The expanding reach of the Internet and growth of online collaboration tools have all changed small business outsourcing dramatically in the past 3-4 years. 

Let us take a look at 10 key trends for using independent contractors for projects and even ongoing staffing needs, and how they shape up in 2009:

1.  The “Outsourcing Life” is hip  

Popularized by the best seller The 4-Hour Workweek, more people are realizing that they can get their work done by someone else even if they are a solo entrepreneur.  According to statistics published by US Small Business Administration, 56% of US small businesses with 100 employees or less, have fewer than 5 employees. If your business is one with no employees or a very small number of employees, you may find yourself over-stretched for time, and in need of outsourcing in both your personal and professional life.  Driven by the economy and the need to watch expenses, more businesses will opt for contracting relationships and hold off hiring new employees as long as possible.

Small businesses are also continuing to push the envelope on what can be outsourced.  They are discovering elements that can be outsourced even in previously “core” activities. For example, an Australian small business we work with specializes in online marketing, but also uses multiple telemarketing providers to cross sell their product range to customers.     

How to benefit from this trend:

• Re-examine what you consider to be activities only you or your employees can do.
• If not the entire activity, can some parts of this at least be outsourced?
• Be prepared to invest some time up front in training your outsourcing partner.

2.  Have we met? Not likely! 

Trusting people you never meet face to face is gaining acceptance.  Use of Skypeconversations and social networks like Facebook and Twitter exemplify how people who have never met strike up relationships with each other.  These media are increasingly becoming the means for small businesses to reach out and establish trust based relationships with their outsourcing partners. 

A decade ago you may never have thought of outsourcing to someone outside of your local city or region.  Now it is commonplace to find vendors and independent contractors across the country or even across the world. 

How to benefit from this trend:

• If you are a vendor, establish a presence on the networking sites of your choice -LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter etc. to create an online brand presence.  Make it easy to be found and for customers to get to know you.
• Evaluate which mode of communication gives you the best results. Also take into consideration where your customers are located and how they prefer to be contacted. Sign up with Skype, or other email and Internet marketing tools.

3.  More power for the hour – new ways to price services

Payment schedules structured to incentivize success are gaining popularity.  Two common types of payment methods are “Fixed Price” (where the vendor takes much of the risk – this is often highly conflict prone) and “Time and Materials” (this gives the vendor flexibility in defining scope but is expensive and asks the buyer to micro-manage). 

We’re seeing pricing structures that combine the best of both.  For example, web page design will be fixed at a price per page.  Subsequent changes requested by the buyer are paid for using an hourly rate for the effort.  The combination pricing can save the buyer as much as 30% of the total cost and avoid conflicts. It also aligns interests of the buyer and the vendor. 

How to benefit from this trend:

• Split your project into 2 parts:  the part that is well defined and unlikely to change, and the part that needs to change as you see results of each phase.
• “Fix Price” the well defined part, while agreeing upon an hourly rate for the rest.

4.   ”We need to talk”

In real estate the mantra is “Location. Location. Location.”  In outsourcing the mantra is “Communication. Communication. Communication.”

Operational structures that clearly define responsibilities and establishing ways of communicating play an ever more important role in successful outsourcing.  Small businesses are realizing the importance of such rigor in defining operational structures. 

For instance, you might establish a regular review schedule to effectively manage a project and stay on top of progress.  This is preferred over putting a project out for hire and then going weeks without any status update.  Email, instant messaging and collaboration technologies make it easier to conduct frequent reviews.

How to benefit from this trend:

• When you outsource a project, establish a routine of daily or weekly status review calls based on project size.
• The duration of the calls again depends on the nature of your project, but typically 1 hour or less works best.
• This is important especially when you are working with a new provider.

5. Taking the relationship to the next level - outsourcing ongoing processes

Small businesses are opening up to outsourcing ongoing processes, in addition to projects.  Task (or project) outsourcing (e.g., file my taxes) is primarily a one-off activity while process outsourcing (e.g.,  manage my accounting) requires a relationship approach.  Process outsourcing also places greater responsibility on the vendor to become closely familiar with the client’s business and the client’s customers.

How to benefit from this trend:

• For the projects you are outsourcing, see if some of the activities you do before and after the project can also be done by your outsourcing partner.
• When outsourcing processes, evaluate providers for a strong understanding of the legal and regulatory issues associated with the process they would manage.  

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Sometimes we make mistakes with customers because we have so much to do that it is difficult to be good at everything. The perfect customer doesn’t always show up and it can be difficult to keep everything going all the time.

The perfect customer is more about attitude and attraction than anything else. Are you the type of person that you would want to work with on a project? If so, it’s a good idea to let your customers know who you are and how you can help them.

A Virtual Marketing Assistant can help you with the perfect customer because they can stay focused on helping you realize your dreams.  VMAs create opportunity for business owners by being able to see the big picture. They can help you visualize your success by going through the motions that are most important to keep the business going.

They can keep your contacts organized, follow-up with customers and help you take care of the parts of the business that take you away from doing what you love to do.

Customers come in all different packages and the first thing for you to do is to sit down and write out a list of the characteristics of your perfect customer. Many people say “anyone that is breathing is my customer” but this is not true.

You have certain types of people you like to work with and those that you do not. If you can communicate to your VMA about those that are the most appealing to you, they can help you find that individual.

Think also about your service or your product and your marketing strategies to date. Are you satisfied with what you have seen so far? If so, let your VMA know what has worked in the past and what hasn’t. This individual can show you how to improve upon what is already working and help you move forward with other ideas.

A VMA is very important to any business because of their ability to see the big picture. They have their own business and they have seen what works in many different types of businesses. They can be of tremendous help in spotting trends, researching your industry and bringing you information about how to find that customer you describe.

Customers are the most important aspect of any business and another way that your VMA can help keep your perfect customers is to create your presence in social networking. There are ways to help your customers find you and follow you across the Web to see how you work and what you do. Your VMA can get this started and keep it going. This will attract new customers and make sure you keep the old.

Virtually yours,
Linda Belan
Your Outsource Solutions, LLC

The Virtual Marketing Assistant can be your answer because they have a variety of skills that help the small business owner succeed. As an example, many VMAs are skilled at answering phones and resolving customer issues. If you are in a business that requires phones to be answered, and great customer service this is something that your VMA can do for you.

Sometimes a business gets stuck in a rut, and it is difficult to move past it. With obligations from family and business the average entrepreneur can become overwhelmed and let some things go. 

 A VMA can help you get moving again. They present a fresh eye and are trained to understand the needs of small business they can get you up and running again in no time. 

To create more business you need customers and the way to do this is to let your VMA handle it.

Here we give you 10 ways a VMA can help you get customers:

1. Write articles and circulate them in directories
2. Have a link on your website to articles that will be helpful to your clients
3. Organize your contacts
4. Create a system of contacting customers and doing follow-up
5. Do follow up calls for new and old customers
6. Create and submit press releases about your business and what it is doing.
7. Do research on markets, your target market and any other research relate to business that you require.
8. Participate in forums online, set up social networking opportunities, and keep your social network profiles up to date.
9. Update and maintain your website
10. Help you create a brand for your business

In other words, the sky is the limit when you have the assistance of a Virtual Marketing Assistant.

How To Find a Virtual Marketing Assistant

Although there are hundreds of VMA on the Internet it is a good idea to check several out at once. As an example, if you have a few small projects you need done, hire a VMA for each project. This will give you an idea of how they work and what is important to them. You can choose the one you like the best at the end of these trials.

Do a search in Google to find out which VMAs do the type of work you have to offer.  A VMA acts as an independent contractor for your business so you will have no overhead for them, and you won’t have to pay benefits. A good VMA can save you time and money over time.

Virtually yours,
Linda Belan
Your Outsource Solutions, LLC

A VMA is a person you can hire to make your work easier. They can do simple and complex things that create the opportunity for you to spend your time on what you do well — write. When you spend your time writing you will generate more sales and your time and energy will be more focused.

Writers usually do not like the business of writing, and a VMA can create the space you need away from the business portion. They can also offer suggestions about how to get your book online or how to find the readers you need for a new book.

Here are 5 ways a writer can use a VMA:

1. Answering the phone — one of the most difficult issues for a writer is finding the solitude during the day to write. The phone becomes a problem and usually you either ignore it or unplug the phone. A VMA can act as a personal answering service and take calls, categorize them and give you a list at the end of the day. The VMA can also help with follow-up calls.
2. Create a website — many writers know the advantages of having a website and if you haven’t had time to get it started, a VMA can create it, optimize it and keep it updated for you.
3. Create a Blog — a blog is a smaller endeavor than a website but it is a great way for a writer to get their name out and give a sample of their writing. A VMA can write articles for you in your style and place them in our blog on a regular basis.
4. Create a presence in social networking — many writers do not have the time to do all the things they could with social networking. A VMA could get your name out and around the web. They can also help you write articles and place them in directories across the Internet.  This is a great way for a new or old writer to have your writing read by many.
5. Organize your notes — every writer has lots of notes scribble here and there on several pads of paper. A VMA can organize these notes and put them in a file on your computer. They can also update this file as you give them more notes.

A VMA is indispensable to a writer who is busy writing everyday and who hates to bother with the business of writing. The VMA can work the business part of your writing life while you take care of the actual writing.

Virtually yours,
Linda Belan
Your Outsource Solutions, LLC

This balance can be stronger when they have the help of a Virtual Marketing Assistant (VMA). There are so many things that a VMA can do for you that you will wonder why you didn’t have one before now. They create a variety of opportunities for you to develop more business and keep up with what you already have now.

Whether you are just starting out, or you have been speaking for many years a VMA can help you develop marketing materials, develop a website, plan events and make travel arrangements. These are things that you must do for your speaking business, but with their input you can spend time perfecting your speeches or getting ready for seminars. They can do the business for you.

Here are 5 ways a professional speaker can use a VMA:

1. Article submission — when a speaker is also a writer they are able to get more business because people have read something they created. A VMA can write articles about your topic and then have them submitted in a variety of directories across the Internet.
2. Make travel arrangements — give your VMA your calendar and then have them make the travel arrangements you need. They will get you the best deal that they can and they can book everything from your flight and hotels to your car rentals. They can even help you find great restaurants in the area.
3. Social media set up and management — a VMA can set up a front page for you at Squidoo and spotlight your skills as a speaker. As a speaker, you need a presence on MySpace or Facebook as this can be the target market for customers. The VMA can set these pages up for you and maintain them so that your audience will know where you are and how to reach you.
4. Create marketing and promotional materials –A VMA that works with speakers is aware of how to create the one sheet, brochures, flyers and postcards that are so much a part of a speaker’s marketing campaign. They can not only develop them but make sure they get into the mail.
5. Creating or optimizing your website – if you already have a website a VMA can help you optimize it with the search engines. If you need one, they can also create it for you and keep it optimized.

Today it isn’t enough to have a website and expect people to find you. Instead, it is a systematic building of your name and your face on the Internet so that people can find you easily. When you don’t have the time to keep it to do this part yourself, a VMA is better than hiring someone in house.

Virtually yours,
Linda Belan
Your Outsource Solutions, LLC