Do you know that remote workers have grown by over 159% over the last 12 years? That means globally we have over one million people working remotely.
This shift from regular face to face work style to online, means that job seekers like yourself, can actually apply for a job where you can work remotely.
However, while remote working is a lucrative job opportunity, the glitch is finding one can be an uphill task. So, how do you do it?
How do you find a remote job? That’s what this article will be teaching you.
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Topics:
What are remote jobs
Types of remote jobs
Best remote jobs
How much do remote workers earn
How to land a remote job
CV and cover letter templates for applying for remote jobs
Reasons why you are failing at landing a remote job
Before you can think about taking up a remote job, you first need to understand what it is and how it works. Starting with the definition.
That being said, remote jobs are jobs that can be done from anywhere in the world, that is not a company’s office.
Such jobs, can be done as long as you have a computer or laptop, and a stable and fast internet.
Remote job is a collective term for similar job opportunities that can be done outside an office like:
Telecommuting jobs are jobs that can be done from home, but the person has to be in the same geographical location as the company.
If you are doing a telecommuting job, you spend most of your work hours at home, you don’t have to come to the office at all times, but may come in on some days.
Flexible Jobs allow workers to choose when they want to work and how much work they can do for the day, so that they can handle other responsibilities they have going on in their lives.
Work from home jobs are the ones you can do from your house or anywhere else that is not an office.
Now to the best part of this article. Now that you have understood what remote jobs are, below is a list of the best remote jobs you should be considering.
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Online tutors teach in an online, virtual, or networked environment. In online tutoring, the tutor and the learner interact from different physical locations.
As an online tutor, you can teach from anywhere and don’t need to meet the student face to face.
Case Managers who work for insurance companies, typically processes insurance applications from time they are received till they are issued.
They also pass across information of the status of an application, use their knowledge of systems to execute their duties and provide resources for others.
Most paid volunteer jobs like virtual assistance, language translator, online emotional support assistance, audio book recording, online review, don’t need you to appear at any office.
Digital marketing jobs like digital marketing specialists, content marketers, SEO specialists, and social media specialist, can be done remotely. However, these jobs need constant communication between teams.
Although remote working is not a conventional way of being a project manager, most companies still hire people who work this way. Remote project management can work, but only after careful consideration.
Web Developers are specialists who take the website layout and plans provided by a web designer, and use coding languages to make those designs a functioning website. Remote web developers are in high demand and if you go into this line, you have high chances of getting hired.
Most data entry jobs are mostly remote, and workers can do them from home or any other location apart from an office. When doing a data entry job, you receive information about the assignment from a supervisor, and follow their instructions on how to input the data into an online database.
As a remote customer support agent, you'll provide assistance to customers, pick calls, answer questions and address complaints. You'll do everything a full-time customer support agent does, except for show up at the office.
Note: to get a job in any of these industries, you must possess the necessary skills and qualifications.
Another perk of working remotely apart from the flexible work hours and the comfortable locations is the pay. Remote jobs are quite lucrative, and pay well.
This is how much entry level remote workers in certain sectors earn per month:
Online Tutors - N50,000 per month.
Insurance Case Managers - N54,000 per month.
Volunteer- N57,000 per month.
Digital Marketer - N94,000 per month.
Project Manager - N144,000 per month.
Software Developer- N117,000 per month.
Web Developer- N105,000 per month.
Content Marketer - N158,000 per month.
Call Center Representative - N64,000 per month.
Customer Service Representative - N73,000 per month.
Data Entry Officer - N68,000 per month.
Copy Writer - N97,000 per month.
For more salary information on other remote jobs, you can visit MySalaryScale.
How to Land A Remote Job and Skills Needed to Succeed
Most times, finding remote jobs you can apply for, can prove to be difficult.
One reason being that most companies prefer to have an employee that works full time from the office, so they only advertise such jobs. However, this shouldn’t discourage you.
If you are searching for remote work, simply follow this step by step process on how to find a remote job.
One of the easiest ways to find a remote job is by visiting job boards that only post remote job vacancies.
On these type of job boards, it will be easier for you to find remote jobs because that’s the only type of jobs they have on their website.
If you want to get hired as a remote worker, you have to prove to employers that you are capable of doing the job.
Proof isn't just putting down a list of remote projects you have done, you also need to back it up with visual evidence. How do you do this? Create a portfolio of all your works. This portfolio can be a personal website that include samples of your projects.
Another thing you can do is to take courses related to your job online, and get certificates for them.
You'll never know where you will meet a potential client, so you always need to be on point with responses to questions like “what do you do?” no matter where you are asked this question. Having a strong elevator pitch game, can ensure that you walk out of that conversation with a job offer or at least a meeting that leads to one. Here’s an article on 20+ Elevator Pitch Examples You Need to Get Hired, that can help you.
To get a job as rare as remote opportunities, you some times have to use unconventional job search methods. You need to ditch the job boards and find a job through other means like networking.
To do this, attend career meetups and utilize platforms like LinkedIn. You can also talk to your friends about remote jobs.
These are some of the best job sites for finding a remote job:
MyJobMag is Africa's leading job site and your go-to platform in finding the best remote job opportunities, in various industries like: advertising, ICT/communication, insurance, marketing, etc. On MyJobMag you can filter your job search by using job titles, company name, location, experience, and job field. You can also browse work from home jobs in Nigeria.
On Remotework.ng, you can find the various remote job opportunities in Nigeria.
On Upwork, you'll find good remote jobs for freshers. This site is the best place to master the workings of remote jobs and gain some experience as well.
Fiverr is a remote work platform, where you can setup a profile to market your services to potential clients. Fiverr is perfect for you, if you are writer who is looking for freelance opportunities.
On We Work Remotely, you are sure to find the hottest remote opportunities in the tech companies. This site favors you if you are into customer service or software engineer or programming.
Working Nomads is the best place to find remote opportunities from around the world. It is also good place to search for digital jobs, if you are just starting off your telecommuting career.
On the Monster job board, you have a wide range of remote job options to choose from, and can get jobs whether you are experienced or not.
Just because remote jobs are flexible, doesn’t mean you should be nonchalant about applying for one. You need to follow the same procedures you would, if you were applying for a full-time job in office job. Here’s how to apply for a remote job:
Although most professionals opt for remote work, not everyone is a good fit for it.
Before you apply, you need to make sure that you can actually do a remote job and will be able to deliver on tasks without the extra supervision that comes with working from an office.
Can you communicate effectively through emails and text messages in a way that your employer understands you? Can you deliver projects before the deadline? Do you have all the necessary gadgets required for remote work? It is important that you are prepared to work remotely, so that you don’t end up wasting the employers time and yours.
To find the remote job that is right for you, you first need to list out the terms of remote work that you would be comfortable meeting.
These terms are:
Job Consistency
You need to decide how consistent your job as remote worker will be, and what remote opportunities work for you. Whether you will be working full-time for a particular company, work on a contact basis for a few months or freelance for multiple companies at once. Once you have figured this out, you can be more clear on the duration of the jobs you are applying for.
Timings
As a remote worker, you need to have clearly defined work hours which you operate under. You can choose your timings based on the regular work hours of the company you are working for or opt for flexible working hours you can keep to, as long as you deliver projects on time. In addition, if you are working remotely for a company that is in a different country, you may have to work according to their time zone.
Company Remote Work Culture
Every company that hires remote workers, has a culture that governs their work style. For most companies, you don’t need to come to the office at all if you work remotely, but for some you will be required to show up on some days.
Others may just require you to communicate via video calls and emails. It is up to you to choose a remote company culture that works for you.
Recruiters usually have an ideal candidate in mind, before they put up a job description. To be hired, you need to meet the job description, by ticking off all the specifications that are listed on it, even more. When you understand the job specifications, you can tailor your CV and cover letter accordingly to match what the employer is looking for in a candidate.
When applying for a job, it is advisable that you research the company you are applying for a job in. Researching the company, will help you when answering certain interview job questions like “why do you want to work for our company?”
It also helps you when writing your cover and CV, because then you can clearly define your interest in working for the company and how your input will benefit them.
The ticket to landing any good job is for you to have a good cover letter and CV. Spend time developing both. Before you apply for a job, customize your CV to suit remote jobs and include skills and past job experiences or projects that are relevant to remote role you are applying for. Do the same for your cover letter.
If you don’t know how to write a cover letter and CV, or just need to touch up yours, these articles will help you.
Creating a CV and cover letter template for a remote job, can be a bit difficult, if it is your first time. If you are unsure on how to piece together your cover letter or format your CV into a masterpiece recruiters will take seriously, these templates can provide some insight.
If you have applied for several remote jobs and haven’t been able to land any one, these may be the reasons why:
These days, most recruiters prefer a candidate who has an online presence, especially if they’re hiring for a job that involves social media management or marketing. Recruiters have been known to go through a candidate’s social media pages, LinkedIn profile and even search them on Google to find information about them. And if they can’t anything, they move on to the next candidate.
If you are not getting hired for remote jobs, then it’s probably because you don’t have a strong online presence, or it’s outdated. What you can do is to build your online presence. Create a website and add content to it, update and optimize your LinkedIn profile, use your social media platforms to show case your work and share articles, become a blog contributor.
Another reason why your job applications are getting rejected is because your email is generic, dry, and doesn’t match the communication style of the company you are applying for. Generally, your email lacks character. To fix this, when writing an email make it authentic rather than copying what everyone else has done before. Match the tone of the company’s communication style, which you would have understood by reading their job description or just going through their website.
If you have been communicating with them via emails, replicate the writing style of the person. Is it serious? Casual? Or business causal? Make your emails readable. Don’t make them lengthy, keep it concise and straight to the point.
Since you will be doing your work online and be working with a computer a lot, you will obviously need to be tech savvy to do a remote job. Being tech savvy doesn’t end with you knowing how to operate a computer, but you also need to be conversant with other things like not using an outdated email address or domain, having a strong internet connection, understanding how apps work, and having excellent call skills.
Basically, there shouldn’t be any technical issues that interfere with your work with them.
Beyond the flexibility and comfort, there has to be a bigger reason as to why you want to work for the company. If you are applying for the job only because you want to work remotely and have no interest in the job, then you won’t get it.
Employers want employees that deliver on tasks, and always bring a 100% to the team, no matter where they are working from.
Final Note:
Remote jobs are almost like unicorns. They are rare and difficult to find. But unlike unicorns, they exist and if you know how and where to find them, you may end up landing one sooner than you expect.
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