As a leading global payout solutions company, we always look to accelerate the growth of our account holders by improving the way they manage their business. At Payoneer we work hard to make it possible for you to work on different online platforms and help you receive your payments from multiple online marketplaces in a safe, easy & secure way.

We are excited to share with you a testimonial from our account holder in Tunisia, Ahmed Feki, who works as a freelancer on oDesk and also as a seller on Amazon – using Payoneer to receive his payments. Enjoy!

Can you explain your line of business?  What are the services you provide on oDesk and Amazon?

I’m an oDesk freelancer from 2009, specialized in developing websites & Web APP & ERP. After oDesk became my primary job and I started making good profits I decided to start working on Amazon as a Magic mug seller in 2013.

How did you hear about Payoneer and why did you choose it as your payment solution?

Well, here in Tunisia it’s almost impossible to get an international credit card. After countless meetings with many bank managers I found out that this option is given only for businessmen, while I’m just a man looking for a credit card to make my internet business idea become alive. My success story started when I heard about Payoneer from a close friend who is also using Payoneer to manage his online business. This was really my lucky day! Payoneer helped me find oDesk, the best opportunity I have ever found, where I can easily make money by selling my programming skills 🙂

How does Payoneer help you manage your business and receive your payments from different sources at the same time?

As you might know, PayPal in Tunisia has very limited service with no option to withdraw money. Payoneer makes it possible by helping me get my money from oDesk and Amazon in my country. I found the Amazon selling opportunity before Payoneer launched the US Payment Service, the puzzle was not yet completed, because I could buy products and resell them but I couldn’t withdraw my money from Amazon since I don’t have US bank account. After a while, it looked like Payoneer thought about me when they launched the US Payment service, it was my lucky day!  So I start to transfer my oDesk earnings to US selling business channel in Amazon US, that’s how I became a seller on Amazon. My next lucky day came while I was thinking to extend my US Amazon business to Amazon Europe, I faced the same problem to withdraw my money to EUR Bank account, but as always Payoneer’s magic worked again and they launched the EUR Payment Service, which allowed me to extend my sales to Amazon.uk, Amazon.it, Amazon.fr, Amazon.de and Amazon.es…Enormous opportunities are awaiting! Payoneer deserves all the credit for making me a lucky professional.

Are you satisfied with our service? Would you recommend Payoneer to people?

I’m really satisfied with Payoneer’s service, I really recommend it to anyone who wants to run a business online, especially for people who live in a country with limited opportunities and can’t get an international credit card. If you don’t have an online business opportunity yet, you can start working with Payoneer’s partners same as I did and start your journey to success.

Would you also like to share your experience or interesting story with the Payoneer community? We’d love to hear about it – let us know by sending an e-mail to community@payoneer.com, or post your comment below!

We were recently contacted by veteran oDesk freelancer and Payoneer account holder Lois Eva Adongo, regarding her experience using Payoneer as a payment solution for oDesk. Lois offers affordable business plan writing services on oDesk and is also the digital content strategist at the “Make a Living Freelancing” blog.

This is what she shared with us:

My name is Lois Eva Adongo. I am a thirty something Kenyan currently living in Yangon, Myanmar. 

I have  hands-on experience with startups as well as with established organizations; in the conceptualization, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of mobile, telecommunication, and branchless banking services in emerging economies including Uganda, Haiti, Afghanistan, and Kenya. An MBA graduate, I have also been providing small businesses with affordable and high quality business plan development services.

In April of 2009, I decided to move my business plan consultant services online through the oDesk platform in an effort to utilize knowledge from my MBA days. Almost immediately, I started getting contracts. But the greatest challenge I had was how to get paid for my freelancing services.

Initially, I used to request for electronic bank transfers to my Kenya shillings account. This proved to be a very costly option; so naturally, I started hunting for alternatives. Before long, I landed on Payoneer’s Prepaid Debit Mastercard. I applied for a card and in less than one month, I had received it.    

 Are you satisfied with Payoneer? Do you have any comments?

Sure. No regrets whatsoever. I’m an avid traveler who is also a risk taker. I have travelled to 30+ countries and lived in some very difficult ones. But one thing I love about Payoneer is that it never failed me even once. Anywhere there is a Mastercard logo, I have been able to use it. Even while I lived in Afghanistan back in the day, I was able to use my card. Additionally, when I wanted to verify my PayPal account, I used my Payoneer card. Thank God by then I had earned some cash from oDesk so I didn’t have any problem with topping it up.

Would you recommend Payoneer to other oDesk freelancers? If so, why?

Absolutely. So far, Payoneer is the cheaper option when it comes to withdrawing funds from oDesk.  In Kenya for instance, to receive your oDesk earning via bank transfer costs a whooping US$30, while with Payoneer, it can cost as little as US$1 if you are patient to wait for 2 working days. Otherwise, it only costs US$2.50 for immediate loading. And the best part, you get your money in US$, so no foreign exchange losses incurred.

Besides, Payoneer offers a safe and convenient way to pay for online purchases. I use Payoneer all the time to book my airline tickets and hotel accommodation.

Last but not least, Payoneer through its Refer-a-Friend program is an opportunity for earning extra income for telling others about the card’s benefits. Personally, I have earned substantial commissions by promoting the card to my blog’s visitor.

This is my 5^th year of using Payoneer Prepaid Master Debit Card and I have nothing negative to say about it.

Over the past few years the Freelance Economy has been exploding. Did you know that 1 in 3 people in the US are earning money from freelance jobs*, which amounted to approximately $42 million in 2013? In fact, a recent Global Online Employment Report posted by Elance shows 600,000 new jobs, 600,000 new freelancers, and over $130 million earned on Elance – just in the first 6 months of 2013!

The concept of traditional full-time employment  being the most secure and consistent is becoming obsolete thanks to technology’s role in today’s flexible global economy. Rather than leaving your home country to seek new employment opportunities, technology has made it possible for you to stay at home and work remotely. You can view an interesting infographic showing reasons why people choose to become freelancers here.

More and more companies are realizing the benefits of hiring freelance workers to complete projects. Whether it’s a one-time project, the company is short on budget, or simply is not in a position to hire a full-time employee, freelancers bring a lot to the table.

If you’re a freelancer, now is the time to take advantage of this rapidly growing economy and make money! The first thing you need to decide is where to focus your efforts. Payoneer provides global payment solutions to freelancers across the globe, and we recently asked them what kind of work they do. We found that the majority of freelancers work in the creative fields of Graphic Design, Content Writing and Video and Animation – below are the full results:

Next you’ll want to promote your services and find new clients. Social media is certainly a powerful tool, and services like Wix, WordPress, and Tumblr can help you easily set up your own website. Developing your profile and portfolio on major Sites like Elance, oDesk, Fiverr, 99Designs, Freelancer.com, and Envato is also a great way to promote yourself and find new jobs. Not sure which to focus on? Perhaps this infographic comparing some of the major freelance marketplaces can help:

Are you a Freelancer and want to share your experience and tips with us? Perhaps you’d like to write a guest post on our blog? Let us know in the comments below!

*Statistic according to the Freelancers Union