Outsourcing... Any experiences?

I've outsourced tons of stuff from web research to web design and cold calling to small businesses... and the results are almost always directly proportional to the amount of instruction you give and the guidelines that come with the project.

The old hiring/firing line use to be "Hire slow/fire fast" but in the outsourcing world is "Hire fast/fire faster". You simply can't research candidates to death.

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by MichaelWinicki

I've outsourced tons of stuff from web research to web design and cold calling to small businesses... and the results are almost always directly proportional to the amount of instruction you give and the guidelines that come with the project.

Hi Michael,

This is something I'm only starting to learn... Giving good instructions and guidelines!

I've hired several writers in the past. My policy was to hire a number of them, then keep hiring the ones who did a good job to my liking...

However, I think hiring writers is relatively easy. I've been thinking for a while of hiring some kind of "virtual assistant" type of person... However, to do it right, I think I should take into account the kind of training I might have to give this person, so they will be able to do all the things I'd like them to do. (In my case, it might involve some customer relations work, sending out email broadcasts, some calendar organization, some research work, possibly liaising with other freelancers to ensure other things get done...)

The old hiring/firing line use to be "Hire slow/fire fast" but in the outsourcing world is "Hire fast/fire faster". You simply can't research candidates to death.

Yes, the strategy I use at the moment, where it's feasible, is to hire multiple people to do a similar job (e.g. write an article, create a graphic, etc.). Then, I keep using the best ones for future work, and don't re-hire the ones who weren't quite as good...

Thanks for sharing that great advice!

Best wishes!

Dien

Does anyone have a good list of places to find outsourced help.

Of course, fiverr.com would be one but what about for a Virtual Assistant? or programmer?

Just a very brief search turned up:

http://www.easyoutsource.com (owned by OnlineJobs.ph)
http://www.onlinejobs.ph/

Thanks,
Rob Yaggie

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by Rob Yaggie

Does anyone have a good list of places to find outsourced help.

Of course, fiverr.com would be one but what about for a Virtual Assistant? or programmer?

Hi Rob,

I've used oDesk before, which has recently changed its name to Upwork, after oDesk merged with Elance...

https://www.upwork.com

I've hired writers and editors there. One of my brothers has hired programmers there for his projects.

Although I've never (yet) hired a virtual assistant, I have on occasion looked through potential virtual assistants to hire on oDesk - now Upwork...

I've hired graphics people through Fiverr https://www.fiverr.com before. I've hired a transcriptionist through Fiverr too, as well as (prior to that) through a couple of specific online transcriptionist companies...

I've generally found them all to be good experiences. As I wrote earlier, my "strategy" is to hire multiple people initially (and give them similar tasks), then choose the best and continue to hire those people for ongoing work...

I hope that helps!

Best wishes,

Dien

Not used a VA, sorry.

I've used iWriter for articles - be very specific about what you want. The basic level writers usually need a bit of editing but their quality seems to improve as the article gets longer (because they only get paid if you approve).

Transcription: Fiverr. A couple of years back it cost me $5 per 15 minutes.

Some graphics: Fiverr but it can be hit & miss so I also use Freelancer. Again, be specific. For instance I'll spell out that 3 different designs doesn't mean the same design in 3 different colours. I've had most success on graphics on Freelander with Eastern Europeans.

Simple bug fixes on websites: Fiverr. Including fixing scripts, scary htaccess stuff and more.

Programming can be hit and miss on Freelancer and you have to know what you're talking about otherwise they can try to pull the wool over your eyes. Same goes for website design.

I had a database tuned up on Freelancer and the guy was really good (a Russian living in New Zealand).

PeoplePerHour I've recently had some success with on a website redesign. As with Freelancer, take the time to read the reviews (not just the star ratings) and talk with two or three that you shortlist before awarding the project.

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by trevord92

Not used a VA, sorry.

I've used iWriter for articles - be very specific about what you want. The basic level writers usually need a bit of editing but their quality seems to improve as the article gets longer (because they only get paid if you approve).

Transcription: Fiverr. A couple of years back it cost me $5 per 15 minutes.

Some graphics: Fiverr but it can be hit & miss so I also use Freelancer. Again, be specific. For instance I'll spell out that 3 different designs doesn't mean the same design in 3 different colours. I've had most success on graphics on Freelander with Eastern Europeans.

Simple bug fixes on websites: Fiverr. Including fixing scripts, scary htaccess stuff and more.

Programming can be hit and miss on Freelancer and you have to know what you're talking about otherwise they can try to pull the wool over your eyes. Same goes for website design.

I had a database tuned up on Freelancer and the guy was really good (a Russian living in New Zealand).

PeoplePerHour I've recently had some success with on a website redesign. As with Freelancer, take the time to read the reviews (not just the star ratings) and talk with two or three that you shortlist before awarding the project.

Thanks Trevor,

That's great advice!

While I haven't hired programmers myself (yet), one of my brothers has... I know he had "hit and miss" experiences too.

In his experience, he found some of the programmers he hired from Eastern Europe wrote what they call "spaghetti code"... Which means it works, but it's a nightmare for another programmer to come in later to try to fix it, because it's a nightmare trying to figure out what's going on!

On the other hand, for another project he hired a (much more expensive) American programmer, and the code was well-commented, well-structured, etc. You might not notice the difference at first, but if someone has to go in later to modify it or fix it, that's when you'll notice the difference!

Fantastic advice... I'm going to have to "jump in" further and do a lot more outsourcing (since it also expands what you're capable of as an entrepreneur)...!

Best wishes,

Dien

Thanks Dien!

On iWriter my instructions are usually a variant of these:

Please don't write in the third person ("one" etc.)

Please make the style several bullet points/tips (5 or 7 works well).

Please make sure your work is split into paragraphs, not just one long article.

Please don't over-do the keyword density - just write naturally.

Writing is relatively straightforward and is probably the easiest thing to outsource.

Graphics you need to check it's not infringing copyright - not always easy but Google's image search has helped. Or one project the designer sourced the images & I bought them from the recommended stock site.

Coding can be anything from a simple fix to a really big project.

Spaghetti code is always a problem - difficult to specifiy as most programmers have their own style.

Bug testing is the part I really hate as you can't assume that whatever got corrected last time has stayed corrected or something else hasn't got broken in the next iteration.

Microsoft don't get all the bugs fixed and they've got stricter procedures and bigger budgets.

There are so many variables to test and check for.

Even Google "broke" the internet a while back when something they hadn't trapped for happened.

Testing takes longer than you ever plan!

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by trevord92

Thanks Dien!

On iWriter my instructions are usually a variant of these:

Please don't write in the third person ("one" etc.)

Please make the style several bullet points/tips (5 or 7 works well).

Please make sure your work is split into paragraphs, not just one long article.

Please don't over-do the keyword density - just write naturally.

Writing is relatively straightforward and is probably the easiest thing to outsource.

Graphics you need to check it's not infringing copyright - not always easy but Google's image search has helped. Or one project the designer sourced the images & I bought them from the recommended stock site.

Coding can be anything from a simple fix to a really big project.

Spaghetti code is always a problem - difficult to specifiy as most programmers have their own style.

Bug testing is the part I really hate as you can't assume that whatever got corrected last time has stayed corrected or something else hasn't got broken in the next iteration.

Microsoft don't get all the bugs fixed and they've got stricter procedures and bigger budgets.

There are so many variables to test and check for.

Even Google "broke" the internet a while back when something they hadn't trapped for happened.

Testing takes longer than you ever plan!

Thanks Trevor for these tips... Excellent ones!

Also, a great list of "do's" and "don'ts" for writers, too...

On graphics, that's good advice. I haven't actually checked to make sure that the graphics I've had made up weren't "stolen" from a copyrighted source. I'll make sure to find out the source in future (to make sure it's legal)! You don't want to have legal headaches down the track!

I know from my brother's experiences that hiring programmers can sometimes be difficult. I think his experience was more or less that you get what you pay for - and he did find that the more expensive programmers were better "quality" - they wrote better code, which was easier to modify or fix up later...

The thing which I didn't realize for a long time is that, hiring is a skill. I naively thought, if you want something done, you just hire someone, and it gets done! Of course, it's rarely that straightforward... However, the more you do, the better at it you get!

Best wishes,

Dien

The advantage of reducing operating costs! It appears because of the difference in wages between countries or just cutting employee compensation costs and office space expenses (and it’s still significant savings). You can save up to 60% of your budget by outsourcing some tasks to another company, so it's definitely the right choice for a business.

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by abbyrobinson

The advantage of reducing operating costs! It appears because of the difference in wages between countries or just cutting employee compensation costs and office space expenses (and it’s still significant savings). You can save up to 60% of your budget by outsourcing some tasks to another company, so it's definitely the right choice for a business.

Dien may accept paid ads, ask him. But until then, we prefer participation, which is why I deleted your signature link.

Gordon