Best freelance platforms of all time

Freelancers, and business owners looking for services, now have much more choice. Whether you’re a freelancer or someone looking for services, which platform should you choose?

Fiverr – the most popular

A popular site that allows freelancers to sell their services. There has been tremendous growth in the freelancing industry over the past few years. New business models and opportunities have led to the emergence of the gig economy.

It has evolved into one of the world’s largest digital services markets. It brings buyers and sellers together in everything from programming to art. Vendors come in with different skills and levels of knowledge.

Pros include:

  • Free placement of your services;
  • No need to bid on jobs;
  • Tips on the cost of gigs.

Without a doubt, Fiverr is one of the best platforms for freelancers to find jobs and get paid. If you are tired of using it and are looking for better alternatives, this article is for you.

5 alternatives to Fiverr

Freelancing doesn’t begin and end with Fiverr, there are countless alternatives. Here are 5 sites like Fiverr worth considering:

Upwork

This site is at the top of the list for a variety of reasons. First, Upwork allows you to interview freelancers before you hire them. You can also ask them to do a sample so you can access their features. Upwork also comes with desktop and mobile apps, which you’ll find extremely useful. The apps are pretty robust and include most of the features available on the website.

Freelancer

This is one of the oldest and arguably the largest freelance website, with more than 21 million users. One feature that sets Freelancer apart from other Web sites is the ability to compete when you post a job. Here you describe your job requirements, and several people try to complete them. You then choose the best and pay for it.

Guru

This website has been around for more than 20 years and was once the best site for freelancers. That was before it was surpassed by companies like Fiverr and Upwork. However, many users remain loyal to Guru, making it a great place to find someone with a proven track record. Once you sign up, you can post a job with your job specs, and Guru will in turn send you a list of freelancers to choose from.

PeoplePerHour

This is a British site that allows you to hire freelancers on an hourly basis. The PeoplePerHour team vets each freelancer before allowing them on their platform, thereby ensuring that only qualified specialists are available for hire. Unlike other sites, assignments are managed online, allowing you to track the progress of your work through their dashboard.

Giggrabbers

This is a relatively new site. However, there is one thing that will instantly draw you to it. They don’t charge a transaction fee. That’s right, it’s completely free to the employer. All transaction fees are charged to the freelancer. On top of that, Giggrabbers includes a crowdsourcing feature that allows you to create a social media campaign to raise money for your project.

Business acumen: How to develop it

There are many opinions about this quality as “business acumen”. Many consider it something like a talent “given from birth”. However, with the proper motivation, this quality is quite possible to develop.

The main thing is to set the right task

To begin with, let’s define what “business acumen” is. Take as a basis the following:

  • Excellent planning;
  • Organization of work and accounts;
  • The ability to work productively;
  • The originality of ideas.

This concept is ambiguous, and apparently, that’s why there are a large number of definitions.

What to do

Take advantage of the following tips:

  1. Plan and execute. When there is a lot to do, planning can seem like a waste of time. How can you sit quietly at your desk in front of a piece of paper when you’re already not getting anything done? In fact, devoting 10-15 minutes of your time to morning planning saves you a lot more time during the day. If you feel more comfortable, make a plan for the next workday at the end of the current one.
  2. If possible, do more than one thing at a time. If you can do two things at the same time – do so. For example, plan the order of all business trips together to determine the shortest route. Gather all your business financial needs and go to the bank once a week instead of twice. Keep and continually replenish the list of office supplies you need and, once you’re near the right store, buy whatever is needed.
  3. Let other people take care of your secondary concerns. FedEx will pick up your order and deliver it. Many office equipment and stationery suppliers offer free shipping for a certain order size. Let other people handle these issues, you can use the time saved for other things.
  4. Ask for help. If you need to do a project that requires more than one hour of pointless labor, ask friends or family members to help you with a soda (or beer). Ask for all sorts of help, from picking and setting up media packages to packing and delivering orders. With this approach, the project can be done in one evening when otherwise it might take a whole week to do it all.
  5. Take notes. It’s so easy to leave messages and write reminders on small pieces of paper and post-it notes. But then those pieces of paper and post-its fill up your entire workspace. Instead, have one large, spring-loaded notebook at the top. Keep it on your desk by your phone. Take it with you on business trips. Each morning, write the date on the top of a new page and write your to-do plan on the same page.

You need all the time you can find to achieve your goals. These ideas are not a bad start. Perhaps your family members or friends have some ideas too, ask them for their suggestions. Read books on time management and articles on self-organization. One good idea can save you hours of time.