Hi, I was looking for a nice website where Indian freelance writers could congregate and learn from each other. Found a few online groups but most of them were inactive. Plus, I am not looking for just a community or a social networking site. I am looking for a comprehensive solution for Indian freelancers. Can you help?
About the Author:

In the busy modern world, it is essential not only to offer high quality products that are beneficial, but also to be able to market them successfully. Despite the size of your business and its industry of operation, the internet is the best place to advertise as it presents you with numerous opportunities to reach large numbers of people and make them act upon your promotional message.

However, your competitors are also most likely to take advantage of internet marketing, which means you have to employ all possible tools, insight and creativity in order to stand out from the crowd.

The only problem is that you have to dedicate a sufficient amount of time and effort to the task. The optimal solution is to outsource your marketing work. It is now easier, cheaper and more efficient than ever before to do so.

You can even have a large number of your projects and campaigns created professionally by freelancers. You can hire a person or a company to advise you on, design or completely execute your marketing strategy. This might cost you a bit more; so if you’re just starting out, you might want to outsource only certain parts of it such as your search engine marketing, link building to your website, or content writing for your web pages, newsletters and promotional articles to be posted on other online sites.

This article reveals some helpful outsourcing tips and information that will prove to be useful to every online business owner.

Where To Outsource

You can effortlessly find professionals to do almost any marketing task for you. There are a lot of websites which are designed as virtual market places, where potential clients can meet service providers. They include:

Elance.com
Rentacoder.com
Guru.com
Odesk.com
Getafreelancer.com
Scriptlance.com
Warriorforum.com/warriors-hire/

On many of the outsourcing sites, you can find on offer all of the services described above plus a great number of other tasks such as technical support, web design and language translation. Others are specializing in only one type of service, such as copywriting.

Usually, the companies and individuals who are represented on these websites have their services rated by previous clients. You would also be able to read their resume and/or company presentation, as well as feedback from people who have previously hired them. Thus, it is now easier – and you’ll have more assurance – to find the right skilled people to do your internet marketing tasks.

How To Outsource

All you need to do to outsource your internet marketing projects is to sign up for an account with one or more of the websites above. In most cases, this will cost you nothing, as there are always free trials available.

Moreover, due to the economic turndown, the prices of services have fallen significantly with the number of professional providers increasing as well. You can post your project and have service providers bid for it in the form of an open auction. You should state the type of work that has to be done, you particular requirements and the goals you are planning to achieve.

You can always ask for samples of their work or ask them to describe previous projects they have worked on in detail. You are also highly recommended to set a price range and be reasonable about how much you can afford to spend on the project.

However, you should base your choice of freelancer not only on the fee they charge, but also based on their work performance and feedback from previous users.

Proven Tips For Outsourcing Success

1) Before giving out work, make sure you have adopted adequate means of communication. Emailing and instant messaging are effective ways to keep in touch, but you might also want to have the people’s telephone number to ensure you can contact them immediately in cases of emergency.

2) Once you start outsourcing the work, you should be as informative as possible about your requirements and how you want to get the things down. You can give as much detail as you feel necessary, but always make sure the person or team knows what they are supposed to do.

3) It is a good idea to set deadlines, but you should try to be realistic and allow for flexibility within reasonable limits. Remember, quality usually comes at the expense of time. You might find it particularly useful to discuss the time period of the project with the people you have hired to do it. You should be available to answer any questions that come along as the project develops.

4) Motivation is really important when outsourcing a project. Make sure you provide a competitive pay rate. It is best not to try to reduce it once it is set unless you are getting bad quality and poor deadline keeping.

5) You might also want to motivate your workers with bonuses if you can afford it. Monetary incentives are not the only way in which you can motivate a person to do a better job. Be positive when you talk to them and do not spare your flattering remarks. Be understanding and supportive whenever you have to.

Hope these proven outsourcing tips help you choose – and deal with – the right people to delegate your tasks to, so you can focus on making more money and have more time to do the things you love.
About the Author:

I find one of the most challenging situations I face as a freelancer is telling people what I do. I have a “portfolio career” (many different careers at the same time), so when I am asked, “And what do you do?” I don’t have a straight-forward answer, like “lawyer, doctor, or football player.” I feel that this can be an advantage, if approached properly. Therefore, in this article, I discuss this definition dilemma, ways to attack it, and pose some questions that can help direct those of us who love living a freelance life.

Avoid labels. Mark Sanborn, a successful entrepreneur/speaker told a group of us an interesting fact about using a label for what we do. He said that if we say we are a consultant, doctor, speaker, lawyer, banker, etc. right away whoever is listening not only jumps to an incorrect conclusion about us, but often has some preconceived notion – good or bad, but many times bad – about our profession. He suggested that if we feel we need some description on our business card, pick an all encompassing, non-specific title. For example, his was “Small Business Resource.”

Develop a short, unique sentence that will whet others’ interest. This exercise will not only help you get attention from others, but will also help you to define who you are, who you work for, and what you do. If you are at all like me and other freelancers, you probably have many skills and talents, but have trouble narrowing a description down to a short, punchy sentence. The first step is to decide what it is that you love doing the most and want others to know about. Then, ask yourself who would benefit from this activity/work and for whom would you prefer working. What groups do you already have a working relationship with? Finally, determine what this target group needs the most.

Now, it is time to formulate you opening sentence. Mine is: “Everyone has a compelling story. I help small businesses and non-profits tell their stories to the people who need to hear them.” In other words, I use my writing, storytelling, communication, and web site design and development skills to help small businesses and non-profits with their marketing. I think that you would agree that the first sentence is more interesting and leads to more questions.

Practice and test your defining sentence. There is only one way to find out if your new definition works. First of all, write it down, tape it and practice saying it until you feel comfortable and the sentence becomes second nature. Now it is time to find out if it works. Attend as many meetings and networking events as possible. After you ask someone what he or she does and have listened with obvious interest, that person will ask you what you do. Hit them with your unique sentence, and watch for the reaction.

Not everyone will enthusiastically ask for more information, but if several do, you are on your way. Now, it is time to tweak and polish, and then work on follow-up answers to others’ questions. The more often you use the words, the more natural and fun the process becomes. Be prepared to feel a bit awkward in the beginning, because your answer isn’t the standard, expected answer. As you get good feedback, however, you will start enjoying the whole process and start increasing business and your potential client base.
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