General Discussions

**katyanne** · 09-12-2011, 08:39 PM

I just came across this site after recently signing up on Elance as a freelance writer. I just had a brief comment.

But first I want to say that I really feel bad for you. What happened to you is unconscionable! Have you talked to a lawyer about Elance's actions? Seems like they are being more than a little bit obstructive.They might have some legal liability in this case that you could leverage to get some of your escrow money back, at least.

With that said, however, I'd like to make another point-When you are laying out huge (in my opinion) amounts of money for a project, whether for coding, web site design or an online workbook of a few hundred pages, it is always best to work with individuals in your own country. The person who wrote this message is right about one thing-you can't sue someone in civil court when their business is in India, Russia, or the British West Indies! Not unless you plan on doing a great deal of very costly traveling.

Finally-remember the old saying about throwing the baby out with the bathwater! Any time you use the Internet for any reason you are dealing with an unknown commodity. The greatest thing about online sites like Elance is also their greatest downfall–the # of people with whom you can come in contact is enormous! That can get you some great bargains or it can get you screwed. You need to be vigilant if you want to get the former result.

Good luck to you!!

**showerob** · 01:39 PM

Just got burned on elance by InnovatorsWeb, located in India. During the bid process, he was very aggressive and was saying all the right things. Even though I lost $150 but I was able to tie the first few payments to meeting a milestone date.

However, I should have known before I released the last $100. He missed two milestone dates so I refused the third payment. He asked for additional time which he got so I moved funding further out. I began to notice because he didn't reply to my messages even when I noticed he is online. Another red flag was that he was accepting everything I asked him but no result.

So, beware of those swam of bids from foreign countries. When you see all those ridiculously low bids, try and understand the motive behind them. Although I did not choose the lowest bidder, I still get scammed. The providers' ratings on elance means nothing, absolutely nothing; providers honesty is out of the window on that site.

I disagree with one of the posts that says those that hire or outsource the Indians or Russians are lazy. Contractors in this country (US) will serve us better by not charging outrageously for a service that can be done cheaper. Greed has invaded every societal fiber and has caused everyone to run with their money, but unfortunately, to hand over to scammers in another country.

**showerob** · 10-11-2011, 07:09 PM

Just to follow up here that this issue was resolved quite amicably and there was no loss of money and the guy at InnovatorsWeb seemed very genuine and reasonable.

**tps23** · 02-20-2012, 05:33 AM

Try civet.mobi

Off late freelancing sites are not trustworthy. Another alternative is something like Civet (Android).
It’s a free smartphone based application for hiring individual programmers. Currently they have made a release on Android platform only. Publish your requirements.
Once you receive a potential applicant you need to deal with them directly. Ask for their portfolio check their resume call them up.
I have had a good experience. It’s like automated classified on your smartphone.
Freelancing site hide direct contact with contractor, obscure their phone number. You cannot do verification on the contractor candidate by interviewing them over the phone.
One more issue is freelancing sites like e-lance has dog-eat-dog bidding process unscrupulous contractors are ready to take up the work at the lowest rates, the result is finally mess.

**Ontogeny1** · 03-29-2012, 03:45 AM

Hello,

I am an .NET professional and was working as Tech Lead in a company.

I saw various reviews for many Indian companies and so i started my firm so i could provide best quality and best quote. I know my work and providing quality work for my clients too.

We also started a service where clients can ask for quote for their requirements at very nominal price so they won't be giving lump amount of money to any provider. And it is not mandatory to outsource work to us only.

I wanted to spread this message but i don't know the ways of spreading this, please help me so we could help in a better and quality software development process.

Regards,
Tarun

**wovngroup** · 05-22-2012, 10:06 AM

I just wanted to let everyone know what we're going through. We agree with all of your main points. We are a strategic brand definition, business planning, marketing planning and implementation resource. We are run by people with an average amount of experience in the industry of around 10 years. We have service side, client/company side and business & tech consulting expertise. We're a "deeper toolbox," and we have a hybrid structure, meaning that our man-hour rates are a fraction of those of larger firms.

First, Elance scolded us for putting our direct contact info into proposal letters. So we took it out, even though it's laughable to assume that they think that they can be the "Project Police," and prevent clients and providers from working together as they wish to. Second, they suspended our account for "User Performance" issues. What this means is as follows: "Sorry, we know you pay us $40-60+ USD a month for access to bid on projects, but you're not winning enough of them and paying us our ridiculously high commissions, so we're suspending you."

They also said that we had multiple accounts (totally untrue; there was one account for the umbrella holding company of affiliate companies, and another for a specific affiliate who specialized in strategic deliverables--two separate corporate entities), and that we did not complete a job (also false--the client hired us, then hired an outside resource, and never wanted to agree to our upfront payment terms and conditions, making it a "phantom job").

Elance will not have a civil conversation and keeps referring to a mysterious "Policy Dept." They took our monthly bid money, suspended our account indefinitely, are holding our credits, and are now penalizing us for marking the phantom job "complete!!"

We are not going to take this crap from these half wits. We are issuing a press release, and going onto all of the complaint sites, reporting them to the BBB and US Attorney General's office. We have been in business for far longer than they have, will do just fine without them, and will be around and successful LONG after they are gone. And, they will pay us back!

PS--Always interested in good complimentary partners and companies who may want to become part of our affiliate network of providers.

Regards,

Chuck Hirsch
Dir. of Strategy
Wovn Group