Social distancing, self isolation and empty shelves in supermarkets. Welcome to the new norm. As freelancers adapt to the changes in their lives, Freelancer Club is doing exactly the same. When I started Freelancer Club more than 5 years ago, we had one simple mission: to support creative freelancers and we remain committed to this mission now more than ever. We've been listening to you, brainstorming ideas and working hard to adapt to the corona crisis. Below is an outline of the changes we've made to Freelancer Club membership. 

JOBS

The first big change is on our jobs board. Many face-to-face jobs are no longer an option so we have invested money, time and resources into finding remote jobs for as many freelancers as we possibly can. For those of you who think you can only provide in-person services, we've been scheduling consultations with you to offer advice about how you can adapt and we've been reaching out to companies to continue posting jobs for future projects or jobs that you may already have the skills to apply for. 

It's vitally important that businesses continue to operate and use freelancers to fill skill gaps and pick up the slack. We are predicting a spike in freelance jobs as companies start to make sense of remote working and how they must adapt their business to survive and thrive. To incentivise them to post more freelance roles, we are offering them free Concierge Credits to source the perfect freelancer for their projects. 

EVENTS

We announced our first Virtual Event this week - Freelancer Breakfast Club on the impact corona is having on your business - and will be announcing a program of virtual events that members will be able to attend over the coming weeks and months. We want to hear from you about what you'd like advice on so fill out the Suggestion Box with your ideas.

With every day comes new changes to legislation, tax, rights for freelancers, support and it can be a lot to take in and understand. We will be offering advice on the website, at events and providing one-to-one video consultations to ensure our members know what they're able to claim.

ONE-TO-ONEs

The one-to-one video consultation sessions are currently open to starter and pro members, however, we will be doing our upmost to free up more time to see aspire members as well. 

UP TO DATE INFO

You may have noticed that we are posting a lot of new content on a daily basis on the blog, on Twitter, Facebook and via our live chat. Make sure you're logging in every day to keep up with the news as it evolves. We'll make sure you are up to date with any changes that might mean be the difference between keeping your freelance business alive or having to let it go. We'll also be posting campaigns, general info and some light, much needed, entertainment. 

AND FINALLY

I would like to personally thank the members who have reached out to express their gratitude and support during this time. We are a small business too and your patience, understanding and kindness has made a massive difference to us. You are why we do this and you tell us what you find valuable so we can implement it on your behalf. If you have any general suggestions, we'd love to hear them in our Suggestion Box. 

In addition to the updates outlined, we are spending all available hours in the day working with a number of unions, businesses, advisors, and politicians to put pressure on government to provide genuine support for freelancers who are in desperate need for it. We're appearing on radio programmes, in newspaper articles and on blogs to give voice to our freelance community that we are so very proud of. 

Stay safe and keep freelancing.