This is easily overlooked by rookie freelancers but has to be done to 1) Keep you on track and not goofing off and 2) Make sure you are earning what you want/need to earn. Here is a simple strategy for tracking your hours:
• First, make sure you determine the number of hours you plan to work on a project before you even start it. This will be your “budgeted” hours.
• Each day you work on the project, keep track of the time spent on it to the nearest quarter on an hour. If you are working on multiple projects, note the time spent on each one. Total these hours by project on a weekly basis.
• Upon project completion, compare the total hours worked on a project with the budgeted hours you set. Is it higher? Lower? Just about the same?
If the total hours worked is higher than the budgeted hours, this indicates that maybe you weren’t working as hard as you could or your bid price was too low on the project. Either way, you need to take note of this and make adjustments in your work habits or pricing. Your goal is to be productive as possible and earning as much as possible and hour tracking is your best measuring stick.
Next I’ll cover some strategies to earn more money in freelancing.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
34-a).Track Income and Expenses
This should go without saying but you need to know how much you are making and how much you are spending since you are a business. It is highly recommended you hire an accountant to do this for you since this can overwhelm you from time to time. If you decide to do it on your own, then here is the bare minimum you must do:
• Create an Excel spreadsheet or use a notebook to track all income received from freelance work. Make sure you jot down every cent earned. If you can, track your income by job/project too.
• Also using a spreadsheet or notebook, track every expense made as a freelancer. This includes rent, utilities, subscription fees, equipment, office supplies, etc. Be sure you have a receipt or somehow be able to account for each expense, too.
• Make sure you set aside part of your income for taxes. The best method is to create a savings account specifically for tax withholding and deposit 30% - 40% of your received income into it. Please refer to your country’s tax tables for an idea of what your withholding should be. Do not ignore income taxes! The last thing you want is trouble with “the man.”
• Create an Excel spreadsheet or use a notebook to track all income received from freelance work. Make sure you jot down every cent earned. If you can, track your income by job/project too.
• Also using a spreadsheet or notebook, track every expense made as a freelancer. This includes rent, utilities, subscription fees, equipment, office supplies, etc. Be sure you have a receipt or somehow be able to account for each expense, too.
• Make sure you set aside part of your income for taxes. The best method is to create a savings account specifically for tax withholding and deposit 30% - 40% of your received income into it. Please refer to your country’s tax tables for an idea of what your withholding should be. Do not ignore income taxes! The last thing you want is trouble with “the man.”
34).Work Work Work
This should be self explanatory, but do whatever it takes to get that project done on or before the project due date you set. This should be your number one priority. Your ability to get future projects, the possibility that your employer will rehire you and most importantly, your income will depend on you getting projects done on time.
There will most likely be times where you misjudge the amount of time to complete a project. In these cases you may have to work “overtime” working more hours than normal or giving up your weekend to get it done. Just do it if necessary. This is part of the learning curve for the new freelancer and soon enough you will be able to better calculate a time estimate of a project.
There will most likely be times where you misjudge the amount of time to complete a project. In these cases you may have to work “overtime” working more hours than normal or giving up your weekend to get it done. Just do it if necessary. This is part of the learning curve for the new freelancer and soon enough you will be able to better calculate a time estimate of a project.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
33).Develop a Service Minded Attitude
Yes, you are your own boss but your employers are eventually the ones forking over the cash. Meet their needs and treat them with the highest respect and the following advantages to your young freelance career will happen:
• You being rehired for future projects
• Good referrals to other employers
• Good recommendations in your online profiles
• Development of a client base
A service-minded attitude is absolutely essential to achieving the above. In fact, if you develop this attitude and live by it right away, you will surprise yourself in how fast your freelance business will grow and the amount of projects that will be lined up for you.
The opposite is true, too. Leave an employer unfulfilled and disappointed in your work and you will be left digging yourself out of a hole due to bad reputation. I shouldn’t have to explain this further but remember that bad reputation spreads faster than good reputation.
Your freelance career depends very highly on your reputation as well.
Here are suggestions to developing a service-minded attitude:
• Keep in constant communication with your employer and make sure that they know AND understand how you will take on a project. Make sure they know if they have any questions or are unsure about anything, to let you know about it.
• More often than not employers will ask you for small changes or “favors” during a project. It’s OK to give in once in a while and do a freebee, but don’t make a habit out of it, especially with the same employer. Your time is valuable and you need to charge for it. If you made a mistake with the employer, however, quickly fix it and consider adding on little “extras” to the project to ease them over.
• If your employer seems to ask too many favors or you get the sense that the employer is taking advantage of you, then kindly inform them that there will be an extra charge applied (this is where your project agreement comes in handy). Some employers will test the boundaries of freelancers and will calmly back down if you are firm, but polite with them.
• After a project is finished, follow up with your employer about five days after completion and send him an email asking if they were satisfied with your project work or if the project is working as he envisioned it.
Most of the time they will thank you and say everything is fine, but once in a while an employer will have a concern. Should that be the case, do what needs to be done so they are happy with your work. This is more or less applying a customer guarantee to your employer.
• If an employer has an urgent request or if they try to contact you to fix a problem,respond immediately and handle their requests in an efficient manner.
• Once in a while a misunderstanding may develop between you and your employer that may leave you, the employer or both of you fuming. Whether you or your employer is at fault, take these steps to diffuse the issue:
1. Wait a few hours before handling the situation, or better yet, until the next day. You will calm down more and be in a better frame of mind to handle it.
2. Then take a good look at the issue at hand and figure out the quickest and most effective resolution to it. Not to mention, one that is fair to both parties.
3. After that, acknowledge the issue your employer calmly over the phone or by email and explain the resolution you propose. Always give your employer the benefit of the doubt here and you will avoid arguments and calm him down, too.
4. Never under any circumstances argue with your employer even if they are at fault. Otherwise, you may quickly lose an employer and your reputation could be at stake if he decides to complain.
• Remember that you may never even see the faces of some of your employers which makes your relationship with him or her somewhat impersonal. Make small talk with your employer whether it is by phone or email and you will add another dimension to your business relationship.
• You being rehired for future projects
• Good referrals to other employers
• Good recommendations in your online profiles
• Development of a client base
A service-minded attitude is absolutely essential to achieving the above. In fact, if you develop this attitude and live by it right away, you will surprise yourself in how fast your freelance business will grow and the amount of projects that will be lined up for you.
The opposite is true, too. Leave an employer unfulfilled and disappointed in your work and you will be left digging yourself out of a hole due to bad reputation. I shouldn’t have to explain this further but remember that bad reputation spreads faster than good reputation.
Your freelance career depends very highly on your reputation as well.
Here are suggestions to developing a service-minded attitude:
• Keep in constant communication with your employer and make sure that they know AND understand how you will take on a project. Make sure they know if they have any questions or are unsure about anything, to let you know about it.
• More often than not employers will ask you for small changes or “favors” during a project. It’s OK to give in once in a while and do a freebee, but don’t make a habit out of it, especially with the same employer. Your time is valuable and you need to charge for it. If you made a mistake with the employer, however, quickly fix it and consider adding on little “extras” to the project to ease them over.
• If your employer seems to ask too many favors or you get the sense that the employer is taking advantage of you, then kindly inform them that there will be an extra charge applied (this is where your project agreement comes in handy). Some employers will test the boundaries of freelancers and will calmly back down if you are firm, but polite with them.
• After a project is finished, follow up with your employer about five days after completion and send him an email asking if they were satisfied with your project work or if the project is working as he envisioned it.
Most of the time they will thank you and say everything is fine, but once in a while an employer will have a concern. Should that be the case, do what needs to be done so they are happy with your work. This is more or less applying a customer guarantee to your employer.
• If an employer has an urgent request or if they try to contact you to fix a problem,respond immediately and handle their requests in an efficient manner.
• Once in a while a misunderstanding may develop between you and your employer that may leave you, the employer or both of you fuming. Whether you or your employer is at fault, take these steps to diffuse the issue:
1. Wait a few hours before handling the situation, or better yet, until the next day. You will calm down more and be in a better frame of mind to handle it.
2. Then take a good look at the issue at hand and figure out the quickest and most effective resolution to it. Not to mention, one that is fair to both parties.
3. After that, acknowledge the issue your employer calmly over the phone or by email and explain the resolution you propose. Always give your employer the benefit of the doubt here and you will avoid arguments and calm him down, too.
4. Never under any circumstances argue with your employer even if they are at fault. Otherwise, you may quickly lose an employer and your reputation could be at stake if he decides to complain.
• Remember that you may never even see the faces of some of your employers which makes your relationship with him or her somewhat impersonal. Make small talk with your employer whether it is by phone or email and you will add another dimension to your business relationship.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
32).Develop a Productive Working Schedule
Working freelance gives you the ultimate freedom of letting you choose the hours you want to work. This will not be the same as a job where you will be paid even if you are surfing the internet all day. You need to maximize your time working if you want to be successful and enjoy the benefits of freelancing.
Everybody has a certain time of the day when they are most productive, so time your schedule around those hours. It doesn’t make sense to start working at 8:00 am drowsy and grouchy when you are normally an afternoon person and most alert around 3:00 pm.Schedule a set number of hours to work each day and keep track of your time working during the day until you reach that limit you set. It is somewhat difficult to establish a working schedule in freelance simply because you are “allowed” to goof-off. Choosing your hours and sticking to them is the first step in developing that habit.Be sure to take breaks during your work day. Some of you may remember that one 15 minute break you were allowed during your work shift. HA! No more! Don’t take too many breaks, though, or it will affect your concentration and production. A break once every two hours of work is about optimal.
Everybody has a certain time of the day when they are most productive, so time your schedule around those hours. It doesn’t make sense to start working at 8:00 am drowsy and grouchy when you are normally an afternoon person and most alert around 3:00 pm.Schedule a set number of hours to work each day and keep track of your time working during the day until you reach that limit you set. It is somewhat difficult to establish a working schedule in freelance simply because you are “allowed” to goof-off. Choosing your hours and sticking to them is the first step in developing that habit.Be sure to take breaks during your work day. Some of you may remember that one 15 minute break you were allowed during your work shift. HA! No more! Don’t take too many breaks, though, or it will affect your concentration and production. A break once every two hours of work is about optimal.
31).Communicate With Your Employer
It is important to stay in contact with your employer, either by phone or more commonly by email. You should at least send an email to your employer once a day (once every few days for longer projects) giving him the status and any updates you have made.Employers are especially weary of new freelancers they hire and some may have had bad experiences with other previous freelancers they hired in the past. The better you communicate with your employer, the more you reassure him and put his trust in you.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
30).Create a Project Agreement
Before starting any project, you must get into the habit of drawing up a project agreement. A project agreement outlines the exact project requirements, your completion schedule and terms pf payment. Most important, though, this will legally bind you and your employer to a project and will be of use in case a dispute arises with your employer. There are three parts to a project agreement:
Buyer/Provider Agreement
This part is a contract that outlines the basic project requirements, terms of payment and project milestones. A project milestone is a date (or multiple dates) of completion of each stage of a project. For instance, if you obtain a project to ghost write an autobiography,you may want to set a completion date of eight months. Then a milestone of 25% completion could be set for every two months after you start. You also set the payment requirement upon completion of each milestone, too.
Statement of Work
Here, you get down to the nitty gritty and detail the project exactly. This is where you document all requirements the employer has and your methods of completing each one. I cannot stress enough that you take your time to understand every last detail of a project then make note of each one in the statement of work.
The statement of work is not necessary for shorter, simpler projects where all details can be mentioned in the buyer/provider agreement.
Most freelance work exchanges (FWEs) have a tool for you to upload a project agreement which must be agreed upon (online) by the employer before the start of a project. If not, you will have to make sure the employer signs and emails/faxes you the entire agreement. Either way, make sure you have this so you don’t get burned!
Change Order
This will not be a part of the initial project agreement between you and your employer but is necessary if any part of a project requires a change from the original agreement. The change(s) necessary are detailed including any additional costs. Most projects will require some change or another due to things that were forgotten by the employer or a change of taste. The change order ensures the change is fair for both parties.
Buyer/Provider Agreement
This part is a contract that outlines the basic project requirements, terms of payment and project milestones. A project milestone is a date (or multiple dates) of completion of each stage of a project. For instance, if you obtain a project to ghost write an autobiography,you may want to set a completion date of eight months. Then a milestone of 25% completion could be set for every two months after you start. You also set the payment requirement upon completion of each milestone, too.
Statement of Work
Here, you get down to the nitty gritty and detail the project exactly. This is where you document all requirements the employer has and your methods of completing each one. I cannot stress enough that you take your time to understand every last detail of a project then make note of each one in the statement of work.
The statement of work is not necessary for shorter, simpler projects where all details can be mentioned in the buyer/provider agreement.
Most freelance work exchanges (FWEs) have a tool for you to upload a project agreement which must be agreed upon (online) by the employer before the start of a project. If not, you will have to make sure the employer signs and emails/faxes you the entire agreement. Either way, make sure you have this so you don’t get burned!
Change Order
This will not be a part of the initial project agreement between you and your employer but is necessary if any part of a project requires a change from the original agreement. The change(s) necessary are detailed including any additional costs. Most projects will require some change or another due to things that were forgotten by the employer or a change of taste. The change order ensures the change is fair for both parties.
29).You’ve Won a Project, Now What?
Winning your first project will be an exciting time for you. Now you will have officially started your career as a freelancer and all your work putting together your profile and writing bids will have paid off. It is very important after winning the bid to now concentrate on the project at hand and deliver the employer your best work possible within the time period you specified.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
28).Important advice for bidding in Freelance Work Exchanges and job boards.
When you finally start bidding, one of the most important things you can do is login to your FWE or job board and keep track throughout the day on new projects posted in your category. Once you see any project that fits your capability, then do not hesitate to make a bid right then and there. The reason is that employers are often in a hurry to look for providers and you want to be near the top of that list of bidders.
If the first one who bids on a project happens to submit a reasonable bid and has the right qualifications, then they stand a great chance of being selected right away. Given this, I cannot stress the timing of your bid enough and this is an excellent way to reduce the competition from other bids. Also most FWEs allow a limited number of bids per month, so this also optimizes your use of them.
Also remember that the longer a project has been listed the less likely you are to win it. The truth is your odds of winning a project drop dramatically just after the first day it has been posted. With that in mind, only bid on projects over a day old if it happens to be really ideal for you or if there are no other brand new projects to bid on. Otherwise, only bid on same-day project postings, and keep an eye out for new ones periodically throughout the day. Be patient and they will come.
Also, don’t limit yourself to just checking one job board. Check up on other listings as well. I don’t recommend paying to use multiple FWEs (it can get costly). If you do use an FWE, then periodically check other free job boards since you never know when or where a good project that suits you perfectly will show up.
If the first one who bids on a project happens to submit a reasonable bid and has the right qualifications, then they stand a great chance of being selected right away. Given this, I cannot stress the timing of your bid enough and this is an excellent way to reduce the competition from other bids. Also most FWEs allow a limited number of bids per month, so this also optimizes your use of them.
Also remember that the longer a project has been listed the less likely you are to win it. The truth is your odds of winning a project drop dramatically just after the first day it has been posted. With that in mind, only bid on projects over a day old if it happens to be really ideal for you or if there are no other brand new projects to bid on. Otherwise, only bid on same-day project postings, and keep an eye out for new ones periodically throughout the day. Be patient and they will come.
Also, don’t limit yourself to just checking one job board. Check up on other listings as well. I don’t recommend paying to use multiple FWEs (it can get costly). If you do use an FWE, then periodically check other free job boards since you never know when or where a good project that suits you perfectly will show up.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
27).Bid Samples
The following pages will contain project descriptions similar to what you will likely to see in FWE listings and suitable bids that correspond to those descriptions. I’ll include comments in red for items to note in the bids.
Sample
Project Description:
I need a talented, creative, efficient, organized, self-starting ghost-writer who can help me create web and published content for a variety of different topics.
I will provide the outline and ideas to which I’ll basically need website copy review,tweaks, and edits. Also, I will be needing a feature article for my next newsletter.
I need someone that is marketing minded not just a great writer. Someone that knows how to sell, write good ad copy, etc. I'm looking to outsource a few projects in order to find the right long-term relationship.
Bid for this project:
[ Subject line ]
What luck! Now you have an expert ghost-writer published in successful websites!
Greetings, [or if you know name Dear Xxxx,]
[ Opening ]
Thank you for the opportunity to bid on your project seeking a ghost-writer to create web content. I’ll be more than excited to take on the challenge and you will find all information relating to my skills and experience as well as my cost and time estimates contained in this project bid.
[ Skills and experience ]
I have ghost-written several ebooks including the sales copy on the websites used to promote them. A few of which are, “Search Engine Secrets You Never Learned,” “The New Atkins is Here,” and “Million Dollar Jobs From Your Home.”
Here is what you can expect as your new ghost-writer:
• Expert in writing content for ANY subject
• Will meet all deadlines. Guaranteed or no charge.
• Will accommodate urgent requests
[ Attachments (the follow ing is the alternative if you are unable to upload files) ]
For more information of my skills and work samples please view here:
Resume: http://www.myname.com/resume
Work Sample (New Atkins is Here): http://www.myname.com/newatkins Work Sample (Million Dollar Jobs From Your Home): http://www.myname.com/million
[ Cost and time estimate ]
I have a quick turnaround time for completion of sales copy which is three days for each 500 words of copy. Not to mention, the sales copy is keyword optimized for the search engines. Turnaround for newsletter articles is roughly one day for every 500 words of text. My rates are $0.50/word for search engine optimized sales copy and $0.10/word for articles.
[ Closing (breaking the ice in last sentence) ]
I am located in New York City and am able to begin working on this project right away. Feel free to contact me anytime at example@example.com, in MSN Messenger under screen name example or by phone at (555) 555-5555. I look forward to working with you and turning your ideas into dollar signs like I did for my previous clients.Best regards and I look forward to working with you soon.
Sample
Project Description:
I need a talented, creative, efficient, organized, self-starting ghost-writer who can help me create web and published content for a variety of different topics.
I will provide the outline and ideas to which I’ll basically need website copy review,tweaks, and edits. Also, I will be needing a feature article for my next newsletter.
I need someone that is marketing minded not just a great writer. Someone that knows how to sell, write good ad copy, etc. I'm looking to outsource a few projects in order to find the right long-term relationship.
Bid for this project:
[ Subject line ]
What luck! Now you have an expert ghost-writer published in successful websites!
Greetings, [or if you know name Dear Xxxx,]
[ Opening ]
Thank you for the opportunity to bid on your project seeking a ghost-writer to create web content. I’ll be more than excited to take on the challenge and you will find all information relating to my skills and experience as well as my cost and time estimates contained in this project bid.
[ Skills and experience ]
I have ghost-written several ebooks including the sales copy on the websites used to promote them. A few of which are, “Search Engine Secrets You Never Learned,” “The New Atkins is Here,” and “Million Dollar Jobs From Your Home.”
Here is what you can expect as your new ghost-writer:
• Expert in writing content for ANY subject
• Will meet all deadlines. Guaranteed or no charge.
• Will accommodate urgent requests
[ Attachments (the follow ing is the alternative if you are unable to upload files) ]
For more information of my skills and work samples please view here:
Resume: http://www.myname.com/resume
Work Sample (New Atkins is Here): http://www.myname.com/newatkins Work Sample (Million Dollar Jobs From Your Home): http://www.myname.com/million
[ Cost and time estimate ]
I have a quick turnaround time for completion of sales copy which is three days for each 500 words of copy. Not to mention, the sales copy is keyword optimized for the search engines. Turnaround for newsletter articles is roughly one day for every 500 words of text. My rates are $0.50/word for search engine optimized sales copy and $0.10/word for articles.
[ Closing (breaking the ice in last sentence) ]
I am located in New York City and am able to begin working on this project right away. Feel free to contact me anytime at example@example.com, in MSN Messenger under screen name example or by phone at (555) 555-5555. I look forward to working with you and turning your ideas into dollar signs like I did for my previous clients.Best regards and I look forward to working with you soon.
26).The Bid: Attachments
Most FWEs and job boards allow you to attach files to your bid which you should take advantage of. Your bid acts more or less as a cover letter for you profile so including attachments make it complete. Attachments should include your profile and selected samples of your work you made in the previous chapter.
Remember to include only work samples related to the project itself.
In the event that you do not have the option to upload files, then provide links to your profile and samples of your work where they can be found online. These are best placed right after your skills and experience summary mentioned above.
Using attachments or links may seem redundant given that you already have a profile right there with the same information contained in the attachments. It’s not always obvious to a potential employer though so give them every opportunity to access your information quickly right then and there.
Remember to include only work samples related to the project itself.
In the event that you do not have the option to upload files, then provide links to your profile and samples of your work where they can be found online. These are best placed right after your skills and experience summary mentioned above.
Using attachments or links may seem redundant given that you already have a profile right there with the same information contained in the attachments. It’s not always obvious to a potential employer though so give them every opportunity to access your information quickly right then and there.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
25).The Bid: Closing
This is a short paragraph that gives tells how to get a hold of you. Always give an email address AND the instant messenger you use plus your screen name AND your phone number AND your location. Though most communication is done by email or instant messenger these days, you want to leave an impression that you are accessible and are a living person with an address.
Sometimes in a project description, an employer will have questions listed for the potential freelancer. It should go without saying that you need to list these and provide a clear answer to each one in the bid before the paragraph with your contact information.
Another tip which doesn’t always have to be done is to include a sentence “breaking the ice.” This is just a simple statement personalized to the employer that will flatter, humor or make them smile. I would only recommend this if you are familiar with the area which the employer is or have something in common with the employer.
This tiny bit of personalization can go a long way. Be sure to make it subtle and harmless and not as if you were joking around or talking to your best friend. Otherwise, it could backfire on you.
Sometimes in a project description, an employer will have questions listed for the potential freelancer. It should go without saying that you need to list these and provide a clear answer to each one in the bid before the paragraph with your contact information.
Another tip which doesn’t always have to be done is to include a sentence “breaking the ice.” This is just a simple statement personalized to the employer that will flatter, humor or make them smile. I would only recommend this if you are familiar with the area which the employer is or have something in common with the employer.
This tiny bit of personalization can go a long way. Be sure to make it subtle and harmless and not as if you were joking around or talking to your best friend. Otherwise, it could backfire on you.
24).The Bid: Time estimate
Though it is easy to say you can finish a project in a few days or a week or two weeks, some serious consideration needs to be taken when determining the estimated time for completion. Rookie freelancers usually never take into account ALL aspects of a project that can consume time and make it progress longer than planned.
Here are the steps in determining the time estimate of a project:
• Break the project down into the smallest tasks individual tasks required and write them down. Then determine the time estimate for each individual task and add them all up to get the total project time.
• Add 20% of the total time from above to the time estimate for completion or one extra day for every five days of a calculated estimate. This will be your overhead for revisions and unexpected occurrences that happen during the project phase.There is almost always some type of revision or “surprise” on every project. It’s better to expect them and take them into account.
• Now you will have to schedule that calculated time into your working schedule. Go ahead and determine the number of days it will take given that schedule.Again, the project description may be too vague for a time estimate so it is best to give a range for the time of completion or state “ roughly 3 weeks for completion.”
Here are the steps in determining the time estimate of a project:
• Break the project down into the smallest tasks individual tasks required and write them down. Then determine the time estimate for each individual task and add them all up to get the total project time.
• Add 20% of the total time from above to the time estimate for completion or one extra day for every five days of a calculated estimate. This will be your overhead for revisions and unexpected occurrences that happen during the project phase.There is almost always some type of revision or “surprise” on every project. It’s better to expect them and take them into account.
• Now you will have to schedule that calculated time into your working schedule. Go ahead and determine the number of days it will take given that schedule.Again, the project description may be too vague for a time estimate so it is best to give a range for the time of completion or state “ roughly 3 weeks for completion.”
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
23).The Bid: Cost estimate
Though the simplest items to put on the bid, these can also be the most time consuming especially for rookie freelancers, not to mention, at times stressful.Now comes the important question to ask yourself: How much do I charge? It is almost useless to search the internet for freelance billing rates by profession since they vary wildly. If you can find or know other freelancers in a similar field, consult them to obtain a rough estimate of what they charge. I know that this is usually a long shot, though.It is good to start out with determining the hourly rate you should be charging then you can base your project fees on this rate. Using the Rate Calculator should give you a good estimate which applies to all fields of employment.So now that you have your hourly rate we are left with the next piece of the puzzle:
what to charge for an entire project. This can also be a bit complex to a new freelancer who may not have enough projects under their belt to be able to determine this.
It is normal for a new freelancer to take longer completing a certain project than a more experienced freelancer tackling the same project. It will not be fair, however, if the new freelancer charges more because he will have to work more hours than the more experienced one. The project bid price has to be a competitive and fair price. Here are some ways you can create a competitive bid price:
• In some FWEs, you can browse similar projects and view the bids and bid prices that others place (Elance is one of them). You may notice a wide variation in bid prices, so also take note of what they offer in relation to the price. From there, you may be able to generate a rough estimate for your bid price.
• Look for the relatively simple projects where you can easily determine the number of hours necessary and apply your hourly rate. It should be no surprise, too, that the easier projects are also the easiest projects to win.
• Keep track of the first fifteen bids you make. A general rule is if a high percentage of them accept (eight of them or higher) then you are likely bidding too low. Conversely, if two or less accepts, you are likely bidding too high. If 3 - 5 accept, you have the pricing at an optimal level.
The quality of your bid also can be a factor here, too, so it’s important to stick with the methods outlined in this chapter.
What happens many times is that the project description is too vague to give an accurate estimate. In this situation, it is always best to just estimate anyway and state that it is just an estimated amount. Employers most often like to see a price on a bid whether estimated or not.
what to charge for an entire project. This can also be a bit complex to a new freelancer who may not have enough projects under their belt to be able to determine this.
It is normal for a new freelancer to take longer completing a certain project than a more experienced freelancer tackling the same project. It will not be fair, however, if the new freelancer charges more because he will have to work more hours than the more experienced one. The project bid price has to be a competitive and fair price. Here are some ways you can create a competitive bid price:
• In some FWEs, you can browse similar projects and view the bids and bid prices that others place (Elance is one of them). You may notice a wide variation in bid prices, so also take note of what they offer in relation to the price. From there, you may be able to generate a rough estimate for your bid price.
• Look for the relatively simple projects where you can easily determine the number of hours necessary and apply your hourly rate. It should be no surprise, too, that the easier projects are also the easiest projects to win.
• Keep track of the first fifteen bids you make. A general rule is if a high percentage of them accept (eight of them or higher) then you are likely bidding too low. Conversely, if two or less accepts, you are likely bidding too high. If 3 - 5 accept, you have the pricing at an optimal level.
The quality of your bid also can be a factor here, too, so it’s important to stick with the methods outlined in this chapter.
What happens many times is that the project description is too vague to give an accurate estimate. In this situation, it is always best to just estimate anyway and state that it is just an estimated amount. Employers most often like to see a price on a bid whether estimated or not.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
22).The Bid: Questions to the employer
These aren’t always needed but more often than not, you will encounter project details that are somewhat vague, or the employer might leave out details necessary to give them a cost or a time estimate. If this is the case, you will have to list these questions of uncertainty to the employer.
Again, asking questions can give the potential employer the impression that you are knowledgeable and may inform them of issues they haven’t thought of so do not be afraid to ask them.
Note that questions are not always necessary and do not have to appear on the bid. It is important to ask them, though, if it will help clarify a project. Keep the questions to a maximum of two or three, though. If there are more, wait until they contact you to ask them.
One additional tip is that some FWEs, such as Guru, have a project message board (one for each project) which acts as a tool to for freelancers to post questions or comments. They are visible to everyone too. My recommendation is that you read them, but not post to them. Reading them may give you some new insight on a project, but posting to them may give other competing freelancers some insight instead. Save the questions for your own bid.
21).The Bid: Plan of action
You will need a paragraph or two explaining to the prospective employer how exactly you will handle the given project. You want the employer to know you can handle the project and you will essentially be proving it here.
Explain the design process, what technologies will be used, research methods, your own methods … whatever it takes to inspire confidence that you can handle what is offered. If there were any challenges while working on similar projects, mention those challenges (if you already haven’t in the examples from above) and how you will handle those.It is extremely important you are clear and use a language that the employer understands here. Otherwise they may become confused and move on to the next bid. The goal is to leave the prospective employer without any doubt in your ability to handle the project. He needs to be crystal clear on your methods, though.
20).The Bid: Your skills, experience and benefits of hiring you
Usually in this part freelancers make the mistake of listing everything they know and places they’ve worked. Take this example:
SKILLS
Adobe Photoshop
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Excel
EXPERIENCE
The Daily News – May 2005 to December 2007
Graphic Designer
Created and graphics for their website.
Unfortunately this doesn’t jump out to a potential employer. An employer needs to be sold to the fact that you can handle a project. Not only this, it needs to be done in a matter of seconds as he is reading your bid since he virtually scan dozens of bids when hiring for a project.
Therefore, you need to list specific instances where you handled similar requirements and promote yourself in the process. Also, we have to give the employer the benefits of hiring ourselves. Now, take the following:
• Expert graphic designer for The Daily News, a major New Mexico newspaper
• I work fast and deliver on budget. My references would love to tell you the same.
• 100% Money Back Guarantee
That sounds much better, doesn’t it? Notice that these are also in a bulleted list. They attract the attention of the employer and force him to read them through.
SKILLS
Adobe Photoshop
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Excel
EXPERIENCE
The Daily News – May 2005 to December 2007
Graphic Designer
Created and graphics for their website.
Unfortunately this doesn’t jump out to a potential employer. An employer needs to be sold to the fact that you can handle a project. Not only this, it needs to be done in a matter of seconds as he is reading your bid since he virtually scan dozens of bids when hiring for a project.
Therefore, you need to list specific instances where you handled similar requirements and promote yourself in the process. Also, we have to give the employer the benefits of hiring ourselves. Now, take the following:
• Expert graphic designer for The Daily News, a major New Mexico newspaper
• I work fast and deliver on budget. My references would love to tell you the same.
• 100% Money Back Guarantee
That sounds much better, doesn’t it? Notice that these are also in a bulleted list. They attract the attention of the employer and force him to read them through.
Friday, May 29, 2009
19).The Bid: Subject line
Some FWEs and job boards allow you add a subject line to your bid. Normally these default to “RE: Project Title” where the project title was already provided by the employer.Not all allow for a subject line, but here’s how to take advantage of those that do.You can imagine that an employer will see a list of fifty or so bids with the same “RE:Project Title” subject when he is looking through them. If you make yours different, you can instantly stand out before he even reads you bid. Don’t just put anything for this line though. Make it catch the employer’s attention.
So instead of putting “Interested in your project” or “Reliable graphic designer” as a subject line, use something more on the lines of:“5 Year Expert Graphic Designer. Results 100% Guaranteed.”
“You can finally stop looking at these other bids. Read on for why…”
This way you catch the curiosity of an employer and encourage him to read on or possibly read your bid first.
The Bid: Introduction
This is simply a short paragraph that states the project title and/or project ID, thanks the employer for the opportunity to apply for the project and briefly outlines the rest of the bid.
So instead of putting “Interested in your project” or “Reliable graphic designer” as a subject line, use something more on the lines of:“5 Year Expert Graphic Designer. Results 100% Guaranteed.”
“You can finally stop looking at these other bids. Read on for why…”
This way you catch the curiosity of an employer and encourage him to read on or possibly read your bid first.
The Bid: Introduction
This is simply a short paragraph that states the project title and/or project ID, thanks the employer for the opportunity to apply for the project and briefly outlines the rest of the bid.
18).Creating Winning Bids
For some job boards and nearly all freelance work exchanges, you will need to learn and understand the bidding process. For those unfamiliar with it, a bid is simply a written proposal sent to a prospective employer that briefly details yourself, how you will handle the employer’s project requirements, cost estimate and estimated time of completion.The bid itself is actually the most important part of the bidding process and we’ll go into it in great detail in this chapter. An employer’s first impression of a provider lies in the bid,and sometimes they will decide on a provider just on the bid alone instead of your profile.Therefore it is important to have this done correctly.
Freelance work exchanges (FWE) make it simple to create and submit bids on projects.They put in measures, however, to prevent freelancers from “spamming” employers with bids. One of which is to limit the number of bids you can send per month so it’s important to make every single one count.
One major advantage you’ll have over other freelancers in any FWE is knowing that most do not take the time to write a really good
personalized
bid to a prospective employer.
They pay relatively little attention to writing the bid thinking the price they submit is the only deciding factor. This couldn’t be further from the truth.In fact, read the following excerpt from Mitchell Harper of the company Interspire:
As an employer with over 30 staff at Interspire, most of the time when I need something done I can call on a staff member in the office and they will take care of it for me. However, sometimes I need the skills of an experienced freelancer for one-off jobs, such as writing a user guide or putting together a product overview video in Flash. In these situations I turn to freelancers on eLance, oDesk or Guru.com.
After posting a job ad, the responses start to come in within a few hours. 95% of the time the candidates have no idea how to reply to the job ad and will either send over:
• The same old copy-paste reply which they use for every job ad
• A vague reply in which they don’t sell themselves to me
(How to Win Any Job on eLance, oDesk or Guru.com by Mitchell Harper, FreelanceSwitch.com, 05/16/2009)
You see, by knowing this you are already ahead of 95% of ALL freelancers out there, not just the rookies. That’s why we will go into detail on creating a winning bid. Writing a winning bid will take you some time at first but, with experience, will be no problem later on down the road.
First of all, a successful bid contains the following parts:
• Subject line
• Introduction
• Your skills and experience related to the project plus benefits of hiring you
• A plan of action, or how you will handle the project on hand
• Questions to the employer if any project specifications are unclear
• A cost estimate
• A time estimate for completion
• Closing with your contact info
• Attachments
We’ll go over each part individually and I’ll provide sample bids to illustrate how they are used.
Freelance work exchanges (FWE) make it simple to create and submit bids on projects.They put in measures, however, to prevent freelancers from “spamming” employers with bids. One of which is to limit the number of bids you can send per month so it’s important to make every single one count.
One major advantage you’ll have over other freelancers in any FWE is knowing that most do not take the time to write a really good
personalized
bid to a prospective employer.
They pay relatively little attention to writing the bid thinking the price they submit is the only deciding factor. This couldn’t be further from the truth.In fact, read the following excerpt from Mitchell Harper of the company Interspire:
As an employer with over 30 staff at Interspire, most of the time when I need something done I can call on a staff member in the office and they will take care of it for me. However, sometimes I need the skills of an experienced freelancer for one-off jobs, such as writing a user guide or putting together a product overview video in Flash. In these situations I turn to freelancers on eLance, oDesk or Guru.com.
After posting a job ad, the responses start to come in within a few hours. 95% of the time the candidates have no idea how to reply to the job ad and will either send over:
• The same old copy-paste reply which they use for every job ad
• A vague reply in which they don’t sell themselves to me
(How to Win Any Job on eLance, oDesk or Guru.com by Mitchell Harper, FreelanceSwitch.com, 05/16/2009)
You see, by knowing this you are already ahead of 95% of ALL freelancers out there, not just the rookies. That’s why we will go into detail on creating a winning bid. Writing a winning bid will take you some time at first but, with experience, will be no problem later on down the road.
First of all, a successful bid contains the following parts:
• Subject line
• Introduction
• Your skills and experience related to the project plus benefits of hiring you
• A plan of action, or how you will handle the project on hand
• Questions to the employer if any project specifications are unclear
• A cost estimate
• A time estimate for completion
• Closing with your contact info
• Attachments
We’ll go over each part individually and I’ll provide sample bids to illustrate how they are used.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
17).Your Profile Is Not Just For the Internet
Now that your profile is complete, don’t just stop at submitting them to the FWEs and job boards online. Turn your profile into a physical packet by formatting and printing out your profile document. Better yet, take your formatted document files to a copy/print shop and have it professionally printed and bound into your own business brochure.Always keep a copy of your profile packet on you since you never know who may need your services. Have several copies available, too, to give out or mail on short notice.Every city will have some sort of need for your services, whatever it may be. Cold call and/or visit businesses directly that are good prospects for your services. Introduce yourself and services and leave a business packet with them. I can guarantee that they will look to you to do business with first rather than go online and look for a freelancer.Cold calling is always difficult and not everyone will need or want your services, but there are always those that will. You just have to have the courage to go out and find them.Next we’ll move on to creating a bid and winning your first project.
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