Want To Outsource To Freelancers Or Get Paid For Being One?

Posted by Ruck in February 21st 2008

oDesk {Disclaimer: The following post is based on observation and opinion. I am not signed with oDesk nor do I have any affiliation with them currently}.

oDesk has really been a fun read for me over the last evening. As I have started to branch out from reading the same old boring marketing forums I started to revamp my evening browsing into finding companies and other sites that, while they may not serve as a money making oriented interest to most people, I try to find the perks behind the sites that will allow people to maybe consider using them as an additional income and revenue source. I added a new category to the blog titled “Company Spotlight” that I would like to dedicate to postings like these.

What is oDesk?

Much like Get A Freelancer and Elance, oDesk serves as an innovative way to outsource web projects, hire IT freelancers, programmers, web designers and much more. However after comparing the 3 I really like the layout of oDesk. When you first outsource work it can be a daunting and nerve racking task. I know, I still remember the first time I did it. I’ve been burned on these sites before and it truly leaves a sour taste in your mouth. Beyond that negativity though I have meant some extraordinary people in the web design and programming fields.

One thing I looked for when I first landed on the site was reliability. I have not yet signed up with them as I have way too many things going on right now to even brainstorm a new idea but rest assured, I probably will in the next couple of months. I came across some good reading about oDesk from Red Herring, Business Week and PC Mag.

For quick reference you can read the overview on oDesk and view the video tutorial.

Alright now for the money making aspect parts of oDesk and how it can help us as Marketers and Entrepreneurs. It looks to be a super easy signup process. You will be going there as a buyer looking to hire out some work or as a freelancer applying yourself to take on jobs.

Why post a job?

It’s free
No credit card required
Reach 42500 providers
Get 20+ applicants in 24 hours

Buyers

As a potential buyer and wanting a project done you have easy navigation to see job postings, buyer feedback, skills, rates and oConomy facts (which serve as some quick statistics on the oDesk Marketplace).

On the other side of the fence we have the jobs section for freelancers looking for work:

Jobs

There are hundreds of job listings. The keyword box up to the top left makes it a little easier to search specifically based on your skills and what type of job you might want to go for.

oDesk also has an active community of registered users that you can associate with. This would probably be a better source of asking direct questions about oDesk. It probably serves as a great networking spot to associate with other freelancers and/or companies related to your field.

Not your typical CashTactics post I know. However this serves as a great resource for marketers, entrepreneurs, webmasters, programmers, designers and everyone else in the web industry. It can be a legitimate opportunity for all you programmers out there trying to become marketers and it could probably help aspiring marketers who hope to one day work online full-time as another additional income source to help supplement them as they make their way.

They have detailed information on the pay structure so be sure to read over it.

Popularity: 41% [?]

7 Comments

Denise Said,

February 21st, 2008 @11:18 am

Interesting! Ruck, you always come up with so many ways to make money online. I have to stay focused on what I am currently doing and not jump into another. I will however bookmark this site and perhaps join the forum. Who knows I may come up with some more niche ideas. :-)

February 21st, 2008 @11:27 am

OFF TOPIC! Ruck, why are your feedburner numbers all over the place? I am noticing about 100 less than yesterday.

seocontest2008 Said,

February 21st, 2008 @3:59 pm

Ruck,

Following you recommendation, i did go to get a freelancer and liked that site. Though i haven’t outsourced the work but definitely will look into odesk when i am going to outsource!

also, did look into Market Leverage but yet to try out their offers! busy with this seo contest ! its taking all my time!

thanks for giving out useful information, that is one of the reasons i keep coming back to your blog time and time again!

volomike Said,

February 22nd, 2008 @4:54 pm

I don’t know why I’m writing this. I guess I feel benevolent today? Things have changed dramatically for me in the past 45 days, so I thought I’d share.

Actually, sites like oDesk are a good hedge, but not where you need to focus completely as a freelancer. I should know because I am a successful one at $10K a month. For one thing, it’s hard to stand out from the maddening crowd. Second, there’s a lot of fakers out there who do lousy work, share portfolios for work done by their buddies instead of their own work, and they offer ridiculously low prices in order to turn out lousy work or work that misses deadlines or fails to match requirements. You pay for what you get. You’ll often find that communication is a struggle with many of these low end programmers. I know all this because I’ve had clients tell me this.

For me, I found that it’s good to pay for your own advertising, and it doesn’t cost much. Then, charge about 3x what the low end freelancers charge. Believe me — it works and it’s a win-win for not only you as the freelancer, but the AM clients as well because they will soon realize that you pay for what you get.

When you find a lucrative client, it’s best to hang on to that client for follow-on phases and other projects — it’s easier to do that than to pay to hunt for more clients. Eventually you can build a little black book of repeat clients, and the AMers will keep you in their little black book of good freelancers as well.

As well, it’s good as a freelancer to learn from the AM projects you participate on. Not to break your NDAs with your AM clients, but to use their advice on your own AM strategies, perhaps even partner with them. And either way you work with an AMer, you benefit when they benefit.

Many who start out in web dev freelancing find it’s so lucrative with their AM projects that they can quit freelancing in order to focus purely on AM. Many AMers who get rolling in this industry find that this is the type of ex-freelancer that is a good target to hire and merge in with your company. That way, the ex-freelancer can get more cash for more backend systems, more network bandwidth, and more traffic source cash so that they can grow their projects farther than what they could before. And this mix of ex-freelancers and AMers allows you to pool together for even greater growth.