How to Use Gig Economy to create a successful business
Some people excel at Gig Economy and some don’t – which one are you?
How does Gig Economy Works?
A gig economy is an environment in which temporary positions are common. Organizations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements. Instead of a regular wage, workers get paid for the “gigs” they do, such as a food delivery, a car journey or a writing an article.
For instance:
Mike owns a website and he needs help fixing some issues. Mike doesn’t have the budget to hire a full time web-developer, plus, he doesn’t really need one.
All he needs is a freelancer who can complete some specific tasks for him.
Mike went to an online marketplace and posted he needed help with:
- Integration of advertisement
- Loading content in AJAX
- Implementing protection against Ad-Block
He had a budget of $1000 and needed the tasks to be completed within the next 2 weeks.
Emma, who is a Web Developer, read Mike’s post and agreed to complete the tasks.
By the end of the week, Emma delivered the work. Mike got the issues fixed and Emma got paid. Everyone is happy. Now Mike can keep working on his website and Emma can complete other tasks for other clients.
How Spread is the Gig Economy?
The gig economy is estimated to be about 34% of the workforce and expected to be 43% by the year 2020%.
A third of the American working population is already working in some sort of gig capacity while there are 1.3 million Brittons employed in the gig economy.
What can be outsourced?
Pretty much everything. From moving, customer service, tree trimming, web design, pet sitting, digital marketing, review legal documents, email marketing, etc…
The important is not to take the shotgun approach. Decide what are your needs or what you are good at, and focus on these few points. It’s crucial to aim precisely.
Why is it a smart option for employers?
It gives them a lot of flexibility in many spheres:
- Flexibility: Gig workers allow companies to expand into new markets by handling seasonality and random tasks.
- Legal: Don’t have to pay taxes or employees benefits.
- Professional expertise: Get highly skilled workers without having to make a full time hire.
- Just-in-Time: Get tasks done quickly with low overhead.
- Nimble: Quickly respond to market changes.
In general, business owners get cheaper, more efficient services when using Gig economy.
Why is it so exciting for giggers?
- Flexibility: Choose your hours, location and pay. Work anywhere and take vacations.
- Variety: Can do completely different things every day and meet new people.
- Transition to being an entrepreneur. Run your own business
- Explore skills outside of your 9-5 job
- Find a great work – life balance
What are the main Gig Economy Providers?
Here is a list of website where you can sign up:
Upwork, toptal, 99 designs, freelancer, flexjobs, guru, peopleperhour, gigster, freelance, project4hire, folyo, simplyHired, fiverr, behance.
How can I successfully manage remote freelancers?
Here are the main tips to develop a cost-efficient freelance workforce:
- Your weaknesses are your hiring starting points.
- Establish what your perfect worker looks like.
- Perform mandatory weekly meetings.
- Diversify! No one person can do everything
- Interview for philosophy and communication, not just hard skill.
- Create a feed-back culture
- Set clear expectations immediately.
How much should I get Paid?
Freelance rates are all over the place. Evaluate pricing based on the effort you believe is being expended on your project.
Do research to get an estimate. Some simple math will tell you what you’re paying hourly to complete the project.
We live in the world of Shark Tank – Everyone wants an investor or $500,000 to start their business. But there’s another way: you can bootstrap.
Nathan Hirsch – CEO and founder of Feeup
