A Blast from the Past

If you haven’t already, register a username for yourself so you can discuss this topic in our Outsourcing Clients forum.

We typically get service requests in one of two ways. The first is unsolicited and sometimes outright strange (i.e. completely unrelated to what we do). The second is from vWorker as a private invitation to bid on a project. Recently, we received a job proposal with a little of both characteristics. Not only was the service request an unsolicited job proposal, it was actually related to what we do for once, and (bonus) it came from a client we previously worked with via vWorker. But this wasn’t just any job proposal…

What we received in e-mail impressed us so much, we asked the sender if we could use his proposal as an example of The Best Job Proposal Ever. Thankfully, he said, “Yes.” There’s simply no way this awesome piece of work should have remain hidden, and now, instead of simply sitting on my hard drive, we get to share it with you guys. Enjoy!

Can you tell what had us so excited about working with this guy again?

He Told Us Who He Was

We couldn’t help but notice Brian’s initial screen displayed the rent-acoder.com website, which consequently returned an error message upon searching for his user name. This is a problem we addressed in our Do NOT Use ‘rent-acoder.com’ article, and it’s a problem that we strongly recommend you avoid!

The client started off by introducing himself as a past buyer, and then kindly reminded us of the type of work we previously did for him. Had he not introduced himself the way he did, we would have had some difficulty identifying him from the numerous clients we worked with in the past.

He Shared His Goals

Next, he described his goals to give us an idea of what role we would/could play in his career as an internet marketer. That let us know his work request was related to what we do. I can’t tell you how many unrelated proposals we receive and how frustrating that is, but the experience is boggling. We’re extremely grateful this client took the time to remember our skills matched his objectives.

He Asked For Our Availability

After that, he repeatedly asked about our availability. Another one of our pet peeves is when people attempt to throw work at us without inquiring about our accessibility. A lot of hungry service providers would probably appreciate that type of behavior, however, when we’re in the middle of a prior engagement, that behavior comes off as disruptive and just plain rude. At the very least, people could follow this client’s example, and simply ask, “Hey… are you busy over there?? I’ve got something to talk with you about.” It’s much appreciated.

He Respected the Process

Sometimes, it’s the little things (introductions, goal sharing, thoughtfulness, etc.) that can make a difference between a dismissive “Sorry, we’re too busy at the moment,” and an enthusiastic “Hell yeah, we’re available!” Of course, taking the time to create a fantastic flash presentation doesn’t hurt either. By the time we viewed the complete presentation, we essentially had an offer we couldn’t refuse.

This client’s approach may or may not be unusual, but it was certainly unique to us. Video aside, you might want to adopt the strategy that this outsourcer employed. It not only gave us a warm feeling inside, it motivated us to take this guy as seriously as he obviously took us. (And that’s always a good thing!)

Thanks for a great experience, Brian!