Elance was a great website, but then it merged with Odesk to form Upwork, and we have to agree – Upwork isn’t the same as Elance.
It already had a lot of problems on its own, and now that its fee has gone up from 10% to 20%, people are leaving the sinking ship. Freelance writers are pretty clueless – they don’t know where to look for assignments. I’m facing the same issues. After getting hundreds of clients through Elance, now I’m looking for alternate sources.
The times are difficult, but all is not lost. Here are some places where you can still find freelance writing assignments.
6 great methods to find Paid Freelance Writing Jobs
Fiverr
Fiverr is a job board where freelancers open their “gigs” and clients can hire them according to the services offered. All gigs cost $5, so if you want to write an article for more than $5, you can ask them to purchase multiple gigs for one article. It’s the opposite of Elance, where clients post jobs and freelancers come looking. Fiverr is a diverse platform. In fact, when you’re on Fiverr, why stop at just writing? Explore some of their whacky gigs and see if you can do something like that.
Problogger charges $50 from a client to post a job on their board, so you can be sure that the clients who post here will definitely hire someone. While
While UPwork clients generally post jobs and never look back, Problogger clients need high-quality writing and are looking for serious writers. I once landed a job on Problogger and was able to earn about $3,500 per month from it. The job lasted for 6 months, so make sure you apply only if you’re a serious writer who can write daily for several months.
Reddit
Reddit is a very interactive community. There are [Hiring] and [For Hire] threads that you can join. I had posted my own ads on Reddit a couple of times and got replies from clients. You too can offer your services if you have something unique to offer. Make a pitch that will attract customers, and you’ll get their replies through PMs (personal messages). However, make sure you don’t spam the threads by posting your services again and again.
I have read that many clients on Craigslist are sham, but personally, I have had a couple of clients through this platform, and they worked out fine for me. Although I never had any long-term assignments through Craigslist, but it’s still worth a shot. I got $25 for an article from this platform. It’s not much, but hey, it’s still worth a try for an out-of-work writer. Most Craigslist people will want to talk to you on
Although I never had any long-term assignments through Craigslist, but it’s still worth a shot. I got $25 for an article from this platform. It’s not much, but hey, it’s still worth a try for an out-of-work writer. Most Craigslist people will want to talk to you on phone though… so if you’re not comfortable with that, this isn’t the platform for you.
Content Mills
Content mills are infamous for paying peanuts to their writers. For example, Crowd Content pays about $17-$20 per hour to a writer and expects them to write 10 short descriptions in one hour. If you want bulk work, you might want to try this option, but they do not pay the right amount for your work.
To get selected at a Content Mill, you need to read their rules and write a sample for them. If your sample is approved, they will hire you as a writer and you can write articles for them, which they publish on different sources. Here is a list of ContentMills:
- ContentMart
- TextBroker
- DemandMedia
- iWriter
- CopyPress
- Freelancer
Guest post on blogs
It’s a great way to earn some extra money. Blogs like Cracked.com pay $150 per piece for first four blog posts and $250 per piece for every subsequent article. Plus, you can make an extra $100 if your post becomes successful. But for that, you need to send them a great pitch. If they like your pitch, they’ll accept it. Read this guide to learn writing an outstanding proposal. There are several other blogs that accept guest posts and pay for them. You just need to send the right pitch.
Here are few hand-picked guides to help you get started:
Hang in there!
It’s a difficult phase for freelance writers, especially for those who made their livelihood from Elance.
You need a little perseverance, and good clients will come again. Meanwhile, you can read some quality blogs and improve your skills. Reading books is a great option too. Many of my friends have suggested to me that I should read Reader’s Digest to improve my writing skills – although I must admit that I still haven’t tried that.
Well, that’s it. I hope at least someone will benefit from this article. All the best for your freelancing career!
Thanks for sharing amazing post.
ReplyDeleteMartin