Tuesday 30 July 2013

How to be verified on Elance

Getting verified on Elance would greatly enhance a freelancer's profile. Prospective clients would rather go for verified freelancers than those who have not been verified.
Shortly below I will state the details of how one can be verified on Elance.
*Log into you Elance account
*Click on the FIND WORK menu
*Select the Freelancer Profile

*Click on verify your identity by the right side of your PC's screen

*A pop up screen will come up asking you to accept the terms and conditions
*Click on the I accept the terms and conditions checkbox. Then click continue
*You will be taken to ID Verification page where you have to fill out your bio data form, upload an acceptable identity card like your international passport, national ID card or your driver's license.
*Next go ahead and schedule a convenient time for you when you would receive a skype call interview from an Elance agent. 
NB: Make sure you have skype software installed on your PC and that you have an active account. You equally need a working web camera and a mic to enable you interact with the Elance agent.
*Next check the I authorize you checkbox and click submit.
There you are. You will get a skype call from an Elance agent. So make sure you are logged into your skype account. One more thing, the interview would not last beyond 1minute. So why not take this bold step and get your self verified on Elance to boost your chances of getting yourself more jobs.
More details of how to improve your profile will be discussed in later posts.
Stay focused
*keep in touch*

Sunday 7 April 2013

How to setup an Elance Profile


THIS IS THE COMPLETE DETAIL OF HOW TO SETUP YOUR ELANCE PROFILE.
Follow the steps to setup your Elance profile; click on the button “Start Your Profile” to get started.
Profile start link

Below is a list of what your Elance profile carries about you and you should endeavor to make them attractive so that potential clients or people seeking to hire freelancers can hire you for jobs.
OVERVIEW:  Here, you are expected to give a general description of who you are and what your hourly rate ($) for jobs is like. I would advice that you state your price as negotiable. The reason is that most clients who hire freelancers usually put a price range of how much they can afford to pay while posting the job on Elance.
PORTFOLIO: Your portfolio contains the samples of all the works you may have done in the past. In other words, your portfolio carries the specimens of your expertise in the fields you mentioned you are knowledgeable in. I strongly advice that you should make your portfolio rich because it is attached to your Elance profile and clients view it to find out your level of expertise in the job they would hire you to do.
SKILLS: There are several fields of skills for you to select from. You can edit and new skills at any time you want. For each of the skills you select, there is an option for you to take a test on it. The reason for this is to show clients how good and knowledgeable you are in that field. Testing your skill is not a must but it serves as a boost to your profile. You are very free to take the test at any time you are better prepared to do so. Endeavor to score a high mark in any of the skill tests you would take. This will no doubt attract clients to hand you jobs.
SERVICE DESCRIPTION: You are expected to state here how you would perform any job given to you. Mention your level of expertise in your chosen fields and how you will deliver quality jobs to clients. This is another opportunity for you to market yourself.
KEYWORDS: Mention a few keywords that relates to your skills so that clients who search for contractors for certain jobs can always have you listed in the search field.

On my next post, I will tell you how to verify yourself on Elance, how to take the Elance pledge and so much more.
Your comments are also welcome

Stay focused
*Keep in touch*

Wednesday 27 March 2013

How to get registered on freelance websites


As a follow up to my earlier post on Freelancing, I have come up with a detailed report on how you can get registered to one of the most popular freelance websites on the internet; www.elance.com
There are so many other freelance websites which you can join but for a start, let me start with Elance.
Elance is an online marketplace where contractors and creative professionals can find freelance work projects. (NOTE: Contractors as used in this context could be small companies, NGOs, Multinational Companies, churches, schools, banks etc. Creative professionals as used here could be any individual or a group of two, three or five people.)
Just a few days ago, I was searching out jobs which I could do and pocket my money, I saw a job posted by a Nigerian pastor. He was looking for a freelancer who could help him design bible software which he would install on his Ipad to facilitate his preaching. The job really paid off. You too can be making lots of easy money from Elance.
Before I proceed to give you further details, you must meet up with certain requirements. These requirements include:
You must have;
·        A computer (It could be desktop, laptop or tablet PC with internet connection).
·        Basic knowledge of surfing the internet
·        Patience. (You must exercise patience if you must make it online).
The basic Elance membership is free, and anyone can join Elance and look for work. The following steps will guide you to get registered. Please read it carefully.
1.     Open your web browser and type www.elance.com
2.     Click on the “Register” option at the right top of the page or you can click “find work” at the top row, select “I want to work” button then click continue. You also have the option of signing up with your Facebook account. So the choice is yours to make.
3.     Fill in the form that will come up. Check the “Elance terms of service” box and click on “Register” button at the end. You will be directed to the “type of job” page.
4.     There are many types of job categories on Elance namely IT and programming, writing and translation, design and multimedia, Admin support, sales and marketing, Engineering and marketing, finance and management as well as legal. Select any of the job categories you feel you have much experience in and proceed to the next page.
5.     The next page is the “membership plan” page. Choose the Basic membership plan.  Like I stated earlier at the beginning of this report, the basic membership plan on Elance is free and lets you bid for up to 15 project proposals per month. The other three membership plans require a monthly fee which allows you to bid for more projects. I don’t advice you to go for the paid membership plan until you must have made a reasonable income on Elance, then you can upgrade your plan as you wish.
6.      On the next page, you will be prompted to enter your username, password and email address. Choose a secret question and add your contact information, such as your street address, telephone number and full name. Choose the category you want to submit proposals for (such as Writing and Translation, IT and programming etc).
7.     Click on "Join Elance." You'll be directed to your account home page, where you can search for projects and create your custom bio data and profile. Meanwhile, you will see a note on the screen asking you to check your email to verify your account.
8.     Open your email, click on the link sent to you to verify your account. You will be requested to type in your profile data on the page that comes up.

At this point you have successfully opened and verified an account with Elance. In my next post, I will tell you how to make a good Elance profile as well as how to bid for jobs.
Don't forget to leave a comment. If you have questions, please feel free to send me an email, I will promptly reply you.
stay focused
*keep in touch*

Saturday 23 March 2013

Make money as an online freelancer

I have been searching for various ways to make money legally and legitimately online and I have come across quite a number of ways.
One of the numerous ways I found out is to become a freelancer on the internet.
First and foremost you may want to know what freelancing exactly means.
Freelancing simply means earning a living by working for different companies at different times rather than being permanently employed by one company.

How possible is it for one to freelance on the internet?
You might wonder if it is possible to freelance online for companies? The answer is a big yes. You can freelance for companies, individuals, churches, schools/universities and so on. The list is endless. All you need to do is to be very good at what you do. If you are good in website designs, you can make a lot of money online. If you are very good in designing with Adobe Photoshop  Corel draw etc, you can make huge sums of money online. There are lots of things including posting email for companies, content publishing on websites, proofreading of eBooks and so on.

Let me keep it short. By the next post I will outline the various websites and how you can get started.

*stay in touch.*