oDesk - Earn Money Doing Freelance Art and Design Work.

Art and Design work hasn't been flowing in all that fast of late so in an effort to drum up some work I joined oDesk.com. You can see my oDesk profile link widget below.

Note that my hourly rate is slightly higher (usually AU$33.00/hr) because it's in US$ and it includes the additional 10% that oDesk rakes off the top of hourly rates or fixed price jobs to make money. Just note too that I've been charging the same hourly rate since 1995. Keep that in mind for later.

I decided to sign up with oDesk because it has a few great features and it's free to join for both Employers and Contractors (with exception to the 10% fee on every job).

One of the main features is time tracking. oDesk's Team Application, will automatically log all your hours spent physically in front of your computer working. You can manually log hours worked away from your computer. The application will also take screen shots of your desktop. All this information can be seen and reviewed by the employer however the contractor has full control over what the employer can see.

All payments are made through oDesk and, with the Team Application, oDesk guarantees that an hour worked is an hour paid. Another nice feature is that money paid to contractors can be withdrawn from their oDesk account directly into a bank account (specified countries only) for one low fee that's cheaper than receiving money via PayPal (although you can withdraw funds via PayPal too).

oDesk seems to have a regular turnover of job postings from employers both large and small - some paying an hourly rate with others offering a fixed price for specific work. The competition among contractors is fierce with each job getting about 20 plus applicants in most categories (just based on my observations browsing for jobs).

To apply for a job requires a detailed, specific cover letter with references to your oDesk portfolio demonstrating similar or relevant work you may have already done. Employers and contractors are also given a rating. For Contractors it's based on work history and jobs completed. Some employers won't deal with contractors with low ratings (or in my case, as a newbie, none at all).

Overwhelmingly, browsing the jobs, I've noticed that the amount paid for specific work and the hourly rate of the majority of contractors is alarmingly low. So low in fact that my hourly rate looks like 'Platinum Rates'.

For example I charge a fixed AU$198.00 for a logo design (6 hours billed work. Includes up to 6 designs to choose from). Compared to other design agencies in my area this is ridiculously cheap. Employers on oDesk are paying as low as US$20.00 up to about US$150.00 for similar work with the majority seemingly on the lower end of that scale. Surprisingly they still get contractors applying.

For me it's a little soul destroying because, knowing how much work goes into what I do, with each job application I have to ask myself, am I prepared to do the same work for less money? Add to that my 16 years of charging the same hourly rate - which I should have been gradually raising over the years - the last thing I really want to do is charge less.

So far the answer has been 'no'. Though I suspect my resolve will wavier the more I need the money.

If you're a little less concerned about how much you charge for the work and a little more about it's money you didn't have before you did the work then oDesk could be a good avenue for you to earn a little extra on the side. Plenty of design and illustration jobs are posted on a daily basis. It's just a matter of being the best applicant for the job.