How to avoid regular obstacles when contacting agencies for work

Question

one of the possible ways of getting freelance work is through agencies, where I can help with the agency's clients, as many times they reach their regular employee capacities and need help. So they outsource me.

So, I'm applying to these agencies, and many times I meet the following obstacles:

• They need someone fulltime
• They need an employee
• They want you to relocate (apparently even during Covid...)
• They don't work with freelancers

Despite having 6 years of relevant experience, certifications, references, etc. Many times I won't even get to talk with the technical person to establish value, but a recruiter just shrugs me off. I wonder how you guys that work with agencies usually circumvent these problems. I appreciate your input. Thanks. 🙂

Answer 1

I work with agencies (in Denmark), but my situation may not be comparable to yours.

It's been 7 years since I last got a contract without an agency of some sort being involved. The difference compared to you seems to be that the agencies reach out to me and not the other way around.

Essentially, these agencies (or recruiters) are gatekeepers as the end customers already have some sort of deal with them - and therefore generally are unwilling (or even unable) to engage with me directly.

If possible, you need to find the same sort of agencies that have customers who usually hire freelancers. Speaking to recruiters who generally place full-time employees will most probably be fruitless.