Comments on: Online freelance industry gaining momentum

By: RieAvis

RieAvis — Thu, 17 May 2012 02:59:28 +0000

Have you already checked out http://www.staff.com? This is a another great alternative site for work from home jobs. Employers who need to outsource their work can choose from their pool of talented staff for a lower labour cost.

By: Hieral

Hieral — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 15:00:38 +0000

In the era of globalization, where economic set back is uncertain, many nations in spite of inflation and employment problem have achieved remarkable progress through outsourcing.

There is no lack of talent in professional players, just need is to bring them out; and some outsourcing portals are doing this also.

Hiral Patel,

http://www.VirtueTeam.com

http://www.virtueteam.com/

By: JeWe

JeWe — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 20:47:44 +0000

Generic Marketplaces are good way to find poor skills on a do nothing platform. Weblance is the only way to go. Better member standards, tools to work and they address quality!

By: robertgoetze

robertgoetze — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:19:47 +0000

Victorialpri – I agree. It’s the mindset of the buyers that, as soon as they buy services online, it should be cheap. But Online-Freelancing is just another acquisition channel for those freelancers. And buyers should be aware of that.
The demand is not only tremendously increasing in the states, also over here in Europe the market is growing and growing. Of course in Europe everything is a bit slower and we often wait if the concept proves in the states, but as the Online-Outsourcing is growing for years now in the US, Europe is picking up fast. Elance has just made its move to some European countries (e.g. Germany) to compete with big local players over there (like twago or MyHammer).

By: VictoriaIpri

VictoriaIpri — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 14:54:31 +0000

RenLady, I agree in spirit. Been there, done that. But…Elance is not the evildoer here. They merely provide a matching service where freelancers and ‘buyers’ can come together. It is not their responsibility to oversee minimum wage laws. The race to the bottom is not caused by Elance, any more than the proliferation of dating sites is caused by Match.com. These websites simply capitalize on the opportunity to provide a service demanded by the people.

The real bad guy in all of this is the buyer, who for whatever reason, has decided $1 for a professionally written, SEO-polished, edited and proofread 500 word article is a fair wage.

The secondary issue is providers who are so desperate or insecure as to believe they should take any work at any rate.

Freelancing is a business model requiring, not only the skills prerequisite in your chosen industry, but savvy operation abilities. We are business owners first; freelancers second. If you are a great writer, but a lousy business person, don’t work for yourself. If you insist on working for yourself, take responsibility for your business and stop blaming everyone else for your failures.

By: Fred-Freelancer

Fred-Freelancer — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 11:51:21 +0000

True true what the above reader said. The relevant authorities should at least enact laws that control the minimum wage for certain types of jobs. If not, Elance among others should at least try enacting similar regulations.

By: RenLady

RenLady — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 18:30:41 +0000

It is a bit disingenuous to leave out the fact that freelancers (especially those on Elance and other Internet portals)are seeing their jobs increasingly outsourced to word mills and other sweat shop labor mills in India and Pakistan. Those who are hiring that refuse to outsource, because they want a higher level of quality for their assignments, still expect their providers to work for the wages of these third world mills and sweat shops.

Remember, there is no minimum wage for freelancers.

The increase of jobs these internet portals provide does not necessarily mean an increase in jobs for Westerners – and certainly does not mean better pay for those who are willing to take these assignments. It usually means that a professional living in the West must work extreme hours for what ends up being far less than minimum wage.

Internet portals such as Elance are why we have this race to the bottom, eviscerating the working middle classes. Freelancers are expected to have advanced educations and consistently give their absolute best while working for wages that would be considered poor in a third world country.

The pity is that Elance contributes to this by not following the lead of Germany (which still has a strong economy) by insisting upon a minimum wage for the type and amount of work provided. Those with talent and an education must either resign themselves to absolute poverty or must leave the freelance world.