7 Great Tips to start working from home as a freelance programmer

If you have the gift of the gab or if you know how to write good code quickly then its not a difficult proposition to become a good coder or a freelance writer on the internet and earn yourself a good living working from home.
The areas you can concentrate in are :-

1. Writing articles and press releases.
2. Programming or coding
3. Graphic Designing
4. SEO & SEM
5. Video Editing
6. Sound Engineering
7. Digital Photo Editing
8. Photography
9. Virtual Assistant

Here we shall concentrate on freelance programming only. For doing these works you get paid through PayPal or other payment processing services that are available on the internet. If you are serious and know your job well then you can start to earn right at this very moment as a freelancer working from home.

Tip 1 : Register with a Freelancing Website or Auction Site

Freelancing websites are where buyers and service providers meet, negotiate and work. Buyers register and post the description of the work they need and freelancers browse those works which match their skill set and bid for the job. Almost always registration is free on sites like this. While choosing a freelancer username for yourself take care to make it sound professional and non spammy. Using your own name like “daniel009” will sound unprofessional. Rather choose something like expert_web_coder.

Tip 2 : Email ID verification

After you have finished the initial registration you shall receive an email from the freelancing website with a link which is specially created for you. You shall have to click on this link in order to verify your email ID. This mechanism is implemented to prevent website abuse from spammers and is done for your good. Remember to click on this link in order to complete your registration.

Tip 3 : Writing your freelancing profile

When you are new to a freelancing website you shall have no favourable ratings to your favour. So one of the most important ways to impress the buyer is through your profile. Remember to build up a strong and credible freelancing profile sighting many work samples or links to them in your profile so that buyers can take a look at your quality of work. Be true with these. Bluffing or putting in others’ works as links will not go a long way as it will very soon be figured out by the buyer. Also it helps if you can put in some references which the buyer can verify. Some references from countries like USA and UK goes a long way.

Tip 4 : Bidding for your first project

First you have to find a project suitable for you. When you are finding the first project be sure that you find something which you are absolutely sure about. If you have doubts for your first project then better not bid for it. To land up in your first project in a freelancing website you need to do two things. First write an excellent and relevant bid and second is bid a bit low. This is also get you an excellent feedback at the end of the job. I will also advice you to write a relevant bid proposal or pitch. Most freelancers have a generic bid written which they copy and paste for all jobs. Let me tell you that wirting a generic bid proposal reduces your chances of winning the project. Write a relevant and custom bid pitch. Also in the proposal just try to copy and paste some parts of the work description which the buyer has mentioned in his bid request. This might sound stupid but this will convey to the buyer that you really understand the job and he will most likely choose you. Also do not aim for a very high value project as your first project. Rather go for a few smaller ones to build a good rating for yourself and then you can start looking for higher value projects.
Following these tricks will help you get a few good ratings and a few good bucks in your account.

Tip 5 : Following up a bid is very important

Sometimes you shall find that after you placed your bid no reply comes after a few days. Be sure to know that its time to follow up. Write a short note to the buyer at that point saying that you are still interested to work in the project and are curious to know what is the status of the project. Also mention again some points like what you will offer, how much time you will take and what will you provide as your deliverables. Again mention some parts of text (relevant and important to the project) from your bid document. This will prove you are keen and serious to do the project and understand the project well.

Tip 6 : After winning a project

After the buyer chooses you as his freelancer of choice its your duty to complete his job as fast as possible and with perfection. Remember to over deliver a bit. Doing the project fast and giving him something more than what you promised will help you to get a wonderful rating. This will go a long way for you and help you to bid for higher value projects.

Tip 7 : Bidding for big projects.

While bidding for big projects you have to keep it in mind to write a very elaborate and detailed bid request with clear description of what you will offer and your timeline. Its best to ask for payment in milestones. Almost all the freelancing websites allow this feature. This ensures that you get paid after completing every great milestone. This will help you sustain during the generally long life cycle of the project. Also if something goes wrong during the life cycle of the project you shall not be at a total loss since you will find that some money has already landed up in your account.

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