Just a quick announcement: If you haven’t already, be sure to register here at All Freelance Writing (it’s free!) and add your writer profile to our new job board / freelance marketplace.

Previously I announced that profiles would be free until mid-May. But due to the problems we had after some site changes where the marketplace wasn’t fully functioning, I’ve decided to extend that. You can now get a free writer profile through the end of the month.

Why Add a Writer Profile?

At All Freelance Writing we understand that most of the best freelance writing jobs are never publicly advertised. Buyer don’t want the hassle of sorting through applications from unqualified writers looking for a pay increase. They don’t feel like waiting on applications at all. They prefer to ask for referrals or search for writers on their own.

We also have higher standards than most freelance marketplaces in that we won’t accept a buck from anyone and everyone who wants to post an ad. That means we don’t take on the extremely low-ball offers many people offer when looking for freelance writers. You just won’t find those here.

We’ll be promoting the new marketplace actively to buyers in coming weeks after we finish dealing with some site glitches and optimization. But not all potential buyers will be interested in posting public ads. Your writer profile allows them to find you and contact you in a typical search and referral way rather than inviting the competition to apply. If you want to get the most out of our marketplace, posting a writer profile is an essential step. That’s how you show prospects that you’re the kind of writer they’re looking for.

How to Register

Since you’re on the blog portion of our site right now, just look to our sidebar. You’ll find a login form there with a link to register if you’re not already a member of All Freelance Writing. Register there (or you can register via our book club forum — registration covers access to both site features).

Once you’re a registered member of All Freelance Writing, login to your account. Then take a look at the sidebar again. When you’re logged in you should see your gravatar photo if you have one and some new member links.

How to Add Your Profile

First, please note that if you had a profile under our old system, it will not be automatically transferred to the new one! So please remember to register and add your information to the marketplace. This is because many of those profiles do not contain all of the information we now require in our writer profile listings. New profiles can also be edited by you at any time, although they’ll need to be approved by me again when you do before changes go live. That was not possible with the old system.

When you’re ready to add your writer profile (or edit it later), you can find a link in your member section of the blog sidebar when you’re logged in. Or you can click the “Jobs” link above and access the job board menus at the bottom of any marketplace page.

This will take you to our back end where you can edit your general AFW profile (such as your Web address so you don’t have to enter it every time you comment if you comment while logged in). You can also find a link on the left for your resume / writer profile.

When you enter your writer profile details, please review the rules so you don’t waste time if you don’t meet the terms. The big consideration is rates. We still have minimum rate requirements to avoid this becoming yet another race-to-the-bottom freelance marketplace. Instead of mentioning specific rates, you choose a rate range and then a corresponding project type.

Also note that email addresses must be included in your profile, and they will be visible to all logged in members viewing the job board (such as other writers and prospects posting ads). This is due to the fact that many writers forgot to include contact info for prospects to reach them under the old system. You can leave a phone number too, and that will also be visible to logged in members (but it’s optional). So please, if you’re concerned about posting these things and you don’t even do so on your own site, I suggest getting a job-specific email address. If you want to post a phone number you can always use something like a free Google Voice number instead.

I really hope this system will work out better for everyone in the long run. In the meantime, happy posting! Remember, you can only add your profile for free until the end of May, so don’t wait. Starting June 1st, there will be a $15 charge for profile inclusion. Profiles will remain active as long as they continue to meet the posting requirements.

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