[joemanaco]

When I was looking for remote contract work as a freelancer a few years ago, I had the problem that most of the offers I found online were through HR agencies. This was pretty frustrating because the people I talked to weren't part of the company who were looking for people and often didn't have any technical knowledge, so they were just checking resumes for matching keywords. They also wanted ~15% commission for life (!!), which felt like a big rip-off.

So I changed my strategy. I searched for companies I found interesting that were looking for permanent employees. And I approached them with my resume and a nice mail that I wanted to work as a freelancer, not an employee, and offered to meet - even if they weren't interested in freelancers. Simply to get to know each other.

In the weeks that followed, I had many meetings and found some very good companies to freelance for over the years.

Of course, this might not work for larger companies because the HR department doesn't have the power to decide whether to work with a freelancer or not. But I found it very satisfying to work with smaller companies, and it also resulted in some friendships/contacts that went beyond the collaboration.

(Note: As of today I no longer doing contract work because I started to work full time on my own projects)

[madamelic]

I hope this isn't too drive-by or basic but did companies ever ask "why should I hire you as a freelancer rather than a W2?" or is the trade-off an easy sell since freelancers don't come with as much baggage as an employee does?

I've seen others do exactly what you are describing and am wondering if this kind of pitch on a W2 job posting is an easy layup or if there is something you encountered that you would be willing to pass along.

Let me know if this ask of you is too much. :)

[pacerier]

re "many meetings", You mean online right?