Guest Post by Nicole. Outsourcing sounds like a great idea. What could be better than simply taking those tasks that add hours onto your workday and assigning them to someone else for a cheap per hour or per task price. There are plenty of web sites that can facilitate the hiring of virtual employees and contractors. Unfortunately, it is not always as easy as clicking your mouse a few times and sending an assignment via email. The quality of worker on some of these sites can be quite low and it can take a few misfires before you find the right person for the job. There is an element of luck to the process.
Unfortunately, there is no easy answer. Well run sites with a stable of professional-level assistants might be overkill for a freelancer looking to subcontract or a business needing a few hours of help each week. However, finding a good employee on a free-for-all site can be challenging (though cheaper).
Here are the best sites for finding people to outsource your work to.
oDesk is one of the best of the established find-a-freelancer sites. It has thousands of freelancers. oDesk makes the hiring process easier because it offers tests to its freelancers so that they can prove their skills (by getting high scores) and back up the claims made in their resumes. oDesk makes its money by assessing a 10% fee onto payments made by employers to their contractors. Like other sites (such as eLance and Guru, see below) it can be difficult and time consuming to sift through potential employees. Even with the tests, etc, there is a kind of free-for-all atmosphere. If you are looking for more specialized tasks, it may be better to look elsewhere. But, with a little luck and a little time, you should be able to find capable people to do basic tasks.
eLance is quite similar to oDesk. eLance has a large social component with its “Water Cooler” community forum. eLance has exams and an ‘eLance University” that keeps both employers and contractors up to date on the latest outsourcing ideas and practices. eLance is known for being slightly more expensive than oDesk, but has better talent overall.
Guru.com is another find-a-freelancer site. There are a quarter-of-a-million contractors who can bid for your project. There are some decent freelancers on this site and finances are handled in a convenient way. Employers put their payment in an escrow account and release funds once the work has been submitted.
If you have a special task that requires and expert, niche freelancer sites might be a good bet. GetACoder.com is a site that specializes in jobs in the computer industry. If you are an employer looking for someone to do some programming, coding, technical writing or graphic design, this site will probably lead to better results than other freelance sites with a more general focus. Similar sites like 99Designs (a site for freelance graphic designers) are also good options for specialty jobs.
There are a couple of good sites that require less time to use. Your Man in India and Brickwork India are professional outsourcing sites where you can send assignments and tasks to qualified people in India. If you are a businessperson or freelancer in need of someone competent to do administrative tasks or assist you with basic work, both these companies can help. You have a much better chance of getting a competent assistant here than you do sifting through the general freelance sites above. Of course, you may have to pay a little bit more to deal with a company who provides a service and takes a lot of freelance variables out of the equation.
Nicole has been blogging on a variety of topics for 3 years; she is currently a contributing blogger at freeinsurancequotes.org and helps people set up a brokerage account online.
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