When it comes to side hustles, our growing ‘gig economy’ means it’s easier than ever to supplement your income or deviate completely from the standard 9-5 job model.

From delivering food, putting together Ikea furniture, helping out with chores, or even being someone’s unqualified therapist, apps like Uber, Fiver and in this case, Airtasker all offer ways for you to earn a bit of extra cash on the side, while working to your schedule.

To discover the ins and outs of the app, we asked six women to share their experiences.

From how much they earned, to their tips on winning the job and whether they experienced any gender bias when applying for tasks, this is what they had to say.

Excuse us, but we think we’ve found the strangest tasks on Airtasker:

“Airtasker can be everything to everyone,” Bryanna of Fearless Female Trader

How did / do you use Airtasker?

When I took the leap into finding additional income, I knew I would have to focus on what I wanted to do. I mean, sure we can all clean, or pack up someone’s house, or help plant a veggie patch, but is that what you want to do? Maybe not. I really enjoy writing, all sorts of it! Since joining Airtasker I’ve done all forms of writing – I wrote 250 product descriptions for a kitchen retail store, white papers for a national sales company, blogs for a fashion website, and general copy-writing tasks for a law firm. Anything to do with writing, I was offering!

What was your experience like?

Airtasker can be fantastic if you’re after some additional income, or perhaps looking to get some extra experience in a particular area, or as a trial for a new business you may have.

The time investment required to find a good ‘job’ can be quite cumbersome, and if it’s a goodie, then your ‘offer’ will be up against many, many others. I learnt very quickly that I could spend hours offering up my services for jobs, and not have any luck. If you don’t have an ‘offer strategy’, you’ll almost always have a negative, less fruitful experience!

 

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A post shared by Fearless Female Traders (@fearlessfemaletraders) on Feb 17, 2019 at 3:25pm PST

What are you tips for women wanting to do the same?

Think about your strategy before jumping on the website because you’ll find yourself scrolling through open jobs for hours and hours on end. Start with one type of job so you can secure that first review, and build from there. Don’t try to be everything to everyone on your first day.

Have a punchy offer statement. For each job you have to offer your services, which is kind of like a very brief, very witty version of your experience and the reason why the job poster should choose you over everyone else. Always read the job post twice over before placing your offer statement and make sure you meet all of their requirements to put yourself in the best position of being chosen!

Always ask for a review so that you can build up a little profile on the website. This will help in acquiring future jobs and more $$.

Think about linking your Airtasker payments to an ING account (perhaps the savings maximiser) so that you may be able to earn interest on your additional income. Heck, maybe you want to put this money aside and invest it in shares once you reach $500 or $1000 – then your Airtasker monies will be worth five to 10 per cent more in a years time!

How much did you make using the app?

I have been using the app on and off for about three months, and made $3,000. Like any freelance job, you need to be prepared for inconsistent income, depending on the jobs that are listed. I’m someone who craves financial certainty so I’m not sure that I could personally rely on it as my primary source of income. That being said, I love the flexibility.

“Sign up using a gender neutral name”, Antonia

How did / do you use Airtasker?

I use the app when I’m having a quiet work week. I’m a picture framer and Signwriter with a background in graffiti so I have many transferrable skills that are good for Airtasker. I search for those jobs specifically, but the majority of the work I do on there is hanging pictures and mirrors etc.

What was your experience like?

My early experiences were good once I started getting some reviews and was able to get work…back when the fee was just 15 per cent and it was worth doing the work. The people I have worked for on there are almost always lovely and the only issues I ever had were with the Airtasker team. They would unfairly block me or suspend my account for posting numbers and measurements thinking that I was giving out personal info. The admins stalk you a lot and I have been banned for just trying to figure out quotes on there. The whole idea is to lock you into work so that Airtasker can keep as much money as possible, but when doing any work that requires a quote it can be super difficult to get around that.

Do you think working on Airtasker can be more difficult as a woman?

Hell yes! I would bid on jobs and have proven track record of good work and experience, but the poster would choose a male with no experience for the job over me. It got so annoying that I tested what would happen if I changed my name from Toni with an ‘i’ to Tony with a ‘y’. The change was instant; I started getting picked for jobs right away. It’s funny though because often I’ll rock up to a job and the poster will be super confused because they expected a man. Nine times out of 10 this doesn’t matter and I’ve even had female clients tell me they were relieved that I was a woman, even though they posted looking for a ‘handyman’. Only occasionally will someone continue their bias and when they do, they will often ask you to do more work than what was agreed upon and will watch you literally the whole time. It sucks.

What are your tips for women wanting to do the same?

Sign up using a gender neutral name if you can, although they have been doing ID checks recently. The difference in my name is just one letter so I get away with it. Also, talk like a man. Be straight to the point and cut out anything but basic pleasantries and tell them you are going to do the job. I like to say that I’ll be in the poster’s area on the day they specify to make it seem easy for them. It doesn’t matter what my actual plans are because you sort all that out AFTER you’ve been accepted for the job.

How much did you make using the app?

I use the app sporadically, so anywhere from $50 – $500+ per week.

‘I changed my name from Becky to Blaze’, Becky

How did / do you use Airtasker?

I run my own sign-writing business, so I originally started using Airtasker as a side hustle when things were quiet, and it also gave me the confidence to learn new skills. I took on a few wallpapering jobs because I had already learned similar skills while I was sign-writing. I have now become really good at it, and my skills are in demand because I have a lot of positive reviews. I have built some really good relationships with clients who regularly hire me, and pass on my details to other people.

What was your experience like?

I would say that it has been mainly positive.

Recently, Airtasker have changed their pricing structure though and they’re becoming really greedy with their high fees. It’s really hard to make a profit now. I have also had trouble with a few people who are making ridiculously cheap offers on tasks so they get the job. It has become a race to the bottom.

Oh, definitely! I found it really difficult to convince people that I had the skills, even though I’ve been a qualified tradesperson for over 15 years!

I literally had to change my name from Becky to Blaze, but the difference was immediate! People were responding positively to my questions, and accepting my offers! I had a few awkward encounters on-site by clients who were expecting a man, but once they saw me doing the job, they seemed fine. Airtasker recently changed the rules though, so your name has to match your bank card. I was worried that this would affect me, but because I already had tonnes of five star reviews, people didn’t question my skills.

What are you tips for women wanting to do the same?

Fake it til you make it!

How much did you make using the app?

When I first started using the app, I made anywhere between $300-$1,500 a week, but there’s more competition now, so I’d say around $400 a week on average.

“Almost all my experience have been positive,” Natteh

How did / do you use Airtasker?

My full-time job is in marketing and I use Airtasker to get models in for photoshoots or to get people to engage with our brand online. Using is Airtasker in my full-time job lead me to using it as a worker after hours. As a worker, I generally look out for tasks related to mail or flyer drops, dog walking or minding, photoshop and design work, copy and rewriting articles, rubbish and garden rubbish collection, and online reviews.

What was your experience like?

Almost all my experiences have been positive. As a worker I have had no bad experiences. As a poster, I have had people not rock up for the task, and once had a guy demand more money which lead to him verbally abusing me over the phone for a long time and then calling me persistently. That was pretty scary. Since then I have been really vigilant about the people I choose to work for or work for me.

I definitely think that posters looking for help in collecting rubbish, gardening maintenance or furniture removal favour men. When possible, I will apply for these sorts of tasks, however I never get the jobs, even when I quote a lower price. I do this because I want to get the experience and review which I can then refer to for other related tasks. Another note on this: even when I don’t make an offer on these sorts of jobs and just comment asking about the size/weight/timing of the task, the poster usually ignores my comments. I am assuming this is because they don’t think I am capable of the task.

What are you tips for women wanting to do the same?

I think more women should use Airtasker! Whether they’re posting or working, I would suggest looking at everyone’s profiles and reviews because choosing to work with someone. That way you can see if they have any history of being rude, unreliable.

How much did you make using the app?

I probably only make about $100 bucks a week doing it outside of my full-time job. I have actually just quit my job because I hate it and am planning to rely on Airtasker and freelance to support me while I look for another full-time job.

“Being on Airtasker is a rollercoaster,” Penny of Twopence Social

How did / do you use Airtasker?

I’m a social media marketer by profession, so I came to using Airtasker as a means to earning a little additional money on top of my day job.

What was your experience like?

Being on Airtasker is a roller coaster. Not only is it a battle against everyone else on the platform to stand out and be chosen above the rest, but the reality of tasks you are eventually assigned can sometimes differ greatly to what the initial post detailed. One job I began working on was so much bigger than its original description that I got about five hours into the work before I asked to be more reasonably compensated. The job poster refused, and since I wasn’t keen to finish the job, I walked away completely empty handed.

I notice an unconscious bias towards men when it comes to marketing jobs; I’ve seen jobs go to responders who have only said as much as ‘yeah, I can do it for you’ when I’ve written out a paragraph or two on my expertise in marketing. In those instances, it feels blindingly obvious that there’s more at play here than just what we’ve said we can offer, however, I have also managed to land jobs because I look approachable, and act professionally in my pitches – so that gender bias isn’t always there.

I’ve also had a number of positive experiences using the platform, and landed a number of fantastic jobs through it. I’ve had a few repeat clients out of it, and the opportunity to work on some interesting brands.

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A post shared by Penny (@twopence.social) on Apr 8, 2019 at 7:43pm PDT

What are you tips for women wanting to do the same?

Be willing to tackle smaller jobs first, in order to gain a couple of reviews. Ensure that you’re communicating to your prospective client exactly what you’re planning on delivering to them, and look for clients who you believe will prioritise quality over cost. Build out your profile because people do check, and have examples of your previous work ready to go.

How much did you make using the app?

In my first stint on Airtasker, I probably only earned as much as $500 over a few weeks doing one or two jobs here and there.

Recently, Airtasker have introduced a tiered structure to the way they gain commission off others’ work. When you first join Airtasker, you’re given a Bronze status and Airtasker takes a 20 per cent  service fee from each job you undertake. As you continue you work your way up to a Platinum tier, Airtasker takes less and less of a service fee from you until they’re only taking 10 per cent of the cut. But, that reduction to 10 per cent only comes once you’re earning over $5000 a month using the platform! How anyone could make an income solely from Airtasker, I’m not entirely sure.

Airtasker is rife with people who don’t want to pay a proper wage for services rendered – which is kinda why they’re there in the first place – and giving a 20 per cent cut of that away means you’re not looking to be a breadwinner any time soon. Combine that with competing against people who are willing to do the work for far less than what it’s worth, and I don’t see a happy ending in sight.

“Keep at it,” Carmen of Your Virtual Solutionist

How did / do you use Airtasker?

I use Airtasker predominantly for online/virtual roles tasks like admin, marketing, HR and select design jobs, but on occasion help with in person tasks (most recent being reorganising someones walk in wardrobe!)

What was your experience like?

It’s mixed. I find there have been some good tasks and when it’s good it’s good but on occasion people do not treat you like a person and can treat you really poorly because they expect to get something for absolutely nothing. There is also always somebody willing to do it cheaper.

What are you tips for women wanting to do the same?

If you are just starting out - keep at it. Get that first job and it can get a little easier once you have a completion rate and star rating. Make sure to stay true to yourself and know your worth - don't cheapen your offer just to get allocated a task.

How much did you make using the app?

I'd say about $6000 between November to March.

Have you ever used Airtasker to supplement your income? What was your experience like? Tell us in a comment below.