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From eBay to Elance: Top 3 Reasons to Make the Change
I’d been an eBay seller for a few years and made a decent part-time income. I even became an Ebay Power Seller which is a title reserved for sellers who reach a certain level of sales for three months in a row. My life had become a whirlwind of mailing boxes, packing tape and trips to the post office. With the steady increase in postage rates and gasoline prices, my operational costs grew to get items to my customers and I was making less and less profit. So I began looking for other ways to make money at home.
In May 2008 I came across a link to Elance.com and went to the website to look it over. I had always been a strong writer and enjoyed using that skill. I was amazed to see that there was a thriving online marketplace for individuals and companies searching for professional services, and skilled professionals looking for jobs. I was excited so I signed up, set up my online profile, did a few writing samples to put into the online portfolio provided by Elance, and looked around for jobs that I felt qualified to bid on. Within 3 days I got my first job and have had a steady stream of work since then. I’ve decided to share with you the Top 3 Reasons Why Elance.com Has Been Good for Me.
- Steady Income: I am now making more from Elance than I was from Ebay. And it’s more profit for me, since I am providing the service and don’t have to buy items to resell or pay postage to send the items to customers. Of course there is a nominal monthly membership fee that Elance charges, and they keep about 9% of whatever payments I receive, but Ebay had rising fees and so did PayPal where customer payments were processed for Ebay. Bottom line is: I make more and keep more with Elance.
- Diversity: With thousands of jobs posted monthly, Elance offers a broad diversity of work from buyers who are representing companies, starting businesses and looking to outsource work that they have. Since I joined Elance, I’ve written short stories about creative marriage proposals, rated bloggers, written an ebook on breastfeeding, and written articles about various subjects from federal grant writing to running a hot dog stand. There’s never a boring day!
- Sharpen My Skills: Competition is the name of the game at Elance. If you have decent skills and you can write up a clear description of how you can provide the services someone is looking for, then you have a good chance at winning bids. I’ve learned a lot by reading other providers’ profiles, looking at portfolios to see what others do, comparing what others are charging for their work, and considering the critiques that buyers have had about the work I’ve submitted. It’s been years since I received constructive criticism about my writing (like back in school!) but it’s sharpened my awareness of what and how I write, and it’s making me a better writer.
One additional note: I have a teenaged son who is very artistic and computer-savvy. I’ve added his logo designs into my Elance portfolio and we’re now bidding on projects for graphic design and illustration. So we’ve made Elance a family affair now!
on
9/8/2008
