Hajra Naz
- This year, over 100,000 individuals have been laid off in the tech industry, leading many to pursue freelance work instead of traditional full-time jobs. In response, LinkedIn launched its freelancer marketplace in 2021 to capture this trend. Now, as other freelancer platforms face challenges, LinkedIn is sharing its first major update.
Currently, around 10 million people have set up pages on LinkedIn’s Services Marketplace, a 48% increase from last year. Service requests are also on the rise, averaging eight per minute, reflecting a 65% year-over-year growth.
To provide some context, LinkedIn has over 1 billion registered users, indicating that only about 1% are engaging with the freelancer marketplace. However, details on buyer interest remain unclear, as LinkedIn has not disclosed the number of services sold or pricing trends.
Comparing LinkedIn to its competitors is complex. Companies like Fiverr and Upwork don’t share the number of sellers on their platforms, focusing instead on buyer statistics, which stand at around 4 million and 868,000, respectively.
LinkedIn initially launched its services marketplace to create new business opportunities amid the evolving job landscape post-COVID-19. At that time, Fiverr and Upwork were experiencing significant growth as more knowledge workers sought flexible work arrangements.
Fast forward to 2024, and freelancer marketplaces are adjusting their business models in response to declining demand. They are raising their “take rates” to maintain revenue as more workers gravitate toward steady employment or leave these platforms altogether. This trend may shift again if AI services become more prevalent.
Despite modest growth, LinkedIn’s announcement of 10 million profiles signals its ongoing interest in the freelance market. The company is currently focused on building engagement and driving premium subscriptions rather than formalizing pricing structures.
Premium Business subscribers can enhance their freelancer profiles, known as Service Pages, for increased visibility. LinkedIn reports a 51% rise in premium subscriptions this fiscal year, translating to $1.7 billion in revenue. However, this remains a small portion of the company’s overall earnings, which exceeded $16 billion in the last fiscal year.
