms have recently added a whole new category, ‘AI Services,’ which includes work ranging from AI content editing to making full-fledged applications using ChatGPT.

This is just the beginning. Such opportunities will keep on emerging and freelancers will continue to get the work done. Opportunities for freelancers, AI-related or not, are no doubt vast with a myriad of prospects already present and many others surfacing every day!

 

5.   Platforms Supporting Freelance Work

As the popularity of freelancing increased, so did the specialized platforms and marketplaces. Today, countless platforms are working to connect companies with highly-skilled freelancers, including platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer. Similarly, many Fiverr and Upwork alternatives have also emerged, such as CommonCreatives, to help the newbies test the waters.

Apart from these specialized platforms, social media giants like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok have also welcomed freelancers to create content, sell their services, and meet buyers through their platforms. For instance, Instagram allows business pages with detailed insights and activity analysis to help freelancers meet their potential clients. Facebook and Instagram also allow ads and promotions to help freelancers get the word out.

Naturally, the world is changing itself to accommodate the freelance community and provide more opportunities to this growing workforce.

6.   Legislation for Freelancers

Many countries, especially the US, are making conscious efforts to introduce legislations and rulings to protect the rights of freelance workers. In NYC, for instance, the law bounds employers to present a legal written contract to freelancers who perform more than $800 worth of work for them.

Kansas City, for example, is encouraging women and people of color to earn through the gig economy. Third-world countries, like Pakistan, have imposed income taxes on freelancers to boost their economy.

While laws are springing up for the benefit of the freelance marketplace, many are also there to bring them under some jurisdiction. There are always two sides to every coin, but one thing is for sure, the world knows that freelancing is the future.

7.   Courses and Academies for Freelancers

Boomers may have worked the same job their entire life, but as a freelancer in 2023, you can never know when your job trends may shift. For example, many SEO freelancers develop a nervous tick every time Google releases a new update. Articles might lose rankings, tried-and-tested techniques might begin to fail, and everything that you did right might suddenly get mired in the latest algo update.

As a freelancer, there is a continuous need to adapt, grow and keep up with the advancements. For this purpose, many online courses, coaches, and academies have sprouted up to offer educational resources for freelancers and traditional workers.

Some countries have also included freelancing in courses for engineering, marketing, and business students to increase their future employment opportunities. Similarly,some professionals argue that freelancing should be taught from an early age in a formal school setting. Fingers crossed.

8.   Closing the Gender-Gap

Here’s something you may not have considered. Many reports indicate that for the freelance community, gender is more irrelevant. While some traditional employers seem to require that new hires match desired personality traits, characteristics, and gender, those companies hiring freelancers are often more equitable when it comes to these issues.

Interestingly enough – many freelancers have worked with employers for years and those employers have no idea or interest in their gender, and have never inquired about it. Freelancers are more likely to be compensated based on their skills and capability, no matter who they are, or where they come from.

Resultantly, many women and people of different races have found themselves a bit safer from discrimination and judgments. Since gender biases, pay gaps and fair opportunities for everyone are some of the most important issues the working world is aiming to solve, we’re happy to report that this is another reason freelancing will likely see an increase in popularity.

 

The Future of Freelancing is Bright

If you have decided to begin freelancing, congrats! Each person and situation is unique, so make sure it’s the right choice for you. But one thing is for certain – freelancing is here to stay.

To sum it up:

• Freelancing is going to be the preferred option for not only the workforce but also for employers big and small.
• AI and software-based jobs will soon be in surplus for freelancers.
• Freelance platforms, courses, and laws for freelancers will be established in large numbers.
• The gender gap is expected to become slimmer with freelancing becoming more prevalent.

Ready to get started? Join CommonCreatives today and start building your future as a freelancer!