About 95% of our clients are students from the United States.  Since we deal with students, the industry where we belong is very much seasonal.  There are months when we hardly have work which is the summer from June until August.  There are months when the work is okay such as during January and February and then August to September.  There are also months when we could hardly get any sleep because of the volume of our work which is from April to June and then October to December.  There are certain upsides and downsides to having a seasonal business.  In this article, we seek to discuss the pros and cons of having a seasonal business like ours.

Pros of Having a Seasonal Business

Motivated To Be More Efficient

Since freelance writers are aware of the dates for the peak season, they are more motivated to maximize their earnings during the Fall Semester, Winter Semester and the Spring Semester.  Freelance writers are aware that there is only 9 or 10 months in a year where there is school and peak season generally lasts 4 to 5 months in a year.  So, every freelance writer tends to work harder during the months of April to June, and October to December.  To maximize their earnings during these months, they tend to stay online more often to choose the best projects which could give them the best pay.   

Enjoy Vacations During Lean Seasons

During summer majority of the students go on vacations which give opportunities for freelance writers to go offline and take time off from work.  Between the months of June to August, writers have more than enough time to take their mind away from the day to day work.  Some freelance writers use the time to go on short vacations. 

Learn New Skills During Lean Seasons

Being aware that they have very limited time off, there are freelance writers who want to be more efficient by utilizing these months to grow their business and explore new opportunities.  During these months, they look to connect and collaborate with other writers.  Some explore new skills like learning how to code or build websites or do photography.

Cons of Having a Seasonal Business

No Work May Means Higher Stress

The sudden dip in the volume of work can be very stressful to some freelancers.  Freelancers enjoy working on their business.  The more they work the happier they are.  Many freelancers do not count the number of hours they spend on their business as hours worked because they love what they do.  For these freelancers, lean seasons can be quite stressful for them.  Considering that they are used to working real hard for 6 to 8 hours a day, they might find it hard to adjust when the lean season comes.

Lean Season Means Less Income

During peak seasons, full-time freelancers are accustomed to earning up to 50,000 to 80,000 a month while the part-time freelancers earn around 30,000 to 40,000 a month.  New freelancers who get accustomed to that much earnings tend to think that can get these earnings all year round.  For these freelancers, the lean season can be disastrous for those who are unable to manage their funds.  If they are unaware that they are in a seasonal business they may find it hard to adjust to the sudden change in the influx of money.  The dry season can be quite suffocating for the new freelancers who are just learning the ropes about this business.

There are pros and cons in a seasonal business like ours.  It is up to the freelancer to embrace the nature of the business and strategize to make himself more effective.  In our case, we just try to maximize our earnings as much as we can during the peak season and try to save some money during the lean seasons.  When the lean season comes, we use it as an opportunity to try to improve our website, collaborate with other writers.  Basically, we seek to grow our business during the lean seasons.  In a way, I believe seasonal business makes freelancers more productive.