I didn't use that website, but tried another and found it to be ultra-competitive and harder to generate recurring business than I anticipated.

There were three things working against me, on the site I was using:

1) I'm a full-time banker and only intended to use this for extra cash during downtime, meaning my windows of opportunity were limited and I couldn't commit to projects with significant hour requirements unless the time constraints were flexible.

2) Adding on to point #1, in order to win business, the more proven experience and high reviews you have, the more likely you are to be selected for the best projects. Given that I was not nearly as active as someone that was freelancing full-time, they typically had a much better chance of landing bids, all other things being equal. The differentiation in experience and education is minimal, so the party seeking a freelancer is always going to choose the one with the most positive feedback, particularly because it demonstrates their ability to effectively complete projects in a freelance context and interact remotely.

3) The prices were not set by the party seeking help, but rather by those that were seeking to provide it, based on a description of the situation. Thus, for smaller jobs (ones that I was mostly targeting), you could be undercut 50%+ by people in SE Asia + India.

The good news is that SpareHire restricts that, similar to Toptal (another you should look into). Both have rigorous recruiting processes and ensure that their people actually have real world experience. The clients also tend to be less price sensitive. That being said, you'll still be going up against multiple people that have more experience on the platform.

Just some food for thought...

 
Best Response

That's what I garnered as well, it's competitive: some IB bankers claim to have 6-10 yrs experience, then you also have the India component - they'll work for $10-15 per hour with an MBA.

A great idea would be to bid on multiple gigs, at >$100 per hour and outsource to India for $10-15 lol - pyramid scheme!

26 Broadway where's your sense of humor?
 

2 questions:

Which website was it you tried using?

Are you still looking for the odd gig? I am currently tryin to find someone decent to do some equity resarch, mainly qualitative analysis focused (industry drivers, company analysis/drivers, catalysts/earnings upside, downside protection/moats...) not fussed on modelling or valuations but thats the easyer bit anyway.

 

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