One of the quickest and most inexpensive ways for small business owners to build a team can be to hire freelancers; it’s a classic win-win, as a lot of people are choosing to freelance instead of holding down a ‘regular’ 9 to 5 job.
Freelancers usually come from two distinctly different parts of the world:
  1. Developing countries like India, the Philippines, and certain African countries
  2. Developed countries like the US, UK, and Australia.
One of the easiest ways to get in contact with freelancers is through online marketplaces where clients post briefs of what they need and freelancers respond with a quote.
Up until December 18th, 2013 two of the largest platforms were the US-based oDesk and Elance. On that date they merged, almost certainly in response to the rapid growth of Freelancer in Australia.
oDesk boasted a great user interface and a database of freelancers who predominantly came from developing countries.
Elance, on the other hand, had more Western freelancers and, up until the launch of Upwork, had an active outreach program for freelancers and clients in those places. This made the two platforms very distinct, and it was precisely their different strengths that made them special: oDesk was where you would go to get a job done cheaply; Elance to connect with freelancers who offered fewer cultural and linguistic differences.
However, when the two merged in December 2013, oDesk changed it’s name to Upwork and provided basically the same functionality and user experience as oDesk. Elance freelancers and clients had to move to Upwork in order to still do business together.
This is when the nightmare began.
Elance clients loved their platform as much as oDesk users loved theirs, but having to move to Upwork meant a fear of being associated with a perceived lower-cost brand - and consequently lower earnings.
Freelancers migrating from Elance to Upwork were also at times penalised by an instant drop in reputation. This meant, for instance, that a freelancer with a 100% recommendation on Elance could end up with a 70% job success rate on Upwork, due to multiple projects completed with no feedback given. For some very highly qualified freelancers that could lead to months of applying for work with little to no success.
Additionally, it has recently become increasingly apparent that Upwork wants to move the company and its freelancers in a more corporate direction by introducing ‘Pro’, a program where some of the best talent is invited into a pool of freelancers selected by Upwork’s Enterprise clients, many of which are Fortune 1,000 companies.
While this might sound nice in theory, many highly qualified freelancers have left a corporate lifestyle specifically because they did not get on with it - and certainly do not want it back in their lives. Earning less to many is fine, as long as the work is fun and they feel that they are having a direct impact on shaping smaller businesses.
What Upwork might have forgotten here is that the better you are as a freelancer, the more freedom you have to choose where you work - and who you work with. Many freelancers do not share what appears to be Upwork’s vision of maximizing balance sheet earnings before an IPO!!!
Sources inside Upwork also confirm that the site’s internal search engine algorithm was changed to not consider the ‘bottom’ 10% of profiles listed on Upwork. This means that certain profiles will simply not become visible on the platform if you search.
Actions like these have taken away the livelihood of many highly qualified freelancers in developing countries. One freelancer based in India, with outstanding reviews, who had made over 100,000 USD on the platform, was simply banned from the platform without explanation, or opportunity to appeal.
Examples like these are sadly common.
And then we come to the recent fee changes. With consolidation comes less competition, which means higher prices. Upwork have just announced that they will move away from oDesk’s simple 10% commission on any work model.
It has announced a more complicated structure: 20% charged for contracts under $500, 10% charged for contracts up to $10,000 and 5% on any contracts going over that amount. Since the amount is deducted from the freelancers earnings, in theory there is a financial incentive for freelancers to go above and beyond to get clients to spend more.
In practice, very few contracts reach or go beyond $10,000 - so effectively it is a price increase. One British freelancer working hard from a beach in Thailand noted that fewer than 1% of his contracts have earned him more than $10,000.
Also, the pricing model clearly favours larger clients, since few small clients will spend that much to get the outcome they are after. A very successful American freelancer pointed out that all her contracts were lower than $500, small one-off jobs. She is forced to increase her prices by 10% to avoid a decrease in earnings. 
Instead what is likely to happen is that more freelancers will suggest to their clients to take the work off Upwork since doing the work through PayPal can be done at a fraction of the cost. This could be a scenario where the consequences might not be fully understood on a boardroom level; successful freelancers, who bring in the most money, do not have to be on any platform.
On top of that, Upwork has just announced that it will introduce payment processing fees to clients, amounting to 2.75% of the payment value, or $25 a month. This is a move that effectively reintroduces the previous monthly client fees on Elance, but with no direct associated benefit.
These changes are not thrilling many, who see it as further proof of a company trying to cash in on a race to the bottom.
Add to this a host of technical issues, notoriously bad support, a complete inability to view freelancers as valued customers, and we have a well-deserved bomb ready to blow up in Upwork’s face.
The utter and complete screw-up is clear beyond doubt when employees of their main competitor Freelancer.com admit over coffee that they are happy with the job Upwork is doing.

Where can you go instead?

For freelancers, a change of mindset may be needed. It might be time to consider that moving away from Upwork does not necessarily mean heading over to another platform. Instead, it may be time to cast a much wider net to ensuremultiple sources of income. There are several platforms to consider.
The common alternatives that most freelancers might be familiar with areFreelancer, 99Designs, and Fiverr.
Here are a few other places to keep an eye on:
  • Branded. Strictly speaking, not a marketing platform with clearly defined buyers and sellers, but a place for freelancers to create quick, inexpensive websites presenting themselves, with the option of connecting with other people, based on social graph analysis matching.
  • Clearvoice. Many clients want to effectively organise and execute their content marketing strategy. This means putting in place effective project management systems and workflows. Clearvoice does this AND connects clients with both the writers and influencers who can help them achieve their aims, while also providing clear tracking to maximize the results.
  • Cloudpeeps. A marketplace with what appears to be more carefully identified projects for freelancers to bid on than many other platforms. Not a lot of projects on the platform, but worth keeping an eye on.
  • Codeable. Before Freelancer.com started to snap up many of the smaller marketplaces, there was a lot more choice for freelancers. We are now seeing niche sites appearing again, maybe in response to frustration with the larger platforms. This is one such site, where, according to company sources, there is actually a waiting list for developers to join.
  • CodeMill. In addition to sites that focus on niching by location or quality, we are also seeing sites that niche by getting specific tasks done. This can take away the need for time-consuming hiring tasks, such as interviews and contracts. This is what CodeMill is currently offering.
  • Coderstrust. This is not a marketplace. It focuses on teaching how to code, which can later lead to better opportunities on freelance platforms. There is a huge need to educate freelancers about how to do the work, as well as how to get the work, so it is likely that we will see more sites like this spring up in the future.
  • Expert360. An Australian company for matching high quality consultants with companies looking to hire them. It includes onsite placements.
  • Growth Geeks. If you are looking for on-demand marketers, Growth Geeks offer the opportunity of connecting with an exclusive network of digital marketing experts. The selection process is rigorous with only 1% accepted to the network.
  • LinkedIn Profinder. Although LinkedIn's share price might have dropped 43% in one day, with its vast database LinkedIn Profinder can be a great place to get work. It is presently being rolled out in selected US locations, where freelancers are reporting great matching between their skills and client’s needs.
  • PakLancers. It is no secret that freelancers from certain regions receive higher than average feedback scores on certain platforms. This has paved the way for regionally focused platforms like PakLancers, which focus just on Pakistan.
  • PowerToFly. Unlike most other marketplaces, this one focuses on female developers. Since the tech industry is traditionally dominated by men, this might spur other ventures that target women.
  • Ribit. Connecting students with companies that are willing to give them work-experience Ribit provide the opportunity for companies to connect with students who want a jump start on their professional career during and after studies. At the moment an Australian non-for profit, the idea can be grow globally.  
  • Speedlancer. Describing themselves as the “Uber of freelancing” Speedlancer provide a curated marketplace with defined prices for defined tasks. Defining tasks upfront can be a real time saver for both clients and freelancers.
  • Toptal. Although the preference for some clients is to get a good deal, other prefer to work with the best talent they can find. Toptal provide a service where only the top 3% of applicants is allowed to be on the platform.
  • Workhoppers. Although many websites connect freelancers with clients globally, there is an increasing demand from clients to connect with freelancers locally. Workhoppers is one such solution, where, according to company sources, freelancers can promote their skills for free and connect directly with local, vetted companies looking to hire.
  • Workwithanyone.com. A lot of freelancers would like to avoid having to hunt for work. With this platform you can instead join a team, and get work from the team owners who effectively act as a mix of recruiters and sales reps. This can be particularly valuable for highly qualified freelancers who are not good in selling themselves directly to client or have limited oral English skills.
Need more? Here is an infographic with 25 resources to check out. 
The emerging marketplaces for freelancers at the moment appear to be quickly evolving and innovating.
However, instead of trying to find a single new marketplace to provide opportunities for you, it might be better to focus on creating the opportunities yourself - by seeking the places where prospective buyers with serious intent are being social.
For instance, some freelancers are also actively using Twitter to identify conversations leading to work. One freelancer in Pakistan found this to be a very effective way to get work. Facebook can also be a good place to go. Here is just one example of a Facebook group connecting buyers and sellers.
If you are not able to find a Facebook group for what you are selling, take the opportunity of creating one or finding another place. You might have the benefit of being the first one to grab onto an opportunity, giving you complete freedom to choose who to invite.
Maybe one day you might have your own marketplace.
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*taken from  Bjarne Viken