This is a guest post by Melanie Tan.

Since Thomas covered the “L” word, it inspired me to discuss the “O” word… outsourcing.

By now, you’ve probably already realized that one of the things that set Super Affiliates apart is that they don’t do EVERY little thing by themselves. They zero in on their BEST ability/qualification and outsource the rest. Yes, there are pitfalls so here’s a few things you need to keep in mind.

One: Service providers are not mind-readers. YOU should know what you want done even before you start looking for providers. If you need a website done, you should at least have an idea of what you want it to look like! If you want an application done, you should be clear on what it should do in the first place. If you want content written, you should know what you intend to do with them (website content? article marketing? compiled later into a report? etc.)

If you’re not 100% sure of what you want, the best thing to do is provide examples. Choose five websites and tell your provider this is the ‘look’ you’re aiming for. Show links to a few articles online and say this is the ‘tone’ and writing style you want. This simple step will save you and your provider time, money and headaches.

Also, the clearer you are about your requirements, the better you are at selecting which service provider you should go with. Speaking of selection…

Two: Don’t always go for the cheap provider! Yes, you WILL get what you pay for. So how do you know you’re hooking up with the right provider?

• Single person vs. company. I started out as a one-woman provider so I’d be the last person to say don’t trust one-man firms but take note of deliveries. The disadvantage of single person entities is they’re prone to not deliver on said dates due to illness, etc. If it was a firm, then there’s at least a bit of redundancy and your project SHOULD still be delivered on time regardless of who got sick or not. On the other hand, most single person providers do provide that personal touch.
  

• Check their portfolios. Most online marketplaces show the portfolios of providers so take a few minutes to view them and see which ones suit your project best. If you’re still not convinced, ask for a PAID sample. For instance, in my company, first-time clients can pay for ONE article and we write the article based on their exact specs. When they get their articles, they can see if we meet their expectations to a T or not.
  

What about bigger projects? I hear you. This is a bit harder for copywriting projects as they are more costly. But this is how I’ve solved that. You can commission for a part of the copy to be written first. For example, pay $100 for headline samples and bullet point samples. You may think this is a big amount for a sample but don’t forget that the provider is already spending time on your material. So you’re not just paying for the headlines and bullet samples here. You’re paying for the time and effort already being extended on your project.

• Set up a call. Touch base with your provider before the project begins to make sure he/she understands what you want done.

Three: Lastly, if you’re outsourcing something, don’t just let go. You MUST still have the BIG picture in your head. Oftentimes, when I’m called in, hundreds of articles are already online for a client. When asked where these articles are, their keyword density, do they have meta tags, etc., etc., clients often don’t know. As far as they’re concerned, they’ve outsourced that part so it’s getting done, and that’s it. Hmmm… that’s like throwing money against the wind if you ask me. So what do you do?

You ask for reports. You verify where the articles are once in a while. In short, make sure you’re getting your money’s worth!

Online marketplaces I recommend:
Elance.com
GetAFreelancer.com
RentACoder.com
oDesk.com

Good luck! And if you’ve got outsourcing nightmares, share it on the Comments section

Melanie Tan heads an online content provision company that provides SEO articles and other e-content annually. She is also a professional copywriter who specializes in affiliate marketing landing pages.