There are plenty of freelancing marketplaces that bring buyers and sellers together, but how do you choose a freelancing site? What criteria should you be looking at? Here is a guide to help you out.
If you are a freelancer, you would like to be paid fair wages for your time and effort. However, the actual working part of freelancing is only part of the equation. You need to monitor much more than just the time you spend doing the actual jobs.
Time taken to search for jobs. This can actually be a significant portion of your time spent if you're new to the field.
Time taken to network. This is important for all freelancers, whether you're networking offline or online.
Keeping relationships. This includes following up with old customers, looking for jobs through referrals, etc.
The most important among the above is the time taken to look for jobs. You want a freelancing marketplace that has a good number of jobs where you can apply to more than one and have a realistic chance of landing the jobs. And of course the jobs should be well paying.
When you take these criteria into consideration, you will realize that it isn't trivial to look for the best freelancing site. The biggest sites out there - Elance and oDesk, are good for the number of jobs posted, but they tend to pay less. It is a tough problem to crack - how do you ensure that your site doesn't get diluted with time?
When you have a ton of freelancers, it is a race to the bottom to land assignments, and employers tend to see the trend and offer less. As a result, quality freelancers leave the site, employers complain about not finding good talent and leave the site too.
If you are looking to join a freelancing site, remember that it is a significant investment of your time. The cost of shifting midway can be huge, because most sites work on the feedback system and therefore you want to establish yourself at one place.
When you are looking to join a freelance site, look for the following -
Quality of jobs. This is more important than quantity. Do the wages in general look fair to you? If you find them too low in general and you have to dig through a hundred postings to find a decently acceptable job, then move on.
Quantity of jobs. Of course this is important too, especially when you're starting out. If there are more jobs, you have more options to choose from and there is a higher probability of finding jobs requiring your specialized skills.
Ratio of jobs to freelancers. This is very important if you're starting out. If there are scores of freelancers competing for a shrinking share of the pie, employers will tend to hire only the ones that are more established on the site. This means you will have to apply to many more jobs just to get your foot in the door.
When you consider all the above, you should be in a good position to make an educated decision. Remember to look for reviews and grievances that other freelancers might have with the site, and see if they apply to you as well.