3Clicks aims to bridge the gap between freelancers and their customers
Do you know where to go if you’re a freelancer looking for a client? How about if you need to get freelance work – a guitar tutor or a digital designer perhaps – done?
An increasing number of people are straying away from the tried-and-tested path of joining a company and staying until retirement and are instead diving headfirst into the market on their own. Some freelance by choice, while some have joined the fray into freelancing as contingent work because of economic necessity.
And why not? Freelancers have greater flexibility, have the power to choose their projects, and have the opportunity to set their own schedules. But freelancing is a mixed bag, because while it gives all those benefits, it also presents freelancers with a massive problem: finding work.
There exists a gap between the freelancers offering their services and the people – businesses and individuals looking for a more efficient burn of resources – who need them.
A gap that 3Clicks is addressing.
Bridging the freelance gap
Launched in January 2018, 3Clicks is an online services marketplace that has over 1000 members with over 400 service listings. A localised marketplace with over thirty different types of services at launch ranging from photography to musical instrument tutorial.
The platform is pretty straightforward to use. Freelancers simply need to sign up for an account, and provide a detailed list of services offered.
3Clicks provide freelancers a place to advertise their services digitally – all at no cost. Signing up for an account in 3Clicks is free, and for freelancers without the tech know-how, a cost-free and hassle-free way of expanding their reach to the online world by improving digital visibility.
But more than just giving the freelancers a platform to list their services, 3Clicks also provides them with a way to connect directly with their market. The platform is equipped with a chat function that allows the service seekers to speak to the freelancers for further discussion of their services.
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On the other side of the process, service seekers need only to browse and compare services available, and engage their services directly or chat with the freelancers for more information.
This means that they no longer have to rely on word-of-mouth or to browse countless sites and profiles to search for services that they need and can instead get in touch directly with the freelancers on a user-friendly platform, giving them access to hundreds of freelance services of all kinds.
Built through necessity
Freelancing is changing the way people think about employment.
In Singapore alone, freelancers already make up 9 per cent of the workforce in 2017, with over 50 per cent of that (around 160 thousand people) going into freelancing as a primary income source. That number is likely to go higher, what with more companies trying to manage costs and hiring freelancers to do short projects.
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But to find projects, freelancers’ options are limited to peer-to-peer marketplaces that are generally focused on the commodities market, service listing platforms that usually require membership or transaction fees with no guaranteed results, social media platforms that has limited targeting capability, and personal websites that are costly to maintain.
This is the reality that led its founders to build 3Clicks.
The idea for 3Clicks came about when one of the founders was having difficulty finding a freelance piano tutor; online searches yielded mostly links to music schools or websites that do not offer much information about the service and the provider.
With another one of its founders, a former freelancer who faced the difficulties of finding projects, and a team with very diverse backgrounds, 3Clicks was built out of necessity and is designed to address issues as experienced first-hand by its founders.
A platform for all things freelance
What makes 3Clicks stand out from other platforms is not only that it is designed to address one of the largest issues of the freelance economy, but that it covers all types of said economy.
And by “all types”, 3Clicks really mean all types. When other platforms offer freelance services, said services are all mostly digital such as content writing, digital design and software development. Other non-digital freelance services like tutorials and coaching usually require a different platform.
The inclusion of physical services is 3Clicks’ core differentiator from other platforms. Their research showed that there is a market for these services and 3Clicks is aimed to address the needs of this overlooked chunk of the freelance service market.
Unlike other service platforms like Freelancer, Fiverr, or Upwork, 3Clicks services are not limited to digital services but also include physical services such as swimming coaches, musical instrument tutors, academic tutors, photographers, bakers, accountants, and even event performers.
Essentially, 3Clicks is designed to be what other service providers are not: a platform for all freelancers, whether digital or physical, to post and market their services, and a one-stop shop for freelance service seekers to compare and benchmark rates, ensuring that they get competitive market prices.
For more information, visit 3Clicks website.
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This article is produced by e27 content marketing team, sponsored by 3Clicks.
The post Freelancing is a new norm, but it still faces a massive problem appeared first on e27.
Source: e27