On Words and Business

Once you’ve made the decision to outsource your creative services (writing, editorial, design, illustration, photography), you are partway to getting what you need. Now it’s time to hire someone, either a freelancer or an agency, to do the work.

Here are 6 things to think about before you hire someone.

1. Look for individuals or agencies that are credible. A freelancer may be someone you know or the agency may have been recommended to you by a trusted friend or advisor. If the individual or agency is new to you or you don’t have a mutual connection, look for references or client lists; and check them.
2. Look for someone who will discuss how they’ll support your project. If they aren’t willing to talk about how they work, or their ideas for working together, don’t do business with them. You need evidence of ability to execute.
3. Look for someone who can support you where you need it. If your project can be done virtually, you can find an outsourcer anywhere. If you need someone who’s able to attend on-site meetings, though, you’re more limited in your selection.
4. Relationships, personality, and cultural fit are important. If you’re relying on the creativity and thinking process of someone outside your firm, you need to feel comfortable that those talents will be channeled in a direction you can work with. That doesn’t mean you should find someone whose thought process or ideas parrot your own–you’re looking for creativity, which may mean challenging your existing notions. The new life that an outside agency or freelancer can bring is part of why outsourcing creative services is so popular and successful.
5. Talk about budget. Everyone likes to pay as little as possible for the services they get. And everyone likes to be paid as much as possible for the services they provide. To get a fair bid before agreeing to the work, give as much detailed information about your needs as possible, so the scope of work is clear and expectations can be set. When you review the bid, remember what’s most important for your company or this project. If low cost is what you need, by all means go for the lowest bidder. If high quality and industry experience is critical to the success of a project, the lowest bidder probably isn’t the way to go.
6. Go with your gut. When you’re working with freelancers or small agencies, you might not be able to see samples of work in your industry or a portfolio with the exact type of project you need help with. So look for the potential in their other projects. Look for a passion for the industry, your company, or the work. Your gut may just be sensing that great creative idea hidden in the mind of your new outsourcer.

Next Thursday
What to do if you outsource a creative services job and something goes horribly wrong.

With the economy as it is these days, you may be searching for a little outside help with some of your creative needs.

Hiring a writer or designer to work with you on a project can inspire all sorts of emotions.

• Fear: What if she doesn’t “get” us? What if he can’t write his way out of a paper bag?
• Joy: Thank goodness, now I don’t have to design it!
• Or plain old ambivalence: Whatever. As long as it doesn’t interfere with the rest of  my work.

No matter the emotion, if you’re thinking about outsourcing creative services (writing, editorial, design, illustration, photography) there are some questions to ask before you make the decision. The more specific you are about what you want and don’t want, the better chance you’ll actually get what you want. Then, if you do decide to outsource, you’ve improved your chances of finding someone who will deliver what you need.

The first thing to think about is whether or not you really need or want to outsource this project or function. Outsourcing has many benefits, but they may not be the right thing for this project or team.

Ask yourself:

• Will outsourcing this result in cost or time savings?
• What is the benefit to us to have someone out-of-house write or design this?
• Will outsourcing this allow us to focus on our core business and value-added activities?
• Is this an expertise we need to outsource because we don’t have it (or can’t afford to have it) in-house?
• Do we need the flexibility and scalability we can’t achieve with our current staff or organizational structure?
• Can we afford (time, talent, money) to manage an outside contractor/consultant?
• Can we benefit from having someone from outside thinking about this project?
• Can we afford to pay someone what this work is worth?

The only right answers are those that lead you to a workable solution–one that gets your project done professionally, on time, and on budget.

Maybe hiring an outside designer won’t save you time or money, but that isn’t the driving force for this project. Perhaps a new perspective from someone outside your firm is more important for this piece. Or you realize that, although you would like to hire a freelance writer, the budget for this project just doesn’t allow you to pay an outside contractor.

Next Thursday
Look for information on what to think about once you’ve decided to outsource.

If you suffer from having too many email messages to read, an avalanche of blog posts, a pile of magazines and newspapers (for us old school types), and an abundance of internet and t.v. news to read and watch, you might need to go on a low information diet.

Here’s how.

From my flying solo friends down under, a fabulous list of 11.5 resolutions for 2009.  Now, I’m not a big New Year’s resolution maker (although I am a big planner/goal setter…just ask my friends!). But these are pretty darn good, so I will be making some resolutions for 2009.

My two favorites:

#3 Outsource more. (I’d like to do this in many aspects of my life, not just work!)

#9 Plant a seed every day.

We’ve all got that list of things we’ll get to someday. Ever wondered why you never manage to get to them?

Here are eleven ways to cure the Someday Syndrome. Inherent in each cure is the cause of the delay.

The first cure, for example: Be you. “Maybe you’re not doing something because in reality, it doesn’t fit with who you are. If so, dump the idea and the expectations that likely came along with it, and go find something that suits you better. ”

My favorite is cure 11:  Don’t stop at the easy point. “Because it’s important to push yourself just a little bit further than you think you can go.”

It’s all so simple when someone else spells it out.