Post on 20-May-2015
description
Advice on Virtual Outsourcing... For Both Clients and Freelancers
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Want to hire a virtual freelancer or start your own freelancing career?
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
According to Forbes, the size of the global online work industry is expected to grow to $5B by
2018 and it’s expected that more and more corporate teams will
include virtual members.
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
As both a marketing freelancer and a hiring client I have
learned a few things.
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Some tips based on my experience...
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
FOR CLIENTS
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Do as much as you can to figure out exactly what you
need help with and what the scope of work will be.
1
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
2If you are unsure of the scope
or the exact skills needed, do some research to try
and figure them out. Set yourself up for success.
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
If you’ve never looked for virtual talent before,
test and learn before bogging yourself down in endless
profiles and resumes.
3
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Talk to people in your network; they may know someone
that fits the bill. Also browse freelance platforms like Elance, Guru, and oDesk.
4
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Consider the investment you need to make to get a good
return vs. how much it’s going to cost you.
5
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Be nice to candidates; be a grownup; treat others as you want to be treated. What goes
around comes around. Keep that in mind.
6
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
FOR FREELANCERS
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Know what you want, what you’re great at and how you can help people. Figure out
who your target client is and map your messaging, resume
and profile to that.
1
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Work your network; brand and market yourself; find leads;
build relationships.
Freelance pla*orms are but one way to find projects and I don’t recommend depending on them as your sole source, par<cularly if you are just star<ng out.
2
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Allow for a startup period where you may not get any
business and/or need to undercut the market temporarily to get work and a track record.
3
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Be confident in your skills; stick to your guns on what
you want from your freelance career.
It’s OK to make it about you.
4
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Similarly, work diligently to get projects that suit your goals (as
well as the client’s). Try and build your pipeline based also
on what you want.
5
©Lydia’s Marke.ng Consul.ng | www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com | Contact: lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com
Consider this a baseline and general food for thought.
For more context and the full narra.ve visit the complete blog post at Lydia’s Marke.ng Blog:
Advice on Virtual Outsourcing — For Both Clients and Freelancers
Lydia’s Marke.ng & Communica.on Consul.ng Visit www.lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com Contact informa.on: LYDIA VOGTNER lydia@lydiamarke.ngconsul.ng.com 415-‐672-‐1870