oDesk: Starting From Scratch

Finally, I was able to write something for my blog. This time I will tell you how you will start from scratch in oDesk.com. I will tell you my personal experiences of how I started.

Okay, here we go. You might have read my first 2 posts about oDesk, but if you haven't yet, it would be great to do so. The first 2 posts will give you a bit of an idea how oDesk works.

The Starting Line

So, after registering an account with oDesk.com, freelancers need to take the oDesk readiness test. This is the very first step you need to take because you will not get any job without taking this test. The answers to this particular test are mostly "all of the above" and some questions can be answered by your common sense. This test contains 10 questions where 8 of them can be answered using "all of the above."

After passing the oDesk readiness test, take time to add your educational background, past experiences (your past jobs, employment, etc.), your expertise. This will boost your "profile completeness." Your profile completeness will show employers or buyers how serious you are to work online and how legit you are.

Add a neat profile picture and some of your work samples as portfolios. Doing these will make you look good and easily searchable for the buyers.

Searching for Jobs

This is the next step for you to take. But first, you must know what you are capable of, what you can do and not. My tagline is always "Don't overpromise, be realistic." Buyers really love freelancers who are realistic at offering what they can do and not. Be honest of when you can deliver the goods/services. Be true to what you promise your buyer. Doing such will lead you to many projects (just like me.. LOL!).

If you are good at writing, then look for writing jobs. If you are well grounded in the computer language, go for technical jobs (most of them pay very good).

Just search for the keyword of the job you want to apply to. For example, you are an article writer. You just need to type in "writer" and then results will come up and choose one that you seem good for you.

Winning the Bid

Once you have chosen the job posting you want to send an application to, check on the average bid. It is not advisable to send the lowest bid as you will not enjoy doing the job.

What you need to do is:

1. Follow all the requirements that the hiring manager asks
2. Write a good application letter
3. Check on the average bid
4. Quote a reasonable price

These are my 4 steps to winning good projects. Trust me! They're proven. :)

I guess this will end my blog for today. I hope this will help new freelancers out there in grabbing those projects and start earning with me.