Sunday, December 27, 2009

Making Money From Home by Freelancing by Gareth Hunt

Are you tempted by the idea of working from home?

You may be surprised to find that you have a skill which you can market on the internet. Freelance working allows you to work from home and to be your own boss. You advertise your services and leave it up to clients (employers) to decide if they want to hire you. Freelancing can be very rewarding if you have a skill which is marketable but if you are not sure of your skills then sites like Smarter Work and Home Working UK will be able to help you find out how marketable they are.

Do you have the right skills for freelancing?

Skill areas which lend themselves well to freelancing over the internet tend to be IT type skills, such as web design and software development, but many other less technical admin skills are often in demand such as data entry, typing and Microsoft Excel. One of the most sought after skills at the moment is also the ability to write articles and web content about a wide range of topics (see 'paid articles' link below).

Freelancing Marketplaces

Freelance Marketplaces are a good way of finding freelance work on the internet. They allow you to register as a 'service provider' which allows you to post details of the service that you want to provide, along with details of your experience and evidence of any similar past work you may have done. You are then added to a database so that potential employers can search for your service and so that you can search for specific jobs to 'bid on'. If you are awarded a job, the freelance site will take a percentage (usually between 5-10%) of any fee paid to you. Once you have completed a job, your employer will be able to give feedback on your service which if good, will increase your chance of getting hired again. Registration to these sites is usually free however paying members are offered additional benefits such as having their services displayed more prominently in searches.

Some popular Freelancing Marketplace sites for you to use (search for these names)

Guru
Elance
getafreelancer

Of course, if you are more experienced and not comfortable with allowing anyone to take a cut of the payment for your work then you can find skills on the internet directly. For example, if your skill is in web design then you may be able to find jobs on popular web design forums.

For more ideas about how to make money online from home visit the Online Money Test. For example: Online Surveys, Paid Reviews, Paid Article Writing.

Freelancing - The Future Looks Like This - Part 1 by Neil Lewis-Vahl

"The glue that holds the company together is trust" said Dr James Bellini, a forecaster of employment trends, and therefore not employment. This statement stands in direct conflict with received wisdom that believes that it is the traditional employment contract that holds companies together.

The reason that staff traditionally sought employment and employers believed that employment was important to 'attract the right person' is because that way of doing things has been deeply embedded in our society and well understood - it used to be the trusted way.

However, this doesn't mean that a new contract for work can't be established. The 1m official UK self-employed or freelance people is the highest figure ever and is a clear sign that things are already changing in the UK as they already have in the USA and are beginning to take place across all developed economies.

The standard employment way of doing things also comes at great cost. Dr Bellini, director of the Talent Foundation, made an extraordinary claim. He stated that only '4% of staff are located where they want to be'. A full 96% of staff would rather work in a different geographical location - perhaps closer to home, perhaps in another town or city.

Perhaps this explains the length of commuter frowns and stress of rush hour traffic? We are always in the wrong place desperately trying to get back to where we want to be.

So much better then to be a freelancer? And here, please note, the benefit is for the freelancer themselves not just the company that is hiring or contracting with them. In Dr Bellini's vision of the future 'the company of the future will have next to no assets - having outsourced the technology and office' and it will rely in substantial part if not entirely on trusted freelanced or contracted workforce.

The issue that is left now for freelancers - is personal branding. That is, being able to explain to potential companies that might hire the freelancers skills or time what the freelancer can do as well as give them confidence that they can do the job well and deliver on time.

As students of branding know, the essence of a strong brand is trust. Ah yes, and that was exactly what Dr Bellini said in the first place 'the glue that holds a company together is trust'. So, perhaps we can see the future of freelancing as a series of strong trust based personal and agency brands working with other partners in a larger organization.

The future of freelancing then, is the future of brands - and for a freelancer to build trust in his personal brand he will need to develop and deliver trust. To do this, he will need to deliver his projects on time to budget and keep his client happy.

The freelancer in this world can not walk out on a job. He can not call in sick to take time off and go and watch a football match. He can not drop the project and take another - without seriously impairing his brand and affecting his ability to secure future contracts.

Therefore, the freelancer is motivated to keep the client happy in a way that the employee is not.

No wonder that business strategists forecast that companies and successful entrepreneurs will be able to build better and stronger corporate brands on the back of a strong, experienced and highly trust worthy freelance resource.

What a huge business advantage this will be for the entrepreneur or business manager willing to encourage the freelance model in his or her work force. And, for the freelancers, what a great place to work.

Read more like this at http://www.ragstowreckages.com/ Rags to Wreckages. Real Life Business Strategies and Parables for Successful Entrepreneurs.

Monday, December 21, 2009

Freelancing - Paving Your Way to Success by Matthew John Williams

Looking forward to succeed in your area of expertise? Freelancing provides the opportunity to earn some extra income or even earn a decent livelihood. Only what a freelancer needs invariably, is ample skills in his or her area of interest to work in.

Worried about making money or disgusted with the traditional 9-5 shifts? Only keep an eye over the internet. Opportunities are always around you, of course you need to make sure to be aware of it and select only your area of expertise-where you can bring optimum outputs for your clients. With the help of internet you can find endless opportunities for online freelancing that suit the best of your capabilities and even lets you earn from home. Never let your clients find any backdrop on your part. Always be optimistic in your attitude, because optimism itself is a virtue.

Freelancing can be considered as the self-employment opportunity not only for the beginners, but also for the professionals. Working as a freelancer has become one of the most popular ways of earning money online by sitting back and working at home. Just by investing time and skills one can start earning some extra income or even a healthy living.

Once you have got the job remember to keep yourself focused on it and try to meet the requirements of your client error-free within the prescribed deadline. Although you may start-up with earning only a few bucks initially, but in the long run these kind of sincere efforts can prove fruitful-thereby bringing you more and more clients with the inflow of huge cash for you.

Often it happens that due to some financial issues or demand of the situation one gets diverted from his or her area of interest. Do not need to get disheartened, on the contrary if you have got enough skills and potentials why not prove it! Break free of the shackles and give your potential the correct exposure. If you have got the talents, do not look back. Even economic downsizing cannot be an issue towards your success. Commitment and self-belief will help you achieve what you dream today.

Matthew Willaims is the contributing writer of Freelancemanagementbank. He is specialized in writing articles about self-employment.

Freelancing Your Way to Reputation and Income by Suneel Mohan

Many new internet marketers start their businesses with little to no cash flow. After a few weeks or months of working on their new websites, they realize that the money may not just come rolling in as quickly as they had hoped. At this point, many people begin to assess what other skills they have that could be marketable to other internet marketers. This way, they can make a little income while they are waiting for their websites to take off.

Freelancing is one way to make money using your skills while you are waiting to make money on your websites. Here are some tips to remember when you are freelancing:

1. Let other marketers know about your skills. Many fellow colleagues would be glad to hire you if you provide good quality work at an affordable price. You may have to start off offering your services for a lower rate, but it will pay off when you start getting paid and build a reputation.

2. Decide what your skills really are. Do not try to be everything to everyone. In other words, do not offer writing, site building, link building and every other service imaginable unless you are very well versed at those skills and can keep up with the workload.

3. Decide how your payment system will work: Make sure that you at least charge a portion of your fees up front. If you don't, someone could hire you and have you working for hours and then never pay you. You would still have the articles, but would have wasted a lot of your precious time.

4. As for testimonials! People like to read about other people's experience working with you. Ask your customers to provide a testimonial.

5. Use sites like Odesk and Elance to offer your services to other buyers. This will get you even more work.

Freelancing can be a lucrative way to make some extra cash while you are waiting for your internet millions to arrive!

Suneel Mohan aims at providing the novices and intermediate bloggers and webmasters valuable information over how they can promote their products and services. The key aspect of every article from TeamNirvana serves the audience by not being too technical. Yet, the technical aspects of any article is deciphered and provided in a tangible way to the readers. You can reach Suneel Mohan at http://www.topbestaffiliates.com/

Monday, December 14, 2009

How to Avoid Illegitimate Freelancing Jobs Online by R. Bouch

With the internet becoming the addictive need of the hour, 'work from home' opportunities are fast emerging. One such 'work from home' job is freelance writing. Writing in the form of blogs, content writing, and ad writing are fast becoming popular. If legit, they can be a great way to earn extra income right from the comfort of one's home.

Not all the freelance job offer sites are fake. There are genuine websites too, but because most turn out to be fake even the legitimate ones get bypassed. Some common forms of freelance jobs online are ad typing, multi-level marketing, freelance writing, affiliate marketing and many more offering a lot of money with little details.

However, it is on the person seeking online jobs to do the required research before committing to any freelance work. The specifications and requirements of the job must be thoroughly looked at. Here are some tips to follow to avoid falling for any scams.

The source of the job listing must be established. Spammers are known to list themselves on Craig list and Yahoo! Mailing among other genuine jobs sites. The credibility of the company must be established through social networking sites and forums. Legitimacy of these sites can be determined by checking out the information available within related community sites through user opinion.

Scrutinize the pay scale. It is always prudent to be realistic. Do not fall for the trap of the almighty dollar. If it is too good to be true, it usually is. Most genuine sites pay for a completed projected or have hourly and per-word payment systems. If there are ambitious claims of making thousands of dollars day, then they are probably exaggerating and should be avoided. Also be sure to check the software requirements, the payment mode and how often is payment going to be made.

Payment criteria. It is always recommended to inquire about payment methods of the company. Are the payments made by check, via PayPal or by other modes? It is always good to ask questions and no genuine company would avoid answering such queries.

No initial payment. Most scam companies ask for a payment in the name of training charges, cost of materials or simply as joining fees. Any job aspirant knows that it is always the employer who pays and not vice-versa. So if such payment is asked then it is surely a scam.

Get quick rich schemes are unrealistic and one must not fall into the trap. A legitimate employer would always look for some educational qualifications or experience for the job offered. Even if no formal education is required, there are certain guidelines that need to be understood. There are no such ways that would make a person super rich by working part time. So if the claims sound unreal, rest assured that it is.

By following these simple tips you can help avoid freelance job scams. Always select legitimate freelance opportunities by doing the required research before committing or sending any money.

The best way to find freelance job resources is to read impartial reviews and find out what the customers are saying, how user are rating freelance jobs, and which are the top rated best work from home opportunities.

Holiday Myths About Freelancing by Jason Stockman

Every year around Christmas time people ask if I know of any freelancing jobs where they can make some extra cash. Generally I attempt to steer these people away from freelancing, because they have it all wrong. Now, I'm not trying to scare away anyone who looking for a long term job in freelancing, and it's true that you can get a freelance job on relatively short notice. While it used to be that a freelancer would meet face-to-face with a client and put together a proposal, there are now online alternatives to this method. There are websites where several freelancers can bid on a project, and work from the comfort of their home offices.

The myth is now whether you can actually make enough on these jobs for it to even be worth the time you spent looking for a freelance job in the first place. Especially for freelancers starting from scratch, it can be very hard to land a job that actually pays a decent wage. While it is possible to make a decent amount of cash doing these jobs, chances are you will be working for far less than the federal minimum wage. Plus, you're competing with people from all around the world, and whoever offers the lowest rate (everything else being equal, will get the job).

It has been my experience that work is harder to find during the weeks before and during the holiday season. Many clients prefer to have a clean slate to work with for the new year and therefore will not hire at the end of the year. There is also a great deal of people looking for some quick cash online, cause a huge increase in job bids for everyone to compete with.

If you need to use freelancing to cover extra holiday expenses, it is best to spread it out over the year. By doing this you are not cramming a years worth of work into an already hectic schedule. And if you're looking to get started with freelancing, doing so during the crazy holiday rush will put you at an even larger disadvantage.

While you can make money doing freelancing, you will not make it by Christmas. Even if you do succeed in landing a job, even though you waited until the last minute, chances of completing all the steps required in order to receive pay before Christmas is slim to none. Some companies even take as long as 90 days after they receive their invoice.

So in summary, if you're looking for some quick holiday cash, freelancing may very well be more trouble than its worth.

Jason is CEO of Codecopia and a professional freelancer specializing in websites and online media. Read more about freelancing and Jason at his online portfolio.

Monday, December 7, 2009

New Guide Shows Artists How To Create Their Own Websites

Any artist not on the internet today is missing out on the best promotional tool around. Art collectors, galleries, friends and family -- all expect to find artists’ work displayed on their own personal websites. The problem? Building a full-featured website can to be expensive, time consuming and technically intimidating.

But now there is an easier way. Quick Art Sites, a new instructional video, shows artists an easy, step-by-step path to creating a professional website with image galleries where they can display and sell their work.

Created by artist Sonya Myers, Quick Art Sites shows exactly how to use free and low cost solutions to quickly put together a web site any artist would be proud to show clients.

Sites created by following the CD allow the artist to quickly upload photos of their work, and with just one click, turn those photos into an art gallery. The addition of a shopping cart allows visitors to purchase art directly from the artist.

By watching, artists learn how to: · Register their own website domain name · Set up website hosting for as little as $6.95 a month · Install free software to build the website with just one click · Set up a home page, bio, contact page, image galleries, and blog · Install shopping cart linked to image gallery for online art sales · Customize the entire site using free plug-ins and simple graphics · Put the entire site on autopilot, so the artist can spend time creating art, not worrying about a website

With Quick Art Sites, artists no longer have an excuse for not having a website. Now they'll be able to create their own sites and update them quickly and easily -- at an extremely affordable price.

Learn more about the Quick Art Sites training CD and find links to sample artist sites at http://www.quickartsites.com/

Free SEO from leading search engine author

Free SEO can be valuable if it comes from the right source. For a limited time, today's leading expert on search engine optimization is providing a free SEO download from his top selling book, SEO Made Simple. Michael Fleischner, Internet marketing expert and entrepreneur is offering the first chapter of his top-selling book free of charge.

SEO is growing in importance as marketing budgets shrink and pay-per-click marketing costs continue to grow. The best type of traffic is organic traffic which comes at little of no cost and can be achieved with some focus, application of the right techniques, and sustained effort.

Michael's free SEO chapter covers the most important topics associated with search engine optimization. From on page optimization techniques to off page optimization techniques like link building, you'll discover the most powerful strategies for dominating the world's largest search engine.

"I'm ecstatic about this free download", says Michael Fleischner. "Not only can individuals get some great advices at no cost, but they can learn a great deal about what influences search engine rankings. In turn, they can improve search ranking for their site and deliver tons of free traffic."

Search engine optimization information is abundant. There are thousands of web sites, books, and resources available. However, only a small group of resources are truly effective for explaining the specific techniques required to achieve top rankings. This free SEO download gives you everything needed to get started on the path to number one rankings.

According to Michael Fleischner, "The techniques I reveal in the guide are proven to get results. They are the exact same techniques I've used to achieve top placements for all of my websites, blogs, and promotional pages."

To get your free SEO download, simply visit MySEOmadesimple.com and click on the free chapter link. Michael's top selling book can also be found on Amazon.com. Rated as the number one guide for the keyword SEO, Michael has helped thousands of individuals learn the art of search engine optimization.