Mobile developers are now putting Android first; 3D printing, concept design and architectural work drive a large increase in 3D jobs; After Candy Crush and Flappy Bird, Mobile Phone jobs skyrocket; Content is Kin
g again: content strategies rebound as marketers gain confidence; BPO shows strong growth as businesses continue to strip the fat.
In Q1 2014, over 270,000 jobs were analysed to provide a snapshot of the global business ecosystem. Freelancer.com Chief Executive Matt Barrie said: “The Freelancer Fast 50 data is the leading forward indicator of trends in online jobs related to industries, technologies, products and companies”.
Mobile developers are now putting Android first. In Q2 of 2013, the number of Android jobs (7,073 jobs) overtook iPhone (6,989 jobs) for the first time; now in Q1 2014, Android is continuing its reign with a 33.9% increase to 11,141 jobs versus iPhone’s 32.0% to 10,207 jobs. While the iPhone still has a foothold in the developed world, Android is growing like wildfire in the developing world where sales of handsets in Asia using the Android OS are growing at reported 5% month-on-month. The low cost iPhone 5C’s attempt to address this has also been a flop, providing CEO Tim Cook a headache. Cook announced at the start of the quarter that sales of the 5C had been less than anticipated.
3D printing, concept design and architectural work drive a large increase in 3D jobs. Q1 2014 saw a dramatic leap in all things three-dimensional. 3D Rendering leapt 43.9% (to 2,784 jobs), 3D Animation increased 35.7% (to 3,183 jobs) and 3D Modeling saw an increase of 34.5% (to 3,230 jobs). The intense interest in 3D slapped the world in the face with the recent acquisition of Oculus Rift by Facebook, which purchased the virtual reality headset for $2 billion at the end of March. 3D Imagery allows businesses to bring their products and services to life while connecting with their users in a new and exciting way. The global fascination is being spurred on by notable advances in 3D Printing – with technological advances fuelling rapid cost-reductions, tech retailers are salivating at the thought of affordable 3D printers under Christmas trees when the 2014 Holiday season arrives. Likewise, Graphic Design jobs were up (to 51,389 jobs), Illustration jobs were up 32.7% (to 3,308 jobs), and Animation jobs up 21.3% (to 2,755 jobs).
After Candy Crush and Flappy Bird, Mobile Phone jobs skyrocket. In the wake of the Flappy Bird phenomena, apps were in hot demand this quarter. Mobile Phone jobs were up 35.3% (to 13,340 jobs). Flappy Bird, first developed with little fanfare in 2013, had resurgence in the beginning of 2014, with developer Dong Nguyen claiming he was bringing in more than $50k a day in advertising revenue. Likewise King.com’s Candy Crush saw eye popping growth in revenue, making $1.9 billion in revenue in 2013 from a game only launched in April 2012. King.com went public on the NYSE in the quarter.
Content is King again: content strategies rebound as marketers gain confidence. Content related jobs fell away in the last few years in the wake of Google’s Panda and Penguin updates. Q1 saw an extremely strong rebound in content writing related jobs; Ghostwriting rose 41.5% (to 5,807 jobs) and Copywriting lifted 17.7% (to 8,029 jobs) as savvy business owners reengage freelancers to produce high quality content.
BPO shows strong growth as businesses continue to strip the fat. Businesses have started the New Year engaging online freelancers to increase organisational flexibility, freeing up full time employees to focus on their core competencies and drive company growth. Q1 Fast 50 saw Accounting rise 26.5% (to 1,374 jobs), Sales jobs increase 20.5% (to 5,057 jobs), Leads by 17.7% (to 3,755 jobs), Business Analysis by 15.8% (to 1,163 jobs) and Virtual Assistant jobs by 13.3% (to 2,181 jobs).