Faster is cool. Faster is in fashion. Faster is what we all shoot for on a daily basis.
Note: Browse YouTube and you’ll find, however, that most people shouldn’t go faster when strapped to wheels (ouch!).
But that being said, in the business world, faster is better. Always. Period. That’s why you should do everything possible to reach your hiring goals faster and gain a competitive advantage. So here are some tips for reducing the time it takes to get your next project started ASAP.
1. Send out job invitations.
Sure, online work platforms allow you to post jobs to thousands of qualified freelancers. But don’t stop there, as you’re certainly not limited to the people who respond. Take a few extra minutes to invite qualified freelancers in the marketplace to submit their proposals. You’ll find search tools in platforms like Elance that allow you to quickly narrow your choice and find candidates with skills and experience that meet your needs. Simply invite them to apply. With a proficient platform you’ll also get recommendations of matching freelancers, who you can invite.
2. Use multiple paths to interview candidates.
Sometimes a couple emails are all you need to find the perfect online freelancer. However, if you want to get a better idea for the job a person can do, there’s no substitute for direct human contact. If the candidate agrees you can Skype them to ask real-time questions and even host a quick video conference. Again, a work platform worth its salt will have these tools built into the service at no charge. When you communicate openly, you get a better idea (sooner) of what the candidate can do and how they will approach your project.
3. Make your project an hourly job.
Hourly jobs often have a distinct advantage over fixed price jobs, especially when it comes to ramp-up time. For example if you have a complex job or long-term project and aren’t ready to nail-down all the details, you can simply open an hourly job and start working in minutes. You can still use milestones to create “check points” for the job, and modify the hours later if you want to keep it as an ongoing relationship. When that ideal candidate jumps of the page and is ready to start working, just set up an Hourly project and get up-and-running that day.
4. Quickly test-out a few promising candidates.
Another tactic that many successful businesses use to speed up their decision-making is to test-out two or three candidates. When you find multiple candidates that look great, but you can’t quickly decide on one single person, narrow your selection to three candidates. Set up an hourly job and given them all a two-hour job. Chances are a brief project like this will give you a good idea of which person is perfect for the long-haul. Then simply thank the others for their hard work, and ramp-up full throttle with the winner.
Does this help? Hopefully so.
That’s a lot of information to absorb, but reading a few hints can save you considerable time when you hire your next freelancer. Time well invested, with no painful bruises from going super-fast. Whew.