Hello, i just registered on Freelancer but am having problems with verifying payment options and bidding. Please, i will appreciate it if someone can take the time out and help sort it out. @ladywriter: Thanks for showing us this path.

Greetings lady writer

I stumbled on this thread today and registered immediately. I tried bidding for projects but I need to write an exam first with five dollars.

Is there any way I can go around this please?

Hi Neduzze5, you can start with projects that doesn't require exams for now. By the way, what skills do you have?

I'm a writer, creative writing, article writing, fiction, short stories writing etc

Ladywriter thanks for the shout out. I must commend you for starting this thread. Apparently things have changed up a lot since I joined that site because I realized most employers require bidders to have done a test before they can apply. This was not the case before. I've slowed down on my activities there since I now have a steady flow of repeat employers who set up projects for me without me having to bid. So much as I'd like to contribute more to this thread I will have to do more of observing and chip in when I can so as not to give outdated info. Kudos to you and keep up the good work. If I too have questions I will ask since I'm still coming up myself

Hi, i have been following the posts and i thank all who have contributed to our general learning experience. please Ladywriter, i have problems understanding http://freelancer.com and it is frustrating to me. i registered in one site that provide like services; guru.com (please do you know anything about it?)which is more user-friendly. Also the payment verification of freelancer is not so easy to understand for newbies who want to make money using the internet, can you explain properly please? Thanks for you time and instructions

One step at a time dear. Ladywriter helped a lot of us. Its been a month I joined and I can boast of a steady employer. 1 step at a time. Register first. Then I advise u read the whole thread thoroughly. Its gonna help you a lot. Any further questions I believe will be answered by our ogas and madam

@Aida13, thanks for your contributions. Freelancer has changed a lot. One think I like about the site is innovation. They are always adding new features continuously. Its such a big website now.

@bubenbwigwe, Sorry for replying late, i have been a little bit busy. I tried using other websites like guru.com and Elance.com, but i find out that i am more comfortable with freelancer.com, it is bigger and it has excellent features. It can appear complicated at the onset, but as you interact with the site, you get to understand it better, You can locate the help section and read all about freelancer. It covers almost all you need to know. You can also contact the help desk anytime you are confused, someone will be available to chat with you. I think you can shelve the payment verification issue for now, you can still work without it. Wishing you all the best.

ladywriter may GOD continue to protect you, Amen.
i'm just reading this thread and i will make sure i join now

Ladywriter, thanks for your assistance. please can you give me any article to write or rewrite so that I can do and return to you for payment and your reviews

Hi ladywriter.av been following this thread for some time now. i really want to commend ur selflessness towards it.

@Neduzze5, gr8, i will let you know whenever i have a little job for you. That doesn't mean you will not be searching for work o. There are a lot of things you can do there to generate the money you need.
@eripecs, thanks, am glad you've registered, you will at least get some recharge card cash from there. Wish u all the best.

ladywriter: @Neduzze5, gr8, i will let you know whenever i have a little job for you. That doesn't mean you will not be searching for work o. There are a lot of things you can do there to generate the money you need.
@eripecs, thanks, am glad you've registered, you will at least get some recharge card cash from there. Wish u all the best.

Thanks ma'am but are you on gtalk so we can talk better?

pls, what is d appropriate hourly rate? i dont understand d term subheading and summary. tanx.

@eripecs, hourly rate is the amount you are willing to collect per hour. There are hourly and fixed price projects. So, if you are bidding on hourly project, you use your hourly rate. The subheading and summary is on your profile page (i presume), you need to write a heading about what your service is all about. for instance, i use ...Pen of a skillful writer. Yours may not be the same. Just craft out simple heading for it. The summary needs to be punchy and straight to the point. You talk about the benefits of your services to potential clients - in two or three sentences and the services you are rendering (in detail). I hope i answered your questions.

most grateful ladywriter. u're so good natured.more power!

hi Ladywriter, guess u av been so busy. pls i seriously need ur assistance. i have really faced a lot of challlenges whlie biding. sometimes it will ask me to update my profile b4 i can bid. secondly, what does CONTEST mean? how do i get to contest for hjob. thanks. my username is paulson3

@ola.akinyinka, there are two ways to post projects on freelancer, some employers use contest and some use the normal bidding process. Contest are majorly for design projects like websites, logos, flyer etc. The client will ask the contestant to design a particular thing and then choose the one he that suits him. The second method is for normal bidding where you don't have to carry out the project before the employer picks the winning bid. I searched for your freelancer name "paulson3" but couldn't get it. Are you sure the name you use is the one you gave me? Please update your profile accordingly.

Good job, ladywriter.

Hello everyone, I guess I can say 'fellow freelancers'. Been a while I commented here. I really appreciate you Ladywriter for this. Just opening this thread has changed a lot for me in a short time. Remain blessed.
I want to share something with you all.its quite long and a bitter experince on freelancer, but I need you guys to know, so take your time This happened last week and I didn't find it funny. Pls beware everyone. There are grade one scammers even on freelancer. An employer posted a project and of course I bidded like everyother normal person. We got talking and he said he needed to ask me a few questions and that he like doing some kinda verification before he awards projects, I said ok with me. He was like what is My email email add. I just gave him thinking its just for communication as usual. He went ahead like he will really like to confirm whether I am the owner so I should send him my number. I still sent him o, with nothing in mind. You know nah, with that enthusiam to get the job, and meanwhile thr project he posted, the amount was outrageious. I didn't really consider that.then I went ahead and gave him my phone number, it never occured to me that all someone needs to change your email password in gmail is the phone number U used to open it. He said he will send me a code, that when I receive it I should send him the code, that way he will confirm. He sent the code. I got the code, that was wen I realized its a password reset code. Then I asked him what the verifications where for. He said its their routine, and I was like before you award a project? He said yes, that he wants to send me $4, so when I receive it I should give him my credit card number. That was when M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ eyes went wide open. I told him thank you for wasting my time, of course he was a scammer, but I guess I underated him. By this time, this criminal had already changed my password in gmail. I didn't use my gmail to open my freelancer tho.so I went straight to login. I couldn't have access to my mail anymore. I changed it by sending the code to M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ phone and then went ahead to change the phone number I gave him, not knowing this guy was a born criminal and wanted more. I opened and ticket and reported him to freelancer alongside the fake project too. And went to bed. The next day I wanted to loging to M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ freelancer account but no way. I was wondering why, until I tried changing M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ freelancer password and went to M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ yahoomail which I used to open M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ account. That was when I got the schock of M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ life. I couldn't belive it. I just noticed that I wasn't receiving email alerts on M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ BB anymore, not knowing this crook actually traced M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ yahoomail from the gmail and had access to the yahoomail, because I actually conneceted both for password recovery. He changed the yahoomail password, and the yahoo is the one connected to freelancer. He proceeded and changed M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ freelancer password, confirmed if from the yahoomail and then had access to mine. He used it to perpetrate havoc on others, because when I oopened M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ email, I saw 1,450 unread emails, and they are conversations from other people with him. He used M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ account, posted fake projects, many people bidded, he went ahead to do what he did to me to them, while I was sleeping. I saw horrible statements in M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ box. Things like 'you will rot in jail' which came from people he scammed or trying to scam. I read one of M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ last emails and freelancer has frozen M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ account, asking me to verify it before I can do anything. I tried logging in from now till tomorrow no way. Do you know I lost that account till today. I can't describe how I felt. I lost everything. M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ money. Employers I knew already, M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ reviews and many things. I had to start all afresh. New email, new freelancer account and all, just didn't use M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ pic in the first one tho. This was so painful and I willn't want anyone here to experince this. A̶̲̥̅♏ not even sure that the account that criminal use was his account, because it was a verified account, and there must have been serious money there, who knows who he scammed.
A̶̲̥̅♏ just gonna give a few advise.1. There are only very few indians especially who are not time wasters and scammers, be careful with their projects.2.pls insist on freelancer milestone for payment ,and let the milestone be %100, anything less na sorry.3. Shine your eyes, M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ losses has taught me so. And 4. Freelancer is a wonderful place to make money, don't give up... I hope this will help someone. Thanks ladywriter once again...

Whaoooooooo! Megamindmaster, you've gone through a lot. So sorry. First and foremost, you violated freelancer's terms and conditions by giving the employer your email address. You are lucky, you account was not suspended because of that. Freelancer clearly states it in their terms and conditions "8.3 Providing contact information
You are prohibited from making direct contact with another User outside of Freelancer.com. This includes giving out your e-mail address, Skype ID, ICQ number, phone number, or any other method of contact outside of this site. Freelancer.com provides you with message boards, which should be sufficient for project planning and communication with other Users unless Freelancer.com intentionally provides such contact information through a feature or function. [i][/i]
I don't give out my email address no matter the pressure, I would rather ask for the employer to send his/her email address and on most occasion i don't use it.

It is very safe to work with an employer within the confines of Freelancer.com. You need to ignore any employer asking for your contact information, it may sound or look good, but 80% of such employers are fake. You need to start afresh again and then contact your past employers. If you know their username, you can still trace them and tell them what happened. May the good Lord restore all your losses.

Thanks @Ladywriter. You have always been there. I never knew such existed, and I never thought it a harm as I have been working with some employers with skype for better communication. The account actually got suspended till now, don't know which of the reasons sha, but most of it because of that scammer must have perpatrated with it. Thanks a lot tho, this is a huge eye opener, cos some of them do ask so that you guys can talk better, according to them o. I A̶̲̥̅♏ using an entirely different account now. I know I will get even more...

@megamindmaster, what is the nature of the fake project sef? Can you please give a brief description? The employer is from which country? Thanks.

ladywriter: @megamindmaster, what is the nature of the fake project sef? Can you please give a brief description? The employer is from which country? Thanks.

Its a web design project, cos thats what I am into. But the project budget was a bit on the high side $3000-$5000. It was an india employer witha verified account. Though something tells me that's not that scammer's account after what he did with mine.he must have done something...
I have had bad experience with time wasting indian employers. I only had one serious straight forward indian employer with my former account. Don't even have his name. Would love to follow him...

@Megamindmaster, na wa o! That's some real painful experience o! Thanks for sharing at least, the rest of us will shine our eyes.

Ma dear the shock hasn't left me. And the funny thing is that am a tech guy and know when scammers come and how they work, but you know freelancer na, getting a job and all, was just carried away and that crook 'social-engineered' me. Its all good. Just want people to learn and really be careful, cos the loss wasn't funny really...

Nice thread...joined freelancer eons ago but forgot about it after that night...

@ladywriter
will send you a mail if it's ok with you...

@Ladywriter, does one need to go to the post office to get your payoneer card? Or will they deliver it to the address you gave?

Qmegamindmaster, actually, it depends on the address you provided. Mine was delivered in my post office box. Don't worry, just be careful with Indian, Bangladesh and Pakistan employers. I have nothing against them, but i personally avoid them like a plague. In my earlier stage on freelancer, I lost about $400 to an Indian employer that never paid. I have since learnt my lessons. It is either you set 100% milestones or no show. Its that serious! Like I said, it is a learning curve for you, there are greater things ahead of you, you will soon land great jobs that will help you to forget your losses.

@netotse, you are free to send me a mail anytime you want. However, i can't promise you a reply immediately. My schedules are very tight.

Chistar welcome

Neduzze5: Chistar welcome

lol... Don't welcome me yet oh, just passingby, freelancer isn't really my thing, no offense tho.

On other issues, should I send you my bank details so you would send me small change when you get your first high pay contract?

chistar01: lol... Don't welcome me yet oh, just passingby, freelancer isn't really my thing, no offense tho.

On other issues, should I send you my bank details so you would send me small change when you get your first high pay contract?

Oh sorry oh, I don forget say you be Chistar Money.

How about if I send you my own account number? I just need only ten thousa...!!