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Ok so I use odesk pretty much everyday. I have a part-time graphic designer/developer that works for me about 20 hours per week and gets paid about $5.75 per hour.

We have a demand to hire another graphic designer/developer due to increased workload. I have always used oDesk to hire contractors but wanted to see if anyone had any reasons I should peruse Elance?

I tried Elance awhile back and got hourly quotes much higher than the average hourly quote at oDesk.... am I missing something?

Whats your opinion?
#elance #graphic deisgn #hire #odesk
  • Profile picture of the author htmlthis
    I have been working on Elance and Odesk for three years now. Mostly as a freelancer, but sometimes hired people too.

    I can say this, on Elance, freelancers have to pay a fee in order to apply to jobs(there is also a free membership but only allows for limited job applications). From my experience, you will be able to find better skilled freelancers on Elance simply because the monthly fee will mostly weed out the poor performers. Of course, better skilled workers = better pay .

    That does not mean that Odesk does not have good freelancers too, most freelancers have profiles on many freelancer websites, but it will be harder finding them from the plethora of freelancers.
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    • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
      thats a pretty good point, i didnt know that Elance charges freelancers that way
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    • Profile picture of the author BCRed
      Originally Posted by htmlthis View Post

      I have been working on Elance and Odesk for three years now. Mostly as a freelancer, but sometimes hired people too.

      I can say this, on Elance, freelancers have to pay a fee in order to apply to jobs(there is also a free membership but only allows for limited job applications). From my experience, you will be able to find better skilled freelancers on Elance simply because the monthly fee will mostly weed out the poor performers. Of course, better skilled workers = better pay .

      That does not mean that Odesk does not have good freelancers too, most freelancers have profiles on many freelancer websites, but it will be harder finding them from the plethora of freelancers.
      Great tip. I've been using ODesk with mixed results myself. Did not know about the ELance monthly fee, but that would definitely lead to better performers. Will have to give it a try
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      • Profile picture of the author phpg
        Originally Posted by BCRed View Post

        Did not know about the ELance monthly fee, but that would definitely lead to better performers.
        I don't see how the fee leads to better performers. This system favors "companies" / "teams" over individual freelancers. Many freelancers like to have a choice when and where to work, and the fee forces them to take projects on eLance regularly, like in a regular job. That's not what many of them want. And since eLance is not a monopoly, they just use other sites. All those sites have very good and very bad workers, but you only need to look carefully at the ratings / reviews, i don't think it has much to do with the fee.
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        • Profile picture of the author htmlthis
          Originally Posted by phpg View Post

          I don't see how the fee leads to better performers. This system favors "companies" / "teams" over individual freelancers. Many freelancers like to have a choice when and where to work, and the fee forces them to take projects on eLance regularly, like in a regular job. That's not what many of them want. And since eLance is not a monopoly, they just use other sites. All those sites have very good and very bad workers, but you only need to look carefully at the ratings / reviews, i don't think it has much to do with the fee.
          Well, then I suggest posting jobs on both Elance and Odesk. You can then count the number of spammers that apply to your job and compare .
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  • Profile picture of the author Wilcox
    I believe you have more of a variety to choose from on Odesk, but on Elance, you have a better chance at finding better quality. I used to search them both constantly to find designers to match my abilities for partnership, but never was able to find a decent design with a reasonable price.

    Some of them will charge hundreds an hour which is simply ridiculous.
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    • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
      Originally Posted by Wilcox View Post

      I believe you have more of a variety to choose from on Odesk, but on Elance, you have a better chance at finding better quality. I used to search them both constantly to find designers to match my abilities for partnership, but never was able to find a decent design with a reasonable price.

      Some of them will charge hundreds an hour which is simply ridiculous.
      yes it also seems that i get many more bids on oDesk
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  • Profile picture of the author sp1k3ster
    I use oDesk for hourly empoyees. eLance for set cost projects.
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    • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
      Originally Posted by sp1k3ster View Post

      I use oDesk for hourly empoyees. eLance for set cost projects.
      Yes odesk seems have better "hourly" talent ..."bang for buck"
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  • Profile picture of the author RoyCTP
    I have always had good experience using oDesk, like all freelancers the most important thing is to hire ppl with good review. I have failed to do this at first and had some really bad experiences.
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    • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
      Originally Posted by RoyCTP View Post

      I have always had good experience using oDesk, like all freelancers the most important thing is to hire ppl with good review. I have failed to do this at first and had some really bad experiences.
      yes i have had a few bad contractors, but when you find a good one its great
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  • Profile picture of the author BlackWar
    Banned
    To hire expert and active workers Elance is better than oDesk.
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  • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
    does elance really have a monthly fee? i couldn't find one
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    • Profile picture of the author htmlthis
      Originally Posted by blackfinreality View Post

      does elance really have a monthly fee? i couldn't find one
      Actually it does.

      Basic - Free
      Individual - 10$
      Small Business - $20
      Large Business - $40

      For each plan you get a different number of connects. You use a minimum of 1 connect when applying for jobs. The bigger the jobs get the more connects you need.
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  • Profile picture of the author phpg
    Why should you care how many spammers are there? Just ignore them ... )
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  • Profile picture of the author htmlthis
    True, you should not care, but the fee does scare them away .

    Like I was saying, you probably can find the same people on both websites, I actually work through both websites too, but there are fewer time wasters on Elance.
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  • Profile picture of the author towhidzaman
    I'll vote for oDesk.Just go for it.
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  • Profile picture of the author ronc0011
    So far oDesk has just been burning up a whole lot of my time. I have applied to quite a few jobs and the ones that have responded engaged me in discussion of getting started and then seem to have just been swolled up by the either. I really do hope there are people there who aren't flakes.
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  • Profile picture of the author Warrior Machine
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    • Profile picture of the author MrMysteryBox
      Originally Posted by Warrior Machine View Post

      I would prefer Odesk for its flexible payment. Specially in our area we can easily withdraw money from it. But both two sites are good in their own ways. You should pick the one that best suits your needs. Payment is considered to be the top priority for all the freelance workers. Therefore it is important that the site has a good payment policy. This means if there is ever a conflict with the buyer, the site should have a fair policy to settle the issue.

      However, membership to Elance is highly recommended to get projects and is not free. Different types of memberships involve different fees. For a professional membership, the fees is $9.95/month.
      Good Luck.
      Yes i have been playing around with the two to compare and contrast
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  • Profile picture of the author worthapennyseo
    I am working in oDesk too since 2009 and I never raise my hourly rate so I could get clients easily and stable income. And oDesk is more trusted I guess. They protect the contractors from any scams or just playing around employers especially to those who post like a real job when in fact they're just gathering resources and contractors wherein they will provide test/exams but at the back of it - they like counting heads to do the job on their behalf. Been exposed to this kind of situation, I don't want to mention specific race here but this should be a heads up for starters who want to earn online specifically in oDesk. But I can assure you that oDesk staff can easily detect and cancel your applications sent to fake employers.
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