New Study Reveals Surprising Information About Freelancers

2011 Freelance Industry Report

Tens of millions of workers remain unemployed around the world. But the freelance segment of the workforce is not only growing, it’s actually thriving.

That’s just one of the many interesting facts I uncovered when I recently surveyed more than 1,200 freelancers in 37 different professions.

The findings of this survey are summarized in the just-released 2011 Freelance Industry Report, which is sponsored by the International Freelancers Day online conference.

This 53-page study (which is available free here) uncovered some very surprising and encouraging information about who freelancers really are, what we charge, how we work, what our biggest challenges are, how we feel about the solo path and why we do what we do.

Among the most interesting insights:

• Women compose the largest group of freelancers (67%).
• Most freelancers are seasoned pros: 28% of solo professionals have 10 or more years of experience freelancing. Fifty-one percent are the primary income earners in their households, and 17% freelance on the side while holding a full-time day job.
• Freelancers prefer the independent lifestyle. Forty-eight percent of freelancers have more free time now than they did as an employee. Additionally, 59% are happier now than they were before going solo.
• A traditional job? No way! Fifty-four percent of freelancers wouldn’t even consider working as an employee again, regardless of what the job paid or what it entailed.
• Finding clients was the biggest challenge facing freelancers today (cited by 22% of participants). Interestingly, obstacles such as getting paid on time (4%) and competing against lower-cost freelancers (3%), which are commonly cited as having reached alarming levels, were not among the top-ranking concerns for freelancers in 2011.
• Freelancers earn healthy rates for their work. Although the range varies widely, 40% of freelancers command $50 to $99 per hour. And 17% earn $100 or more per hour.
• Women tend to earn more. In fact, women freelancers out-earn their male counterparts in every rate level from $11 to $89. It’s not until the $90+ per-hour range that men out-earn women (something that definitely needs to change).
• Europeans are more likely to work long hours. Freelancers in Europe (40%) are the most likely to work 40 or more hours every week. That’s considerably higher than their North American (32%) and Asian (28%) counterparts.
• The economy’s impact on freelancers has not been quite as severe as reported. The majority of freelancers (52%) either have not been impacted by the economy or have faced only a very minor impact. Only 19% said that they have been significantly affected.
• “Accidental” freelancers faring well. Professionals who are freelancing as the result of a layoff or being downsized are more likely to earn less as a freelancer than peers who planned their way to self-employment. However, 80% of these “accidental” freelancers are much happier now than they were as employees. Seventy-four percent of them are also optimistic about their business prospects. And fully 30% of them are earning $80 or more per hour.

And that’s just a glimpse of what’s in this study.

The remarkable thing about these figures is that you’d be hard-pressed to find any information about this rapidly growing segment of the workforce and how they’re doing in this economy.

There’s minimal published information about independent workers. And no one is really talking about the millions of professionals in fields as diverse as engineering, web design, business consulting or software development who are earning a great living and enjoying a more balanced lifestyle.

Let’s Change the Perception of Freelancers!

It’s time to change this trend. So do yourself a favor and download your free copy. Take a look at the information and analysis. And if you like what you see, pass it around to fellow freelancers (or just point them to the download page). Every freelancer, consultant, solopreneur and self-employed service provider out there should have a copy of this report.

Better yet, send this to your government representatives. Freelancing needs to be part of the economic-improvement conversation at all levels of government!

And if you know someone in the media, pass it on. It’s time to show the world that freelancers are a vital segment of the workforce and the economy.

Thoughts? Questions? Comments? I’d love to hear from you in the comments area below.

For additional statistical information about Freelancers, as well as robust analysis, you can check out FreelanceSwitch’s own Freelance Confidential over at Rockable Press.