Steve C. Goes From Freelancer to Building an Ecommerce Consultancy on FreeUp

Steve C. has been hiring through FreeUp for almost two years, but was actually a freelancer on the platform before he became a client. He was one of the marketplace’s early connections, and has since then grown a healthy consulting business.

Steve afforded me a few moments of his precious time to answer a few questions about how he got started on FreeUp and what the experience has been like for him and his business. It was certainly a privilege to hear his story.

1)  The Business

Steve runs a marketing business for eCommerce store owners that focuses on the Amazon platform. He founded the consultancy with two partners whom he met in a different product selling business on Amazon. Together with a group of consultants, they provide services to Amazon sellers to help them grow their businesses. These services include SEO, digital marketing and marketing strategy.

As a full-service eCommerce and digital marketing consultancy, their goal is to work with both brands and manufacturers alike to create growth. Their eCommerce strategies are focused on increasing conversions and sales for client businesses. They drive growth by taking advantage of the untapped potential in an individual businesses market as well as developing a proven strategy for long term growth on Amazon.

Steve explains that the group works to create a unique game-plan for each of their individual clients that caters to their specific needs. The market-specific strategy that they employ is strengthened by their ability to stay ahead of the game. Amazon is a marketplace platform that is known for implementing almost constant changes in what is expected of sellers. By anticipating these changes and what kind of impact they may have on clients, Steve and his partners are able to go the extra mile to suggest adjustments in each business that will help them weather changes and come out stronger than before.

Steve’s business caters to sellers on all Amazon platforms globally. The consultancy is currently partnered with brands in US, Europe, Canada, and Asia.

2)  Online Hiring

When Steve and his partners heard about FreeUp, this unique eCommerce hiring platform had just launched. The consultancy actually joined the platform not as a client at first, but to provide their services through the marketplace. They were looking to expand their client base by gaining access to FreeUp clients, and so they did.

Before hiring through FreeUp, which was just getting off the ground at the time, Steve and his crew experienced hiring on Upwork and a few other freelancer platforms. They were not completely satisfied with the results, and were searching for a better option.

As Steve’s business expanded, so did the freelancer network at FreeUp. They began using the FreeUp marketplace to hire freelancers experienced with Amazon business tasks to take on some of the workload, and haven’t looked back.

3)  First Impressions

FreeUp as a hiring platform made a positive first impression on Steve and his partners. They were able to find many different candidates quickly for the tasks that they needed done. Nate, FreeUp founder and CEO, was hands-on with Steve and his partners. Nate was very attentive to their questions and very responsive to their needs. With the help of FreeUp assistants, these new clients were able to get comfortable with using the platform to find the freelancers they needed, fast.

4)  The FreeUp Experience

Since making those first hires three years ago, Steve’s business has hired a range of freelancers from content writers and digital marketers to graphic designers and website designers. Some of these hires have worked out better than others. Steve and his partners learned early on that going for the cheapest option is not always the best option.

Steve emphasizes that FreeUp removes some of the time that they would have spent posting task descriptions and screening freelance candidates. There is usually someone on the marketplace that fits their needs – as opposed to being left in the dark about who they are going to hire.

Before FreeUp, Steve and the entire crew were not making efficient use of their time. By hiring through FreeUp, Steve’s business has been able to effectively outsource tasks that were more time consuming. With these freelance hires, Steve and his partners have been able to scale much more than they would have just by themselves.

5)  From Steve’s Experience

Steve had a last a piece of advice to share with other businesses hoping to scale. Since hiring freelancers through the marketplace, Steve’s business has been able to take advantage of its growth potential. To make this happen, Steve realized that rates are not the most important points to focus on when making freelance hires. As the old adage goes, you get what you pay for, and lowballing will not get you the level of quality that you want working for your business.

Final Thoughts

As a very busy business owner who is focused every day on growth – both for his business and his clients’ businesses – Steve had little time for more than the facts. Despite the lack of flowery praise, the simple results speak for themselves. Steve and his partners have built a strong business with the help of freelancers they met through the FreeUp marketplace.