FreeUp Has Been Acquired by The HOTH

Hey everyone!

Today, November 22nd 2019, marks an extremely exciting day for the FreeUp Marketplace as it has been acquired by The HOTH.

In an effort to be as transparent as possible, we’ve put together answers to some common questions that you may have about the sale of FreeUp and how it may impact you going forward.

In addition, we’ve put together a video that you can view here:

As a company, FreeUp is committed to upholding the cornerstones that has allowed it to grow to this point…outstanding customer service, pre-vetting of all freelancers, fast introductions, and the FreeUp No Turnover Guarantee.

If you have any questions about the sale of FreeeUp, feel free to reach out to us at any time through Support@FreeUp.net or Matt@FreeUp.net

Thank you,

The FreeUp Team

Why did Nathan and Connor sell FreeUp?

Selling FreeUp was one of the hardest decisions Nathan and Connor ever had to make. They love the clients, the freelancers, the partners, and the internal team. They’ve worked extremely hard over the past few years to build FreeUp to where it is now. Their decision to sell the business centers around their desire to see it hit record growth in the years to come. 

While they weren’t looking to sell, earlier this year, a customer of ours, The HOTH, reached out about purchasing FreeUp. They, like us, are super passionate about their business and about the future of the freelance industry. Nathan and Connor believe their passion and advanced experience will help scale FreeUp to be the juggernaut we know it can be. 

There are so many factors that went into this decision, but one of the biggest things is that Nathan and Connor wanted to make sure the business could survive in the long run. A major realization that Nathan and Connor made this year is that FreeeUp’s continued growth could not rely solely on their own efforts. In order to reach more clients and freelancers in mass, they would need to hire more full time team members, increase advertising spend, and expand in new ways outside of their expertise. At a certain point, the business was going to need a new approach to further growth and they weren’t sure that was a path they wanted to go down as business owners. 

Nate and Connor also recognized that they don’t have experience scaling a company to $20 million or $50 million a year and they did not think it’s fair to all the people counting on FreeUp to have them experiment and learn on the fly with the chance of it leading to issues for all.  

At the end of the day, they found an amazing buyer and an opportunity to benefit all stakeholders of the FreeUp network, both of which were critical to them going through with the decision.

In The HOTH, they found someone who knows how to scale, loves freelancers, loves FreeeUp, treats people well, and who they believe is the right person to take FreeUp to the next level. They are not buying FreeUp to make bad changes or destroy it. They are buying it to grow it and take it to the next level. 

In the opportunity, they found a way to benefit (1) the FreeUp Marketplace moving forward (2) the FreeUp internal team (3) all freelancers and clients using the FreeUp platform and (4) all partners. It was of utmost importance that the deal benefit all stakeholders if they were to go through with it.

While neither Connor nor Nate will be involved in the day to day operations, they will be staying on in a consultative role to assist where needed. They love FreeUp and have a great relationship with the new owners. They are super excited to see how FreeUp grows. 

Are current contracts safe? Am I going to lose my clients/freelancers? 

All hires between clients and freelancers through the FreeUp Marketplace are absolutely safe going forward. All working relationships will remain intact and will function as normal going forward. There are also no current plans to change the FreeUp fee structure.

The changes coming are things both freelancers and clients have requested for a while: better project boards, applications, notifications in timeclock, and so much more. 

Be on the lookout over the next few weeks for surveys where the new HOTH team will be asking for more and more feedback. This feedback will be used to help FreeUp scale to new heights at accelerated speeds. 

Will fees be going up?

There are no current plans to change the FreeUp fee structure. The changes coming are things freelancers and clients have requested for a while: better project boards, applications, notifications in timeclock, and so much more. 

Nathan and Connor will remain involved with FreeUp in a consultative role for the next 5 years and will be working alongside the new team to be evangelists for the platform and more importantly, you. They will soon be sending out surveys requesting feedback. This feedback will be used to help FreeUp scale to new heights at accelerated speeds. 

Will the FreeUp internal team be changing?

The internal team is staying put and no current changes are planned there. Marius, Chiqs, Jane, and Leiden are still the team leaders and they know to go to Nathan and Connor with any concerns they have over the new owners at anytime. 

In addition to the current team, the new owners are adding three full time US employees working out of The HOTH’s office in St. Petersburg, Florida to give FreeUp the manpower it needs to grow. They are Matt Harrison, Branden Bell, and Garrett German. Their goal is to scale FreeUp and the current FreeUp team will have a big role in FreeeUp’s growth going forward.

What will Nate and Connor be doing after FreeUp? Are they going to start a similar business to FreeUp?

Right now, Nate and Connor’s number one priority is to successfully transition FreeUp to The HOTH team so that FreeUp can continue to grow and provide an amazing service to its freelancers and clients. 

Until they feel that the new owners at The HOTH are in a great place to run the day-to-day operations, that is the only thing they will be working on. Even after The HOTH team is fully prepared to take FreeUp forward, they will be staying on in a consulting role for the next five years. 

Nate plans on taking some time off to travel, plan a wedding with his fiancé Quynh, and eventually get into real estate investing. Connor also plans to take some time off for travel and to keep advancing his knowledge of digital marketing and advertising. 

Both Nate and Connor love FreeUp and want to see FreeUp grow into the future. They will not be creating a similar or competing business to FreeUp. Eventually Connor and Nate want to work together on another venture, but who can predict the future.

Will FreeUp lose the personal touch to clients and freelancers that it was known for under Nathan?

Absolutely not. The HOTH is known for their approach to always providing great customer service and it was one of the big reasons that Nathan and Connor decided The HOTH was a great fit to take FreeUp to its next level of growth. 

Nathan and Connor will be hands on throughout the transition period to ensure that any changes are always for the better. A lot like FreeeUp, The HOTH has undergone rapid growth over the past 5+ years and with that came changes to the systems they’ve used, but they have always stayed focused on providing the best possible customer service. 

The current FreeUp support team will continue to be rock stars to ensure every email, dispute, call, and chat is handled with the utmost care. The core parts of FreeUp will not be changing and the whole team is still committed to fast responses, quick dispute resolution, taking responsibility, and making things right. 

Will past credits/discounts be honored after the sale?

Of course. The HOTH plans to honor all credits that you received prior to the sale of FreeUp. Nathan and Connor have worked extremely hard to create the best marketplace and The HOTH does not have any intention of undoing that hard work.

Is the FreeUp Terms of Use changing?

No changes have been made to the FreeUp Terms of Use and The HOTH team doesn’t have any immediate plans for changes either. 

The HOTH team understands what Nathan and Connor have put into building FreeUp into the marketplace that it is today. The changes they’re looking into are things which have been requested for a while: streamlined communications, better project boards, applications, notifications in timeclock, and so much more. 

If any changes to the Terms of Use are made, you will be notified in Timeclock upon logging in so you can review what the changes are and the reasoning behind them. They, like we have been, are here for you anytime if you run into issues or feedback. 

Will FreeUp be changing its name?

The FreeUp name will be staying the same. Like The HOTH, FreeUp has a very unique name and history and The HOTH team understands and values that. 

Who is The HOTH?

The HOTH is a SEO services company based out of St. Petersburg, Florida. 

The HOTH is owned by Marc Hardgrove and David Martin. Both have been starting, scaling, and buying businesses online for the past 20 years and have extensive experience working with freelancers all around the world. 

Feel free to reach out to Marc and David via email at Marc@FreeUp.net and David@FreeUp.net

Today, The HOTH works with 500+ freelancers from the US, Philippines, and other countries around the world and are major proponents of the freelance economy. 

As a part of the transition, three team members (Matt Harrison, Branden Bell, and Garret German) from The HOTH team will be taking over day-to-day operations and growth of the FreeUp Marketplace. 

Matt, Branden, and Garrett will be your go-to-guys for everything FreeUp and they are committed to upholding the amazing customer service that you’ve always experienced with FreeUp. 

You can reach them via email or Skype at any time:

Matt Harrison: Matt@FreeUp.net or Skype ID: live:.cid.dacb4e370d78885f

Garrett German: Garrett@FreeUp.net or Skype ID: live:.cid.cc8800f8712f1ec6

The HOTH is committed to growing FreeUp to new levels and they are all extremely excited to meet everyone in the FreeUp community. 

Will payments be impacted this week due to the sale?

Payments will not be impacted this week and the billing period will go through as normal. 

If you have any questions specific to your billing or payments this week, please reach out to Accounting@FreeUp.net or Matt@FreeUp.net.

Will I still get affiliate earnings from the FreeUp Referral Program?

There are no immediate plans to change the FreeUp referral program and affiliate earnings payments will continue to be paid out as normal. If you have any specific questions about your referral earnings, please reach out to us at Accounting@FreeUp.net or Matt@FreeUp.net