Bidding on Elance and Guru
I have come to finally agree with the other VA’s that I stay in contact with that bidding on Elance and Guru are virtually a waste of time unless you’re willing to work for slave wages. This is not to say that I have not developed working relationships with the people who have actually hired me on through these sites. It’s just to say that you will lose at least 90% of the bids if you are bidding anything close to industry standards on a project.
I still have a membership with both sites, but am debating on when to cancel one. I will cancel Elance first, as it is by far the most expensive of the two. The only problem is that there are way more projects posted on Elance than on Guru. I liked Elance just fine until they changed their whole membership structure. You have to be SOOOO choosy about what you bid on because you’re paying money for each bid you submit. In fact, in the time since I have been back in business, I have received one project from Elance.
Guru costs me $60.00 per year, which I can certainly swallow. I actually got hired for my very first transcription project through Guru. Since coming back to the virtual world of work, though, I have also only developed one working relationship via Guru.
So far, believe it or not, what has worked best for me is either just sending out e-mails to the industry that I want to work for and referrals. I did have a website at one time, but apparently the subscription for the domain name has expired. I looked it up the other day and someone else has it. 
With all this being said, the best thing someone can do if they do want to get projects is to build up a list of references. This will take quite a while. Good working relationships definitely do not happen overnight. I have been so lucky with the clients that I have right now. I have had nothing but good experiences with them. It also took me over a year to get most of them. 
So if you are bidding on Elance and Guru and not getting any bites, don’t get too discouraged. There are many services from India and the Phillipines that are bidding so low we could never compete with the rates. Don’t ever sell yourself short. I have realized that reducing your rate below what you feel comfortable accepting is just abusing yourself. Plus, if you start out a working relationship with a lower rate and then try to up it to what you are usually comfy with, you may lose a client. I would rather be up front about how much my services cost than try to bait someone in with a “teaser rate”. After all, I’m not a mortgage company.
I do hope that I can educate people who are needing transcription services in how to find the best service or transcriptionist for your needs. Some people have LOADS of work and have to hire a service with more than one person at their disposal. Others have occasional jobs or projects they aren’t in a rush on. They might want to go with a one-woman show because of the personal attention. Plus, a single transcriptionist is usually still cheaper than a service, understandably.
I will never recommend sending English, especially American English, transcription overseas. You are going to get exactly what you pay for, which isn’t much. I’ve heard horror stories about transcripts people have received. It’s not pretty. Don’t get fooled by the rate. You pretty much always get what you pay for.
Thanks for reading!
