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Feb 16, 2009 -- New websites to find freelancing and consulting jobs

Clark is making it part of his new mission to be a resource for the unemployed and the underemployed during this tough economic cycle.

The conventional wisdom about education and employment -- as your level of education rises, the less likely you are to be impacted by lay-offs -- has been completely flipped on its head this time around. This recession knows no boundaries in terms of education, skill level, training or years on the job.

If you have skills of a certain nature, try picking up some consulting work (aka freelancing) on a per-job basis. The Internet offers a variety of sites that hook freelancers up with employers. The San Francisco Chronicle's Tom Abate has compiled a list of such websites, including the following ones:

eLance.com
oDesk.com
Guru.com
crowdSPRING.com

These sites are being called "virtual hiring halls" because they're a modern adaptation of the union hall idea where workers would go to await job orders.

Unfortunately, Clark won't be able to answer any questions submitted via commenting. If you have a question, please try posting it to our message boards.

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What others are saying

  • freelance work through websites
    Slave wages and conditions are NOT the norm on these websites. You DO have to research the jobs available as well as wait for them to come to you. Start lower than normal, go higher when your feedback shows some great working relationships. Networking is important on these sites, too. Just try it. You might get some nice work from it.
  • Temporary Staffing Agencies
    White collar workers willing to take a pay cut or work in an administrative/clerical field might find better work opportunities through temporary staffing agencies. Most online freelancing work isn't high paying, and there are only about a million people bidding on every opportunity that gets posted there. If you are starting a small business on a budget, it's a boon, since you can outsource a lot of normally expensive piece work for pennies on the dollar. If you are an out of work IT or financial worker, it won't really be for you. You can find local offices of the following national and international chain temporary staffing agencies, and be employed (sometimes full-time temp-to-perm) within about a week or so:

    http://www.kellyservices.us/web/us/services/en/pages/

    http://www.olsten.com/

    http://www.westaff.com/

    http://www.officeteam.com/

    http://www.us.manpower.com/uscom/index.jsp


    Not only will these jobs give you almost immediate income, but it can also help you get a foot in the door at another company where you might eventually be moved into another position, more suited to your skills.
  • Range of Pay on Guru.com
    As a Communications Specialist at Guru.com, I feel compelled to point out that there have been projects awarded on our site for more than $25,000. It is true that some Employers use our services to benefit from labor arbitrage; however, other Employers are just looking for top quality talent. To find these opportunities, you have to take responsibility for marketing yourself competitively. The Guru.com Quality Score Rank system also helps Employers identify not just the cheapest but the best. For more statistics, check our annual report data: http://www.guru.com/Press/outsourcing-growth-19feb2009.cfm
  • freelancing websites
    Several things to think about:
    These websites are setting an expectation that the pay for these jobs will be rock bottom.
    Experienced professionals that were once able to make a living from freelance work are now having to cut their prices to be competitive, even for work that is not coming from these websites but is influenced by the expectations of the low price.
    Often the winning bid is low price but the person offering the bid does not have professional credentials or experience to do the job.
  • Elance
    Elance sounds like a great way to fill in the gaps as a professional design. I have bid on several projects at a lower rate than I typically do business, but others are cutting their prices to nothing. As a professional designer, sites like this do not added the importance of "BRANDING" a company. It makes a logos seem like a $50 job. I to had rather network and find those who understand the real meaning of a corporate ID and the value.
  • free lancing websites
    Also try http://www.womenforhire.com and look down the left side for 'Work from Home' ideas. This is legit and been featured on GMA for the last couple of years - not just for women!:)
  • There are pros and cons
    I agree with everyone the bidding is very low. I think what they are doing is bidding and winning so many jobs that they can afford to bid low. But trying to outbid those who have been successful for years on these sites is impossible.

    The pro to this is, if you win a bid it could turn into a relationship where they need additional services and you can change your pricing by marketing the benifits of your business. I'm a virtual assistant and there are several in this business who have obtained long term clients from these free lance sites. It's not a high number of VA's that actually did this, but the point is this is just a pro to using the sites.

    For my business, I don't have time to fool with that non-sense. I'd rather get my clients via networking.
  • Pay
    The amount of payment numbers on these sites do not necessarily represent what the freelancer has earned. It is ONLY what someone has paid them through the site itself. They are free to make other arrangements outside the site's payment system (which is something like paypal). So although I agree you may not strike it rich on these sites, read with that in mind. Their value can be in making contacts, not the actual work posted. I know at least one person who has gotten a decent freelance marketing job via elance.com.
  • Low pay better than none?
    Not necessary. By working like a slave you get treated and thought of like a slave. Slave wages hurt not only you but everyone else in the process. I'd rather be homeless than work through these sites.
  • No-pay
    I'm thinking low pay or barely minimum wge while staying home looking for or waiting to hear about a jobis better than no money at all
  • Low pay
    I agree with patdesign. I put in my zip and looked at the results for all the persons who had signed up, all had 0 sales. MMM! The best way to get a job is to network!!!
  • Low pay
    Yes. These jobs on these sites pay hardly anything. Good luck finding one that pays even minimum wages. These are used by Indians to find work in the US.
  • great source for offshoring of talent
    I read that article by Tom Abate and all they talk about is how they hired programmers in Bangalore and Bulgaria. So how the heck does that help programmers and others here in the United States?
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