I would go to a stock photography site and buy some cheap shots of real people.
Either satisfied customer type people or people behind the scenes at project4hire. It would make the site a little less sterile. I personally think the bid for projects is a big part of the site? I would find a way to have it so you don't have to scroll down to see it. It has an element of excitement to it so I would make it visible asap. Perhaps change the order of the posts and the auction to have the posts after the auction or run the post/threads down the sides.
You may also consider putting a few strong testimonials at the very top with peoples names if possible (not usernames) and add the state that theyre from Makes it more real. They are SUPER important in building customer confidence and quelling concerns about service etc.
Hope this helps.
N Fran