Olivia Bufton

Making mistakes is all part of the freelance lifestyle. As a writer, I’m particularly attuned to the idea of imperfect starts. Every first draft I write is messy, incoherent and riddled with grammatical errors. But with the help of a good night’s sleep and in some cases, a professional editor, the words eventually come together in the right order to …

This week, it’s time for every freelancer’s favourite topic – tax news update! The beginning of the new tax year is almost upon us and apart from it being time to get your accounts in order once again, it also means the end of HMRC’s promised “soft-landing” period for IR35 rules. But what does this mean if you’re a freelancer? …

Listen up, sound engineers! We know it can be confusing shopping around for sound engineer insurance. There are so many different types of business insurance, and many insurers seem geared around bigger businesses. But Dinghy is marching to a different beat – flexible, low-hassle business insurance orchestrated specifically to the needs of freelancers like you. We’ve put together this guide …

Email inbox empty? Phone not ringing? All freelancers go through periods where work seems slower and hard to come by. It can be a worrying and frustrating time, particularly if you’re all set up and raring to go. With everyone experiencing big hikes in the cost of living from rising fuel and energy bills and the price of food, it’s …

Freelance life – it’s all about setting your own priorities, choosing your own projects and the freedom to work when it suits you. You might not even think of yourself as a business, especially when you’re first starting out as a freelancer. We hear this a lot when we mention Dinghy business insurance to new freelancers. “I don’t think I …

One of the biggest shocks of becoming a freelancer is just how often people seem to think the “free” in your job description is a guide to your rates. No one would ever walk into a shop and say, “could I just take this without paying?”. Or have a haircut and tell the stylist they would get great “exposure”, but …

Like. Love. Follow. Social media can be a turbo-charged way to attract clients to your freelance business, showcasing the very best of your skills and putting them directly in front of the eyes of your target audience. But we also know that it can be a massive time-drain. How many times have you sat down at your laptop to work, …

One thing a lot of freelancers aren’t always prepared for are the costs of freelance life. You need equipment – a laptop at the very least, but often a tablet, maybe a work phone. Freelance photographers typically need expensive camera equipment. Often you’ll need to travel to meet clients or attend events. Then there’s your website, marketing, and accountant costs. …

The toughest times as a freelancer can be those where work seems to dry up. You’ve hit up your current clients for extra projects. You’ve updated your availability on your socials. You’ve reached out to past clients to see if they need a hand. But no one’s biting, and the bills are racking up.  Now there’s a new place to …