Fixed-Price Money Matters (Nelson Manning)

Источник: http://www.odeskinsider.com/blog/fixed-price-money-matters/

First off, I’d like to thank Josh Breinlinger for commenting on the first part of this series with handy information as well as boosting my cool status by a full ten points! I hope you continue reading and commenting.

Now, on to business. What are some good ways to protect yourself when doing fixed-price jobs? How does it apply to oDesk, GAF, and Elance? Why does Nelson hate GAF and Elance after a couple hours of using each? We’ll be discussing all that and not a whole lot more in the second installment of Tips for Fixed-Price Jobs!

Okay, so Dave mentioned in a comment on the start of this series that it’s a good idea to use milestone payments. Then, Josh piped in and said that oDesk, in fact, supports milestone payments. On number one: I totally agree. On number two: Awesome!

Ways to Protect Yourself

While a lot of people are actually looking for quality work and willing to pay money for it, there are always a few people trying to “beat the system” by getting work done for free. Here are three methods to make sure the money you earn on a fixed-price project actually makes it to your hands.

Don’t go around the payment system

This rule applies to oDesk, GAF, and Elance. Dave gave us one of his experiences regarding using Paypal to receive payment. It didn’t work out too well for him. I also have a little story (not involving going around the system): I agreed to do some work, received a Paypal eCheck, completed the task with record time, and I’m still waiting for the eCheck to clear on the 27th. I did the project near the beginning of this month.

The great thing about oDesk is that you can get your money every week, so it actually can act as your main source of income without having to scrimp so bad while finishing a project. Another great thing is the guaranteed payment on hourly work, so there’s no chance a buyer can put the screws on you to go the extra 10 miles unless they’re willing to pay you to do so.

Use an escrow

Escrows are wonderful things where, incase you don’t know, the buyer puts the money into an account upfront and then releases it when the project reaches a milestone or is completed. That way, you know they actually have the money or credit in-hand, so it’s less likely they’re going to try to take your work and refuse to pay.

While GAF and Elance have escrow services, oDesk does not currently support it. However, oDesk checks the money source up to the amount agreed for the project (as I learned from Josh’s post in the forums after scanning through some flame-wars). So, while the money is not put into an account by the buyer, they have to have access to that kind of money before the job can proceed.

Milestone payments

Usually, escrows are combined with the more useful feature of milestone payments. oDesk supports milestone payments.

When a buyer wants you to do a project, you can set up milestone payments to reduce the potential loss if the buyer is a bum. Also, it helps the buyer keep the provider on track and on schedule. It’s a win-win kind of situation.

All you do is divide the project up into a series of goals, and for each goal a portion of the money is released. If you do a small part of the project, you get a small payment. If they don’t pay you, you bail. Despite the satisfaction you will receive for breaking their legs (and don’t get me started on the respect you’ll get from la famiglia), it will save you a lot of time and grief not having to hunt someone down for the 10,000 they didn’t pay you.

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So, there you have it. Three easy ways to make sure you don’t get Paypal-pwnt like me and Dave. Go use them.

P.S. I’ll save my hatred for GAF and Elance for another time. I’m still foaming at the mouth with rage.