I was contacted last week by a company requiring an all-singing-all-dancing auction-style website. The company seemed a little in despair, after disclosing that they had effectively wasted 2/3 of their budget on foreign suppliers. They had less than £5000 left to play with. I’ll let you figure out just how much money went down the drain.
After the time and expense, they had been left with nothing. Not even any ground work to pass onto the next supplier. I’m not exactly sure why, but I imagine it was a case of things getting lost in translation, incompetence on the suppliers part and possibly a lack of communication from the company themselves (though when I spoke to them they seemed extremely well-informed to their needs).
This can be avoided.
If you are a company looking to outsource work to agencies and freelancers, simply heed this advice:
Do your research
When you receive a job application, take some time to research the potential supplier. They should have provided their portfolio and some work examples. Look at what they have done and ensure it is up to scratch. You could even contact their previous clients to question their service.
Don’t trust people that will work for peanuts
This is a tough one; it’s SO easy to go for the cheapest option. But remember the saying – you get what you pay for. I’ve seen it many times; if somebody is willing to work for £2/hour, you don’t need to be a genius to know you should avoid this provider. In general I would suggest that you expect to pay at least £15/hour for a good job.
Communication is key
If you cannot talk to your supplier over the phone, you cannot work with them. E-mail and instant messaging is just not sufficient if you have medium-large projects.
Professional conduct
If your prospective supplier does not appear professional, don’t waste your time. I once had an application saying “hi i can do work cost cheap and quality will be better than expected” with zero punctuation, grammar and awful spelling. I didn’t even get a chance to reply as 4 minutes later another email from the same guy came through, practically begging me for the work. I was left with no choice but to reply saying “Sorry the position has been filled”.
Be warey of foreign suppliers
This is another tough one because it’s hard not to tar everybody with the same brush. I’ve been outbidded on pretty much every project I’ve ever applied for by people from India offering to work for literally nothing and their status as a supplier would fail on every point made in this article. This is absolutely not to say that all foreign suppliers are rubbish, but you really do need to filter out the crap.
In essence, picking the right supplier is common sense. Don’t allow price to dictate your choosing, and ensure that the prospective supplier has a good amount of work behind them and can provide exactly what you need. Otherwise you might end up throwing time and money down the drain.
punc28r
November 1, 2009
Oooh, ironic:
Re: “If your prospective supplier does not appear professional, don’t waste your time. I once had an application [snip] with zero punctuation, grammar and awful spelling.”
You go on to write:
“Be WAREY of foreign suppliers…”
and
“This is another tough one because it’s hard not to tar everybody with the same brush. I’ve been OUTBIDDED…”
You’re also guilty of not knowing what to do with an apostrophe – get yourself a large brush and tar away!
matt5409
November 1, 2009
I’m not understanding your point… can you please elaborate?
punc28r
November 2, 2009
Well, you’re bemoaning the fact that you’re approached by people who present themselves badly in writing yet you’ve two spelling mistakes just after (my caps).
matt5409
November 2, 2009
I think you’re missing the point, which is the quality of the work produced, not the cover letter. Of course, a lack of basic grammar and poor spelling does not a good introduction make, and the kind of thing I’m referring to is MUCH MUCH worse than anything I’ve ever written.
You can’t have been in the position of hiring somebody online before, else you would understand.