Getting started on Freelancer - so many dodgy goings on!

[doublemum]

I have worked in publishing for a long time, recently been made redundant and am trying to see if I can start to make a living on a freelance basis. I have opened accounts with others but really begun with Freelancer to make lots of bids etc. My first mistake was probably to show I'm female. Virtually everyone who has contacted me has ended up being dodgy in some way and I'm fed up with being asked to rewrite articles on penis extensions! So I'd really appreciate help on how to get work on Freelancer (and other similar sites), and how not to attract (for me) the wrong kind of work!
I had to sign a NDA when I left my job so I can't use anything I wrote during my employment which severely restricts me in showing sample work. So I know that the first thing I need to do is get writing. I am more than willing at first to write/proofread etc for peanuts so that I can get feedback.
All tips and advice very gratefully accepted.

 

[toastking]

You have to jump through a few hoops but I and everyone I've referred to People Per Hour have found it to be worth the effort

https://www.peopleperhour.com/site/register?rfrd=229032.1

Basically you have to submit a profile and a form of CV type set of information, which is then reviewed by the admin. They only publish the profile elements to other users but it helps them determine sellers are legit.

You get the odd strange thing I'd imagine but I've not really encountered any problems yet. Hopefully this will help get you started in freelancing. If you don't mind potentially devaluing your own work then fiverr is an easy way to get business to start off with but it really is damaging long term to a freelancer.

 

[caledonia1972]

Yes Freelancer and Odesk are definitely the poorer relations of Peopleperhour. I found Odesk a bit better than Freelancer and did quite a bit of work through there when I was starting out and building up my portfolio. I always filter jobs by searching for "uk" or "Britain" so that you are filtering out all the people who are looking for rubbish copy written by Kenyans or Bangladeshi.

Keep plugging away. Look at Copify as well - another British site - doesn't pay well but none of the dodgy jobs you see elsewhere. Save everything you write and use it as examples for next time you bid.

 

[doublemum]

Thankyou, perhaps I'll switch my allegiances to PPH! I have also joined Textbroker and HireWriters, any feedback on them? Must admit I don't quite understand how Fiverr works at the moment but I'll concentrate elsewhere for now.

 

[Twiggy]

Thankyou, perhaps I'll switch my allegiances to PPH! I have also joined Textbroker and HireWriters, any feedback on them? Must admit I don't quite understand how Fiverr works at the moment but I'll concentrate elsewhere for now.

Hi Doublemum

I do Textbroker, and find them good. You don't have to pitch for work, but you do have to check the page with jobs quite often as they get snapped up quickly. If you are rated 4 or 5, you will get a lot more work and the pay will be better. I am just rated 3 stars, and the work is less, but I do a bit here and there. Cash out every Thursday and it will be in your Paypal on the Friday.

 

[doublemum]

Thankyou Twiggy, they sound good then. I worked on 2 jobs for most of yesterday on Freelancer and I already get the impression one is trying to get out of paying (because his Copyscape subscription has run out) so I'm not off to a good start there really.

 

[doublemum]

Well I was unnecessarily pessimistic and I have been paid (if you can call it that!), and have been given more work, probably because I'm doing it for so little. A few reviews and that'll be the last I hear from him I expect!

 

[caledonia1972]

I think you also have to start thinking about what your long term aims are in terms of your writing. Are you the sole wage earner in your house or are you earning for "extras?" That will probably determine what sort of avenues you explore.

I started off too writing for $0.01 a word and it's a good way to build up a portfolio. I was writing SEO content a few years ago so would be given a list of keywords and told to go off and construct an article around them. Having the portfolio is the key thing to be able to show to better paying jobs. Now my average rate has gone up a BIT but I'm not in the bestselling author standard of writing or pay bracket. I average 2p - 3p a word and I'm perfectly happy with that.

I get most of my work from the same pool of three or four clients and they are always asking for copy around the same subjects. I have written so much home improvement type copy that I can easily earn £20 in 45 minutes banging out 1000 words on why you need to have your boiler serviced or how to avoid a cowboy builder. That's a pretty good hourly rate. Plus the client is happy with what I am doing and every time I finish one batch of articles she asks for more. I probably could pitch for higher paying work but I can't be bothered with clients asking for endless revisions, being hugely picky about what goes on their website, or doing articles which require research in topics I don't know about - 1000 for a demanding client on something like cricket or the internal combustion engine (both of which are complete mysteries to me) would take 3 times as long and even if the rate is 3 times more, the hourly rate is the same. I prefer the easy way out and it leaves me more time to do things for the kids or meet a friend for coffee.

There are a lot of very pretentious people in the writing world, and especially on PPH who are very precious about their "craft". Yes some of the projects I'm invited to apply to are a joke - I'm not writing 5000 words for 50p for anyone. But often I have seen a fairly simple project writing copy on weddings, or holidays, or other topics where the client is giving you all the info at an hourly rate of £15 - £20 or a per word rate of 2p - 3p getting snotty replies from freelancers saying "are you for real? If you want quality copy you have to pay for it!!" What these people fail to realise is that the client doesn't want War and Peace, they want decent, solid copy which is free or spelling and grammar errors, is unique, and is written by someone with a passing knowledge of the topic.

 

[doublemum]

I'm not the main wage earner, but he has been made redundant twice and is on contracts recently so things are more precarious than I'd like and I need a steadyish decent amount coming in to pay the mortgage at least. I have no pretensions about it though. Am currently rewriting product info on duck decoys. (!)

 

[DillyBloss]

I am struggling with Elance atm - folk expect 500 words for $2.50, want examples of work I can't provide or expect to email me direct cutting out Elance. V frustrating!

 

[caledonia1972]

It's usually against the terms and conditions of the site to ask for payment away from the platform. People do it to try to get around the fees they have to pay. Report the dodgy customers to Elance!

I have to say that I have come to the conclusion over the years that the only employers worth working for are those based in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and parts of Western Europe. They expect a decent job, and pay a decent price. £10 for 500 words-ish depending on topic. Clients from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Kenya or the Middle East are used to paying very low wages and expect the earth for very little. Many of these clients struggle to express themselves in English so write rubbish briefs and are just unclear about what they expect. Some of the websites are dubious to say the least and just not something I want to get involved with. I like Peopleperhour because they put a little flag on your profile saying where you're from based on your IP address rather than where you say you're from. It's not infallible, but helps weed out the third-world salary demanders.

Some of the English language skills of the "writers" who I have seen bidding on freelancing sites are just appalling, but when you've got someone who just wants to stuff his website with crap copy written at a rate of $1 per 500 words they will still get the work.

 

[toastking]

I would say it's always going to be against their terms and conditions to ask for payment outside the platform, otherwise the platform wouldn't be able to make any money from running their sites.

It is difficult to get started in freelancing I've found, barely getting going on PPH again having had to set up a new account and its much tougher

 

[Jon]

I would say it's always going to be against their terms and conditions to ask for payment outside the platform, otherwise the platform wouldn't be able to make any money from running their sites.

It is difficult to get started in freelancing I've found, barely getting going on PPH again having had to set up a new account and its much tougher

Agree with this, you are competing against people who will just do the work for pence

 

[doublemum]

Well I have two reviews on Freelancer now, although I've not had time to bid for any more work really. It was paying peanuts but I only did it for the reviews and actually after the first one it was just very quick rewrites. It isn't something I'll continue doing, but at least it's getting me 5 star feedback. Got a lot going on with selling our house etc but as soon as I get a proper moment I will make a start on PPH.
Oh and the penises have stopped.