Posted on May 1, 2008
3 Sites to Help You Find Freelancers
BY STEPAN MAZUROV
Whether you are in a start-up, small business or large enterprise, there is always something that needs to be done that doesn't warrant a full time position. So if you are looking for that 5 hour a week website maintenance guy, a copy writer or a programmer for a 1 time project, there are websites out there that will help you find that person.
1. ScriptLance - ScriptLance is probably the least organized out of the bunch, but as a result it is also the cheapest. Once in a while you will find a diamond in the rough and therefore pay very very little for his work. Its primary focus is flash, photoshop, html and programming services, so if you are looking for a redesign or a custom site on the cheap, this is the place to go.
2. Guru - We use Guru for copy writing, and I had pretty good luck with it on programming and flash projects. Guru has a huge population of Freelancers from the United States, and while it tends to be more expensive, there is an inherit security that the quality of their work will be higher.
3. oDesk - This site is by far the most professional Freelance management portal on the web. You can even run your entire company and hire full time people through it. The process of hiring somebody mimics the interviews in real life and once you actually do hire somebody, their work day is tracked through desktop screenshots and by them logging all their progress. There is also subversion and bugzilla to manage your source code.
Ultimately I find each one of those used for a different purpose. ScriptLance is great if you are looking for a quick customization of one of the open source platforms, Guru is great for US based freelancers of any type and oDesk helps me manage large projects with the help of great tools provided by the oDesk. What are your experiences with freelancer search tools and have I forgotten any? Let us know!
