HowtoOutsource

Contents

HowtoOutsource........................................................................................................................................1

Contents.......................................................................................................................................................2

Introduction.................................................................................................................................................3

WhattoOutsource.......................................................................................................................................4

WhoToOutsourceTo................................................................................................................................10

HowToFindThem.....................................................................................................................................16

MechanicalTurk:ClickWorking.................................................................................................................17

DesignCompetitions..................................................................................................................................27

UpWork:HiringRealPeople.......................................................................................................................31

Otheroptions.............................................................................................................................................37

DarkMagic:Puttingitalltogether.............................................................................................................37

IntroductionThisbookistheresultofrepeatedinteractionswithvariouspeopleIcoachandadvisewhowantedtoknowhowtooutsourceworkusingtheinternet.Theyhadworkandneededtofindpeopletodoitasquicklyandcheaplyaspossible.ThisissomethingI’vedonealot,spendinghundredsofthousandsofdollarsonoutsourcing.

Theideaofoutsourcingisveryeasy–findpeopletodoworkforusbecausewecan’tdoitorwedon’thavethetime.Therealityismuchmorecomplicated…

Areyouscaredofoutsourcing?Youshouldbe.It’seasytowastetimeandmoney,butwithsomehelpyoucanavoidthecommonmistakesandgetgoingquickly.

First,weshouldknowwhattooutsource.Atfirstglancethisshouldbeeasybutreally,weneedtoknowwhatwe’regoodatsoweknowwhatotherscandobetterthanus.Mostofusthinkwe’regoodateverything,orwe’dliketothinkso.Weneedtobehonestandrealizewearen’tgoodatallthingsallthetime,figureoutwhatwearegoodatandoutsourcetheotherthings.

Second,weneedtofigureoutwhotooutsourceto.Whattypeofpersoncanhelpwiththisthing?Whatskillsdotheyneed?Whendoesitneedtobedone?Thisisn’talwayseasysinceifwearen’tgoodatsomethingthenhowdowejudgeifsomeoneelseisgoingtohelp?

Third,howdowefindthem?Thereareavarietyofwaystofindpeoplefordifferenttasks.Theycanbenearorfar,workforaprojectgoalortime,workwithorcompetewithothers.

Thislittlebookisabouthowtofigureoutthosethreethingsandgetyouonyourway.

Justsowe’reallclear,thisisn’tatechnicalbook.Ifyouneedtechnicalhelpgetintouchorfindsomeonenearyou(oroutsourcethem!)

Letmeknowwhatyouthink,I’matsteve@stevecoast.com

WhattoOutsourceIfyoualreadyhaveasimple,well-definedproblemtooutsourceyoucanofcourseskipthissection.Ifyoudon’t,readon…

Whatareyougoodat?Themostwonderfuljobtohaveissomething;

a) you’regoodat,b) youenjoyandc) payswell.

It’seasiertohavetwooroneoutofthethree.Ifyouknowwhatyou’regoodatthenitbecomesmucheasiertofigureoutwhatyou’renotgoodat.

So,grabapieceofpaperandwritedownwhatyouthinkyou’regoodat.Mostofushaveneverdonethis,it’sworththetime.

Ashumans,we’refullofblindspotsandwedon’talwaysknowourselvesverywell.Becauseofthisitcanbeeasiertoaskotherpeoplewhatwe’regoodat.Askfivepeoplewhattheythinkyou’regoodatandwritethatdowntoo.

Trytoasktheminawaythatdoesn’tbiastheanswer.Ifyouaskpeople“whatdoyouthinkI’mgoodat?”Thenthey’lltrytotellyouwhatyouwanttohear.They’llaskyouwhatyoumean,orwhatareayou’reinterestedin.Becauseofthis,firstframethequestion.

Tellthemthereisnorightanswer,andyou’retryingtofigureoutwhattoworkon.Makesuretoaskmanydifferentpeople,andtrytousepeoplethataren’tbiasedlikeyourimmediatefamily.Peoplethatknowyouwelllikelong-timecoworkersareagreatexampleofsomeonetoask.

Thelistofthingsyouhearbackmaysurpriseyou,andmaybeoutsideofwhatyou’rethinking.

Forexample,youmightbetoldthatyou’reagoodlistenerbutyourjobisinrobotics.Doyouagreeordisagreewithwhatyou’rehearing?

Theideahereisnottostartarguingwiththeliststraightawaybuttobuildalistandfindoutwhatyouhearmultipletimesfromdifferentpeople.

Great–nowwehavealistofthingswe’regoodat!

Thisisoneofthosethingswhereyoushoulddothework.Ifyoudon’thaveareallistofthingsthengogetthem,thisdoesn’tworkwellasatheoreticalexercise!

Whatdoyouenjoy?Takeallthething’syou’regoodat.Whetheryouagreeordisagreewiththem,circletheonesthatyouenjoy.

Whatmakesmoney?Takethesamelist,andhighlighttheonesthatmakemoney.Ifyoudon’thaveahighlighter,thenunderlinethemordosomethingelsetomarkthem.

AnalyzingtheresultsLookatthelist.Ifyouhaveafewthingsthatyou’regoodat,youenjoyandmakemoneythenwonderful.

Ifyou’rehappywiththelist,youcanthenmoveonandskipthis.

Ifnot,haveathinkabouteachitem.Here’ssomeexamplestohelpyou:

Item Example Thinking IdeaGoodatit Listening Isthereawayyoucan

enjoyitandmakemoney?

Becomeatherapist

Enjoyit MountainBiking Canyougetgoodatitandmakemoney?

Workatabikeshop

Goodatitandenjoyit HorseRiding Howcanyoumakemoney?

Writeablogabouttopicsyoucomeacross,advertiseonitandfindclientsusingit

Goodatitandmakemoneydoingit

KnittingSweaters(formanypeopleifthey’repaidandgoodatitbutdon’tenjoyit,it’stheirdayjob)

Howcanyouenjoyit? Hireotherpeopletoknitthesweaterssoyoucanfocusonthepartsyouenjoy.Inotherwords–outsourcethis.

Enjoyitandmakemoneydoingit

Thiscategoryusuallydoesn’texistsinceifpeoplearepayingyou,thenyou’regoodatit.

Howcanyougetgoodatit?

Doyouhaveimposterssyndrome?

Makemoneydoingit Thingsyouusedtodobutbecameboredof.

Howcanyouenjoyitandbegoodatit?

Sinceyouknowhowtodoit,hiringpeopletodothisisusuallyeasy

Noticeyouusuallyhaveachoiceforeachitem.Youcaneitherchangeyourself(findawaytoenjoyit,forexample)orfindsomeoneelsetodoit,oryoucandoboth.

Forthingsnotonthelistatall,findsomeoneelsetodoit.Ifcleaningtoiletsisn’tonyourlist,findsomeoneelsetodoit.

Forthingsyouenjoy,aregoodatandmakemoney,dolotsofthat.

Foreverythingelse,findsomeoneelsetodoit.

TheflipsideIfyouenjoysomething,thenyoucanruinitbyturningitintowork.Figureskatingontheweekendisunlikelytogetmoreenjoyableifyoustartsellingskatesallday.

Inthesameway,notcaringaboutwhatyouworkoncanbeveryuseful.Bankloanofficersarelookingforpeoplewhowanttomakemoney,notpeoplepursuingapassion.

Notcaringaboutrunningcarwashesorrunningapaintingcompanyisdifferentfromnotcaringaboutthequalityofthework.Tomakemoney,itshouldbethebestcarwashorpaintshopintown.

Whatareyouspendingyourtimeon?Youcaneasilybespendingyourtimeonthewrongthings.

Theclassicexampleisyourbookkeepingandaccounts.You’regreatatsellingsnowboards,butspendadayeachmonthbookkeeping.Thatdayisbetterspentsellingsnowboards,orgoingtoasalestrainingeventtogetbetter,orpracticallydoinganythingotherthanbookkeeping.

Writedownhowyouspentyourtimelastweek.Nowthisweek,trackit.Useapenandpaperifyoumust.Usually,howyouthinkyouspentyourtimeandhowyoudoaredifferent.

Whenyoulookatallthewaysyouspentyourtime,howmanyareonyouroriginallistofthingsyouenjoy,aregoodatormakemoney?

Circleallthethingsyoudon’tenjoy,don’tmakemoneyon,oraren’tgoodatthatyoudidlastweek.Thesearethingstooutsource.

TheSecretThebigsecretisthatpeopleenjoydoingthethingsyoudon’tenjoy.

Accountingmaybeincrediblyboringtoyou–allthosenumbers!Buttherearepeopleouttherewholovethatstuff.Wearestuckinourownheadsalldaysowetendtothinkifwedon’tenjoysomethingthenotherpeopledon’t.Wealsosurroundourselveswithpeoplelikeourselves,sowedon’toftenmeetthoseotherpeople.

Butthereisproof.Justgolookontheinternet.Therearepeoplewholovealmostanythingyoucanimagine,includingcleaningsewers.Orkitesurfing.Orcolonoscopies.Ormakingtheirowntoasters.

Here’sthedoublesecret:Becausetheyloveittheywilldoitbetter,cheaper,andquickerthanyoucan.

It’sincredible,buttrue.Youshouldtrytofocusonwhatyoumakemoneyat,whichisusuallywhatyou’regoodat.Foreverythingelse,it’sbetter,cheaperandquickertohiresomeoneelse.

Thisiswhereprosperitycomesfrom.Ineconomics,wecallthisspecializationoflabor.Youdowhatyou’regoodat,andhireotherpeopletodowhatthey’regoodat.

Therearetwootherbigreasonsyouwanttohiresomeone.

First,theyknowthingsyoudon’tknow.Here’sanexample:It’sverycommonforengineerstothinkalegaldocumentislikeinstructions,arecipe,orsoftware.Thereasonyoupayalawyeristhatit’stheopposite,andalawyerknowsthis.Salespeopleknowhowtosell,lawyersknowthelaw,andsoon.

Second,theyknowpeopleyoudon’tknow.YouhirePRpeoplebecausetheyhaveanetworkofjournalistsandeditorstheyknow,notbecausethey’regoodatPR(thoughthat’sgreattoo).

Whileyoucanlearnwhatyoudon’tknow,andyoucanmeetpeopleyoudon’tknow,itwilltakeyoualongtime,costyoumoneyandyoumightnotenjoyit.Usuallyit’sbetter,cheaperandquickertofindsomeoneelsewhoalreadyknowsthethingsorthepeople.

ThinkingaboutpeoplewithotherskillsWhenyouthinkaboutpeoplewithotherskills,understandtheyprobablythinkdifferentlytoyouaboutthings.

I’veseenitmanytimesatsoftwarecompanies.Theengineersthinkthesalespeoplearesomewherebetweenpointlessanduseless.ThesalespeoplethinktheengineersshouldbeoutsourcedtoTimbuktu.

Thisisbecausetheirskillsetsarealmostexactlymutuallyexclusive.Engineersdealinlogicalldaylong.Salespeopledealinemotionsalldaylong.Sotheydon’thaveagreatunderstandingofeachothersjobs.Wedon’twanttofixthathere.

Whatwedowant,isforyoutounderstandbothsides.

Thekeyistounderstandthatdifferentpeoplethinkdifferently.Lettheengineersbetrappedinengineering,theyenjoyit.Letthesalespeoplebetrappedinsales,theyenjoythat.Ourjobistostepupalevelbecauseifwedon’twewilltrytohiresalespeopleintoengineeringandengineersintosales.

Bothengineeringandsalesarefun,finevocations.There’snothingnegativeabouteither.Butforyoutohirepeopleyoushouldunderstandthatdifferentrolesrequiredifferentthinkingandhavedifferentcultures.Thatdoesn’tmakeonebetterthantheother.

Trytounderstandtheroleyou’rehiringfor.Whatmakesthemtick?Whatconferencesdotheygoto?

You’renotheretoagreewiththem.Youmayhatesalesconferences.Yourroleistogivethemwhattheywant,whichmayincludegoingtosalesconferences.Youwon’tknowwhattheywantwithoutaskingthem,understandingtheroleandsoon.Anexcellentwaytodothiswouldbetoreadsomesalesbooks,forexample.

Sowhenyouthinkabouttherolesyou’rehiringfor,thinkaboutthekindofpersonthatdoesit.Thinkaboutwhattheywant,howtheydressandhowtheyinteract.Readafewbooksaroundtheirprofession.Itwillhelpyouunderstandthem,andthey’llappreciateitnoend.

TheProblemsHere’swhatyou’regoingtosay:

• Idon’thavethemoneytohiresomeone• Idon’thavethetimetohiresomeone• Idon’tknowhowtohiresomeone

Thesearereasonableandgoodconcerns.

Ifyou’reliterallybootstrappingwith$0thenthisisliterallytrue.Theadvantageforyouwith$0isyouhavenothingtolose.Youalsohaveeverythingtogain.Bylearninghowtodothingsyourselfwith$0yougetaneducationnouniversitycangiveyou.Foreveryoneelse,readon:

Idon’thavethemoneyYes,youdo!

Thekeyistochangehowyouthinkaboutmoney.Mostofusthinkwe’resavingmoneybydoingourownbookkeeping.Wethinkaboutitintermsofplaincash–dowehavethemoneyordoessomeoneelse?

Weneedtochangethisblack&whiteideabyrememberingtheothertwothingsfromourlistearlier.Yes,wearesavingmoneybut:Doweenjoyit,andarewegoodatit?Formostpeopletheanswerisnoandno.

Thisisoneofthosethingswheretheprimaryeffectiseasytosee–wesavemoneybydoingourownaccounting!Yay!

Whatwedon’tseeiswhatmoneywewouldmakedoingsomethingelse.Wecouldpayabookkeeper$50/hourtodoourbookkeepingbutbeearning$100/hoursellingsnowboards.

Evenifweearnthesameorlessper-hourthanourbookkeeper,it’susuallybettertopaythemtodoit.Why?Becausewe’renotusuallygoodatitandwedon’tenjoyit.

Ifwe’renotgoodatit,wewillmakemistakes.Ifyoumakeamistakeinbookkeepingitwillcostyourealmoney,it’sjustamatteroftime.

Ifwedon‘tenjoyit,wearepayingeverywhereelse.We’relesshappy,wehavelessenergy.Youneedthosethingsmuchmorethanthe$50,believeme.It’sverydrainingtoworkonthethingswedon’tenjoy,andthecostsarehiddenallovertheplace.

Here’stheotherthing:Hiringcanbeway,waycheaperthanyouexpect.Youmaypay$50/hourtoaccountantswhereyoulive,butyouraccountantdoesn’thavetobewhereyoulive.Theycanbealotcheaperinotherplaces,andthankstotheinternetyoucanhirethemthereinstead.

Idon’thavethetimeNothavingtimeisoneofthebestreasonstohiresomeone:Byhiringthem,yougetmoretime!

Nothavingtimeisawonderfulplacetobein.Mostpeopledon’thavemoney.Ifyouneedtohaveaproblem,nothavingtimeisthebestonetohave.

Weneedtothinkaboutmargins.

Imagineadesignerwho’spaid$1000todoaprojectandittakes9hourstocompleteitand1hourfortheclientphonecall.Thispersonisverybusyandhasnotime.They’repaid$100/hour($1,000dividedby10hoursworktotal).

Imagineanotherdesignerwho’salsopaid$1000foraprojectbuttheypay$500tosomeoneelsetodotheworkinstead.Nowtheyonlywork1hourwiththeclient.They’repaid$500forthatonehourcall.Sothey’repaid$500/hourand9freehours.Yes,they’repaid50%less.Buttheydiditfor90%lesstime!

Theycoulddotwoprojectslikethisandspend2hours,stillmake$1000,andhave8hoursfreetoworkorplay.

Whichwouldyoupick?10hoursfor$1,000or2hoursfor$1,000?

Youmayquibblethattheyneedtospendsometimewiththeiroutsourceddesigner,andthat’sfair,butitdoesn’tdestroythemainpointI’mmaking.

Youmayalsothinkyoudon’twanttooutsourcewhatyoudo.Butconsiderthis–ifyoudosomethingwellthenyou’regoingtobegreatathiringforit.Ifyou’readesigner,youknowwhatgreatdesignlookslike.You’llbegoodathiringdesigners.Ifyou’retryingtohireanuclearphysicistitcouldbealotmoredifficultforyoutomakesureyou’regettingthebestcost/qualityyou’relookingfor.

Whichbringsusneatlytothelastobjection:

Idon’tknowhowtohireLuckily,you’rereadingthisbook.Let’scontinue…

WhoToOutsourceToNowweknowwhatwewantoutsourcedweshouldfigureoutwhocandothatwork.

NobodyTheabsolutebestpersontooutsourceworktoisnobodyatall.

Ifyoulookatthethingyouwanttooutsource,canitbeavoidedentirely?Here’sanexample:Yourunarestaurantandyouneedsomeonetocleanthetablecloths.Canyougetawaywithnotableclothsatall?Howaboutpaperdisposabletablecloths?

Manythingsarelikethis.Let’ssayyou’redoingalotofonlinemarketing.Areyougettinganycustomersthatwayoraretheyallwalkinginthedoor?Theanswermaybetojuststoponlinemarketingratherthanhiringsomeonetodoit.

Anotherexampleissomeonewhoalwaysgivesyouthesameanswerinmostcases.Canyouonlydothework,orgotothem,incertaincasesandavoidalltheothertimewhenyouknowwhatthey’llsay?

Theabsoluteclassicismiddlemen.Here’sanexample:You’rethepointofcontactforacompanywithasupplierandeveryoneatthecompanygoesthroughyou.Thishappensallthetime.Dotheyreallyneedtogothroughyou?Couldpeoplegetquickeranswerstalkingtothemdirectlyandccyou?

Haveareal,deep,thinkaboutthework.Canyoujustavoiditinthefirstplace?

SomeoneElseThesecond-bestpersontooutsourceworktoissomeonewho’salreadyemployed.

Doyouhaveaco-workerorfriendwhocandoit?Youmaybesurprisedatwhatpeopleenjoydoing.Maybeyouhaveanemployeewhoenjoysbookkeepingandhassomesparetimetohelpyou.Neverforcepeopleintothingslikethis.You’llgetmuchmoreoutofthemiftheysincerelywanttodoit.

Onarelatednote,volunteerscanbewonderful.Thereareallkindsofpeopleouttherewhoenjoyvolunteeringtohelp.Maybesomeoneispassionateaboutwhatyou’redoingandishelpingoutforfree.Trygivingthemmorework.Theworstthatcanhappenistheysayno.

SpreadsheetitAveryclosethirdpersonyouwanttohireisacomputer.Ifyoucanreplacesomeonewithaspreadsheetyoucansavealotoftimeandmoney.

Canyouautomateit?Therearetwomainclassesofthingsyoucanautomate.

First,thingsyoucanautomateyourself.SendingyourcustomersreminderemailsisthekindofthingthatyoucaneasilydomanuallyeveryMondayorsomething.But,there’slotsoftoolsouttheretodothesekindsofthingsautomatically.Thesearetypicallythingsanyonecando.

Maybeyouhavealittleexperiencewithspreadsheets,orsalestools.Withalittlework,youcantypicallyautomatealotofthings.

Whatifyoupersonallycan’tautomateit?

Thisisthesecondclassofthings:Canyouhiresomeonetoautomateit?Thisrequiresalargeroutline.

Here’sthetrickything–youdon’tknowwhatyoucanandcan’tautomate.Becauseifyoudidknow,thenyou’dalreadyautomateitorwouldbedoingso.

Whenyoulookattheworkyouhaveinfrontofyou,youmaythinkitisn’tautomatable.Butsomeoneinsoftwaremaythinkit’seasytoautomateandyoudon’tknowthat.

Or,youmaythinkyouneedtogotoalawyereachtimeforapieceofwork.Butifyoutalktothemyoumayfindthatin80%ofcasesyoudon’tneedthem,unlessit’sthe20%thatdo.Youdon’tknowwithoutasking.Maybeyoucanthenautomatethat80%case.

Or,turnitaround.Howmanytimeshavepeopletoldyouthattheycouldn’tdowhatyoudo?Mostofusthink‘ohit’seasyIjustreadthesebooksandpractice’.Thekeyhere,isthat’smostpeopletoo.Everyonefromaccountantstozoologistsprettymuchjustreadbooksandpracticed.Wejustneedtogofindthemtohelpus.

So,wedon’tdirectlyknowwhatwecouldautomateinourwork.

Therefore,wemayneedtoaskanintermediary.Eitherhiresomeone,orotherwise,showsomeonewhoknowssoftwareallthethingsyou’redoingandseeifacomputercandoitautomatically.Itmaybesurprisingwhatacomputercando,inthisneweraofmachinelearning.

Yes,itwillcostmoneyupfront.Buttheadvantageisthatfromthenon,itwillbemuchcheapertodo.

Ittookalotoftimeandmoneytoinventmodernfarmingmachinery,veryfewpeoplewanttogobacktohand-pickingcorn.Inthesameway,youmaybeabletoautomatemanythingsyou’redoingandneverwanttogoback.

HireSomeoneOk!We’vefiguredoutweneedtohireanactualphysicalhumanbeingtodosomething.

Orhavewe?

There’saveryhighchanceyouinsteadwanttohireanintermediary.Forexample,youmaythinkyouneedtohireawebsitedesignerforyourflowershop.

Butyou’reanexpertinflowers,notwebsites.Thisiswhysomanypeoplehaveterriblewebsitesandbadrelationshipswiththeirwebsitesuppliers.Youmaynothavetheskillstojudgedesigntalent,costorwhattheunderlyingtechnologyis.

Hereyouhavetwochoicestoinsulateyourselffromthewebsitedesigner.

Inthefirstinstance,youcangotoawebsitecompanyratherthananindividual.Acompanywillhavepeoplewithmultipleskills,reliabilityandsoon.

Second,youcanfindaprojectorproductmanager.Thistypeofpersonmaynothaveexpertisearoundwebsitesorflowersbuttheyareveryusedtomanagingthesekindsofrelationships.Theywillcollect

requirementsfromyou(whatdoyouwant?)andcommitmentsfromyourdesigner(whenwilltheydoit?)Then,everydayoreveryweek,they’llmakesureeveryoneisonthesamepage.

Eitherway,itcostsalittlemoremoneytohavetheseintermediariesbetweenyouandthewebdeveloper/designer.Butitcansaveyoualotmoremoneyandpaindowntheroad.

So–doyouneedanintermediarytohelpyou?Ifyou’rehiringforaskilloutsideofwhatyoudo,it’sagreatideatogetsomehelpfromanintermediary,atleastatfirst.Ifyou’vehired10salespeoplebefore,youprobablydon’tneedhelphiringnumber11.

Ifyoudoneedanintermediary,aprojectorproductmanagercanbemorethanfine.Youdon’tnecessarilyneedanexpertinthefieldtohelpmanagetheperson.Thiscancutcostsdownoverthelongterm.

Theotherthingtheycandoishireforyou.Youcanhireaprojectmanagerandaskthemtohireagreatwebdesignerusingthecriteriayousetout.Thisagainmayseemtocostmoretimeandmoney,butinmanycases,willsaveyoualotofhassle.Doyouwanttolookthrough30resumesorcanaprojectmanagerdothatcheaperandquickerthanyoucan?

HireSomeone:Part2Okay,Okay,therubberisnowmeetingtheroad.Peopleinthemarketforyourworkhaveseveralattributestothem:

• Experience• Cost• Location• Culture• Language• Reliability• Timing• …

Thesetendtotradeoffagainsteachother.Reliable,experiencedpeoplelocatednearyouwillcostmorethanunreliablenewbiesontheothersideoftheplanet.Therefore,costcangotogetherwithotherfactors.

Whichfactorsareimportanttoyou?

Arbitrageisbuyingsomethingcheapbecauseofsomereasonandsellingitmoreexpensivelywherethatreasondoesn’tapply.Thatreasoncouldbetime,location,experience,acombinationorsomethingelse.

Forexample,watermaybecheapwhereyouarebutnextweek(achangeintime)whenthere’satornadowhichdestroyseverything,itcouldbemuchmoreexpensive.OritcouldbemoreexpensiveinthemiddleoftheSaharaDesert(achangeinlocation).

Ifyou’rewillingtonegotiateonthesedifferentfactors,youtypicallygetacheapercost.Therefore,youshoulddecidewhichonesareimportanttoyou.

Normallyoutsourcingisconcernedwithlocation.Hiringsomeonefarawayisoftencheaper.Butitpaystothinkabouthowelseitcouldbecheaper.Themostinterestingistime.Ifyou’rewillingtowaitafewweeksforsomework,youcanoftengetitdonemorecheaply.

Ifitdoesn’thavetobethebestwork,youcanbeflexibleonquality.

Thesethingsareallentangled.Ifsomeonedoesn’thavealotofexperiencetheywilltendtochargelessbutontheotherhandtakemoretimetodoit.Theywillalsotendtomakemistakeswhichcostmoreofyourtime.

Lastly,let’stalkabouttrust.

Don’tdeludeyourself.Trustcomesfromtime.Youcannotandshouldnottrustpeoplestraightawayunlessthey’reinaprofessionwhichheavilypenalizesmistakes.Youcanusuallytrustadoctororapoliceofficerbecausethey’vebeenheavilyfiltereddowntothetrustworthyones,andiftheyscrewthatupthentheygotoprisonorhaveothermajorlifeproblems.

Thus,whenyou’rehiringontheinternet,doyouneedtotrustthem?

Ifsomeoneismakingalogoforyoutheanswerisprobablyno.Ifthey’redoingyouraccountingtheanswerisprobablyyes.Therearethreewaystogettrustworkinghere.

First,beinthesamecountry.Ifyourbookkeeperoraccountantisatleastinthesamecountryasyou,thenyoucangoafterthemiftheydosomethingverynaughtysinceyou’reunderthesamelegalumbrella.Becarefulthough,peoplecommitsmallfraudallthetimeandgetawaywithitbecauseit’susuallymoreexpensivetogoafterthemthantomoveon.

Second,usesecretsharing.ToolslikeQuickBooksOnlineallowanaccountanttologinanddoaccountantthingswithouthavingfullaccesstoyourbankaccount.Besuspiciousiftheywantmoreinformationthanyouthinktheyneed.

Third,usereputation.Ifsomeonehasbeendoingthisalongtimewithmanyclients,they’remorelikelytobetrustworthythanthenewguy.

Somethingsjustaren’tworthit.Ifyou’regoingtolosesleepoverit,usesomeonenearyouwitharealofficeyoucanvisitandsaveoutsourcingforthingswheretrustisn’tanissue.

Whatdoyouneedfromthem?Whenyou’rehiringsomeoneyoutypicallywanttheirtime,aproduct,orboth.Beclearaboutit.

Ifyouhaveaquestionforalawyeryoumayneed10minutesonthephone.Ifyouwantalogo,youjustwantalogoasafinalproduct.

Ifyou’reiteratingonsomething,likealegaldocument,youwantboth.Sometimetotalkaboutit,thentheproduct,thentimetotalkaboutrevisions.

Whichyouneedisimportantsincetherearedifferentplacestogetit.

Theothermajorthingyouneed,typically,istheintellectualproperty(IP)suchascopyrights,trademarks,databaserightsandanythingelsewecanthinkof.Youmaythinkthatsinceyou’repayingsomeonetomakesomethingthatyougettheIP.No.Itdoesn’tworklikethat.

Therearemanyfieldswheresomeonemayhaveabrilliantideaoutsideofworkhoursthattheylateruse.Doesthat“belong”tothemoryou?Youneedtohaveclarityoverwhatyouwanttoown.Usuallythisis“everything”buttheremaybeexceptions.

Thereare“open”licenseswhichmanyphotographers,writers,softwareengineersandothersuse.Theseallowotherpeopletousetheworksolongastheyadheretosomesimpleconditions.ThebiggestexampleisWikipediabuttherearemanyothers.

Here’sanexample:Youhiresomeonetoautomateaprocessforyouwithsomesoftware.Youcouldkeepthatsoftwaretoyourself,butmaybeitisn’tcriticaltoyouatall.Ifitisopensource(otherpeoplecanusethesoftwarecodefreely),youmayfindmoredeveloperswillingtoworkonit.Therearewebsiteswheredevelopersshareopenthingslikethis.

Similarly,developersorartistsmayuseopencontentandbuildonit.Let’ssayyouhiresomeonetomakesomegreatslidesforyou.Theycouldbuyartoruseopenphotos.Theopenphotosmaybejustasgoodandalltheyrequireisyouhavetosaythey’reopenontheslide.

Therefore,ifyoucanbeflexiblewithsomeoftheseownershipquestionsyoucansavetimeandmoney.Youshouldtalkthisthroughwiththoseyouhire(andalawyertobeextrasure).Ofcourse,ifit’scriticaltoyouthenkeepingeverythingtoyourselfmaywellbethebetteroption.

CreativityandUnderstandingSometasksrequirecreativity,likemakingabeautifullogo.Somerequirerepetition,likecalling100clients.

Whichdoyouneed?

Itmayseemclear,atfirstglance.Butsadly,itisn’t.Theremaybethingsthatareperfectlyobvioustoyouthataren’ttootherpeople.

Forexample,youmayexpectsomeonetointroducethemselvesandsmilewhilemakingaphonecallbecauseyou’vebeendoingitforever.Youcan’texpectthisofanewoutsourcedhire.Theymaynotsharethoseskills,cultureorotherthings.

Similarlyyoumayasksomeonetorepeatsomething100timesinacreativeway.ForexampleyoumakealeafletforLondonandyouasksomeonetomake99moreleafletsfordifferentcities.Thereareplentyofpeopleouttherewhowouldn’tknowwheretostartwithatasklikethat.Justpickingcitiesmaybeaproblem.They’llpick99inEuropebutyouwantedthemworldwide.Thingslikethat.

Theexamplesmayseemsilly,butthisexactkindofthinghappensallthetime.Therefore,inthebeginning,beincrediblyoverlyclearontasksandcheckinfrequentlytostayonthesamepageuntiltrustisbuilt.Overtimeyoucanbackoff,butnotyet.

TheMostImportantFactorHereitis.Whenhiringforsomething:Makesurethey’vedoneitbefore.

Don’thirealawyertobuildyouajetengine.Don’thireawebdesignertodoyourmarketingcopy.

Alwayshiresomeonewho’sdoneitbefore.Ifyouwantapainting,hireapainter.

Simple?Notquite.Youmayhaveagreatlawyerforcontractswho’sneverdonearentalagreement.Gofindadifferentlawyer.Oryourwebdesignerhasneverdonesysadminwork.Gofindasysadmin.

Skillsmaylookclosebuttheyaren’t.Ifthey’venotdoneitbefore,you’rejustpayingforthemtolearn.Insmallcornercases,thismaybeperfectlyfine.Itmayevenbecheaper.Butyou’repayingbecauseyoudon’tknowhowtodoit,andiftheydon’tknoweitherthenit’stheblindleadingtheblind.Soalwaysfindsomeonewho’sdoneitbefore.

HowToFindThemOkay,we’vefiguredoutwhatwewantoutsourced,andwhowewant.Nowhowdowefindthem?

You’redealingwithhumanbeingsRemember.Theymightbeontheinternet,butthey’restillhuman.Theymightbechargingpenniesonthedollar,butthey’restillhuman.Theymightscrewup,butthey’restillhuman.

Yourstartingpointinallthisisthatyouneedahumanbeingtohelpyou.Notacomputerorarobot.It’seasytolosetrackofthis,sokeepitinmind.Theyhavetheirownhopesanddreamstoo.

It’seasytoproject.Forexample:A$30k/yearsalarywhereyoulivebuysatrailerparkhome.Butthatsamesalaryforyouroutsourcedworkercouldeasilygetthematop-floordowntownapartmentwheretheyare.Don’tassumepriceisthesamethingasstatus,intelligence,oranythingelse.

FrictionNotlongagohiringpeoplewasexpensiveandtime-consuming.Thenpartingwayswasevenmoreexpensiveandtime-consuming.ItstillisformostpeopleonplanetEarth.

Theinternethaschangedthis.It’squickerandcheaperthanevertohireandfirepeople.Allthatfrictionhasgoneawaybutweactlikeithasn’t.WhatImeanis,westilltreatoutsourcinginmanywayslike“real”employees.

Inmanycountries,itmaytakemonthstofiresomeoneforlegalorculturalforexample.Eventhoughthatdoesn’tapplyonline,wemaystilltakealongtimetomoveon.So,getusedtothetoolsbeingmorepowerfulthanyoumaywantthemtobe.It’slikedrivingaracecarwhenyouneedaminivan.

Hiringonlinemeanscommunicationandaccountabilitycanbealotsharperthanbefore.Mostofthetime,forexample,thereisnoofficepoliticsintheway.Thisisn’talwaysagoodthing,manyofuswouldprefertohidebehindofficepoliticsthandoanyactualwork.

DifferenttypesofworkWe’regoingtogoin-depthonthreebasictypesofoutsourcing.

1. ClickWorking.HowandwhentouseMechanicalTurk.2. DesignWork.Competitionforyouraffectionwith99DesignsandCrowdSpring.3. RealWork.LeveragingUpWorktohirerealpeople.

Let’sgo!

MechanicalTurk:ClickWorking

Ifyourworkcanbebrokendownintomindlesstasks,thenclickworkingisforyou.

Thesearethekindsofthingswhereonepersondoingitwouldnotusuallybefeasible.Forexample,youwanttoknowtheopeninghoursof1,000restaurants.

Ifyouaskonepersontodoitthenthey’llgetbored.Notonlythat,itmaynotbepossibleinareasonableamountoftime.Italsowon’tbeeasytocheckiftheymakeamistake.

Ontheotherhand,whatifyoucouldhire1,000peopletofindonerestauranteach?Or100tocall10each?Theresultisthesame.Traditionallyyoucouldn’thire1,000peopleasthecostswouldbetoohigh.Todayit’seasy.

EnterMechanicalTurkathttp://mturk.com/

Figure1:MechanicalTurk'shomepage

MechanicalTurkallowsyoutotakelargenumbersofrepetitivetasksandfarmthemouttopeopleallovertheinternetforpenniesatatime.Here’sanexample:Youhave1,000photosandyoudon’tknowwhichcontaincatsandwhichcontaindogs.WithMechanicalTurkyoucanpay1pennyperphoto(asanexample)andgettheanswersbackinaspreadsheet.

Clickworkingisthemostcomplexofthethreeoptionsofoutsourcingbecausetypicallyyouneedsomecomputerskillstomakeitwork.Forsomesimpletasksspreadsheetknowledgeisenoughtogetstarterdbutforotherthings,HTMLandothertechnologiesareneeded.

Thisisn’tatechnicalbook,andtherearemanyguidesontheinternetforhowtouseMechanicalTurk.So,ifyouaretechnically-inclinedthengreat,andifnot,it’sbesttohiresomeonetohelpyouhere.

Whatwewilltalkaboutishowtoframeandusetheservice.

Thebiggestadvantageofclickworkingisrepeatability.Youcanask1,000peopleforwhetheraphotoisacatoradogandgetyourresultsforsomethingintherangeof$10.Butthenyoucandoitagain,too!Bydoingthismultipletimesyoucangetsomecertaintyovertheresults.Ifyouaskedonepersontodoit,itwouldtakelonger,costmore,andhavemoreerrors.

MechanicalTurkisverymuchabatchsystem.Thinkofitashavingalargespreadsheetwithamissingrow.Youhaveaspreadsheetof1,000restaurantsandaddressesbutdon’thavetheirphonenumbers.YousendthespreadsheetofftoMechanicalTurk,anditcomesbackwiththecolumnfilledinforyou.

Theproblemisambiguity.Youmayaskforaphonenumberbuttherestauranthastwophonenumbers.Ortherestaurantisclosed.Theproblemhereismaybetheworkershavenowaytotellyouthis,ifyoujustaskedforaphonenumber.

Youcan’tpredictwhattheproblemswithyourtasksaregoingtobe.They’llalwayssurpriseyou.Thatwhyyoustartsmall.

Thecommonmistakeistosendall1,000thingsofwhateveryou’reworkingonofftoMechanicalTurkandthencomebackacoupleofdayslater.Thismeansyou’llcomebacktoalotofbadresults.It’smuchbettertosendout10andpayahighpricepertaskinthebeginning.Ifwetrywithsmallsamplesfirst,wecanworkoutthebugsweencounterearly.

Ifyoupayahighpricepertask(say50centsinsteadof1penny)thenyou’llgetresultsmorequickly.Typically,youwanttobequicksoyoucaniterate.Justexpectyourfirstfewtriestohaveseriousproblemsinhowyouaskthequestionandwhatresultsyougetback.

Thenwhenyouseetheproblemsyoucanquicklycancelthebatch,goback,andfixthings.Youmayneedtodothis2-3times.Butonceit’sdone,thenyoucansendyourfulldatasetstoMechanicalTurkwithalotmoreconfidence.

Youcanaskworkerstodopracticallyanythingfrommakingaphonecalltowritingablogpost.Feelfreetotrylowpricestobeginwithandthenraisethemifyoudon’tgetresultsofthequalityorspeedyouneed.Theideaistoexperimentalittle.

Consideranotherexample.Let’ssayyouhavehundredsofitemsonyouramazonwishlist.You’dliketoknowwhichoftheseareavailableatyourlibrary.

Ontheonehand,youcouldmanuallygothroughyourselfandtypethemintoyourlibrarywebsite.Maybeyouhavetwowindowsopenonyourcomputertomakeitfaster.

Ontheotherhand,youcouldwritesoftwaretodothis.Butevenifyouhavetheskillstodoso,Amazondoesn’tmaketheselistsavailableveryeasilysoit’smorecomplicatedthanitlooks.

Clickworkingoccupiesamiddleground.Ideallyacomputercoulddothistask,butforvariousreasonsthatispainful.It’sperhapsevenmorepainfultodomanually.

WithMechanicalTurk,youcansendoutarequestforthelistofbooks.Thequestionmightlooksomethinglike“WhatisthetitleandauthorofitemnumberXonthislist<clickablelistURL>”.Thisbuildsyourlistofbooksandauthors.

Thenexttask,usingthatdata,is“Isthisbook<title>,by<author>availableatthislibrary?<libraryURL>”.Thenyou’dgetoutasecondspreadsheetofalltheitems.Andremember,thelibrarycansaveyouafewthousanddollarsinbuyingbookssomaybeit’snotabadexample!

Also,remember,therecanbemanyanswers.Maybethebookisavailablebutcheckedout,forexample.It’sbesttotryinsmallbatchesfirsttodiscovertheselittlethings.

Andbatchesitis.Itwouldbewonderfulifyoucouldmakeinformationflowthroughmechanicalturkdirectlyfromonequestiontothenext.Youcouldask“isarestaurantstillopen”andthenifitis,“whatisthemainphonenumber”andsoon.Thesetoolsdon’texistliketheyshouldtoday,sothinkinbatchesofinformation,likefilters.

So,takeyourspreadsheetof100,000thingsandfilteritdown,thendownagain.Startwiththebiggestfilterfirst;theonethatcutsoutthemostitems.Ifyoudothat,thensubsequentfiltersorquestionswillbequickersincetherewillbefeweritemstoworkon.

AnasideMechanicalTurkisoftencalledMTurkandwasstartedbackin2005.Thenamereferstoamachinefromafewhundredyearsagowhichcouldplaychess,butinrealityahumanwashiddeninsideit.

MechanicalTurkisgreatforthingscomputercan’tquitedoyetbutwillsoon.Itwasn’tsolongagothatyou’duseMTurktolookforthingsinphotosthatcomputerscandonowforfree.

WalkthroughofasimpletaskGetonhttp://mturk.com/andlogin,whichmayrequirecreatinganaccount.Oncethat’sdoneyou’llfindyoucanloginasarequesterorworker.Youwantrequester–someonewhoisgoingtopayforwork.Thisiswhattherequestersitelookslike:

Hit“Create”tofindthecreationsite:

Fromhereit’sveryself-explanatoryandthesitewillwalkyouthroughhowtocreateatask.Choosetheprojectontheleftthatisclosesttowhatyou’retryingtodo.Thenhit“CreateProject”.Thiswillbringupthe“EditProject”screen.Theimportantpartsare“SettingupyourHIT”and“Workerrequirements”.

A“HIT”isoneofyourrowsinyourspreadsheet–atasktobedone.Herewespecifyhowmuchwewanttopaypertask(apenny,forexample)asthe“reward”.Thesecondnumberisslightlymoreconfusing.Itmeanshowmanytimesdoyouwantthetaskrepeated,bydefault20times.Soifyouhaveabiglistofpicturesyoucanhave20peoplelookateachpicture.Maybeall20sayit’sacat,maybe2thinkit’sadog.

Wedothistogetmoreopinions.

Thenextthreenumbersgothroughtiming.Thefirst,thetimeallotted,ishowlongyougivesomeonetodothework.Maybelookingatacattakes5secondsbutanhourisfine,maybetheworkergetsdistractedwithaphonecallthencancomeback.

Wegive7daysbeforeeverythingexpiresandthenthelastonesayswhenweconfirmthings.Ifyoudonothing,theworkergetspaidafter3days.Ifyouwanttogothroughandlookforbadworkthenyoucan,anddenythework.Butyoumustdothiswithinthat3days(orwhateveryouset).

Ifyou’repayingapennypertaskthenthisisnotveryuseful,butifyou’repayingrealmoneythenit’sworthcheckingtheworkisdonebeforepaying.

Nextaretheworkerrequirements:

It’sunlikelyyouneed“Masters”untilyouhavecomplicatedorveryspecializedtaskstodo.Essentiallythesearepre-testedworkers.Theimportantthingherearetheworkerqualifications,andthatusuallycomesdowntolocation.Theothersthatpopupmaybeinterestingorusefultoyoudependingonthetask.Forexampleyoumaywanttorunasurveyofpeopleinaspecificincomebracket.

Locationisimportantformanytasksandusuallycomesdowntofindingpeopleinyourcountry.Ifyou’reinFrance,youprobablywantFrenchpeopletophoneuprestaurantsandaskfortheirphonenumber.

Thesethingscanallbechanged,sohavealookaroundandmoveon.Ifitbreaks,youcancomebackandre-runthewholethingwithdifferentsettings.

Nextisthe“DesignLayout”.Thisiswhattheworkerwillsee.

Thedefaultisquitetelling–it’salinktoasurvey.So,theworkerlooksatthispage,thengoesofftoanotherpage(the“example.com”linkabove)tocompletetheactualsurvey.Thatotherpagegivesthemacodetousewhencomplete,thentheyenterthecodebackonMechanicalTurk.

Inthissetupyouhavetheadvantageofusinganyrandomsiteortoolyoulike,andMechanicalTurkiseffectivelyjustthebillingplatformforfindingpeople.

Asforthecode,youcouldjustusethesameoneeverytime.Formanytasks,settingupacodesystemtocheckwhoiswhoandsoonistoopainful.Justgivetheworkerarandomcodeorgiveeveryonethesamecodeandit’llprobablyworkjustaswell.Ifyou’repayingrealmoney,thenthismightnotworksowell.

Essentiallythesesystemsaretopreventfraud.Someonecouldnotfilloutthesurveyandstillclaimtheydid.Usuallynobodyhasthetimeorenergytodothiskindofthing,iftheamountofmoneythey’dgainissmall.

Inthedesigneditoryoucandoanythingyouwant,putinfieldsandquestionsanddatafromaspreadsheet.FeelfreetogobackandtryotherexampletemplatesthatAmazonprovidestoseehowallthisworks.

Whenyou’redone,youpreview,finishandpay.Thenyoucansetthetask“live”andwatchresultscomebackin.Remember,themoremoneyyoupay,thequickertheresultswillbe.

Theoutputisabigspreadsheetwithyourresults.Theresultswillalsoincludeothercolumnslikewhattimethetaskwascompleted.Yourtasknowistolookthroughandseeifyougotwhatyouexpected,andifnot,reworkthetasktoaccountforanyissues.

Asbefore,themainissueisnotaccountingforsomethingtheworkerfinds.Forexampleyouaskforaphonenumberbuttherestaurantisclosed.Onewaytocatchthisistohaveafieldfornotesorproblemsinyourtask,ratherthanjustafieldforthephonenumber.

AfullinvestigationofallthesethingsandhowtowritetheHTMListootechnicalforthisbookandwouldresultindozensofscreenshots,buthiresomeonetechnicalordropmeanemailforhelp.

DesignCompetitionsCrowdSpringand99Designsaretwoofthemostwell-knownwebsitesforrunningcompetitionsforwork,mostlydesignwork.

Let’ssayyouwantalogodesigned.Youcouldhireonepersonbutmaybetheydon’tcomeupwithsomethingyoulike.Withthesecrowdsourcingsites,yougetideasfrommanypeopleandthenpicktheoneyoulikethebest.

They’veexpandedfarbeyondjustlogostowebsites,bookcovers,packagingandfullbranditentitypackages.

Beforeyouthinkabouttheseyouhavetoknowabitmoreaboutwhatyouwant.Ifyou’renotadesigner(it’dbepuzzlingwhyyou’dusetheseifyouare)thenyouneedtoknowhowtocommunicatewhatyouwant.Wecallthisadesignbrief.

Adesignbriefisjustalistofquestionsaboutwhatyouwant.Designersareaskedallthetimefor“acoollogo”butthatisn’tmuchtogoon.So,thequestionsrevolvearoundthefollowingtypesofquestions,whichwe’llanswerwithexamplesasifwewantedalogoforanorganicfarm:

• Whatmustthedesigncommunicate?o Greenfieldsorfarmingo Honestyo Thefarm’sname

• Whatmustn’tthedesigncommunicate?o Bigcorporationso Toxicindustrialfood

• Whatthoughts/feelingsshoulditcommunicate?o Warmtho Honesty

• Whatthoughts/feelingsshoulditnotcommunicate?o Coldnesso Ugly

• Whoisittargetedato Busymoms

• …andsoon

YoucanfindexamplesofdesignbriefsonthewebandbothCrowdSpringand99Designshavetheirownversionsthey’llguideyouthrough.

Foradesigner,typicallymoreinformationisgoodsogivelotsofthoughts.

Onceyou’vedescribedyourprojectyou’llbeinvitedtopaymoremoneyformoreexposuretoyourproject.Typicallythisisn’tworthmuchandcanbeskipped.Themoremoneyyoupaythefinaldesigner,thebetter.

Youcanalsowaiveyourrighttoarbitrationwhichmeansthatsomeonewillgetpaidevenifyouhaveaproblem.Iwoulddothis.Itwillattractmoredesignerssincetheycanbeconfidentthey’llgetpaidif

selected.Don’tbecheaponyourlogoorotherdesignwork,itwillcommunicateallthewrongthingsforwhateveryou’redoing.

Youcanusuallygowiththedefaultsonmostofthesettingswhencreatingacompetition(howlongthecompetitionshouldbe,allthosekindsofthings).

Asthecompetitionstartsyou’llstarttogetentries,andthisiswhentheworkbegins.Tostartwiththedesignsareusuallypoor,usuallybyrelativelynewpeople.Thetaskforyouistoprovidehonestfeedbackquickly.

Whenyouprovidefeedback,theotherdesignerscanseeit.Typicallyyouneedtogivea1-5starratingforeachentryandcanwriteacomment.It’simportanttobehonestsothatpeoplecanstarttogiveyoumoreofwhatyouwanttosee.

Thequickeryouaregivingfeedback,thequickertheycandothis.Ifyouwait,peoplewillassumeyou’renotinterestedinthework.Thisisverybad.Atleastonceaday,gothroughalltheentriesandproviderealfeedbackuntilthecompetitionisdone.

It’simportanttoknowwherethelogowillendup.Designforabusinesscardcanbedifferentthanforthefrontofabuilding.Usuallylogosthesedaysgoonwebsites,sobeclearwhereitwillbeusedsothedesignershaveaframeofreference.

Here’satypicalexampleofalogoprojectwithentriesfrommanydesigners:

Noticethatsomedesignersprovidephoto-realisticmock-upsonbusinesscardswhileothersareusingthelogoimageitself.Theyalsoprovidesomecolororformatoptionsintheentryimageitself.

Yourjobistolookthroughyourentriesandscorethem,withasmuchfeedbackaspossible,asoftenaspossible.Don’tbeafraidofbeinghonest.

Ifyou’renewtodesign,therearesomethingsthatcanhelpyou.

• Readabookondesign.Theprinciplesaren’tthathard,andtherearemanyinterestingbooksoutthere.

• Lookforsimplicity.Simplerisbetterinanydesign.• Lookatitfromadistance.Lookatthelogoonyourscreen,niceandlargebyzoominginwith

yourbrowser.Nowwalk10or20pacesawayandlookbackatthescreen.Canyoustillreadthetext?Canyouunderstandthedesign?

• Squint.Ifyousquint,it’slikelookingatthelogothroughfogorrain,orifyouonlygetasecondtolookatit.Howdoesitlookwhenyousquintatit?Remember–somepeoplewillonlyseeyourlogobriefly.

• Askstrangerstolookandseeiftheycanfigureoutwhatitis.Ifalogoclearlysays“LosGatos”forthem,that’sgreat.Butisitarestaurantorthelocalvet?Itshouldbothsaywhatitisandcommunicatewhattypeofthingitis.

Entriestypicallypickuptowardstheendoftheproject.Towardtheend,adesignercancomeandseewhateveryoneelsedidandusethattofigureoutwhatthey’ddo.Itmeansthequalityoftheentriesgoesup.

Aftermultipleroundsoffeedbackyou’llbeaskedtopickawinner,andifyou’regenerousarunner-uportwo.You’llapprovethefinalimagesandgettheminvariouscolorsandformatsthatyoumightwant.

Dependingonyourskillsyoucantakethesefilesandeitheryourselforwiththerightpeopleintegratethemintoyourwebsite,businesscardsandotherthings.

$199orsoforalogoisgreatvalue(adesignercaneasilycosttentimesthat)soconsiderpayingmore.Rememberthatthesepeoplearehumanbeingssubmittinglogoideastoprojectsallovertheplacewithlittlechanceofwinninganyofindividualcompetition,sobekind.

UpWork:HiringRealPeopleMechanicalTurkanddesigncompetitionsarebothanonymouscrowdsofpeopleyoucanleverageatgreatvalue.WithUpWorkwe’llgetpersonal.

UpWorkisamarketplaceforhiringremoteworkersforalmostanythingyoucanthinkof.Yougoonthewebsite,tellthemyouwanttohireanelectronicsengineerandtheyhandleallthepaymentsandsoon.

Thetrickypartsareallovertheplacesowe’lltakethisstep-by-step,becauseit’seasytowastealotoftimeandmoneyonUpWorkwhichdoesn’thelpanyone.

First–we’regoingtohirearealactualpersonthatwehavetoworkwith.MechanicalTurkandthedesigncompetitionsiteshidealotofthatcomplexityfromus.Sowehavetoknowwhatkindofpersonwewanttohire.

UpWorkisaglobalmarketplacesoeveryonepossibleisgoingtobethere.Askyourselfsomebasicquestionsbeforewegetstarted:

• Doyoucarewhatcountrythey’rein?o Farawaycountriesaretypicallycheapero Somecountrieshaveacultureofcreativityo Somecountrieshaveacultureofengineeringdisciplineo Somecountrieshavepoorinternetconnectivityo Becareful,becausetherearemanyex-patsonUpWorkineverycountrysodon’trestrict

yourselfunnecessarily• Doyoucarewhatlanguagetheyspeak?

o Notjustwithyou,butperhapswithotherteammemberso Remembermanycountrieshavemultiplelanguages,likeFrenchandEnglish-speaking

Canadaforexample• Doyoucarewhattimezonetheyarein?

o Countriesontheothersideoftheplanetworkwhenyou’reasleep.Yourmorningistheirevening

o Countriesnorthandsouthofyoushareyourworktimes,perhapsapproximately• Doyoucarehowyoucommunicatetogether?

o Email,IM,skype,bugtracking,projectmanagement…

Trytogetageneralfeelinyourmindforwhatyou’reflexibleonhereandwhatyou’renot.

Beforewegoanyfurtherlet’smakeclear–youneedtoexperiment.Youwon’thiretheperfectpersononthefirsttry,oratleastit’sunlikely.It’soktotrysomeoneforaweekandthenletthemgoandtryagain.Don’tbediscouragedifitdoesn’tworkoutimmediately.

CountriesEverycountryhasthin,fat,smart,stupidandanyothertypeofperson.Whatshapesthemistheeducationandotherexperiencetheyreceive.Sorememberthatstereotypesarejustthat,stereotypes.

Ifyoulimityourworkersbycountryyou’realsomissingoutonEx-pats.ThereareBritishpeopleinChinaandChinesepeopleinBritain.

TherearesomeeducationalandculturalthingsI’vefoundinmanyyearsofusingUpWork(anditspredecessorselanceandoDesk):

• Somecountriesencourageconformityandrotelearning.Thesecanbegreatforrepetitivetasksorprocessesthatarealreadyclear

• Somecountrieshavestrongengineeringcultures• Somecountrieshavestrongforeignlanguageskillsdespitelowwages• Somecountriesmakeitillegaltoworkforforeigncompanies.Thismeanstherisktakersfrom

thoseplacesareonUpWork

Thesethings–education,cultureandlanguagearetheresultsofhistoricalaccidents.They’reoftencounter-intuitive.Ithelpstorememberthatthepersonyouhiremaycomefromadifferentcultureandeducationalbackgroundandthiscanbeagreatthing,asitcanopennewwaysofdoingthings.

LanguagesTheobviousfirstissueiswhetheryousharealanguage,andwhatleveloffluencyyouneedfromaworker.

Butthereisawrinkle–manypeoplearemorefluentwritingthanspeaking.Therefore,IMcanoftenworkgreat.IMcanbebetterforotherreasonstoo-speakingonskypecanalsousemorebandwidthwhichmaybeatapremiumattheirend.Theyalsomaybeworkinglate,7amyourtimemaybemidnighttheirtimeandthey’reworkinginthedark.IMinthiscasecanbefareasierthantryingtotalktosomeoneintheirpajamasinthedarkinRussian.

TimezonesIfyouhaveclearwrittenspecificationsorforsomeotherreasondon’tneedtocommunicatealot,thentimezonewon’tbemuchofanissue.

Thebigthingtothinkaboutiswastingtime.Ifadeveloper,say,doessomeworkandeithergoesinthewrongdirectionorgetsstuck,howmuchtimetotheywaste?

Theycanwasteitintwoways.Thefirstistokeepworkingonsomethingtheyshouldn’tbeforeyoucatchit.Thesecondiswaitingforsomethingtohappen,likeyoutoexplainsomethingorabugtobefixed.

Becauseoftimezones,thesetimescangetinflated.Let’ssayyoucatchsomethingonaThursday.YouwriteisupasanissueandtheygetitlateFriday,workonitMondayandhaveafixforyouTuesday.Orintheothercase,theycouldbeworkingonthewrongthingfor2-3daysbeforeyoucatchit.

Beinginasimilartimezonecanhelpinthesecases.NorthAmericahasSouthAmericaandEuropehasEasternEuropeandmuchofAfricainsimilartimezones.Justbecareful,itcangettiringhavingearlyorlatemeetingsallthetimetokeeptrackofpeople.Evena2hourzonedifferencecanmeanregularcallsat9pmifyourworkerhasanotherdayjobandyoucan’ttalkduringdinner.

CommunicationMostoutsourcingcommunicationisprettyterribleandyourworkerswillverymuchappreciateifyouareclearonhowandwhentocommunicate.

Youneedasharedunderstandingofwheretheprojectisatandwhereit’sgoingforanythingotherthantrivialcases.Onetoolyoucanuseistrello,whichisasharedboardwithcardswhichcanbeindifferentcolumns:

Therearemanyotheroptions.Forsoftwareprojects,githubandgitlabaregoodchoicestostorethecodeandcreatebugs.Youcreateabugortasksuchas“loginbroken”anddescribetheissue.Yourdevelopercancommentonthisandclosethebugasneeded.

Yourresponsibilityistodouble-checkthingsaredoneasstated.Perhapsaskyourdevelopertomarkabugasfixed,andthenyouformallycloseitwhenyou’resatisfied.

Aswellastheprojectstatus,youneedothertools.

SkypeistheusualtooltobeusedhereforIM,videoorvoice.Almostallcontractorswillhaveskype.Remembertoturnitofformuteyourphoneatnight,asit’snormalforworkerstoIMyouat3amandthenyourespondwhenyou’reavailable.

Forfiles,you’llwanttouseDropboxmostlikely.Thereasonforthisisitswidespreaduseandthefactitworksoneveryoperatingsystem(likeSkypedoesalso).IfyouuseOneDriveoriCloudDrive,asexamples,youmaymakeitdifficultforpeopleusingLinuxorWindowsintheseexamples.Remember–

themoreflexibleyouare,theeasieritistofindandhirepeople.Ifyoustrictlyneedpeopletorunaspecificoperatingsystemortoolyou’recuttingdownthenumberofworkersyoucanpotentiallyhire.

Ifyouhavemorethanonepersononthegothengrouptoolswillbeimportant.GroupSkypechatsonlygosofar.Forthis,theleaderisSlack.It’sagroupchatroomthatworksonpracticallyanycomputerorphone.Thoughnowtherearemanyclonesoutthere.

UpWorkitselfhassomebasiccommunicationtoolswhichyou’llhavetouseduringthehiringprocess.They’refineforstartingwithandanythingshort-termbutyou’llwantbettertoolsasyougoon.

HiringOkbacktohiringsomeone.

It’scounter-intuitivebutwhoeveryouhire,considerhiringaprojectmanagerfirst.Theycaninsulateyoufromalotoftheday-to-daycomplexitiesandupsanddowns.Agoodprojectmanagerisagoodmiddleman,sittinginbetweenyouandthecontractor.Itcostsalittlemoremoney,butcansaveyoualotoftime.

Ifyou’vehiredforarolebefore,orknowtheroleinside-out(sayyou’readesignerhiringadesigner)thengostraightahead.

Ifnotthenaprojectmanagercanadvertise,interviewandhirepeopleforyou.Theycankeepthemontrackandcommunicatewithyouwhenandhowyouwantto.They’lldealwiththerandom3amquestions.Thiscansaveyoualotofpain.Andyoucanlearnfromthemhowtheydoit,too.

TheProcessHiringonUpWorklookssimpleinthebeginning.Let’sassumeyou’vegonetoupwork.comandhavecreatedanaccountandwanttopostajob,thenwe’llwalkthroughthehiringscreen.Atfirst,simplychoosethecategoryofworkyouneedandnamethejob:

Afunnameisentirelyok,like“EngineeringNinja”.Next,weneedtoaddadescription:

Thisiswhereitimmediatelygetscomplicated.Ifyou’rehavingtroublewritingsomethingagoodstartistolookaroundatotherpeoplepostingjobs.Beasdescriptiveaspossible.

Here’smybigtipwhichwillsaveyoualotoftime:Afewsentencesintoyourdescriptionsaythis:“Pleasementiontheword‘hippopotamus’inyourapplication”.Here’swhy–halfofmoreofthepeoplewhoapplyforyourjobwon’treadtheapplication.They’retryingtofindworkandapplyingforeverythingpossible.Youdon’twantthosepeople.

Later,whenyoureadtheirapplication,justtrashanyonewhodidn’tmention‘hippopotamus’.Thisalonewillsaveyouhoursoftime.Also,pickadifferentwork.I’vetried‘banana’andthatworkswelltoo.

Iteration

FiringSo,itdidn’tworkout.

Don’thangaroundwaitingtomoveon.Firingsomeoneisn’tpleasantofcourse.Butit’sbestforeveryonetomoveforwardifsomethingisn’tworkingout.Nobodyeversaid“ohIwishI’dkeptthatpersonaroundanothermonthbeforefiringthem”.Instead,mostpeoplearerelievedandwishthey’ddoneitearlier.

UpWorkmakeshiringandfiringaseasyasclickingonbuttonsandthat’sgreat.Reducingcomplexityandincreasingspeedisusefulalmostalways.Butitcanalsoallowyoutomakecolddecisionssobeforeyouclick“fire”checkyou’vemadeaneffort:

• Wereyouclearinthebeginningonexpectations?• Didyoucommunicateclearlythatperformancewasn’twhatyouneeded?• Didyouoffertheworkerachancetofixthings?• Isthisworkerbettersuitedtoanotherroleyouhave?

Remember–they’restillahumanbeingwithhopesanddreamsjustlikeyou.

Otheroptions• Googlesurveys• Wordpressthememarketplaces•

DarkMagic:Puttingitalltogether*outsourcingyourworksilently

*usingclickworkerstovoteonyourdesignwork