Hi all, I just keep browsing on the net looking for sites that offer freelance work in website design and graphics..I came over sites like GAF, Scriptlance etc..But what i found is for freshers i feel it is a tougher place to adjust since the competition nowadays is really crap.. So can anyone suggest a few sites where you think has less competition and freshers get projects? Regards
Yes it's tough competition on those websites especially if you're starting your business. For me, it has been easier to just contact companies that might need the services. If you're able to deliver good results it won't take long before new customers will come to you because of referrals and good reputation. If you go to freelance websites price becomes the only advantage if you don't have references/reputation. That means working for almost free.
Yoy're absolutely right, those are great places for training. If you're able win contracts with a good price and reputation you have to be really good on what you do. As a beginner I wouldn't rely solely on freelancing websites thou.
Yes....i had my try at a few freelance sites...Sucks for me though....placed bids..but the competition is so huge and as u said "Work for free" stuff..I am still trying my luck at the newly started sites like studentfl etc but still getting over is tough.
Instead of placing bid on a freelance website, I placed my ad to craigslist.org. I do multi-lingual graphic design and translation and I actually got most responds from there which people really hired me to work for them after viewing my website and attachment samples. And the offers are never as ridiculous as in this community. I am new in here and I'll be honest with you that the job offering in this place are mostly so dirt cheap. I don't think a quality designer can ever compete and survive in such an environment. Lauren
When I do freelance work my charge is a MINIMUM of $50 per hour. No way that anyone can even come close to that in a bidding war with everyone around the world. Best bet, as Lauren suggests, is to bypass all of the competition worldwide and focus on your LOCAL area. Even if you get a TINY FRACTION of the work available in your area, you will be far busier than you ever thought possible. And once you become established, you will be able to charge what your work is WORTH, not what you must charge to low-ball the competition in India or China.
If you feel like GAF and other website are full of newbies and aren't fore you, you can try your luck at higher rated places: elance.com and guru.com These sites are great if you've already grown up in your skills and ready to pay monthly fees (around $150 for gold/premium subscription). Of course, competition there is less, as all providers are serious. So, I found these freelances sites (especially elance.com, I'm currently working on) the best ones for now.
I totally agree with mmerlinn that you should charge what your work is worth. From this community I found that I can even hire some graphic designer TO DO MY JOB since their costs are so low.... It is terrible seeing the graphic design industry being off balance like that. Anyway, wish you the best luck in your business development.