| -- End Ad Box ---> | | | | There's an alternative to these approaches: Service |
| You're busy and focused on the primary needs of | | | | auctions or reverse auctions. |
| your business, but you need various services to get | | | | First, register with a website and post your project in |
| things done: Your website designed or upgraded; | | | | enough detail for someone to bid on without contacting |
| brochures created for your business; an improvement | | | | you. The website then may inform registered suppliers |
| to your premises. Such projects will take you | | | | in the category and location you've specified that a |
| considerable effort to either do yourself or find | | | | project has been posted. Frequently the website |
| someone competent who can do the work for you. | | | | administrators will also assist in the process of getting |
| When you look for someone to do a particular job, | | | | bids on your project, sending invitations out to further |
| you probably will go through a Google or similar search, | | | | suppliers. |
| and hope to come up with a list of useful suppliers. | | | | Suppliers review your posting, may ask clarifying |
| Then you browse them and their websites and pick | | | | questions, and submit a bid. Generally, these bids are |
| one. Or you might go to a service lister such as | | | | visible to other suppliers, and they compete with each |
| ServiceMagic.com, and enter a requirement on their | | | | other for your business, asserting their qualifications, |
| site, with the intent that they should suggest a few | | | | emphasizing their licensed status, their ratings on the |
| potential suppliers. | | | | site, and so on. At the end of the bid time, or earlier if |
| In either case you tend to fly rather blind. In the first | | | | appropriate, you review the bids and select one to |
| one, where you review a few suppliers from the | | | | contract with. |
| Google search and contact one, you know little about | | | | When the job is completed, you return to the website |
| the supplier and have only your own estimate of what | | | | to rate the supplier, and they return to rate you as a |
| the job should cost. In the second case, you have a | | | | customer (was your description accurate? Were you |
| rating from the website recommending the suppliers, | | | | easy to work with? Did you pay on time? Etc.) |
| and you hope that it is useful. You still don't know what | | | | This saves you time in searching for suppliers, gets |
| the price range should be. | | | | you enough bids to know what the market is charging |
| Next we get into scenarios of, Yes, I do website | | | | for the job you have in mind, and allows you to make |
| design. I'm quick, reliable and reasonably priced. I can do | | | | a choice without having to face pressure from |
| it for you within a week. Just send me a description of | | | | individual suppliers. Since bids will be public, suppliers can |
| what you need done, and I'll do the job for you for $30 | | | | see what they have to meet or beat to be |
| per hour. Or - I'll need to come out to look at the | | | | competitive, or what they have to emphasize to |
| site so I can provide a proper estimate of the job. | | | | differentiate themselves from the competition based |
| When will you be available to meet with me? | | | | on quality, lead time, etc. |
| The supplier's prime motivation is to close the deal with | | | | Many sites will charge a fee for this service: A |
| you. They don't want you talking to other people, | | | | membership fee, listing fee, completion fee or a |
| because the person who has the last word has the | | | | combination. |
| best opportunity to convince the customer. Their job is | | | | Take a look at reverse auctions to see how you can |
| to make it difficult for you to turn them away. You | | | | save yourself time and stress. |
| come under pressure to sign up immediately. | | | | |