How Can I Market a New Freelance Job Board to Job Posters and Freelancers?

Question from Entee on my writing forums. Read the post. (slightly edited for readability here)

How may I market my freelance marketplace http://www.weblancee.com?

This may be vague question though.

I would like to know how to bring in webmasters to post projects. What can I offer them other than a good service?

What do they really expect?

And also about freelancers.

Answer

First, I’d suggest having your site edited. If you want to launch the site in English, you’ll need to make sure it’s written well in that language…especially since writers and editors are one group you would be targeting. For example “for first 100 registration only” doesn’t make much sense. Change it to registrations or registrants.

These kinds of sites have a sort of catch-22. You need a good number of gigs posted in order to attract freelancers, and you need freelancers registered to attract job posters.

Talk to people you know personally, and ask them to post gigs if they need some help. Post a few yourself (for example, post for a freelance editor to touch up the website).

You can also try to appeal to freelancers by offering them something of value even before a lot of jobs are posted. For example, maybe you can provide portfolio space for them to host samples of their work. They may sign up just for that feature in the beginning, so they’ll have a portfolio to promote. You might be surprised at how many freelance writers in particular don’t really have a portfolio online, and how many others use things like a content producer page for Associated Content as a portfolio. Give them something better… real portfolio space, and the ability to upload various types of files for different freelancers (video clips, images, text, etc.).

Before you even get into the marketing though, you need to ask yourself a few questions:

1. Is there really a demand for yet another freelance job board?
2. Why would people use your job board instead of the more well-known ones?
3. What are you offering that other freelance job boards aren’t offering? Is there anything unique about your service at all?

If you have nothing special to offer, or if there’s no demand, the idea might already be dead in the water. You’ll need to get pretty creative in this niche if you want to succeed… my 2 cents at least.