A business idea for you July 1, 2008
Posted by Tony Shepherd in : Tony's Blog , 2commentsI’ve had a glass of wine, it’s been a balmy summer day, the doors onto the garden are open and with the kids in bed, myself and my wife are watching a thunderstorm as it works it’s way across the hills towrds us.
I’m also writing my blog.
So I thought I’d share a marketing technique with you that I’d never really thought was a ’secret’ but when I’m mentioned it in the past to a couple of people it seems that it might not be as obvious as it appeared to me when it bailed me out of trouble a few times in the early days.
Also surprising is the number of successful marketers who’ve admitted (maybe that’s the wrong word) to using this technique - some on an industrial scale!
OK - here we go. This won’t take long because the idea is simple, but like all good ideas devastatingly effective!
It also has it’s risks.
But then again so does forgetting an anniversary or trimming your beard when drunk.
I’ll just say up front that this does take some balls - ladies included - so it will appeal to some of you and not others.
It’s simply this - you act as a middleman for all services connected to internet marketing.
I used to offer a website design service. although I didn’t know any more than the basics of web page design. I’d get details of the commission, put in my price and then go to elance.com or rentacoder.com or similar and post the job description.
I’d get the job done cheaper and faster than I’d promised my original client, deliver the finished website to my client and pocket the difference. Money for old rope really.
I never had a problem with the ethics of it (still don’t) and know of some highly reputable freelancers who don’t do any work themselves, they’re just professional middlemen.
That’s the basis of it. However there is a downside. From personal experience I’d say that one in five jobs goes wrong. Delays, untrustworthy freelancers, poor work standard and non-payers are just a few of the problems I’ve encountered.
Very few are un-solveable though, and if you’ve decided to take the plungle into full time internet marketing then acting as a middleman can provide a much needed safety net
And sorry guys but that’s all there is to it. You can find your work by looking through freelance sites or posting on forums, and find the freelancers you’re going to subcontract in the same way. This is one of those ‘business ideas’ that you’re never going to be convinced about unless you try it yourself. It’s like someone saying ‘then run an adwords ad to drive traffic to your new site’ - it’s easy to say, and to be honest it’s quite easy to do but for some reason it takes…….balls………..and that’s probably why not many people do it.
And that’s it.
Look into it - see if it clicks with you.
