Does anybody freelance?

[Tamara Dominguez Poncelas]

I have just finished my master´s and I am finding it hard to find a job related to my studies. Most employment offers I have seen require 3-5 years of experience

I have joined Freelancer to try and do some mini jobs or tasks in my field, but I haven´t been selected for any job I have applied to in the website. The website seems overcrowded and there is also the fact that I don´t have any reviews since I haven´t done anything yet.

I was just wondering if anyone uses Freelancer (or any other similar site) and if you have any tips to start?

 

[Jon]

Well I suppose the obvious question is what services are you trying to offer?

 

[Andrew]

I have just finished my master´s and I am finding it hard to find a job related to my studies. Most employment offers I have seen require 3-5 years of experience

I have joined Freelancer to try and do some mini jobs or tasks in my field, but I haven´t been selected for any job I have applied to in the website. The website seems overcrowded and there is also the fact that I don´t have any reviews since I haven´t done anything yet.

I was just wondering if anyone uses Freelancer (or any other similar site) and if you have any tips to start?

I tried using it a while back and it was diabolical. The problem is you're competing with freelancers from all across the world and with countries where the rate of pay is far lower than ours so if you do win a job you'll end up working for peanuts. You'd be much better to give leapforce/lionbridge etc a try. Maybe utest as well. I'd even reccomend doing matched betting ahead of using freelancer and I view gambling as the work of the devil!

 

[Andrew]

Well I suppose the obvious question is what services are you trying to offer?

Your typing speed is soooo much better than Mine! There were no replies on here at when I started typing!

 

[Tamara Dominguez Poncelas]

Well I suppose the obvious question is what services are you trying to offer?

Oops!
Forgot to mention, I am really interested in data science/analysis. Most of the job postings involving data are for data entry, and even those I am not getting...

 

[Tamara Dominguez Poncelas]

I tried using it a while back and it was diabolical. The problem is you're competing with freelancers from all across the world and with countries where the rate of pay is far lower than ours so if you do win a job you'll end up working for peanuts. You'd be much better to give leapforce/lionbridge etc a try. Maybe utest as well. I'd even reccomend doing matched betting ahead of using freelancer and I view gambling as the work of the devil!

Thanks, Andew. Am I correct to assume that you did not receive any jobs? It seems that you have confirmed what I was dreading and the website is mostly a waste of time... I have already started with matched betting, but will check your other suggestion

 

[Jon]

Those sites are literally the race to the bottom sadly

 

[Stuart]

Those sites are literally the race to the bottom sadly

Have to agree with that. As a freelance programmer/developer (Application/Embedded) I see this a lot; the OP's story is depressingly familiar and it's only getting worse. I had a look round Fiverr tonight checking what the rates were for programmers in my field. One was offering his top-priced service for a complete application for $50. So about £38 then. For reference, that sum buys less than three-quarters of an hour of my time for that sort of work - if I'm feeling generous. Nobody decent could write a complete application for that amount... Could they? I wouldn't even try.

Reading the feedback did raise a small smile though. Comments like "Doesn't listen" and "Ignored my instructions completely" resonate with me, having had dealings with people from that part of the world before. Caveat Emptor.

To @Tamara Dominguez Poncelas : Your best bet on sites like Freelancer, Upwork, Fiverr and the rest is to keep plugging away, keep putting yourself forward; you'll get something eventually. Some advice: Compete on quality, not price. Ask for what you genuinely feel you are worth in the role and make it crystal clear to prospective clients that they are buying quality. Unlike an old codger like me, you don't have a 30-year track record behind you, so this may mean you have to create some samples of the sort of work you want to do- so do it, do it thoroughly and well, and show it off. Never, ever compete on price. There's always someone out there who can and will undercut you, and frankly, you don't want that sort of client anyway.

 

[Tamara Dominguez Poncelas]

Have to agree with that. As a freelance programmer/developer (Application/Embedded) I see this a lot; the OP's story is depressingly familiar and it's only getting worse. I had a look round Fiverr tonight checking what the rates were for programmers in my field. One was offering his top-priced service for a complete application for $50. So about £38 then. For reference, that sum buys less than three-quarters of an hour of my time for that sort of work - if I'm feeling generous. Nobody decent could write a complete application for that amount... Could they? I wouldn't even try.

Reading the feedback did raise a small smile though. Comments like "Doesn't listen" and "Ignored my instructions completely" resonate with me, having had dealings with people from that part of the world before. Caveat Emptor.

To @Tamara Dominguez Poncelas : Your best bet on sites like Freelancer, Upwork, Fiverr and the rest is to keep plugging away, keep putting yourself forward; you'll get something eventually. Some advice: Compete on quality, not price. Ask for what you genuinely feel you are worth in the role and make it crystal clear to prospective clients that they are buying quality. Unlike an old codger like me, you don't have a 30-year track record behind you, so this may mean you have to create some samples of the sort of work you want to do- so do it, do it thoroughly and well, and show it off. Never, ever compete on price. There's always someone out there who can and will undercut you, and frankly, you don't want that sort of client anyway.

Thanks Stuart for your encouraging words! I will keep trying on those websites, and I had not thought about building a sample my of work, I should probably create a github as a portfolio... As you say, it definitely does not help that I don´t have any experience

 

[Stuart]

Thanks Stuart for your encouraging words! I will keep trying on those websites, and I had not thought about building a sample my of work, I should probably create a github as a portfolio... As you say, it definitely does not help that I don´t have any experience

Happy to help!

Don't worry about lack of experience, as long as you know what you're doing, "Fake it 'till you make it" applies; we all started somewhere. I don't know much about Github, except that it's fashionable right now, so I can't be of any help there. One thing you might find useful is to set up a Wordpress.com site; I'm not talking about a blog here (although you can certainly use it that way), more about a space that you can use to promote yourself and your abilities, maybe even a "hire me!" page as well. That way, you can bid for work and direct prospective clients to your site URL to get all the details instead of having to retype a short version that will fit the box every time. For this purpose you do not need your own domain or hosting, it's a waste of money; a subdomain is fine and a free Wordpress.com account will do the job.

What you should ultimately be aiming for is a "pool" of clients who give you regular work and are willing to recommend your services via word of mouth. Once you get going, you want to break free of the shark-filled cesspool of freelancer websites entirely, if possible. My last client, who I've done work for for over a decade, paid a five-figure sum for what amounted to a weeks' work; the internet's involvement was restricted to emails and a single ten minute Teamviewer session to install the finished product. That's the sort of thing you're aiming for, and it's doable. Not easy, but doable.

Of course, there are these other income streams - it's why I'm here, after all; if I never had to look at another line of code or circuit diagram again I'd be a happy man...