This month we interviewed Arlene Foy. With 10 years’ agency and in-house experience across PR, Marketing and Events, Arlene took the leap into freelancing during the pandemic.

Tell us a bit about what you do?

I am a one-stop-shop, one-person show! My 10 years of experience has enabled me to acquire many different skills, matched with industry knowledge curated from within the world of PR, Marketing and Events. I work with some clients on an ongoing basis implementing full PR & Marketing Strategies OR Social Media Strategies. Others I work with can be campaign to campaign dependent, one of website builds and consulting.

How long have you been a freelancer?

I have been freelancing for over a year now. However, I have always had other projects on the go even when I was in a full-time role so that need to branch away by myself was always there waiting for me to grab it.

Why did you decide to go self-employed?

I have always had a passion and creative understanding when it came to how an idea should be expressed and the response it would inherit. This backed up with my need for organisation and a love for helping others I always found myself drawn to roles that were within PR, Marketing and Events. I worked in agency and in-house roles for many years but often thought about starting up my own business. I tested the idea once or twice but it never took off because, to be honest, I wasn’t ready to give it my full attention especially while still in a full-time role. The option of quitting to start that journey was just terrifying.

When COVID uprooted our lives, like many I was left with no job or more a job that was there but left in limbo. The timing just made sense and I decided to start my self-employment journey. I was never going to get this time again to create my ideal work-life balance. So, I looked at how I could upskill and took the leap.

How has The Work Crowd helped you as a freelancer?

I signed up to The Work Crowd when the idea of freelancing first started swimming around my mind. It was more out of curiosity than anything. However, this year I took on the task of putting together a solid profile and explored the opportunities within the platform which is super user friendly and efficient. The team are very easy to contact, more than happy to help and very patient.

The platform has given me the chance to work with brands and companies I would not have access to. It also enables me to talk to prospects outside of my current locality as well as gain experience of working with people from other countries and industries. Which is only adding to my professional experience.

I also love that the platforms is the middle connection when it comes to agreeing contracts and invoicing. These were areas in freelance that can feel a bit daunting at first.

Do you think the pandemic has had an effect on freelancing?

It absolutely has had an impact. Some so many other people have taken this time to start a similar self-employed journey. Slowing down showed people that they did not have to work in the ways they were working. It also allowed them to do more of what made them happy which for many is now their full-time job.

As much as freelancers initially felt the halt with clients wanting to take a step back and reimagine their business. A soon as things picked up again and businesses realised a “new normal” was starting to take place the workflow did start to become more frequent and level out once again.

What kind of clients/projects have you worked on through The Work Crowd? 

I am still very much exploring the many opportunities within the platform. However, I am currently working with a worldwide payroll and HR solutions company. This is a company I would never have had the chance to work with if it was not for the platform.

What one piece of advice would you give to a new PR & Marketing freelancer?

Don’t overthink it. You are only one person and are not expected to know how to do everything that comes with running your own business. Remember to ask for help where you need it because those tasks will eat into your time and cause unnecessary pressure defeating the reason you started this journey in the first place!

If you are interested in joining our community of freelancers or working directly with a freelancer to achieve your business objectives, join our network today or get in touch!