Side hustle idea: How I made $2,000+ per month from outsourcing services

There are many jobs now that can be done remotely which really opens the door to outsourcing from people anywhere in the world. Everything from bookkeeping, administration, marketing etc can be outsourced. There are many websites that are popular in providing outsourced services such as www.upwork.com and www.fiver.com to name a few. There are also organisations that have a pool of outsourced people that are managed. What businesses want though is help in locating great resources, they don't have the time to interview and manage outsourced people. When the need is ongoing and projects need more people then businesses need help.

So where is the opportunity?

For me, it was fast-growing businesses in a sector that I had contacts in and knowledge of what their needs were. It was expensive to hire onshore resources for projects and difficult. I did some research and found some businesses in the Philippines that had a great reputation and good terms. It did take some time to find the right business but it was worth the time. In my case, it was inside sales and data research people that tech organisations were looking for to deliver projects. So you find the customer with a need and partner with the outsourcing organisation to deliver the services. You make the margin in between.

Important things to consider

It is very important to agree on the right commercials with the outsourcing organisation and the end customer as you are the middle person. This depends on whether you are invoicing the customer or the outsourcing organisation. There are pros and cons to both approaches. The low touch and easiest way for you to have an agreement with the outsourcing organisation which means you get paid a commission on resources in projects for introduction to the customer. Typically commissions are paid on the percentage of the profit on the project (customer invoiced amount less the cost of the outsourced organisations' cost). This may be the easiest way to get started.

With the low touch method of introducing customers to outsourcing organisations make sure that you consider the following:

1. Will you get paid commissions ongoing for the introduction or once off?

2. How is the commission calculated?

3. When will you get paid? What currency?

4. How will you get paid?

5. What happens if the outsourcing organisation decides to call it quits?

6. What are your obligations and liabilities?

7. Who is responsible for customer issues?

There are many more considerations as well...

Well worth getting professional advice so that you are well set up and comply with laws and rules.

Getting customers

To differentiate yourself from people that get the outsourcing services from websites - choose a niche or speciality and provide brilliant customer service. You will need to have happy customers that will act as a reference. Also, happy customers may find others areas in the business that they may outsource.

Having a website is a must and some great content, tools and testimonials - that is your shop window. Within your existing network, there may be opportunities to connect with people that need outsourcing services - social networking tools such as Linkedin may be very useful here. Looking at job board vacancies may give an indication of the kinds of skills required, opportunities and businesses that need help.

There is an opportunity to build a nice side income and the beginnings of an outsourcing business if you can get the right service offer and the right outsourcing organisation in place. It took me 3 months to get my first customer, some of which I had for years.

You should get professional advice from lawyers, accountants and financial professionals with business decisions or decisions that relate to your finances.

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