I have worked online for ~8 years as a programmer and most of my clients don't know where I'm from. It's just not important if I can do the work and communicate

I have worked online for ~8 years as a programmer and most of my clients don't know where I'm from. It's just not important if I can do the work and communicate effectively (by email). Try picking up short term contract freelancing work, and then hopefully some of those clients will become regulars. I used to bid for dozens of projects a week on Elance, but now most work comes from a few regulars.