As the new year comes in, I will be expanding in new directions. You will see some major changes in my blog (for one, I will be updating more regularly).
If you are looking for a content writer, are in need of SEO, or a site redesign, email me for a quote.
If you have been following my blog or have happened upon it any time recently, you may notice the lack of updates. Well, I’ve been busy. I would like to say I have been busy making tons of money, but I have not been doing much beyond earning a part-time income. Instead, I have been preparing to make my living online. I am finishing up my degree in web development and intend to use it to create more opportunities for all of you!
I will be back in a few days to tell you more about some of the interesting things I’ve learned, but in the meantime, I wanted to share a great website I happened upon today. Consumerism Commentary covers everything, from saving money to building an income. Check it out!
Free gifts for promotions are not always what they are touted to be, but they should be.
I’m not a photogenic person. I’m not UGLY, mind you, just not model material – I look good in 1 out of 50 or so pictures. All the rest seem to catch my micro-expressions (sheesh – I make some nasty faces when I’m thinking), or shadow the wrong area while highlighting the areas that should not be highlighted… Granted, I do not have a professional photographer in my short list of local friends and family, so if I must have a pic of me, it is always an arm-length away.
A few years ago, I had my portrait done by a major photography studio. The offer was a free portrait just for paying for the sitting fee. I was all excited to see my free portrait and was ready to purchase other poses when I went to pick it up.
The “free portrait” pose they chose was horrendous – and I’m not talking “this is me being picky” horrendous, I’m talking, NOBODY who saw the photo thought it was even passable. But the ones they showed me that they wanted money for? Nice. I believe the photographer went so far as to take a bad pic of every client on purpose (I don’t even do that badly on accident) so the customers would have to buy if they wanted a good one.
I was so mad about the trick they played on me with the “free portrait” that I did not buy any of the ten or so good ones they had laying on the table. A handful of people saw the free one before I threw it in the garbage.
That’s how I feel about most “free” promotions. Many free e-book/video downloads are filled with “Ten Ways to…” with 9 of those “ways” being common knowledge, and the BEST way being a purchase of their product. I don’t know about you, but I tend to purchase products from people who are more generous with their promotions. Give me something real and I’ll use it. If it works, I’ll be back because I’ll have confidence that the seller has a product that will benefit me. Give me junk and I’ll assume that is what the product is – JUNK or I’ll just be irritated and withhold a purchase cause I don’t like you much.
Giving away something for free is a great way to build an opt-in list, but if the free giveaway has little to no substantial value, you can expect most of those who have opted in to opt back out, or at the least, ignore your emails.
When you show your visitors that you value them by giving away something of real value, they are much more likely to stick around.
The secret of online success is loving what you do. Image by Petr Kratochvil
For anyone who works online or has been busily building an online income, you know that six weeks to success is extremely fast. This first make money online success story began with a woman who loves purses. Kara Richter, owner of From Bags to Riches, started with an idea, and within six short weeks, her online business was off the ground and running. The concept: customers can rent and carry a handbag for a month before turning it in, at which time, they can choose another one. For roughly $20 a month, purse loving women can carry the latest in fashion bags and never fall out of style. Women who prefer to purchase may do that as well. By her own admission, she is not an internet “tycoon”, but five years later, her business is still going strong.
Joe Purdy was told he could make a success of his music and sign with a label if he were willing to give up his “sound” and do as the record companies wanted. He went a different route. He makes a living selling his music online and likens it to his “small business”.
“Shabby N Chic” started selling her crafts on Etsy, and built up a modest income. You can read more about this young mother and her Etsy business on her Shabby N Chic blog.
Most of us do not see results in a matter of weeks. It can take months, or even years to get to that place where we feel successful. One person’s measure of success is not necessarily how others define success. For one, making enough to live comfortably and have something in savings is enough to call “success”. For another, success depends on making a million a year or more. Some are happy with a part-time online income that allows them to keep their “day” job.
So what do the three stories I’ve referred to have in common? One secret to the online success of Kara Richter, Joe Purdy, the Shabby and Chic crafter is that each of them started with an idea that sprung from doing what they love. One found success in handbags. One found success in music. One found success selling her crafts.
Love what you do and keep doing it. Refine your practices and goals over time. Making money online is great, but even more so when you love what you do.
Recently, I’ve been seeing several blog and forum posts criticizing Freelancer.Com. There is no question that some of the issues being discussed do exist, but as a former and still occasional user, I can tell you that I have found jobs and made money through Freelancer and have never been cheated out of one penny through their system.
My Personal Experiences with Freelancer: The Good and the Bad
When I joined Freelancer, it was GetAFreelancer, or “GAF”. I had my own set of complaints, but I have to say that most of those complaints have to do with issues surrounding the inability of North Americans to make a living from the wages presented by the buyers. I find it insulting when buyers post that they want EXCELLENT writing and research skills, perfect grammar, and “native-English” bidders only – then will pay no more than 50 cents to one dollar an article.
I gained important experience by writing for various buyers in different parts of the world, with a wide range of writing needs and points of view. When I first began, the only professional experience I had was a short story I had sold to my Sunday School paper as a teenager. Though I worked for a ridiculous amount for several months (never so low as one dollar), the experience I gained was worth the low pay.
A fantastic person living in India awarded me with my first project and then tortured me with numerous articles of varying requirements for SEO and specific styles. The worst were the bulk articles that focused on one topic. Within a month of my first project, I had written over one hundred articles on acne. Don’t even get me going about the cupcakes and coffee makers… I would find myself staring at my screen and wanting to pull out my hair — all for an average of $10 to $15 a day. Worth it? You bet.
I can now write reviews, blog posts, directory articles, web content, e-books, reports and press releases. Because I have diverse experience writing on several niche focuses, I can write on many topics without researching at all and I research faster with a more critical eye. I could write when I joined Freelancer, but I was properly trained by the buyers. Freelancer.Com gets kudos for that.
I have won higher paying jobs through Freelancer. Finding decent paying projects may be difficult, but it isn’t impossible. One key to GETTING the better pay is building up your ratings and reviews. When you are fresh, you have to start at the bottom. I started at $2 for an original article, but sometimes took less for bulk work. I don’t work for those wages anymore, but it is because I DID that I got my first decent paying job (through Freelancer!).
People do post scam projects on Freelancer.Com. This is not be confused with Freelancer.Com being a scam. When you read and bid on projects, you are responsible for the actions you take. The “open source” nature of Freelancer means there will be people who will exploit it. You can report them. I do.
I have not worked through Freelancer for a few months, but I have to admit their contact system needed work. Email response was slow. In order to make money, a company must keep its clients happy. I am making the hopeful assumption that Freelancer is addressing this PR issue.
I don’t care for the payment system. It needs work. The buyer must release the payment funds in order for Freelancer to credit your account with the money. Once the buyer does this, you can request payment from Freelancer. The system is a smart one – buyers AND freelancers are protected this way… The problem? Even when buyers have paid, you will have to wait to be paid. Your first request for a payment will result in 2 weeks of waiting for your Paypal to be credited. If you withdraw from Paypal to your bank, you generally have to wait a few days for it to clear. After the initial payment, project pay will be faster, though how fast it is depends on which day of the week you make a request. I hope they improve on this in the near future.
I wish to stress: Freelancer.com will not steal your money. They pay.
Buyers Who Do Not Want to Pay
Some freelancers have had issues with buyers who refused to pay after receiving a finished project. This happens for two reasons: dishonest buyers and poor work.
Protect Yourself from Dishonest Buyers
Buyers have been known to insist on an original sample from each project bidder, and then close down the project and use the samples. It happens. Not every buyer who requires a sample is planning to steal your work. Sometimes their needs are very specific and a sample based on their topic lets them know if you are the right “fit”. Use discretion when bidding. Most highly rated buyers who ask for a sample will either claim zero rights to your sample or purchase it as part of the project.
Buyers have been known to convince providers to take the project off of Freelancer. Some buyers who insist on paying through Paypal are planning to rip off your work and not pay you at all. When you accept a project and then do your correspondence off of Freelancer, you are increasing your risk of being cheated.
I avoided a problem by going through the Freelance payment system for the first few projects from a buyer. Once I was comfortable, I was fine with going through Paypal. Depending on the type of project they have posted, it is (or used to be) acceptable for the buyer to pay you via Paypal or another off-site alternative. The buyer pays a bigger price for the post, but makes it possible for the freelancer to receive payment (usually Paypal) without paying a commission. The rules for taking payments have changed over the last several months. Be sure to check the guidelines to determine what is acceptable for project postings.
Be prepared: Look for buyers with a decent amount of feedback for the number of projects they have listed. Read reviews from freelancers.
If you are not familiar with a buyer, do all of your correspondence through the site. Use the emailing system for submitting projects. Rather than sending your finished project via your personal email, submit your work as an attachment through the Freelancer mail system. If the buyer claims your work was shoddy or that you did not submit your work at all, this makes it possible for Freelancer to take your side in a complaint. Just remember that most buyers are not out to get you.
Bad work*
*this is not quoted or paraphrased. It represents a sample of what a dissatisfied buyer might post in a feedback.
Provider Feedback:
Her work was not equal with the sample she sent me. I awarded her the project because I was impressed with her sample, but I don’t believe she wrote the sample. Five of the articles she submitted were stolen from the web (I told her I run articles through Copyscape, but I guess she didn’t believe me) and the other five were filled with grammar and spelling errors. This situation has been resolved through Freelancer. I have paid her for five of the articles but will never hire her again.
Buyers do not want to pay for poor or incomplete work.
I have not experienced the numerous other freelancing jobs available on Freelancer.Com, but when you check it out, be sure to note that although there are numerous “newbie” freelancers, there are many long-term providers there as well.
Autoblogging is the process of scraping content from other websites and blogs in order to use another site’s content to make money. Autobloggers use a plug-in to find blog posts through RSS feeds. They then post someone else’s content on their own blog. In effect, it is theft.
Why do some people do this? Money. They make money online by using other people’s content without permission. The best part about it is that the theft is automated. They do very little work in the hopes of seeing big payoffs.
No matter how tempting the idea of autoblogging may be, it is wrong. What is more, there are bloggers like me who will do “little things” to make sure an autoblog is found out by the readers. Content theft may also be reported to an autoblogger’s website host as well as to Google.
Alternatives to autoblogging:
One tip for protecting your blog from autoblogs:
Create a banner that identifies your site and use it at the bottom of every post. When content is scraped, everything is scraped, including images.
More on protecting your blog from autobloggers:
How to Prevent Your Content from Being Stolen
