Freelancers for Africa - unused and unloved?

Specialist journalists in every field imaginable, from finance and IT to health and even the esoteric. Then, of course, there's the layout and design guys, photographers - and here we're talking ex chief photographers of major newspapers, who are all out there waiting for assignments.

The thing is this: you don't have to pay them a salary, medical aid, insurance or even have them take up a seat in your office. You don't have to hear about their family problems or pay them for time unused. There's no expense account or maternity leave and you get exactly what you pay for.

Think about it. Perhaps you produce a company newsletter or write info for a website that goes out to staff, clients and anyone who hits your website. Who writes and edits this? Has any research gone into whether anyone is actually reading it? Is it amateur? For a few hours' work a month, this could be whipped into professional shape and you could find people actually look forward to reading it.

You want to get word out on a new offering or project. You get whoever you think is the best writer in the office possibly to ‘knock something up'. They do this diligently, ending up with about four pages not leaving any detail out. You wonder perhaps why you get no response. Ask a writer - better still get a professional to write it. You'll find you have one page of clear, concise information.

At your company function, someone who has just bought themselves a lekker new digital camera goes around snapping shots. The next day, when you need these for your website, you battle to find any without heads cut off or blurry shots - possibly taken after a few drinks. If you'd hired a professional, this wouldn't have happened.

Nothing replaces a professional - so next time you want a few pages of copy, a report edited, a proposal written or some great pics, why not try a freelancer? And, remember, there's not one size fits all - there are many specialities.

• Check out the South African Freelance Association (www.safrea.co.za) and Freelancentral (www.freelancentral.co.za).