Iโm currently doing some work through Upwork, but itโs sporadic and Iโm keen to get more active on other platforms like Freelancer, Toptal, CodeMentor, Fiverr etc
Currently Iโm managing leads in a Google sheet. Basically itโs just a list of projects I pitched for, how much I bid, what I did differently from the last pitch/bid, how much time went by before I got a offered a job etc.
Iโm not actively following up anybody, and Iโve in fact โlostโ a few jobs where the client was keen, but then disappeared without a trace. I guess I need to keep in touch with those people to ensure that they remain focussed on our agreementโฆ
Iโm also keen to take on more small projects concurrently, without dropping the ball on any of them.
Iโve done a quick Google and turned up a few names including Salesforce, Zoho, Nutshell, HighRise, Base, Nimble, etc etc. But testing out all these products isnโt all that appealing, so I thought Iโd ask here first
Ideally Iโd like something that integrates with remote job boards in some way.
Feature list
Iโve done some research and currently have this feature list:
Proposal building & tracking
- Compile proposals from snippets - technologies, past projects
- Quickly pull together a realistic/client friendly quote
- Test and measure different approaches
- Beat proposal deadlines while maintaining quality
- Fine tune pitch material to bid more quickly and win more work โ templates
- Store history about past projects involving common needs and technological solutions
- Learn which proposal content is working, and which is not
Lead generation and client management (CRM)
- store info about regular clients
- track remote projects which Iโve pitched for
- Remote Job Board integration
- search multiple job sites for keywords
- track projects across multiple remote platforms โ API integration / message alert/response
Project Management & Scheduling
- Break projects down into granular tasks
- Gantt chart to visualise overlapping jobs
- Calendar to schedule daily work, deadlines, R&D
- follow up, plan and schedule future work now, rather than once current work has dried up
- offline reminders via a dedicated Android app
- time tracking โ to get an idea of true cost, to flag issues to client
- BitBucket integration
Billing
- Integration with Xero
- tracking status of payments, actual payment date vs expected payment clearance date
Marketing
- Get repeat business
- Build Word Of Mouth
- Proactive lead generation
- Publish proposals as case studies
Cheers,
Dan