oDesk is a marketplace. Like any marketplace, it attracts the less than honorable, the cheat, and the outright swindler. In this article, I’ll show you some of the problem people and the scams they use so you can avoid them.

Caveat Emptor- let the buyer beware.

You’ve probably seen it in chat rooms. It’s epidemic on dating sites. You may have done a little bit of it yourself on a resume. Misrepresentation. A better word is lying.

How is it done by providers on oDesk?

• Profile inflation- posting other works or projects as your own.
• Cheating on tests- getting someone else to test for you in a subject that you don’t know.
• Lowering your hourly rate and then milking time by just running odesk while you do other things.
• Stealing articles for submission and representing them as your own original work.
• Claiming expertise in an area where you really have none.

All of these amount to lying. All of them will get you fired. Most of them will get you interviews and maybe a job offer. All of them piss me off.

Providers who scam the system upset me because oDesk works. It works when it brings willing sellers and buyers together. They get good product and I get money. But the whole thing is built on trust. When someone violates ethical standards to ‘game’ the system, buyers get upset and lose faith. It hurts me when I try to bid for their next job. It hurts me even more when buyers are driven away altogether.

Avoiding the problem provider

Ask these questions-

• Is the provider too good for the job? Someone with very high skill levels showing in their profile and a very low hourly rate might be a ‘milker’- underbidding on their rates and inflating their time.
• Does the cover letter match the provider? Someone who has excellent English skills isn’t going to type “I is now right for your job”
• If you are suspicious, ask for some small, original work sample. Good providers will be happy to show you what they can do.

Caveat exigo- let the seller be wary.

The job posting looks good. They are hiring 5 writers to do articles on candle making for their site; the money is good; you apply and get an interview.

The buyer wants to ’see what you can do’ and asks you to write a couple of articles for titles they provide. Reasonable, right?

Not always. The buyer interviews 20 people, gets 40 articles for free and walks. No job. No money and you’ve wasted your time.

Investigate your buyer.

Buyers get ratings just like providers do. Look at them. Check out their website or other contact information. Look for these warning signs-

• First time buyer or buyer with lots of previous job postings but no previous hires.
• Buyer with low rating or with bad feedback.
• Buyer who interviews lots of people but doesn’t seem to hire anyone.
• Buyer who asks you to provide free samples of work they need even though you have similar work showing in your profile.
• Buyers who lowball their project with the promise of more work later.

There is no sure way to avoid all problem buyers. This is especially true when you are just starting out and hungry for work. But use your common sense. When you are suspicious, ask questions. A good buyer will be happy to clarify the project.

Working together, we can make oDesk what it should be- a place for honest people to come together and get the job done.

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• I Saw a Scam