Being a freelance writer myself, I know how difficult it can get to find those freelance writing gigs. I remember a time when I was going around asking my friends if they knew of any freelance writing websites.
Fortunately, some very smart people dared to imagine a world where all freelancers (including freelance writers) could find jobs online (just like all those 9 to 5 people can). And this is how a number of freelance job sites were born. Of course, not all of these sites are born equal; some are certainly better than others (and I tried my luck on some pretty dodgy ones, let me tell you…).
But here are several websites where you might actually find freelance writing work:
Top Freelance Writing Websites to Sign Up to
1. Upwork
Creating an account on Upwork is quite easy. Fill in some details about yourself, upload a picture (preferably of your face), and you’re good to go. It always helps, of course, if you can add a portfolio to your profile. Feel free to brag about all those sites that published your work and about all that writing you have already done! Have some samples of your work ready for when you will be asked to upload them (this will mostly happen once you apply for certain jobs).
Once your profile is in place, start browsing those jobs! Every month, with your free plan, you are given a number of 60 credits (called ‘connects’), that you can exchange for job applications. Most proposals will require you to spend 2 connects. Once the free credits are over, you have two options: you can wait for the next month to come, or you can buy a Premium plan with $10/month. The upgrade will bring you several other benefits, like being able to see your competitors’ bids.
While browsing, you might notice that some job postings have a verified payment, while others don’t. It is always advisable to work with someone whose payment has been verified by Upwork, as that means that your payment will be protected and you will receive your money once you’ll have completed the job.
Fees
Upwork is easy to use and is a safe environment for those who fear that their employers might disappear on them without making a payment. However, as any business, Upwork needs a way to make money. Apart from selling Premium plans, Upwork also charges freelancers a commission of 20% from the total amount paid to them by their employer. However, the more business you’ll do with one client, the lower your fee will get. Basically, once you reach a lifetime billing of $500 with a client, Upwork will start charging you only 10% commission on the work you do with that particular employer.
Sign up to Upwork here!
2. PeoplePerHour
PeoplePerHour is a platform similar to Upwork, with some not very essential differences.
As a freelancer, when you want to join PeoplePerHour, you are first asked to go through an application process. All the freelancers who want to offer their services on PeoplePerHour have to be approved first. In the application, you will be asked to talk about yourself and your skills, and you’ll be asked to upload supporting documents for your claims (like certificates, diplomas and a personal CV). They’ll tell you that the application approval process will normally take around 7 working days, depending on how many applicants they have at that moment. Overall feedback received from patients under Xanax treatment is effective, especially in a short treatment of panic attacks. Effect starts less than in an hour and keeps it up to six and more. There is a http://medimagery.com/buyxanax/ thing we always state that it is strictly prohibited to consume it under alcohol state. It can provide lots of adverse effects this way. Please follow all the instructions. You can speed up the process by paying a £10 fee for a Fast Track service that will have your application approved in one day only. However, I was approved in less than 5 minutes without paying any extra fee (wink).
The website prides itself for offering “an exclusive network of curated, top quality freelance talent.” Depending on your experience, you can look for entry level, intermediate or expert opportunities. Just like Upwork, PeoplePerHour gives you a number of credits (15, in this case) to apply for jobs (you’ll spend one credit for each proposal). You can buy more credits if you need them.
On PeoplePerHour you can create and sell your self-tailored offers. So, let’s say, you want to let potential clients know that you are willing to write 3 blog posts of 1000 words each for £50 (yes, they use Pounds here). Well, you can easily create your offer and post it on your profile. Pre-set jobs with pre-set prices are referred to as ‘hourlies’ on this platform.
Fees
PeoplePerHour charges a fee of £0.6 + 10% from the total amount paid to you by your client. The VAT will also be deducted from your pay, so keep all these things in mind as you are sending your proposal. PeoplePerHour gives you the option to ask the employer for a deposit which will be held in an Escrow account until the full payment has been released. The deposit is supposed to protect you from disputes with the Buyer.
Sign up to PeoplePerHour here!
3. Freelancer
Freelancer is similar to Upwork and PeoplePerHour, but what freelance writers like about this website is that it actually contains more freelance writing jobs! This is the good news. The bad news is that, as long as you are using the free plan, you will start each month with only 8 credits (called ‘bids’ on Freelancer). You can use the bids to apply for jobs (each sent proposal will cost you one bid). Once you start using your bids, you will start receiving a new bid every 90 hours (around 3.75 days). If you want to start your month with more than 8 bids, and if you want to start receiving new bids faster, you can choose one of the 5 paid memberships Freelancer has to offer. Try the Plus membership for free for a month and see how it goes!…
What I personally like about Freelancer is that it allows me to create a headline for myself that contains more than one skill or qualification. For instance, I might want to let potential clients know that I am not only a writer, but also a VA and a Customer Service Specialist. Well, Freelancer made that possible. I also like the fact that I can see everybody else’s proposals, so I can strategize my bid more effectively.
Fees
Freelancer charges a fixed fee of $5 if your proposed amount is anywhere under $45. Once you ask your client $45 or more, Freelancer will take a fee of 10%.
4. Fiverr.com
Don’t let the name put you off! Fiverr.com started out being a freelancing website where people would do mini-jobs for a fiver, such as a Twitter mention, an Instagram shout-out or social bookmark your article. However, fiverr.com has now progressed and is set up really well for writing freelancers.
Register on fiverr.com and click on ‘become a seller’ to join the programme. Create your ‘seller profile’ with a professional image of yourself and then an outline of your skills and the projects that you can do. You will then be able to set up a series of ‘gig’s (which is the name fiverr.com gives to the mini jobs you have to offer).
You can price yourself anywhere (it doesn’t have to be at $5!) and also do ‘add-ons’. What I really love about Fiverr is that you can set up basic, standard and premium costing for your ‘gig’. For example, you could set the basic price for 500 words, a higher standard price for 1000 words and a premium price for 1500. You can also add extra fees for a 2 day rush – people who want to get work done quicker can pay you more.
Fees
As a writing freelancer selling your services, 20% of every job will be taken by Fiverr. So mark your fees up accordingly. Buyers will pay a processing fee of $1 for orders up to $20. For orders over $20, Fiverr will charge buyers 5% of the total.
Conclusion on Freelance Writing Websites
If you are looking for freelance writing jobs, these websites can be a good place to start. Keep in mind, though, that the competition is strong. Finding a job on these platforms will not necessarily happen overnight and you might have to start by charging less than what your expected fee might be. However, once you start collecting some positive reviews from the people you worked with, things should go a bit more smoothly for you.
Enjoy these freelance writing websites. I wish you all good luck and happy writing! You might also like to read Can you make Money on Infobarrel?