16 comments

  • Michael RurkaMichael Rurka, almost 8 years ago

    Lame. Have to subscribe to read the full article.

    4 points
    • Gabriel StefanescuGabriel Stefanescu, almost 8 years ago (edited almost 8 years ago )

      They have ads, and still block content without letting people know that they only offer subscription based content. This is the most greedy thing I have ever seen. You either go ads+premium content or subscription only and no ads. This is one crazy business model. This deserves a Shame, shame gif from Game of thrones.

      0 points
  • Jason YehJason Yeh, almost 8 years ago

    Has anyone used this? My head keeps ringing like this startup bubble is gonna burst right after this 8.5 million gets transferred.

    Why do they need funding for a recruitment shop?

    3 points
    • Luke ChesserLuke Chesser, almost 8 years ago (edited almost 8 years ago )

      Hey Jason,

      Obviously I'm biased, but if you read up on Crew you'll see that we're tackling some huge problems, in a huge industry, with a lot of success.

      Since Crew was founded two years ago, more than $18 million of contracts have been posted on the platform, half of which has come in the last six months. Some freelancers on Crew have made more than $140,000 in the last year solely from work done on Crew.

      For an idea of how large the industry is, you can see our old investor deck from a few years ago (we were previously called ooomf): https://crew.co/investors/

      You can also read up on our two year anniversary report, which has a lot more information about where we're at now and why we're raising money: http://backstage.crew.co/crew-turns-2/

      2 points
      • Jason YehJason Yeh, almost 8 years ago

        This is an insightful answer, the two links provided way more information than the topic link.

        I did not grasp (perhaps still not completely) of what it means to make life easier for design freelancers. I see that if this problem is to be tackled by Crew head on, against the worst of the recruitment industry and not become one of them; it’d be a great thing indeed.

        The size of the industry and solving demand is a good and convenient problem to have. Tools and resources for freelancers is another. The constant fear of both clients and freelancers being abused by one another is a problem as well.

        Is it Crew’s goal to solve all of the above?

        It’s a unique position to take. I’d love to read more writing and communication that defines your approach and plans.

        0 points
  • Kirill ZakharovKirill Zakharov, almost 8 years ago

    For those interested, here's a link to the press release on Techvibes (no paywall): http://www.techvibes.com/blog/crew-2015-07-15

    3 points
  • Jon MyersJon Myers, almost 8 years ago

    Congratulations to the Crew people. Sounds like great news for freelancers.

    I didn't even realize Pando was still around.

    Why on earth anyone would pay for a subscription to a tabloid pimping regurgitated tech press releases with Oatmeal inspired illustrations is beyond me.

    To each their own.

    2 points
  • Brian DelaneyBrian Delaney, almost 8 years ago

    Cool concept, but they require signing an NDA + IP for every contract. No thanks.

    2 points
    • Luke ChesserLuke Chesser, almost 8 years ago

      Hey Brian.

      Where did you read that?

      We actually don't require signing an NDA or IP contract for projects. In fact, we don't allow NDA's on the platform unless the professional agrees to it.

      1 point
      • Brian DelaneyBrian Delaney, almost 8 years ago (edited almost 8 years ago )

        I emailed support and was told that specifically:

        "We do enforce NDAs for every project, and is one of the terms all professionals must agree to when being invited to Crew."

        I would love to sign up and use the service if that's not the case. Just sent you a DM on twitter about it.

        0 points
        • Luke ChesserLuke Chesser, almost 8 years ago

          You're right that one of our support people did say that to you — just talked with them. Unfortunately, they gave you the wrong information. Sorry about that — we'll fix that.

          We do have terms (like any online marketplace) that refer to rights of disclosure. However, they aren't an NDA (or at least, what we generally, in freelancing, refer to as an NDA and hate).

          Basically, the terms say that if you are working on a project on the Crew platform, you can't go around talking about the project (unless you're instructed to). It doesn't prevent you from working on similar projects and it doesn't stop you from working on future products of your own in a similar area.

          Happy to clarify anything else. Sorry for the miscommunication :)

          2 points
      • Tiago DuarteTiago Duarte, almost 8 years ago

        Perfect. Just updated my old and rusty application, looking forward to see how it works!

        0 points
  • Daniel ColeDaniel Cole, almost 8 years ago

    I can't imagine the pay is very good for these freelance contracts, not to mention being paired with 2 other random people.

    0 points
    • Luke ChesserLuke Chesser, almost 8 years ago (edited almost 8 years ago )

      Hey Daniel,

      Where did you read that we pair professionals with 2 other random people?

      The average short-term project on Crew is about 10k USD — which is about 20x the average on most other platforms. We were freelancers too before starting Crew, so we believe that good work requires good pay. Our founder Mikael put it best, I think, when he said:

      To deliver a consistent stream of high-quality work for creative professionals so they can focus on their craft. So they don’t have to worry where their next project will come from or chase down a late payment. So they can do work they love.

      Making an environment that’s comfortable for creative professionals is the best way to foster high-quality creative results.

      3 points