What It's About
In searching for outsourced help, this marketer ends up building an all-new business.
Business Model
Skills Required
Complexity
Profit Potential
Words of Wisdom
John says that if you are struggling running your business and need help, then try outsourcing. But first, you need to read more on what outsourcing is and how it's done. He says it's not a complicated process but business owners need to know every bit of it so they don't end up frustrated and in the dark while going through the process.
Fun Fact
Businesses understand that they need to have the right number of people to ensure that they can grow. In fact, getting the right people on board has led the recruitment and staffing market in the US to grow to the tune of US$150 billion.
Notes from Chris
Episode 945
When Internet marketer John Jonas was building marketing websites, he was working anywhere from 10 to 12 hours a day. With a day job and a family, he realized that this arrangement was not ideal for him … or his family. The obvious solution was to outsource some of his work to someone else. He needed to work smarter, not harder. This was in 2009. At that time, there wasn’t a comprehensive online marketplace you could just turn to when you needed virtual help with a task. John had to go through an agency—which was a frustrating experience. All he could do was inform the agency of his requirements and then accept whoever they sent his way. As you might expect, the first candidate that he received was someone who did not meet his meets. Subsequent candidates that he looked for got better, but with so many aspects of the process outside his control, John always had a nagging concern that the work would not be completed satisfactorily. This was a big pain point, but he thought that it might just be something that he could fix. True to his mantra of working smarter and not harder, John acted by bypassing the agency and hiring his own programmer from the Philippines. With his degree in computer science, he was able to explain exactly what he needed and could verify that work was done properly. He had little idea what that would cost him initially—all he knew was that he was paying that person $500/month. This was a win-win solution: it was far cheaper than hiring another programmer in the U.S.—and at the same time, this was a wage that was significantly higher than the market rate in the Philippines. It went so well, in fact, that he decided to keep going … and to create a job site as a platform for hiring Filipino workers. This was a conscious choice after working with several employees from the Philippines. Not only were many of them fluent in English, but it was also a location in which it made financial sense for work to be outsourced—employers could lower their costs while workers would get a higher wage. This was a value proposition that was not immediately obvious since John’s site, OnlineJobs PH, was built at a time when outsourcing and remote work wasn’t as common as it is now. But through webinars, teleseminars, and videos, John evangelized about the reasons why people should consider it. This proved to be the most effective way of marketing since it was deeply personal. As OnlineJobs PH grew, the main source of referrals quickly became word of mouth. Growth was organic, with employers and employees joining because of the good things they heard, as well as through methods such as SEO. Ten years later, the model has proven to be sustainable: John now has 21 virtual employees from the Philippines working for him. This year, Online Jobs PH has over 5,000 paying employers and earned revenue of over $4 million. It’s worth noting that John’s initial goal was not to set up an online job board; he only did so after trying to outsource some of his work and discovering that there was such a gap in the market. Solving his own problem, however, has turned a small idea into a daily hustle—not just for himself, but for thousands of people around the world.MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- OnlineJobs PH: Looking to outsource some of your work? Head on over to John's website to learn more
- Music Graduate Makes Spare Change Filling Spare Rooms: After graduating and moving to London, this self taught coder builds a website to help housemates find each other. Fifteen years later, it earns millions of dollars in profit and has hundreds of thousands of members
- Construction Company Owner Creates Gig Platform for Contractors: When he can’t find someone to help him install a TV, this former construction company owner sets out to create a platform that connects homeowners and contractors
- Car Crash Leads To Pain Relief Side Hustle: After an MBA student is in a car crash that leaves her with chronic back pain, she sets about creating a change that would help thousands of other people
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