Let me tell you a short, but unpleasant story. And I say this because I know it will save you a lot of time and nerves. So let’s go.
One day I was writing a proposal for a client. Pretty simple, right? That’s where it was difficult. The client wanted it to be delivered as a PDF and all but one of the pages needed to be vertical. They wanted one of the data-heavy pages to be in landscape format.
That’s the problem. I had no idea how to do it! I spent 30 minutes trying to figure it out myself. Another 30 minutes trying to find a solution on Google, then another 30 or so watching videos on YouTube.
After 90 minutes I still couldn’t figure it out. So here’s what I finally did. I went to Fiverr, typed in “pdf format” and found someone who could do the job for me. $10 and 10 minutes later I had a proposal ready for my client.
And while I was glad it was done, I was disappointed by the fact that I spent almost two hours doing something that took someone 10 minutes and only cost me $10.
I kept thinking about all the other things I could do in those two hours.
- Write a blog post
- Create my next newsletter
- Post and participate on social networks
You know all the things that actually generate income for your business and you are uniquely suited for it. That’s when I realized how important it was stay in your genius zoneand outsource everything else.
And you probably understand that too, but this is where a lot of people get stuck. You may not feel comfortable walking onto the platform and asking for help from an unknown person.
And I don’t blame you. You don’t know anything about them or the quality of their work. But on the other hand, if you don’t start using remote experts, you will continue to spend hours on tasks that are a waste of your time, energy, and talent.
Luckily, Fiverr has solved that problem for you with a premium offering called Fiverr Business, a platform designed specifically for medium to large businesses with big teams and big budgets.
And here’s one of my favorite parts, it includes premium features like a verified talent pool so you get the best of the best freelancers.
How can you start using remote experts to improve your business, and what is the best way to get started?
I spoke with a few entrepreneurs who also use Fiverr Business to share their experiences with you during the latest edition of the Start Your Business podcast.
You will learn:
- Preliminary Work You Must Do Before You Even Start Looking for a Team Member
- A practical and time-saving way to transfer tasks
- Income associated with freeing up your time by hiring experienced workers
I have shared some of my favorite takeaways from the episode below.
When should you seek outside help?
Sunny Williams, co-founder TinyDocsthe company, which makes animated shorts that explain health issues in child-friendly terms, says he knew he needed help shortly after launch.
“Being a socially important business and having a pretty broad vision… I had to sort of audit and figure out what skills and talents I need to make our vision of creating a healthier world for our children a reality. I don’t have the most creative background. I’m pretty limited in my talents and creativity.” After a friend suggested Sunny look into Fiverr, he realized he had what he calls “a portal to all the talent, creativity and skill sets I need to start executing this vision and building this really solid business.” .
For other entrepreneurs like Ari Turner, founder of a skin care company Look good, live well, bringing in new team members may seem like an unnatural first step. She admits that she waited too long to hire an assistant for her business.
“The company I built was actually a response to a past career burnout,” says Ari. “A few years later, when I was in the middle of working on Look Good, Live Well, I faced burnout again. do what i love. How are we here?”
If you feel that way, here’s one way to turn back time. Keep track of every task you perform that someone or something else can do. Then make the decision to outsource or automate those tasks.
How to prepare for hiring a remote worker
After Ari realized that she needed help to lighten the burden of doing all this, she sat down for what she calls a “come to Jesus” meeting—with herself. Before setting off in search of the perfect virtual assistant, she wanted to be honest with herself about her work style, communication preferences, strengths and weaknesses.
“Now I am the CEO of my company, but I am definitely a very forward-thinking person and I need to be managed,” Ari said. “I’m definitely a visionary when it comes to work and so even in terms of hiring a virtual assistant, I didn’t just want a VA, I wanted someone who could also help manage the projects we had.”
With a clear idea of what she needed, Ahri was able to move forward with confidence by bringing in her first team member. But as you’ll notice, she wasn’t just looking for an order taker, and neither should you. Instead, hire subject matter experts who can also act as thought partners.
Business results from using Fiverr Business
Ari said there are more benefits to hiring someone to work on your business on your behalf than just income — sure, scaling is part of the equation, but there’s also a quality of life to consider as an entrepreneur.
You will be able to be more present as a parent, friend, or spouse if part of your mind is freed from extraneous tasks. With a large team, you will have even more brains and hours at your disposal, and all this can free up your time to work on things that fall into your Genius Zone.
At TinyDocs, Sunny credits her creative team for their impressive growth over the past couple of years. As a team, they have created works that have received acclaim at international film festivals and have rapidly expanded their presence on social media.
Sunny says you might think you can figure things out on your own, but working with other people gives you a chance to see a different (sometimes better) way of doing things and allows you both to work in your own area of expertise.
In my experience (including the pdf fiasco), you will also avoid common mistakes and work much faster!
Next steps:
If you are ready to scale your business with proven experts, here is my suggestion:
- Listen to the full episode below
- Write down at least one project you would like to outsource
- Find a trusted expert to complete your project Fiverr Business