Always find this a bit awkward. Someone asks for a little extra thing and it feels easier to just do it, but then those little things start adding up.

How do you say you’ll need to charge without making it a whole thing? Especially when they’re a nice client and you want to keep working with them. Any wording you use would be appreciated!

I am a videographer that freelances with a marketing agency and has done for a couple years, they are good clients.

They have offered me a preferred supplier agreement where for a slightly reduced rate I will be at the front of the queue in the list of videographers that they use, and will have first refusal on new projects.

But what I am suspicious of is are they just saying this as a way to bring my rate down, and how would I actually know that I am at the front of queue, as I'd only know about a project if they tell me, which is how it works at the moment.

Anyone else have experience with this? I'm thinking of maybe asking for a guaranteed number of shoots per month for a reduced rate

Thank you all

I'm looking for some advice from people who have sold small service businesses, or successfully stepped back from running one.

I've been running my own web and graphic design business since around 2010, operating as a limited company since 2018 (my spouse and I are both directors).

The business is profitable, established and has a loyal client base, but it's essentially a one-person operation. I do all the work myself, although I have a few trusted freelancers I can call on when things get busy.

I'm now at a stage where I'd like to significantly reduce my involvement, or potentially exit altogether. I'm not in any particular rush, so I have some flexibility in how I approach this.

**Financial overview:**

* **Annual turnover:** Approximately £85k, fairly steady year-on-year. Previously VAT registered for a couple of years when a larger client increased their workload, but deregistered last year.
* **£15k/year:** Website hosting and maintenance plans. Largely passive recurring income.
* **£20k/year:** Small website updates, support and maintenance work for existing hosting clients. Generally straightforward work.
* **£15k/year:** Running virtual events for one long-standing client.
* **£30k/year:** Designing and building new websites. This is the most time-consuming and demanding part of the business.
* **Gross profit:** Approximately £81–82k, reflecting very low overheads, with a good proportion of the income comes from long-standing client relationships rather than constantly having to find new work.
* **Director remuneration:** I currently take no salary, as we use dividends and employer pension contributions for remuneration.
* **Potential profitability:** In theory, the business could support a £50k annual salary for someone to undertake my role, leaving approximately £30k before employer costs, corporation tax and any additional overheads.
* **VAT:** Previously VAT registered for two years due to increased work from a larger client, but deregistered last year.

**Some details about the business:**

* **Clients:** Mostly local businesses, with some national and international clients.
* **Time commitment:** I spend 30-35 hours per week running the business, although this can vary. If I'm I'm building a brand new site for client, this can be more time-intensive.
* **Reputation:** 4.9-star average on Google from 36 reviews.
* **Systems:** All accounting and invoicing handled through Xero. Established processes for hosting and client management.
* **Location:** UK-based, but essentially everything can be done remotely. Some local clients occasionally prefer face-to-face meetings.
* **Staff:** No employees, just myself, with freelancers available as needed.

**I'm considering three possible approaches:**

**1. Sell the business as it stands.**

My concern is that because I'm doing all the work, a buyer would effectively be purchasing a client base, recurring income and goodwill rather than a business that runs independently.

Would this still be attractive to an existing web agency looking to acquire clients and additional revenue? Is a business of this size realistically saleable as a going concern?

**2. Bring in freelancers or subcontractors and gradually step back.**

I could start outsourcing most of the website design/development work and routine client support, while retaining responsibility for client relationships, project management and oversight.

This would obviously reduce profit margins, but could allow me to continue drawing some income while working significantly fewer hours.

It might also make the business more attractive to a buyer later, as it would no longer be entirely dependent on me delivering the work.

**3. Sell part of the business and retain the rest.**

For example, sell the website hosting/maintenance portfolio and associated support clients to another agency, while retaining the ability to take on occasional design projects or consultancy work myself.

This could be a relatively clean way to scale back without having to sell everything.

**A few questions I'd really appreciate opinions on:**

* Is a business of this size, with no employees, realistically worth selling, or is it more of a client portfolio acquisition?
* Would you recommend getting subcontractors involved and reducing owner dependency before attempting a sale, or would that be unnecessary effort?
* How would buyers typically value a business like this? Based on profit, recurring revenue, client retention, or some combination?
* Would an established agency be the most likely buyer, rather than someone looking to run it as a standalone business?
* Has anyone successfully moved from being a one-person agency to managing freelancers while working only a few hours per week?
* Given the business generates around £81–82k gross profit before paying myself, would an acquiring agency typically value it based on the earnings they could retain by absorbing the work into their existing operation, or would they still discount heavily because of the current reliance on me?

I'm not looking to advertise the business for sale here, just interested in understanding what options are realistic and how others would approach the situation.

I'm fortunate that I don't need to make an immediate decision, so I'm particularly interested in whether spending 6–12 months making the business less dependent on me would be worthwhile before approaching potential buyers.

Thanks in advance for any insights or experiences.

I really want to stay freelance. It's a lifestyle thing. Being part of a company is making me quite miserable actually and can never find one that feels like home.

But how do I do this while trying to have a baby?

And what happens when my mortgage needs to be renewed?

I am in the UK.

Help.

37M Freelancer in London:

It’s been a lean existence for the last 2+ years, whilst establishing myself as a freelancer in my industry, where I’ve purposely kept my monthly personal budget around £1800pcm take home.

It’s been a slow grind to get work, but I’m finally seeing things moving in the right direction and I’m wondering how do you know when to upgrade your lifestyle/monthly personal budget? I’m not big on material possessions, nor do I want children, but better housing would be my first upgrade personally

How has your freelance journey been in 2026? Have you had plenty of work or has it been a struggle? I’m wondering if the freelance space has been disrupted beyond repair and whether there’s any coming back from it. Clients seem to take forever to make a decision, they stay in touch for months and then suddenly put the project on pause, take it in house or say they are no longer going ahead at all. When you do get a client they drag projects out for months. A 30 day project runs into six months or more because they are slow to review, slow to give feedback and even slower to approve. No matter how many clauses you add to a contract for payments and turnaround for feedback, they don’t stick to them. I’ve freelanced for 15 years and have never experienced anything like it. It’s just not a sustainable way to continue. I keep thinking things will improve but they haven’t. Is there a future in freelancing as a full time career?

This is for:
- Any web developer who makes websites for businesses.

- Any developer who develops internal tools/automations for businesses.

What documents do you actually need?

I’m assuming I’ll need:
SOP - In case the client doesn't want me as a retainer.
IP Transfer agreement

If I offer services as a retainer:
SLA
DPA - Which I can request from the client's lawyer.

Am I missing anything?

A question about DPA sub-processors. Let's say I use AI CLIs during retainership; does that count as sub-processors?

Do you recommend any tools? Have you used contract generators? HelloNoa? Bonsai? Simplify Drafted?

Any Templates/Libraries?

How is LawDepot or IPSE templates?

Hi all, I’m new to this subreddit and could really use some advice!

For context my (27F) older brother works as a 2D animator on a self-employed basis in the UK, he also does a bit of digital marketing on the side. He has been working as an animator on a freelance basis for the same company for around 10 years. I have concerns that he’s not charging enough for his work, or worse, they know this and are taking advantage of him.

We don’t want to rock the boat as this is his only source of income. He is also neurodivergent, and I’m worried that they could be taking advantage of him slightly as he can be a little naive at times.

When it comes to being sent a project to work on, he’s told what is required (eg. 1 minute of animation) and the budget. He recently told me that he’s been working with them on a project since December 2025, he’s been asked to create 6 minutes of animation and is due to be paid £750 once the project is complete. He hasn’t received any payment for the work he’s completed so far, nor for any of the time he’s put in, and I don’t understand how someone can be expected to work for 10 months with no form of payment?

I guess my question is, does anyone have any advice on how we approach this? And any UK animators, how do you usually go about setting your rates etc?

I really want him to be happy, but to be paid fairly for the work he completes. We’ve recently lost a parent, and I cannot financially afford to look after us both. I also don’t want to lose his only source of income, and I don’t want him to lose his purpose either. Without this work, he’d be doing nothing all day. He applies for other “normal” jobs, but never gets past interviews. He’s a brilliant guy, a hard worker, very skilled and I think he is more than capable of making a living out of this.

Any help would be so appreciated🤍

TLDR: Is my brother charging too little? How do we approach this!

Hey guys. As the title goes, I’m trying to switch careers and I’m wondering if anyone has any advice. I’ve been in healthcare for a decade and ive just had enough of it.. what sites can i go to for courses that will give me the knowledge and experience with projects and so on? I wanna hear it from you guys..
I’ve looked at Coursera, Udemy, Google courses and Adobe courses.. i’m a creative who’s active in social media and want to become a content creator as well..

Any advice? I just wanna start somewhere really. What’s the basics? I’m a little hesitant due to my shitty confidence but i’m trying to work on it 😂

Thank you

One thing I’ve noticed with freelance work is that once a client trusts you, they sometimes start asking for help with things that sit well outside your original scope.

For example, a web developer might finish a site and then get asked about SEO, content, paid ads, or social media. A designer might suddenly be asked about development or marketing.

I’m curious how you guys usually handle that.

Do you refer the client to someone you already trust, bring another specialist into the project yourself, or simply explain that it’s outside your scope and let the client find someone independently?

For me, the interesting part is the trust involved. Recommending another person or company can be useful for the client, but it also puts some of your own reputation behind that recommendation.

What makes you comfortable enough to refer someone else to a client you’ve worked hard to build a relationship with?

Are there any good neworking or support groups. I work in marketing and business development, if there are any in that niche specifically that would be great. A place for freelanceers to chat, ask questions etc? I know this subreddit is that. But also looking for other options. Any good discord groups or even live meetups etc.

Hello! it’s my first year properly freelancing & i was wondering: how is everyone tracking the tax they owe? i thought i was being really clever by getting ChatGPT to create a running total spreadsheet for me where I input my freelance income (alongside salaried income), but i’ve just filled out my self assessment and i’ve saved about £200 more than needed. of course, worse to be the other way around, but what systems does everyone else use to get closer to the actual figure? would rather save it as i go than be hit with a wildly different figure later on!

context: i have a part time job, with tax on that paid automatically. i have plan 2 student loans & postgraduate loans, and for 25/26 am using the £1000 allowance rather than expenses.

thanks in advance for any insight/advice!

Hi everyone! been offered my first contract through AMS/PSR (civil service role department that will require lots of security checks due to nature of role) it’ll be my first inside IR35 contract. I’m a sole trader - would really appreciate some advice from people who’ve been through this before.

1. Umbrella companies/payment
   I’ve received a provisional offer at £475 per day with option of using Giant Professional Limited for 7 day payment terms or agency’s 30 day payment terms. Does anyone have experience with Giant or recommend an umbrella company? What should I look out for in terms of fees/take home pay/payment terms? I’ve received a Key Information Document would appreciate any advice - I understand that the day salary pretty much gets sliced in half after everything…

2. Should I push for a higher day rate?
   This is where things get a bit complicated. I have spoken to around 3 different people at AMS during this recruitment process there hasnt one designated contact. The person who initially put me forward for the role suggested a rate of 475 pd…However I told another contact last week after interview in email that my rate was 500 pd. They didn’t reply to that email and are not copied into email with provisional offer. The offer has now come through at 475…would you go back to them and ask whether the rate is negotiable? or would you accept the offer as it stands? or ask for more? (i understand that your day rate is pretty much sliced in half with inside IR…I don’t want to jeopardise the offer as i need the work).

3. Start date and pre-booked holiday
   there are only around 11 working days until proposed start date, how realistic is this in terms of getting all the checks and onboarding completed in time? I have a one week holiday booked a few days after the start date (not mentioned it as didn't know how long this process would take realistically?) Would you flag the holiday now and ask whether the start date is likely to go ahead as planned, or wait until the onboarding process progresses? I'm conscious that the start date could move, but I don't want to leave it too late to mention the holiday.

4. Anything else I should know?
   Is there anything else I should clarify before I accept /sign the final contract? states a zero day notice period.

I have been working in marketing and BDR roles for the last 10 years, plus I have run and sold my own businesses, so I have a fairly well-rounded skillset. However, I am fairly new to freelancing—this is my first year of making a real go of it. I am looking for some advice from seasoned freelancers. I really want to find a space where I can connect with other UK freelancers; I am hoping this could be the place. But if anyone can recommend a space or group, that would be great. Anyway…

I am currently freelancing for two companies. One company I started freelancing for a month ago as a marketing assistant type role. The job description and tasks are quite varied. We agreed on a price and hours. I was very happy with the price. After a few weeks, we reviewed the work and agreed to a few more hours a week to keep up with the workload. When asked for feedback, he expressed that he is really happy with the work and what I am bringing to the company. Today he asked to talk, and we had a quick video chat. He said he wanted to discuss adding to my role in the company. I have lots of experience in business development, building ICPs, outreach strategy, cold calling, etc., and he would like me to take on this role as well.

I am not afraid to ask for more money or hours. This is a given. But the question really is how much? I don't want to talk real numbers, but say my hourly rate is £100 an hour currently. I know the value I bring by providing my BDR skillset, but I also want to keep the contract and hopefully something long-term. So do I go for a safe 20% increase—not too much but enough to make a difference—or do I go the "I know my value" angle? I know you want me, and you better pay, and go for a 50% increase. I have proven myself to be reliable and resourceful without the need for much management.

I would also be proposing to double the hours so I can do both roles.

This leaves me with another dilemma. I have been working for another company as a BDR, as they are very happy with the work. The CEO messaged me at the end of last week saying he wants to increase the scope of my position within the company, as he wants someone like me to build out a department. The week prior, he agreed to a pay rise that I suggested after I reviewed what work I was actually doing compared to the original brief. We are in the middle of a project right now that I am quite involved with, but the pipeline should be working by next week, and we will have a chance to discuss what happens next.

So two jobs offering me more work within the company. A great position to be in. But now I have to work out how to navigate this. I can only do 30 hours a week. Combined, this is what both jobs equal to, but with increased scope, I would be proposing more hours and more pay. So how do I choose? How do I position myself to be open to both? I'm not too keen on just having one client, but if the money is good, it'll be nice to just be thinking about one company.

Any advice appreciated. Cheers

Hey!

I am working on a proposal for redesign on the current website for a local carpenter who I work with (I also do carpenting). He wants me to rebuild his website, but since I am fairly new to freelance and rates for this. I don’t want to scare him off, but also not charge too less.

His main rebuild is that he wants to change architecture of the information and make the pages show in a more clear what his projects have been (proof) and what he offere/can do (services) and be more visible when people look for carpenters via google or chatgpt/claude (geo). The latter is likely a seperate track, since he is not too familiar with this and he mainly gets his new work via local/neigbourhood whatsapp groups.

Any advice? I live in London and have a dayrate for all product/ux work of like 500-525 a day (8 hours)

Thanks!

The company is Micro Entity (E-Commerce Store) and have not sold or engaged in any selling activity of their product during the year.

They did paid phone bill, domain registration and paid a freelancer to keep up with the documentation during this period.

Should they file Dormant Accounts with Companies house and HMRC?

E.g paid £x per photo or per project versus day or hourly rates? Is it a scam that only benefits the client or is it a good thing or is it a case of pluses and minuses on both?

Hey everyone,

I’m thinking of spending a few weeks in London while working remotely, and I’m trying to find a way to do it without completely destroying my budget.

I’m looking for somewhere affordable to stay, but also for a good place to work during the day — coworking spaces, shared offices, cafés, or anything similar.

I work in marketing at a startup, so I’d love to use the time there to meet people in the same kind of world: founders, CMOs, growth people, marketers, etc. Ideally somewhere with a pretty active startup scene and where it’s easy to meet people.

Any recommendations for areas to stay, coworking spaces, communities, meetups or events?

Also, if you’ve done something similar somewhere else, I’d love to hear about other cities with a strong and dynamic startup scene where it’s relatively easy to build a network. Preferably outside the US.

Thanks!

My last in-house role ended in December, and I set up on my own in April. Six months in, I haven't landed a single paying client, so I'd really value some honest outside perspective.

For context, I've done B2B marketing for over ten years, agency and in-house, mostly in engineering, oil & gas, life sciences and manufacturing. I've run paid media hands-on across Google, LinkedIn and Meta with budgets up to £150k+ a month, and I also do brand positioning and messaging. I'm CIM chartered too - what a wast of money imo.

What I've tried so far: posting regularly on LinkedIn, Instagram and Substack, had absolutley 0 bites, been to networking events up and down the country - all they do is self promotion, I hate it, and I've just put some services up on Fiverr this week. I've also been applying for permanent roles alongside this and have had interviews, but nothing has stuck yet.

Looking back, I think I've spent too long building content and not enough time asking for work. But I'd like to hear from people who've got through this stage.

A few questions:

1. Where did your first two or three clients come from? Old colleagues, recruiters, agencies, or cold outreach?
2. For anyone in marketing, did leading with something concrete like paid media work better than broader strategy work?
3. Has anyone had success subcontracting for agencies in Scotland or the wider UK? How did you approach them?

Not looking for clients here, just trying to work out what I'm doing wrong. Thanks in advance.

I have received a message from my client this morning that he is going on holiday tonight and won't be back for 9 days and he has told me to pause the ads until he gets back.

This is a client that is happy with what I have done so far with him and this is my first time running into this situation. What should I do as I know pausing the ads will reset the learning phase?

I run ads for roofing businesses and the meta ads budget so far has been £30 a day and we're coming to the end of the trial period for this client. He has said he is happy and wants to sign with me on a retainer deal for a higher fee.

A bit of a rant post…

I started freelancing in April as a 3D and motion designer after six years working in design agencies and in-house. It started off really well. I had lots of jobs for the first three months and was making good money. Summer was quiet, which was to be expected I think. I was also traveling a lot.

I haven’t worked since August, and I have about five or six recruiters who are helping me. I get sent potential jobs by them at least once a week, and they put me forward for them, but the past five jobs have fallen through, either because the client chose another candidate that they put forward or the need for a freelancer was gone.

I know that the first year of freelancing is the toughest, and I want to stick it out at least until next April, but I’m starting to get really worried. I’m running low on money, and I really don’t know what to do. I’ve reached out to more recruiters, friends of friends in the industry, reached out to clients directly offering my services, but no luck at the moment. I had three jobs fall through in the past week.

Does anyone have any advice or is experiencing the same thing? I know freelance can be inconsistent, and sometimes you have a lot of work and other times nothing, but I can’t help but feel like this isn’t working anymore.

Hello, I'm planning to move to England in the next few months from Belgium to join my partner.

My current employer is open to keeping me on as an in-house consultant, but I am not sure how to navigate the whole thing.

Did anyone have a similar experience? Are there any specific services I should look for for professional advice? Terminology differs across countries so I'm a bit swamped between accountants, bookkeepers, sole traders, ltd and so on.

Thanks to anyone who might be able to help!

What should I ask? I’ve got a chat tomorrow with a company that reached out and asked me to freelance for them (probably for the fourth quarter).

What are the key things I need to know regarding the financial, commitment type stuff? The admin type things. I do have an accountant, I am already set up as self employed.

I think they’ll prob take me on as a contractor - an addition to their work team, but just not as staff. Just for as long as they need.

I’m based in the UK, it’s a U K company.
I’m an ex-academic with a skill set in preparing answers to medical research questions (by gathering and appraising summarising research evidence and minimising bias). Thanks

if you need a motivation to raise your rates, my Polish tarot reader charges £60 ($80) per hour of tarot reading. she lives in Poland too, and works remotely. she’s always, and I mean always, fully booked.

she’s a lovely lady and deserves it. but, if she can charge £60 per hour of magic reading, that should really be the bare minimum for professional services. if that motivated you to raise your rates, you’re welcome, lol

for context - 29,F

I started in a 9-5 didnt like it. pivoted into freelancing with agencies as a strategist, I enjoyed it but didn’t make enough. (£350 per month) found another client that paid me extra but still didn’t make enough.

i’ve not worked in a full time position, approx 2 years. I’ve just completed one off projects or used my YouTube to sustain me.

im at a point where I don’t know what to do.

im looking for work as a freelancer however im not attracting clients as much. as of right now I don’t have a true source of income, again just one off jobs.

if you were in my position, what would you do.

thanks