You’ve found a new client on Malt – fantastic! But after the initial discussion, they suggest that you move off the platform in exchange for a reduced rate. What should you do?
It’s a tricky situation. When you’re building a relationship with a promising new client, you’re establishing boundaries and getting a picture of what it will be like to work with them. It can be tempting to go along with things just for the sake of seeming easy to work with.
Beware. If a client suggests you move off the platform for a better rate, alarm bells should start ringing. One of Malt’s key benefits is that your payment is guaranteed – when a client signs up through Malt, it’s a promise of payment. A request to bypass the platform is a red flag that you may experience payment issues or unfair terms.
If you need to go into explanation mode with your client for why they should continue the collaboration through Malt, here’s your cheat sheet – the proof points at a glance. And if you have an existing client who you don’t collaborate with through Malt, these are great reasons to suggest they join the community.
Malt powers your freelance career
Your winning argument is the huge boost that Malt gives your career. Your professional profile is raised by being on Malt, giving you visibility to clients and projects you wouldn’t otherwise have access to. Quite simply: you’ll find more work, more easily.
But more than discoverability, Malt helps you establish and grow your online reputation. As you accumulate projects, you build status in the Super Malter program, which in turn gives you an even better ranking in search results (as well as a stack of other benefits). The Super Malter badge on your profile is like a stamp of client approval, representing your clients’ trust and the quality of your work.
If your client values your expertise and the work you do for them, they’ll want to support your ongoing freelance success. This is a great argument to persuade your existing clients to move your relationship to Malt.
Payment: total peace of mind
Neither you nor your client have anything to worry about when you contract through Malt. Clients can pay by credit card or wire transfer. Payment is secured at the beginning of the project and transferred to the freelancer only when the client validates that the assignment has been successfully completed, and that the amount invoiced is correct.
We ask clients to pay your fee to an escrow account before you start work. That means that when you work on Malt you can be certain that the client has the funds to pay you, and at the end of the project they won’t simply disappear.
Payment is guaranteed in less than 48 hours and if Malt has an agreement in place with a large account, payment is made in advance of the client’s payment – within 10 days of the invoice being validated. Goodbye to long waiting times for the freelancer, and goodbye to complicated payment processes and juggling multiple suppliers for the client!
Plus projects are insured with Hiscox for up to €20 million, for both client and freelancer. Peace of mind guaranteed.
It’s true: a percentage of your project earnings go to Malt as a service fee (starting at 10% but going down to 5% as you complete more projects with the same client). But remember: if you don’t want to pay this percentage, you can simply increase your daily rate, so your client pays instead.
The higher your ranking, the more leverage you have to charge more. As a Super Malter, you’re more in demand so you can charge a premium rate, meaning you get proposals from the clients you want: ones who are looking for quality and not afraid of high prices. Super Malter rates are 25% higher than other freelancers with similar profiles – there are plenty of freelancers who have more than doubled their daily rate after starting on Malt 2 to 3 years ago.
Easy admin for client and freelancer
As well as being the best freelance platform out there, Malt is an easy-to-use tool for managing invoices and centralizing documents. Many freelancers use Malt as their freelance administration hub, easing the admin time drain. Proposals and invoices are pre-prepared – you only need to fill out a few details, press “send” and it’s done! No more fiddling around with templates and complicated filing systems.
For clients too, admin is streamlined by Malt’s freelance management system. Legal documents and compliance are verified, there’s one single supplier to pay, and all quotes, contracts, invoices, and legal documents are easily accessible.
Why not bring your existing clients into the Malt community?
With all of these benefits for both freelancer and client, why not invite your existing clients to join the 50,000 companies who rely on Malt? It’s free for them to sign up when you invite them, they won’t pay commission on their projects with you, and they’ll get all the admin and peace-of-mind benefits of working with one of Europe’s best freelance platforms.
And as for you, you’ll get all the benefits you enjoy with your Malt clients, like insurance and advance payment. Your Malt fee is reduced to 0% (except in France and Spain). Plus,– every project you complete on Malt contributes towards your ranking in search results and points towards Super Malter status. Remember – with more clients coming to you “passively” – without you actively prospecting and pitching – the more time you can spend on paid work. And the shinier your reputation on Malt, the more you can justify charging for your services.