Contractors are naturally good at different things, just like everyone else. While someone may have fantastic social media skills or good instincts about clients, if they are naturally shy people, this can hinder their business.

Laura Spencer writes on Freelance Folder that it is important for contractors to overcome their shyness in order to tackle the sales part of their company and offers a few tips for doing so.

Firstly, she says, it is important to avoid being unnecessarily apologetic - a common problem for shy people. Unless there is genuinely something to be sorry for, she advises, contractors should try to eradicate the word from their speech patterns.

In addition, advises Ms Spencer, those contractors who are not natural salespeople should make an effort to prepare for sales calls by keeping notes next to the telephone.

Meanwhile, Gartner has suggested the number of roles for contractors in companies looking to improve their social media presence is rising, indicating there could be new job opportunities for contractors within such organisations.