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Freelancing has been around for ages, and a lot of people have benefitted from switching to it from their original 9-5 office jobs. The freelancing sector has flourished throughout the years, but just like other working sectors, freelancing is not bulletproof, and the recent pandemic has proven just that. Many people have been affected by the sudden rise of positive COVID-19 cases.
Companies holding physical offices have had to adjust to a new arrangement of working from home to keep everyone safe. However, since freelancers have already been enjoying work at the comfort of their own homes even before the pandemic, how has this global issue affected them? Read on to find out!
Demand For Freelancing Jobs
Some freelancers believe that the demand for freelancing jobs decreased after the boom of COVID-19. One of the reasons for this could be that most companies with physical offices have transitioned to work from home arrangements. Thus, their employees are now much more relaxed and able to do more online research to fulfill their jobs.
In physical offices, most companies place restrictions on their employees’ computers. Sometimes, they block employees from accessing different sites that they think employees don’t need. However, while they believe that there are sites that don’t need to be accessed, some blocked websites actually contain the information they need.
With employees now working from home, they can do more research and provide more data for their employers with their ability to access a vast body of knowledge known as the Internet. Now, employers have barely thought of outsourcing because their current in-house employees are doing better at their jobs.
Cutting Of Some Processes
Business owners are always busy, and they are always running around to meetings and meeting new people to expand their ventures. Because of this, they rely mostly on virtual assistants to help them organize their daily schedules. Virtual assistants are online freelancers offering offshore services. They can usually be hired in famous online platforms, like gigworker.com.
With the COVID-19 situation, however, some business owners have been forced to let people from their companies go in order to save some costs and maintain their presence in the competitive market. Likewise, a lot of freelancers have been let go as well, especially those handling business processes that are not very essential to companies, or those that can be processed later when there are extra funds available. However, it’s not the same case for some companies.
Demand For Hourly Wage Increased Significantly
Online freelancers have felt the brunt of the pandemic, and they, like others, are worried that they might lose their jobs. However, while most knee jerk reactions should be to lower their prices to attract more employers to hire them, freelancers learned not to sell themselves cheap.
To become a successful freelancer in the online world, you need to put hundreds of hours of training to enhance your skills and add more so that you can also offer more to your future employers. Aside from investing time, freelancers also invest a lot of money to learn. And, once they master a particular field, say SEO, they can then demand a lot of money when someone hires them.
This is the beauty of freelancing, and in online communities, freelancers have been taught to always know their worth and their value. Thus, even with the pandemic, freelancers did not resort to selling themselves short of what they deserve and learned to demand high hourly rates based on how much they can offer and how valuable they can be to their clients.
Younger Groups Have Started To Dominate The Field
The younger generation has taken over the online world, not only social media, but the freelancing space as well. This is because this generation grew up with the development of technology. They are more tech-savvy, and they understand more Internet terms than the older generation. With this knowledge, the younger generation can easily train and learn new skills.
While the younger generation is not very well-acquainted on how to deal with clients and demanding their rates, their drive and passion to learn and earn are is what’s keeping them afloat in freelancing. Some young freelancers even earn as much as six figures in a year because of their hard work and dedication to growing. The best online jobs for teens offer great earning opportunities.
Increased Competition
Because of the pandemic, more and more people have decided to explore the world of online freelancing. Some of these people are those who got laid off from their jobs because their employers had to cut back on staff. Since they also have families to feed, those who were laid off had to find other means to earn money. Their options are limited because most people are not allowed to go out, except when they need to buy essential goods. Thus, they resorted to applying for online jobs using their existing skills as an edge to land another job to help them get through the pandemic.
Final Thoughts
Just like regular office jobs, finding sources of income online is difficult as well. A lot of people have flocked and depended on the Internet ever since the pandemic began. Some are very lucky to find clients, but some, until now, are still looking for someone to give them a chance. In competing with tenured online workers, it’s important to have an edge. And, your edge is to be able to offer something other people can’t. Upskilling is important, as this will allow you to be better in the field you choose.
Always remember that in the online community, education doesn’t stop, and you always need to have a constant thirst and drive for more knowledge. If you remain stagnant, chances are you will continue to work for people who only pay you USD$3 an hour despite being overloaded with a lot of tasks.
Get to know your target market. Research about them and their needs, and offer whatever you can to provide more value to their company. Likewise, don’t lie to your future employer because this will not end well for you. A lot of employers have been careful in outsourcing online. Word travels fast online, and it’s better to keep your profile clean and desirable, instead of it being tainted with a bad review you’ll never be able to outrun.
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