When you hear the word crowdsourcing what comes to mind? Cost savings, skilled workers from around the world, and 24/7 access to your workforce are only a few of the benefits experienced from crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing is the process of dividing large, complex assignments into numerous small, simple tasks and later allocating multiple workers to each task.
You may think crowdsourcing is more for large corporations who have vast amounts of money, but in reality, crowdsourcing greatly benefits small businesses and entrepreneurs who are just starting out as well. These startups and individuals normally do not have enough money to hire full-time or even part-time employees, but they may have enough money to make a one-time payment for the services they require, such as coding a website.
Take the First Steps
Rather than hiring employees to work for your company, consider assigning tasks to workers around the world who have specific skillsets that perfectly match your requirements. The first step is to decide which of your business’ projects can be crowdsourced. Then, you must take those assignments and split them up into smaller, simpler tasks that can be allocated to dozens, hundreds or thousands of workers to help get the job done quicker and in a cost-friendly manner.
Once you have organized your current projects into little tasks, search for crowd workers on websites such as Freelancer or Amazon Mechanical Turk. Using these sites will help you choose from a diverse group of workers, each with a unique set of skills.
Benefits of Crowdsourcing
There are several benefits of using crowdsourcing in order to grow your workforce, many of which you will notice almost immediately. For instance, when assigning tasks, you will realize that many crowdsourcing websites allow workers to post their credentials or take qualification tests. These will ensure you are choosing the correct people for the job.
Additional benefits include a workforce that is available 24/7, results with high accuracy, cost savings, creative advantages due to highly skilled workers, and the fact that you only have to pay the individuals when they are actually working. Not only that, but many websites give you the ability to remain anonymous when assigning tasks, and the ability to reject the work if you are unsatisfied with the finished product.
Getting the Most Out of Crowdsourcing
In order to experience the best results and greatest benefits, there are a few things you should keep in mind when crowdsourcing your workforce. If you wish to find and retain the best workers, consider paying slightly more to hard workers who produce accurate results. This shows that you value their time and would like them to continue completing tasks for you.
When assigning the tasks, be specific and explain what you would like done as thoroughly as possible – that way you’ll be more likely to receive the results you are looking for. After receiving the completed work, and even throughout the process, give regular feedback on the work, and people will be happier to complete tasks for you.
If you keep all of the above points in mind, crowdsourcing will prove to be a great method for expanding your workforce. With that being said, you must always remember to take the management of crowdsourcing seriously, as it is important to have an organized method of assigning tasks and managing the flow of information from dozens or thousands of workers.
By Samantha Haupt
