When you’re first getting started on Elance, it’s really frustrating because nobody will hire you. You put in bid after bid and they all get declined, leading you to think it might be better to go to the nearest temp agency and forget about this whole online web content writing thing. But what it takes is perseverance and good bids. Here is what I do in my bids and it’s worked well for me.
First Paragraph – The Personalized Intro
My first paragraph has two parts. First is a sentence that says something like, “Hi, I’m an American freelance writer with experience in lots of niches.” The wording isn’t so important, but I make sure to mention that I’m American (I live in Japan, so my profile has the Japanese flag, darn it!), and just basically say Hi. I try to sound friendly and kind of match the tone of their job posting.
The second sentence or two is the most important part of the bid. I mention something about their job and relate it to my experience as a writer. I’ll tell them, for example, that it’s a niche I’ve written extensively in, or that I’m passionate about. If they’re looking for a blogger to post and manage the blog, I’ll mention that I do that with my own blog. I usually mention that I’m a full-time writer who works every day. This shows that I’m professional about what I do.
The whole point isn’t so much to show your experience or passion for the topic, but to personalize it and show you that you read their job posting. Lots of people don’t. They just submit a standard template that says nothing about it, showing that they didn’t even bother reading it.
Second Paragraph – Why You Should Hire Me!
In the second paragraph, I tell them why they should hire me. This is pretty much a template that I use, although I personalize it a little. I say here that I write high quality original content that’s informative, interesting and easy to read. I never miss deadlines, I’m flexible and easy to work with. All work will be yours to do what you please reddit essay writing service with, etc. In other words, this is the “benefits for you” section. I keep it to about 3 sentences.
I used to say here, “I’ll do revisions until you’re happy with the work,” but decided to stop. Of course, I will do revisions if needed, but I felt like putting it in the bid was sort of advertising it.
Third Paragraph – Okay, Just A Sentence Really
My third paragraph isn’t a paragraph at all. It says something like, “Please look at my samples and client feedback, thank you.”
So, that’s how I bid and it works well for me. If you’re clueless about bidding, feel free to use it as a template and fill in your own words. Or take any parts of it that would add something to yours. No matter what you do, there are three things to keep in mind with your bid:
Keep It Short And Sweet. Don’t give them your full resume and don’t go on and on about why they should hire you. Keep it as quick and concise as possible, while still giving them all the info they need. Mine is 2 short paragraphs of 2-4 sentences and a little “check out my samples” sentence.
