Two good candidates, one job: how to choose
Similar work, similar price — what actually decides it is not in the portfolio
2 min read
When two candidates have comparable work, most clients pick the cheaper one — which is the worst available tiebreaker. A ฿3,000 difference means nothing if the work lands two weeks late.
Look at the questions they asked
A candidate who asks "how many existing customer records are in the current system?" is already thinking about migration. One who asked nothing will start asking halfway through the build.
Good questions are the most reliable signal that someone has actually done this kind of work.
Run a small paid trial
If the project is large and you are torn, carve the first milestone into something small and real: one page designed, one article written.
You get to see three things a portfolio never shows: how fast they reply, whether they hit the date, and how they take feedback.
Always pay for it. Asking for free work "as a test" makes the strongest candidates withdraw.
Ask about a project that went wrong
"Tell me about a project that didn't go to plan, and what you did."
"That has never happened" is the worst possible answer. Anyone with real mileage has been there, and the person who can describe it plainly is the one who will tell you early when something starts slipping — instead of going quiet until it is too late.
Poor tiebreakers
- Years of experience — ten years repeating the same job beats four varied ones far less often than people assume
- How fast the proposal arrived — a reply in two minutes is usually the same template sent to every posting
- Lowest price — if it is half of everyone else, one of you has misread the scope
Tell the person you didn't pick
Two lines is enough. The Thai freelance world is smaller than it looks, and you will be posting again.
Look at consistency, not the peak
A portfolio with one outstanding piece and five ordinary ones tells you less than six consistently good ones.
You are hiring their average, not the best thing they ever made.
Ask what they would do first
"If you started tomorrow, what would you do on day one?"
The answer separates people with a method from people who just begin. Someone who says "look at your existing customer data and talk to whoever maintains it now" is thinking in systems.
Check real availability
Ask directly how many other projects they are running, and how many hours a week yours would get.
A freelancer with excellent work who says they are completely free is sometimes a signal rather than an opportunity.