Comments on: Freelance Writers Should Not Be Scared Of Job Bidding Sites

By: Develop Your Freelance Writing Radar - How To Spot Potential Problem Projects | Benjamin Hunting - Freelance Writer

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 01:16:26 +0000

[...] the comments section of one of my previous articles, I alluded to the fact that I have developed a sort of filtering process to help me select which [...]

By: Benjamin Hunting

Benjamin Hunting — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 01:15:00 +0000

Jonathan – I feel that determining a price is definitely an area where confusion creeps in. Some writers are afraid to ask for a certain amount because they recognize the need for their rates to be competitive. The problem arises when you haven’t defined who you are competing against, exactly, and on what merits.

This is very easy to witness on sites like Elance and Guru. Writers see a project that they know they can do, for a fair price, but they also see numerous other writers and companies undercutting that price by what can be a huge amount. They then feel that they have to lower their own prices in order to have any hope of making a winning bid.

The key is to realize that you don’t have to compete on price at all. As long as your price represents the value that you bring to the client, then it is a fair one. There are many clients out there who are willing to pay a competitive rate for quality work.

There may be more clients who are interested in paying as little as possible for work that might not receive as much attention as it should, or who will take the risk that their work may not get done to spec at all in order to save a few bucks – but this shouldn’t concern you. Think about this: would you rather have one or two clients who pay you a good rate for good work, or 10 clients paying you peanuts for mountains of words?

By: Jonathan Cohen

Jonathan Cohen — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:59:35 +0000

Hi Carolyn:

Thanks for the piece. I’d be interested in knowing what you consider to be a fair price range for writing. That could be where some of the confusion lies — certain writers may feel that eLance, Guru, etc. bargain fees down to the point where it’s unfair. Other writers may feel that the average rate being offered/bid is quite fair.

By: Benjamin Hunting

Benjamin Hunting — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:13:18 +0000

Glad it was helpful to you, Carolyn – and you are right, it’s very much up to you to decide how much your time is worth and which jobs are attractive enough to bid on. I find that over time, it’s possible to develop a sort of ‘filter’ when skimming through multiple project postings, one that picks up certain phrases and details that indicate whether a job looks viable or not. It works on both the bidding sites and when communicating with potential clients.

By: Carolyn Cordon

Carolyn Cordon — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 23:36:06 +0000

An interesting and well thought out post. Thank you for sharing your thoughts like this. I am toying with the idea of becoming active with Elance – it looks a little chaotic, but I can see that there is a vast range of jobs, and no-one is pointing a gun at you saying you must go for el-cheapo jobs.