What are Freelance Work Platforms?
Freelance work platforms are websites that act as intermediaries between two
parties. The first party is the freelancer who offers services online, and
the second party is the client or project owner who needs those services.
These platforms are usually not government agencies, but are run by
individuals who connect these parties based on flexible rules that ensure
the rights of both parties.
How to Make Money Freelancing Work?
Freelance work is when a person provides a specific service
independently without the need to be part of a company. It depends on
two parties: the first party provides a specific service in exchange for
a certain amount of money, and the second party needs this service and
obtains it by paying the agreed amount to the first party.
In freelancing, instead of being an employee of a particular
institution, you utilize your skills, knowledge, and experience to
provide a specific service directly to a number of clients, in exchange
for the agreed amount with the client. This is how you can earn money
from freelance work.
The Importance of Freelance Work Platforms
Thomas Dewar once said, "The mind is like a parachute, it doesn't work
unless it's open." Here lies the importance of freelance work platforms in
opening up horizons. They provide freelancers and clients with complete
freedom without being bound by specific working hours, strict decisions, or
certain financial rewards. Therefore, they achieve a lot of progress and
continuous success for their users. The importance of freelance work
platforms can be summarized in 5 main aspects, namely:
1. Your identity
Freelancing platforms provide you with your own identity as a freelancer,
where you can document your personal identity, add all your skills in a
designated skills section, and add your experiences in your bio box. You
can also showcase all your work in your profile, which is visible to all
clients within the platform.
2. Protection of rights
Freelancing platforms ensure the protection of both the freelancer and
the client's rights. Regarding the freelancer's financial rights, the
client cannot start any project without depositing a certain amount of
money on the site, equal to the amount displayed for the project. This is
sufficient for you to work with complete peace of mind, as the site
preserves your rights in case of any dispute between you and the project
owner. Once the project starts, the funds transfer from the owner's
balance to the site until the work is fully delivered, and then the funds
transfer from the site to your balance on the site.
As for the client's rights, freelancing platforms provide the freedom to
accept or reject previewing the project before receiving it from the
freelancer. If the freelancer has not uploaded work files within the
discussion of the entire project deal, their account may be frozen until
it is confirmed that all work files are ready and have been delivered to
the project owner.
3. Effective communication
Freelancing platforms provide features to facilitate effective
communication between freelancers and project owners. The project owner
can communicate with the freelancer before hiring them to inquire about
anything. After requesting the project, the platforms allow communication
through voice and text messages, and the ability to attach work files for
sharing between the parties.
4. Technical Support
Freelance platforms offer their users technical support services either
through email or through messaging via the site's help center. If you have
any questions, inquiries, or encounter any issues within the site and do
not know what to do, you only need to contact the support department, and
you will find many specialized people who will provide you with a quick
solution and in the simplest ways.
5. Tips
Freelance platforms offer continuous tips, before and after receiving the
project and during work on it. In addition to providing extensive blogs
that offer hundreds of well-explained articles continuously in areas that
interest freelancers and clients, such as design, digital marketing,
translation, content writing, business management, freelance work, and
many others, which helps in acquiring more skills and experiences. One of
the most prominent of these blogs is the blog of the Khamsat website and
the blog of the Mstqil website.
Advantages of Freelance Platforms
Freelance platforms have many advantages, including:
First: Independence
Independence is the most important advantage in freelance work because it
gives you a sense of complete freedom as you are the boss of yourself. You
will have the freedom to choose clients and negotiate with them on the
budget, search for new clients to work with, and choose projects that are
suitable for your skills. For example, if you come across a project that
seems complex and has a low profit margin, you can reject it because you
are not obliged to take on projects that you do not want to work on, as
the decision is entirely up to you.
Therefore, my friend, you are free in this field, as you are the CEO of
your own company, and you have the freedom to choose the project that
suits you at all times. However, do not forget that freelance work is not
a permanent vacation or resignation from a job, as it also requires effort
and time so that you can satisfy your clients. You can work for only two
days a week according to your schedule, and all of this will be under your
full control.
Secondly: Big Opportunities
Paulo Coelho said: "Look for opportunities that achieve your goals,
and if you do not find them, create them." With the increasing
unemployment rate, freelancing platforms offer many online job
opportunities through the number of projects offered in various
fields, such as writing and translation projects, engineering and
architecture projects, business projects, programming projects, and
many others. You can work on more than one project at the same time as
long as you have the skill and ability to do so. Seize the opportunity
and constantly work on developing your skills to increase your
employment opportunities for those projects.
Thirdly: Skills Development
Freelancing platforms give independent workers a great opportunity to
develop their skills through many training courses and blogs rich in
instructional articles and continuous tips on each project. They also
provide support for new projects and help improve their professional
communication skills with clients.
On the other hand, each project you work on will add something new to
your experience, and therefore, it will bring you more clients, help
you develop your professional life, and qualify you to compete in the
freelancing market. Unlike traditional jobs that often do not allow
for the possibility of development and skills improvement because they
rely on a certain conventional system.
Fourthly: Making Money
There is no limit to making money in your freelance work, as you can
work on more than one project at the same time without restrictions.
The more you increase your productivity and improve your skills, the
more money you can earn.
The platforms rely on a rating system after the projects are
delivered, allowing customers to evaluate freelancers and add comments
about their experience working with them. It is worth mentioning that
this evaluation is available to everyone and contributes significantly
to your success on the site, increasing your appearance rate,
attracting more clients to you, and achieving more profits.
Fifthly: Flexibility in Dealing
If you hate waking up early or being constrained by the policies of
traditional jobs or even dressing formally, all of this is possible in
your freelance work. Freelancing platforms offer the flexibility of
choosing your work time, dress code, and even the project that you
want to work on, allowing you to balance your personal life and
work.
Fifth: Building a Network of Relationships
Working on freelance platforms helps you build a network of
relationships that is not limited by geographical boundaries. As your
work circle expands and you delve deeper into the job market, you can
build meaningful work relationships that bring you more projects, make
new friends that earn you more skills and experiences, and learn about
different cultures and communication styles.
Challenges of Freelance Platforms
There are many challenges that you will face in your freelance work,
as is the case at the beginning of any business. The following are the
most prominent challenges that a freelancer faces at the beginning of
their journey as a freelancer:
1. Difficulty getting started and lack of sufficient experience.
2. High competition.
3. Attracting customers and how to satisfy them, regarding work
quality, timely delivery, budget, and required revisions after
delivery.
4. Time management and achieving a balance between professional and
social life.
5. Exposure to prevalent cases of fraud and deception, but there are
many platforms today that protect rights and provide freelancers and
project owners with a safe and reliable working environment, such as
Khamsat and Mostaql.
6. Working on several projects at the same time.
7. Irregular income. This is considered one of the toughest challenges
of freelance work because there may be weeks where you are under
pressure from work, and at other times, you may not be able to get a
job. However, your ability to market yourself and your skills
professionally opens up opportunities for work.
8. Difficulty staying connected permanently to seize job opportunities
and not using modern electronic devices. For example, working from a
mobile phone is very tiring, while working on a computer increases
productivity.
9. Problems with withdrawing money. This challenge is usually faced by
new freelancers, although freelance platforms today provide various
means of withdrawing money, such as PayPal or credit cards.
Freelance Platforms Work Mechanism
The work mechanism of freelance platforms varies from one platform to
another. Some platforms provide the client with a display of their
project requirements and the appropriate price for it, and allow the
freelancer to submit their appropriate offer on the project, such
as...
Profiting from Freelancing Platforms
All freelancers aspire to achieve financial security and earn
profits through the internet. To be able to earn profits through
freelancing platforms, follow these steps:
1. Create your account on freelancing platforms and complete your
profile information on the website, such as adding a profile
picture, verifying your email address, and more.
2. Create a professional portfolio that includes samples of your
work to motivate clients to hire you.
3. Add your skills and qualifications, and use site-specific tags
frequently to help buyers find your services.
4. Write a descriptive summary of yourself that highlights three
main aspects for the buyer: who you are, the features of your
services, and why they should choose you.
5. Develop your skills through training courses, videos,
listening to success stories, and reading articles provided by
site blogs.
6. Learn how to offer attractive proposals to clients through
educational videos on YouTube or from successful colleagues in the
same field.
7. Communicate gently, politely, and respectfully with project
owners.
Fields of Freelancing
Freelancing fields are diverse and include most specialties. The
most important of these fields, which project owners frequently
request on freelancing platforms and enjoy high sales rates,
are:
- Writing and translation
- Graphic design
- Programming
- Digital marketing
- Online training and education
- Support and assistance
- Engineering and architecture
- Business management
The Best Freelance Platforms
There are many platforms dedicated to freelancing, which make it easy
for clients to find the person who can provide the service they need,
and also make it easy for freelancers to find the right clients.
Freelancing websites include both foreign and Arab websites, and
today we will together get to know the most famous and important of
these websites that will help you start earning from freelance
work.
All you have to do is to enter the website, create an account, write
information about yourself and your skills, and the services you
provide, along with models of your previous work.
Then, you need to create an account with one of the electronic banks
to be able to receive payments from customers no matter where they are
located. This process is very simple and easy, and you can create the
account while you are at home. One of the most important electronic
banks where you can create an account is PayPal.
Here is a brief list of some of the most important freelancing
websites:
Summary
There is a big difference between the life of a job and the life of
earning from freelancing. If you choose to earn from freelancing, study
the matter well from all aspects and follow the appropriate steps in the
proper order.
Don't forget to develop a suitable and specific plan that ensures you
take deliberate and safe steps towards achieving success in the
end.