Conquer the gig economy: The best sites for freelancers

By 2020, it is predicted that 40 per cent of the workforce will be comprised of freelancers. This is reflective of the modern push to a gig economy as businesses attempt to reduce the cost of physical offices and take advantage of an increasingly global world. The nature of work is ultra-flexible; a writer in Australia can produce and upload an article to an American news site with the click of a button.

As the practice has become more common, so too have the number of platforms that facilitate a relationship between freelancers and their clients. If you are interested in building your portfolio with by doing some work of your own, here are four of the best websites to get you started.

Upwork

Upwork allows you to sign up as either a freelancer or a business seeking creatives, developers, writers and accountants for specific tasks. There is a catch though; the first $500 earned includes a 20 per cent cut for the site, however this rate drops with the more money you are earning.

Freelancer

The most popular marketplace of its kind, Freelancerconnects more than 25,000 users from nearly 250 countries, with offices in London, Vancouver, Sydney, Buenos Ares, Jakarta and Manila. Freelancers range from writers, graphic designers and software developers to accountants, engineers and legal professionals.

Fiverr

Fiverr’s marketplace includes a wide variety of industries, including graphics and design, digital marketing, writing and translation, video and animation, and programming and tech. Gigs are purchased every five seconds and can fall anywhere between $5 and $10,000.

Guru

Known as Gurus, the site’s 1.5 million registered freelancers have completed over a million jobs and earned in excess of $200 million. Guruscreate a profile and search for projects they wish to take on, and are only remunerated when the client approves their work.

Useful Links:

The advantages of working remotely

The problem with open plan offices and the benefits of working from home