As many of you know, I find my freelance writing jobs on a web site called Elance. I use Elance for more than just finding work, though. I like to read their blog and keep my skills sharp by watching video tutorials and taking skills tests from time to time. Today I came across some encouraging news for both current and aspiring home – based professionals in a blog post on Elance.
According to a survey of 1500 clients who use Elance to hire freelance contractors, the online work force is playing an increasingly important role in the success and competitiveness of their businesses. Over three quarters of the clients surveyed said that they will be using even more online contractors this year than they did last year. This is great news for anyone who has skills that can translate into working from home as a freelancer. Whether you write, code, design, translate, or do any other work that can be performed online, there is an increasing demand for your services.
Over eighty percent of the clients that were surveyed feel that hiring contractors online gives them a competitive advantage. One of the reasons that they feel that way is that there is a significant cost savings to be had by hiring contractors on an as – needed basis instead of for a permanent position, not to mention the decrease in overhead. More importantly, they feel like they have access to a better qualified pool of talented workers than they would have if they were hiring locally. They can also locate and hire these professionals who fit their needs exactly a lot more quickly than through a traditional hiring process.
Freelance work of any type is a great way to get started on a home – based career. You can take on as much or as little work as you want to, so you can even begin taking steps towards home – based work while continuing to work at your traditional job until you decide that the time is right to make the switch. It does not take much time or money to get started, either.
Photo by jdurham on morguefile.com.