Your problem is not unique to Indian software contractors.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of profiteering opportunists who will cut and paste code from programming sites and pass it of as their work. Some of the work I've seen wasn't even worth the low rate paid for it. So your key strategy is to rise above that swamp. Bidding for work on some outsourcing site is probably always going to be an uphill battle.
I think that you need to specialize, in an area that really interests you. You'd research the forums in that area and contribute to them. Find open source projects in your area. I would even go as far as to suggest doing a masters degree part-time in that same field. After a while, you start noticing the same people and companies popping up in multiple places. You build contacts with them. You build up a profile of the sorts of companies that do stuff in your area and then you actively seek out others like them.
Yes, as many others have said, you are a brand and that requires persistent marketing and selling activities. When you work for a company, then others fulfill that role. But it still needs to be done in order to succeed.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of profiteering opportunists who will cut and paste code from programming sites and pass it of as their work. Some of the work I've seen wasn't even worth the low rate paid for it. So your key strategy is to rise above that swamp. Bidding for work on some outsourcing site is probably always going to be an uphill battle.
I think that you need to specialize, in an area that really interests you. You'd research the forums in that area and contribute to them. Find open source projects in your area. I would even go as far as to suggest doing a masters degree part-time in that same field. After a while, you start noticing the same people and companies popping up in multiple places. You build contacts with them. You build up a profile of the sorts of companies that do stuff in your area and then you actively seek out others like them.
Yes, as many others have said, you are a brand and that requires persistent marketing and selling activities. When you work for a company, then others fulfill that role. But it still needs to be done in order to succeed.