For many freelancers new to the Internet, these sites offer the first opportunity for off-site project work. Knowing how these sites operate puts you one step closer to landing a project. While Bullhorn is geared towards designers and writers, the other sites host a wide variety of jobs, including software developers, computer programmers and business managers. The freelancer registers for free and completes a detailed profile, including education and work experience. Freelancers then bid on the projects and clients contact them or award them the work based on those bids.
Guru operates a little differently.
Registered freelancers respond to job postings in a plethora of categories by creating a brief proposal. The proposal is sent to the client, then he or she has the option of contacting the freelancer for more information. It sounds easy, but it's not. Competition is fierce. For one proofreading project on Elance, the client received more than 130 bids.