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12 years ago

What project management systems/programs do you feel work best for time managment? I work with a number of VA's and sometimes tasks take much longer to complete then they should. How would you address this with your outsourcers?

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12 years ago

Hi Matt!

Hmmm, that's a good (and complicated) question!

There is a lot of ground to cover here, so this is going to be a long response. I apologize in advance! XD lol

Okay, let's break this down into parts...
-------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by Matt Lee

What project management systems/programs do you feel work best for time managment?

Project/task Tracking

If by time-management, you're referring to project and task tracking...

Short Answer:
... I usually just use a color-coded Google Doc spreadsheet. I'll have 1 tab for each project (listing the title(s), deadlines, descriptions, and other important info), and my team will color-code tasks and sub-tasks based on their level of completion. Or, you could also make 1 spreadsheet per outsourcer if their tasks are completely separate, so they they don't look at other outsourcer's tabs and get confused. It depends on the project, really.

Long Answer:
I've actually found that any program that I've used for gantt charts and group milestone assignments (like Basecamp) tended to be really hard for some of the outsourcers (or in-house people) to pick up. Some people just have a hard time with organization/management software (and that's okay ^_^). So instead, I usually just use a color-coded Google Doc spreadsheet (as mentioned above).

It's a really basic form of tracking, but it forces you to talk directly to your individual team members when discussing their individual assignments, which tends to boost morale and avoid the "detached boss" syndrome, while also instilling a sense of ownership and responsibility for the assigned task in your outsoutsourcer.

If you export the document to Excel, you can also use the chart/graph/etc. capabilities in the program as well, so while data tracking is not completely automatic, it's still possible.

It's not a perfect solution, but personally, I find that tracking data somewhat manually (or having a VA do it) is a lot easier than getting unhappy and disconnected outsourcers to do good work. ^_~*
-------------------------------------------------

Time-tracking

Now, if you were referring to time-tracking software...

Short Answer:
Instead of tracking an outsourcer's time, I find it better to track their productivity. I like to set goals and milestones, and use them to track how much work is done over a set period of time, and then see if the amount of work remains fairly consistent from 1 time period to the next.

The reason for this is...

Long Answer:
I've found that keeping track of one's working time (based on hours and minutes) often wastes a lot more time than it saves. I know that sounds really counter-intuitive, and that's not to say that time-tracking doesn't have its place, but the methods available tend to produce skewed data and an over-all lower morale, so greater care has to be taken with implementation, and any data gathered needs to be taken with a grain of salt.

For example, when an outsourcer is asked to keep track of their own time, 1 of 3 things usually happens. Either...

... they remember to keep track of their hours, but the categories in their activity list are so broad that it doesn't give you anything to work with,
it's exactly the opposite, where they keep track of their hours in such a detailed manner that it takes an hour or 2 out of their work day just to keep their records straight,
or more often than not, they forget to do it altogether, and end up estimating after-the-fact, which gives you false data.

In any of these situations, their time is being wasted by producing inaccurate (or overly-accurate) results, and your time is being wasted by trying to analyze the incorrect data as if it were accurate.

When you use a program to track time usage, either they have to remember to turn it on and off (giving you the same estimation problem), or it automatically starts and stops based on what window they have activated on their computer.

If your outsourcer only needs to be in 1 window for their work, this is probably the best method to use. It's accurate, and doesn't require the user to remember to take action. However, some occupations require an outsourcer to switch through multiple windows and view a lot of different things at once (this is the big problem with this method for art outsourcing), so in this situation, oftentimes the data says that they work less than they actually do, so once again, inacurate data.

If you are less concerned with minute-and-hour-based time tracking, and more concerned with the idea that they are working at all, having a program that takes snapshots of the outsourcer's desktop from time to time, like with oDesk, can be really useful. However, once again, it depends on what the outsourcer's job is. Depending on what the outsourcer is doing, they can have windows open which don't look at all useful, and could give the wrong impression, even if they are working (for example, a VA working on social media could have Facebook open all day). So while this can be useful, it doesn't necessarily give you an accurate reading either (and certainly very little data to use).

But overall, the biggest problem with time-tracking is that, depending on the location of your outsourcer, they will probably feel watched, or worse, offended or afraid, if they know that you are tracking their time, which is bad for morale. Bad morale means sloppy work and wasted time, so even if you find a good method for time-tracking, because of the excess time and effort that you'll need to put towards boosting morale, it never really seemed like a good option to me.

Instead, as mentioned above, I like to set goals and milestones, and use them to track how much work is done over a set period of time to see if the amount of work remains fairly consistent. The period of time that you choose should be no shorter than 1 week, and no longer than 2 months (the longer the period, the better average estimation you'll come up with).

If they do slightly less work in 1 month than they had done in the month before, well, some projects have more problems than others and will take a little longer. That's no big deal.
If the amount that they do is very inconsistent, even with similar tasks, then you'll need to talk to your outsourcer and find out why.

And that brings us to your next question!

-------------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by Matt Lee

I work with a number of VA's and sometimes tasks take much longer to complete then they should. How would you address this with your outsourcers?

I'd say that it depends on 3 things:

what type of work they're doing now vs. what they've worked on previously
the % difference between how much time you think their tasks should be taking and how much time they're actually taking
how you came up with your original time estimate

There are some tasks that just take longer than others, and everyone works at at a different pace, so if your estimate for how long it should take is based off of a task that is not similar to what your VA is currently doing, or based on how quickly someone else could do it, that could be the problem right there.

There's also the possibility that some problem came up during the process. People lose power occasionally, websites go down, computers have errors, etc. It happens, and as long as it's not a constant occurrence, it shouldn't be a big deal. ^_^

Now, if those aren't the issues, and if they are doing similar tasks as they have always done, and you are basing your estimate on their past work, then it depends on how much of a time difference there is.

If they're spending < 25% more time than usual, I'd give it 2-3 weeks and see if it passes. They could be sick or going through a phase, or it could just be a stubborn task. It might pass with time.

If it continues, and/or if the difference is 25%-45%, I'd check in and see if there's been a problem that they've been struggling with regarding one of their tasks, or if there's maybe a family or personal issue that's taking their attention from their work. In the end, it may not be as bad as you think. They might surprise you and say that they've been distracted, because they've been trying a new method to improve the process, and they haven't quite worked out the bugs just yet! (I've actually heard of similar things happening before! lol) ^_^

If the extra time is above an additional 45%, or if they just won't talk to you, then it gets a little harder. At that point, all you can do is talk to them 1-on-1 and see if you can figure out what's wrong. They might be afraid to tell you, because they're afraid of losing their job, or because they're bitter. If they're so bitter that it's affecting their work, there's nothing that you can really do at that point. However, usually that's not the case, and it's just a matter of figuring out what's bothering them, and working with them to come up with an actionable solution.

Also, if they seem tired or like they're really stressing about something, I'd give them an afternoon or a day off here and there. Some people are more prone to stress than others, and while it won't fix the problem, it could help to improve their mood, their work, and their morale, which, in turn, should improve those aspects in their coworkers; one upset person can bring down an entire group, even digitally. 0.o
-------------------------------------------------

My personal goal is just to remember that my outsourcers are people like any other, and to treat them better than I would want to be treated, myself. If I can do that and give them the support that they need to work, then I figure that there's not a whole lot more that I can do. ^_^
-------------------------------------------------

I hope that this helped somewhat! Please let me know if I didn't answer your question, and if so, I'll do my best to answer it the next time around!

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12 years ago

My gosh! I feel useless in this reply. I don't know that I have a single question about art or graphics. But I appreciate the thread. Your video was very nice also. Thank you.

LLS

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12 years ago

Good thread and good reply!

Mind sharing one of your color-coded google docs to get an idea of how to structure it? I am not outsourcing yet, but think I will get to this point in some time.

Thank you in advance!

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Aurelijus

Good thread and good reply!

Mind sharing one of your color-coded google docs to get an idea of how to structure it? I am not outsourcing yet, but think I will get to this point in some time.

Thank you in advance!

Hi Aurelijus!

Thank you for your comment! ^_^

Hmmm... each document is very different depending on what type of project you're doing, but I suppose that I could put together an example or 2 for you. ^_^

Oh, oh, wait, what about this...

THIS IS FOR EVERYONE! > > >
If there are any videos that you want for art things (or anything else), or any documents that you want to see examples of, let me know and I'll put together a packet of free stuff for you in the next week or 2 (depending on how long it takes to make it)!

Does that sound okay, Aurelijus? I know that you were probably hoping for something more immediate, but I thought that you (and the other people in the thread) might get more value from it this way. ^_^

Please let me know if this doesn't work for you, and if so, I'll see if I can come up with something sooner.

Thank you again for your comment! ^_^

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Ken Houck

How do you find good companies for VA's, or how do you find good VA's?

Originally Posted by natebunger

I would also love to know how you can find good VAs. What are the proper questions to ask and how to communicate with them. I've had experiences with VAs but it's the quality of their work and the amount of time it takes them are where I'm having problems. It's probably how I communicate with them?

Well, let's see...

I haven't actually had a chance to hire a few VAs of my own just yet, but I was planning to in the near future, so I've been researching it quite extensively.

Hiring VAs
Thus far, I've found that hiring a VA seems to be a lot like hiring people from anywhere. You can hire them through 2 routes, looking for yourself or finding someone else to do it.

Hiring Someone:
Personally, I'm not going to have the time to look for them myself, so I'm hoping to use Virtual Staff Finder. One of the great things about this site, is that they have a sister site (VSF Academy) that you can sign up for, which has training videos that you can use for your VAs.

Of course, it is expensive, but it's essentially trading money for time and experience. I figure that it's better to pay some money upfront and have a much higher chance of getting good people right away, than spending a little money, and taking weeks (or longer) trying to find someone myself, and just sort of hoping for the best. These guys live there, and seem to know what to look for, so I'd rather trust their expertise.

Finding Someone Yourself:
That being said, looking for a VA yourself is definitely cheaper, and while it may or may not take longer, you can definitely find good people this way.

Here the 2 best hiring places that I've seen thus far for this:

Online Jobs also has a sister site (Replace Myself), which is basically a training course for finding VAs yourself, and I think that you get a free subscription to Online Jobs if you pay for the training course, as well.

In short though, since I haven't hired from the Philippines, I'm not particularly familiar with their culture, so I'm not really sure what you should ask them. Hiring good people is hard enough when they are from your own country! XD lol

That being said, here are some things that I've picked up through research.
----------------------------------

General Advice

From what I understand (and once again, I don't have VAs yet, so I can't verify this), the most important thing to know about working with VAs is that, because of their culture, they are deathly afraid of losing their jobs, to the point that if they make a mistake, they would rather disappear than ask for help and risk disappointing you.

This means that you have to be REALLY careful about what you say to them, and make sure that you never give them a reason to think that you're unhappy or disappointed with them.

If you take the time to emphasize that you want them ask questions, and that it's okay if they don't know something, over time you can be less careful about what you say.

I think that it would probably also be a good idea if you explained that your job, as their boss, is to support them, so if they don't know something or don't have the materials that they need, it's not a failing on their part; it just means that you need to address it, because that's your job. There is no failure, and there is no disappointment; it just is what it is, and you will work with them to help them with whatever they need to do their jobs.

Also, I've heard that you need to give them instructions in video form (with audio) instead of in writing. Basically, you need to show them how to do it instead of expecting them to read the instructions, which is part of the reason that I like the idea of VSF Academy's training program. That's just additional work that you won't have to do.

Aside from that, everyone works at a different pace and at a different quality. It could honestly be that your standards are too high, or that the people that have been hired just turned out to not be a good fit for their positions. It happens no matter where you are and no matter what industry you're in, and if that is the case, then you simply need to find people who fit the position better.

----------------------------------

I hope that helped! Please let me know if you have any other questions, and I'll do my best to answer them! ^_^

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

Well, let's see...

I haven't actually had a chance to hire a few VAs of my own just yet, but I was planning to in the near future, so I've been researching it quite extensively.

Hiring VAs
Thus far, I've found that hiring a VA seems to be a lot like hiring people from anywhere. You can hire them through 2 routes, looking for yourself or finding someone else to do it.

Hiring Someone:
Personally, I'm not going to have the time to look for them myself, so I'm hoping to use Virtual Staff Finder. One of the great things about this site, is that they have a sister site (VSF Academy) that you can sign up for, which has training videos that you can use for your VAs.

Of course, it is expensive, but it's essentially trading money for time and experience. I figure that it's better to pay some money upfront and have a much higher chance of getting good people right away, than spending a little money, and taking weeks (or longer) trying to find someone myself, and just sort of hoping for the best. These guys live there, and seem to know what to look for, so I'd rather trust their expertise.

Finding Someone Yourself:
That being said, looking for a VA yourself is definitely cheaper, and while it may or may not take longer, you can definitely find good people this way.

Here the 2 best hiring places that I've seen thus far for this:

Online Jobs also has a sister site (Replace Myself), which is basically a training course for finding VAs yourself, and I think that you get a free subscription to Online Jobs if you pay for the training course, as well.

In short though, since I haven't hired from the Philippines, I'm not particularly familiar with their culture, so I'm not really sure what you should ask them. Hiring good people is hard enough when they are from your own country! XD lol

That being said, here are some things that I've picked up through research.
----------------------------------

General Advice

From what I understand (and once again, I don't have VAs yet, so I can't verify this), the most important thing to know about working with VAs is that, because of their culture, they are deathly afraid of losing their jobs, to the point that if they make a mistake, they would rather disappear than ask for help and risk disappointing you.

This means that you have to be REALLY careful about what you say to them, and make sure that you never give them a reason to think that you're unhappy or disappointed with them.

If you take the time to emphasize that you want them ask questions, and that it's okay if they don't know something, over time you can be less careful about what you say.

I think that it would probably also be a good idea if you explained that your job, as their boss, is to support them, so if they don't know something or don't have the materials that they need, it's not a failing on their part; it just means that you need to address it, because that's your job. There is no failure, and there is no disappointment; it just is what it is, and you will work with them to help them with whatever they need to do their jobs.

Also, I've heard that you need to give them instructions in video form (with audio) instead of in writing. Basically, you need to show them how to do it instead of expecting them to read the instructions, which is part of the reason that I like the idea of VSF Academy's training program. That's just additional work that you won't have to do.

Aside from that, everyone works at a different pace and at a different quality. It could honestly be that your standards are too high, or that the people that have been hired just turned out to not be a good fit for their positions. It happens no matter where you are and no matter what industry you're in, and if that is the case, then you simply need to find people who fit the position better.

----------------------------------

I hope that helped! Please let me know if you have any other questions, and I'll do my best to answer them! ^_^

Great post Cheryl. Will look into the websites you have shared for outsourcing.If you can put together any guide with regards to the same it would be great.

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12 years ago

Sounds good! Cheers!

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

Hi Aurelijus!

Thank you for your comment! ^_^

Hmmm... each document is very different depending on what type of project you're doing, but I suppose that I could put together an example or 2 for you. ^_^

Oh, oh, wait, what about this...

THIS IS FOR EVERYONE! > > >
If there are any videos that you want for art things (or anything else), or any documents that you want to see examples of, let me know and I'll put together a packet of free stuff for you in the next week or 2 (depending on how long it takes to make it)!

Does that sound okay, Aurelijus? I know that you were probably hoping for something more immediate, but I thought that you (and the other people in the thread) might get more value from it this way. ^_^

Please let me know if this doesn't work for you, and if so, I'll see if I can come up with something sooner.

Thank you again for your comment! ^_^

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by LastingLifeSuccess

My gosh! I feel useless in this reply. I don't know that I have a single question about art or graphics. But I appreciate the thread. Your video was very nice also. Thank you.

LLS

Hi there!

Neither you, nor your reply, are useless in this thread!

I was actually worried that no one would like the video. I chose to make more casual than professional videos, partially because it's my style, and partially because I see too many professional-looking people who may or may not know what they're talking about, so I figured it'd be best not to play it up and just be me, you know? So I was wondering if people would even respond to a casual person in a professional topic, and if they'd actually participate, so reading your post put a REALLY big smile on my face! (you too, Matt! ^_^)

Thank you so much for your comment and kind words! Whether you have a question or not, you are always welcome in this thread! ^-^

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12 years ago

I think you have a real problem here that began in your selection of VAs. Outsourcing or not, your results with people are always dependent on the kind of people you have. It is more difficult with outsourcing because the personal touch is missing. What you can do is selective surgery. Incise those who are not delivering on time. Period.

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by joesfortune

I think you have a real problem here that began in your selection of VAs. Outsourcing or not, your results with people are always dependent on the kind of people you have.

This is true, but the types of people that the VAs are is not everything. A really good manager could turn coal into diamonds, so to speak, but both sides have to be willing.

Or in other words, if a VA is having difficulty, and wants to solve the problem, then they can still be very useful. It's all about whether or not their problem is fixable, and how you approach the situation to try and resolve it.

Originally Posted by joesfortune

It is more difficult with outsourcing because the personal touch is missing.

Very true! That's why frequent Skype calls are so important!

Another thing that helps with this, is to send them instructions/feedback in video and/or audio form along with the written instructions. That way, they remember that you're a person, and not just a faceless entity.

Originally Posted by joesfortune

What you can do is selective surgery. Incise those who are not delivering on time. Period.

If you have tried, but feel that their problem can not be resolved, then yes, letting them go becomes the only course of action left.

Just make sure that you try to find, and solve, the issue first. It'd be a shame to let someone go who could've been very useful later on, especially with how hard it is to find good people in the first place! XD

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12 years ago

How do you find good companies for VA's, or how do you find good VA's?

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12 years ago

I would also love to know how you can find good VAs. What are the proper questions to ask and how to communicate with them. I've had experiences with VAs but it's the quality of their work and the amount of time it takes them are where I'm having problems. It's probably how I communicate with them?

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12 years ago

Wow this is like a goldmine for me.

I'm a designing student and I feel I'm really stuck at this point of my life and I'm just 19 years old. Although I'm good in designing and I may get a job easily here but, I really want to start some real business of my own. I want to offer logo, web design/development, video production etc. services.

I have planed to outsource most of the work and with the profits I will increase my staff.
I'm from India and 1-2 years back people here just used to make their company logos themselves of their names and use it as their brand image.

But now the market is developing and they are looking for someone offering these kind of services. They have now realized the importance of having a Good Brand name, Logo and a website. The hot market is of Real estate and Restaurants. I have planned to open a website offering these services and having a payment system in that. So, I want to keep this business online or maybe open an office near my house to reach out more people.

I have few questions regarding this :

1. What do I need to learn before I start all this ?

As I said I will outsource the most of the work but I think I would be cheating If I don't know anything about it. I have experience in designing logos, and I'm currently learning web designing. So, should I take action and just start offering the logos services first and then after some time add web design/ development.

2. Can you please show me some websites already working on this business model ( offering these services in their country ) How do they deliver the work ? ( Do they mail the logo files ? )

3. Please give me some tips

Thanks a lot .

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Comphics

Wow this is like a goldmine for me.

I'm a designing student and I feel I'm really stuck at this point of my life and I'm just 19 years old. Although I'm good in designing and I may get a job easily here but, I really want to start some real business of my own. I want to offer logo, web design/development, video production etc. services.

I have planed to outsource most of the work and with the profits I will increase my staff.
I'm from India and 1-2 years back people here just used to make their company logos themselves of their names and use it as their brand image.

But now the market is developing and they are looking for someone offering these kind of services. They have now realized the importance of having a Good Brand name, Logo and a website. The hot market is of Real estate and Restaurants. I have planned to open a website offering these services and having a payment system in that. So, I want to keep this business online or maybe open an office near my house to reach out more people.

I have few questions regarding this :

1. What do I need to learn before I start all this ?

As I said I will outsource the most of the work but I think I would be cheating If I don't know anything about it. I have experience in designing logos, and I'm currently learning web designing. So, should I take action and just start offering the logos services first and then after some time add web design/ development.

2. Can you please show me some websites already working on this business model ( offering these services in their country ) How do they deliver the work ? ( Do they mail the logo files ? )

3. Please give me some tips

Thanks a lot .

Hi Comphics!

That was one whopper of a question!

Please tell me:

what services, exactly, you want to offer (all of them)
what design work you've done
what design work you were taught to do
if you've done any freelancing before (and if so, what did you make, and how long did you do it?)
where you want to offer your services (USA, India, everywhere, etc.?)

All of these will be important in giving you an answer.

Thank you! ^_^

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12 years ago

what services, exactly, you want to offer (all of them)

Logo Designing
Web Designing
Stationary
Video Making
Flyers, Brochures, Menu Cards, Banners, Advertisements and other graphic related services.
3D architecture, modeling, designing.
Viral Marketing ( Make facebook pages, Youtube channels, SEO )

what design work you've done

In the order of my specialization

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners.

what design work you were taught to do

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners, video making, 3D architecture, 2D Flash Character designing, Newspaper-Magazine layouts.

if you've done any freelancing before (and if so, what did you make, and how long did you do it?)

I'm working as a freelancer, I participate in online contests of logo designing, Web designing, Stationary designing and viral marketing.

where you want to offer your services (USA, India, everywhere, etc.?)

I would like to start with my own country India and then expand the business.
I want a system that if people from India visits my website then it shows the prices in INR and if visitors come from USA then it shows the prices in USD.

How to do that ?

Should I offer all the services all together or just start by offering logo design and stationary service first ?

Thanks a lot.

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by desley

Many thanks for such interesting questions and posts from people providing fabulous information. I've learnt a lot and now have a couple of more websites re outsources to access - thank you.
I've taken a very tiny step into hiring outsources and the first and foremost thing that people do need to consider is - the outsourcer is still a human being and apply good management practices one would apply to one's own staff in one's own country or workplace. This is especially important...

... My other main suggestion is don't rush in - take your time and really think about the tasks/activities you want an outsourcer or a VA to do; do your research that you're getting the best person for the job; and ensure you remember once you hire - the VA or outsourcer is a human being and ensure you keep this foremost in your mind when you are managing either 1 or a team.

...

I'm glad that this thread was useful for you!

And you are SO right! Most of the time, people forget that their outsourcers are human beings and not cogs, and they forget that their job, as managers, is to provide them with all of the support that they need to do their jobs. It's not a "set-and-forget" scenario, but 99% of people seem to think that it is.

This is especially troublesome with art outsourcing, because art is an INCREDIBLY complicated topic, and communication among artists is hard enough, but it's even harder when talking to someone who is unfamiliar with it.

When a client thinks that they can just say, "I want something cool," and walk off, bad things happen. But then again, that's why we're here to steer them where they need to go.

lol

On a side note, this site is HILARIOUS and very, VERY true. If you ever want a look into the life of a freelance artist, just go here and remember to NEVER DO ANYTHING that's been listed on this site. XD hahahaha

Anyway, back on topic...

You are so very right! Thank you so much for pointing that out, and for sharing your experiences with us!

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Comphics

what services, exactly, you want to offer (all of them)

Logo Designing
Web Designing
Stationary
Video Making
Flyers, Brochures, Menu Cards, Banners, Advertisements and other graphic related services.
3D architecture, modeling, designing.
Viral Marketing ( Make facebook pages, Youtube channels, SEO )

what design work you've done

In the order of my specialization

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners.

what design work you were taught to do

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners, video making, 3D architecture, 2D Flash Character designing, Newspaper-Magazine layouts.

if you've done any freelancing before (and if so, what did you make, and how long did you do it?)

I'm working as a freelancer, I participate in online contests of logo designing, Web designing, Stationary designing and viral marketing.

where you want to offer your services (USA, India, everywhere, etc.?)

I would like to start with my own country India and then expand the business.
I want a system that if people from India visits my website then it shows the prices in INR and if visitors come from USA then it shows the prices in USD.

How to do that ?

Should I offer all the services all together or just start by offering logo design and stationary service first ?

Thanks a lot.

Hi Comphics!

Thank you for the clarification!

Since your question is so expansive, it's going to take me a little while to put together an answer for you. I'll do my best to get one up for you by Tuesday (PST).

I'm sorry for the delay, but I'll let you know as soon as it's ready!

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Art of Marketing

As an Artist, Marketer, Woman, how do you feel about the fact that "sex sells"?

Would you spice up your campaigns because it may spice up your bottom line?

Do you have an across the board philosophy on that or you tailor it to the specific project? Thanks.

-Art

Hi Art!

Ooohhh, what an interesting question! Hmmm... let's see if I can answer this without tomatoes being thrown at me... (although they're awfully tasty!) XD *laughs*

In all honesty, I consider sex to be a lot like gore in movies and animation. It has its place, and as long as it's adding to the product instead of dominating it, I'm totally fine with that.

If you were referring to the fact that it's almost always the big-chested, tiny-waisted woman being shown, that doesn't really bother me, either. The funny thing is, women like to look at pretty women just as much as men do, albeit for completely different reasons. For women... how to put this nicely... we analyze EVERYTHING, ESPECIALLY other women.

Are her proportions better than mine?
Are her clothes more flattering than mine?
Is her haircut cuter than mine?
Does she look more successful than I am?
Will her boyfriend look at me for a second instead, even when he's with her?

Even if they don't WANT to, I think that most women think these types of things... about EVERYTHING... CONSTANTLY (ducks tomatoes).

There is no downtime.

I understand that men deal with something similar regarding their sex drives, in the sense that it's always there in the back of your mind, whether you want it to be or not, but I'm not a guy, so I wouldn't know. Please correct me if I'm wrong on that. XD lol

Anyway, the point is, it's genetics. We choose whether to act on the thoughts, but the thoughts are always there.

So yeah, pretty women are good for getting attention from both males and females in advertising, so it's effective. I don't mind that.

And depending on where you look, men can be overly-sexualized as well, so it's not like it's ONLY women. *shrugs* It's all a matter of perspective to me.

Plus, I LOVE seeing gender swap images. The images of Lara Croft or the Sailor Moon cast as men are especially hilarious! XD hahahaha (And yes, Sailor Moon DID have guys who transformed into girls, so it sort of did its own gender swap in the series itself! XD lol)

So, in general:

Would I use a hot, sexy girl in a project? If the project would benefit from it, sure. If the art style requested was all about its women being sexy (like a Marvel style, for example), then I wouldn't really have a choice, so once again, sure. (Plus, curvy girls are fun to draw AND paint. ^-^)
Would I put a sexy girl in an image just for attention? No, it wouldn't add anything to the project, and in fact, would probably detract from it instead.
Would I create an image of a pornographic nature? Erm... pornography doesn't really bother me... I mean, I once had a boyfriend with an entire computer dedicated to his porn collection, so yeah, whatever. It's not like women don't do similar things. XD lol

But that being said, while I don't mind the content (and as such, could make a website for the industry or a logo, or something of the sort), I'm a bit shy about creating that sort of... explicit material, myself.

Tasteful nudes, sure, no problem. They can actually be a lot of fun!

Pornography... *blushes* yeah... if I was hired to... I guess... keep'n it professional and all. As a personal favor for someone? NO WAY. I could watch it with a friend and not care at all, but to create it... I'd never be able to look them straight in the eyes again! XD hahaha

Aaaannyyyy way... that was probably TMI for a lot of you. >.>

Sorry!

Did that answer your question, though? XD lol

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by Comphics

what services, exactly, you want to offer (all of them)

Logo Designing
Web Designing
Stationary
Video Making
Flyers, Brochures, Menu Cards, Banners, Advertisements and other graphic related services.
3D architecture, modeling, designing.
Viral Marketing ( Make facebook pages, Youtube channels, SEO )

what design work you've done

In the order of my specialization

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners.

what design work you were taught to do

Logo designing, Stationary, Web design, flyers, banners, video making, 3D architecture, 2D Flash Character designing, Newspaper-Magazine layouts.

if you've done any freelancing before (and if so, what did you make, and how long did you do it?)

I'm working as a freelancer, I participate in online contests of logo designing, Web designing, Stationary designing and viral marketing.

Hi Comphics!

Firstly, I want to congratulate you on your enthusiasm and ambition! Most people don't even make it that far, so you are already a few steps ahead!

Secondly, I would like to apologize in advance just in case anything seems particularly harsh. I don't believe in giving sugar-coated advice, because it doesn't really help anyone, and I'm here to help you as much as I can.

And thirdly, because this response is SO large, I'm going to split it up between an art response, and a business response.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, on to the response!

ART RESPONSE

Please read to the very end. I'll post my business response once I've finished with it.

To be honest, I'm a little confused about how much experience you have in each art category.

For example, it sounds like you have a lot of graphic design experience (logos, stationary, flyers, document layouts, and banners), which is fantastic! I have no doubt that you could make a business model off of this, and many people have, so this category seems taken care of.

However, everything else that you listed requires VERY different skill sets.

Website design requires programming.
Video-making requires photography principles.
2D Flash Character designing...
- If you're using Flash to animate the character, that's an animation skill set.
- If you're using Flash to create the character, that's a vector art skill set.
- If you're designing the character, that's a concepting skill set.
3D architecture... this is the easiest form of 3D, but the skill set required for this is the most different from all of the other skill sets.

These all require very different mindsets, and they all have very different technical requirements.

On top of that, people spend their entire lives learning just 1 of these skill sets. I honestly have a hard time believing that you've been properly taught to do all of these well enough to build a business off of them, especially at your age, and I'm a little concerned that if you don't know as much as you seem to think you know, you're going to get in over your head really quickly.

That being said, without seeing your artwork, I can't say whether or not you know these things. For all I know, you could've been studying art since you were 3!

The best that I can do, is give you a list of things that you'll need to know for each category, and let you decide how much you know and how much you need to learn.

So here's the minimum that you'll need to know to set up a quality business that includes each of these categories:

Graphic design (it sounds like you have this one covered ^_^)
- Visual psychology
- Typography
- Color theory
- The ability to create 2D artwork
- Knowledge of the printing industry
Website design
- Graphic design (see above)
- Wordpress manipulation
- PHP
- HTML
- UI Design
Video
- Visual psychology
- Staging
- Lighting
- Ability to alter video and audio
Animation
- Animation psychology
- Visual psychology
- The ability to create 2D artwork
- An understanding of, and ability to recreate basic movement (timing, squash and stretch, secondary action, expressing emotion, etc.)
- Lighting
- Perspective
Vector art
- A mindset for building, rather than adding and subtracting
- Understanding why Photoshop vector isn't a vector
- An understanding of point and shape efficiency
- The ability to create vector artwork
- Knowledge of the printing industry
- Lighting
- Perspective
Characters
- Visual psychology
- Color theory
- Understanding emotions and body language
- Understanding movement (i.e. animation, but without the technical skill to create it)
- Proper posing/positioning (gesture drawings, silhouettes, etc.)
- Lighting
- Perspective
- Anatomy
- Fashion design (clothing, makeup, hair style, etc.)
- The ability to create both organic and inorganic shapes
Environments
- Color theory
- Lighting
- Perspective
- Staging
- The ability to create many different types of materials
- The ability to make organized things look random
- Possible architecture
- The ability to create inorganic shapes
Props
- Color theory
- Lighting
- Perspective
- The ability to create many different types of materials
- And indepth knowledge of various types of weapons and vehicles
- The ability to create both organic and inorganic shapes
Concepting
- Characters + props + environments (see above)
- Graphic design (see above)
- Visual psychology
- An almost encyclopedic knowledge of various art styles
- The ability to create 2D artwork which is meant to be built off of (requires an understanding of what will be built from it)
3D (architecture only)
- The ability to create 3D models (in various art styles from 100% cartoony to 100% realistic)
- n-gons
- Edge looping
- Unwrapping (the ability to do it AND do it efficiently)
- Texturing: Diffuse, normal, spec, and glow maps (in various art styles from 100% cartoony to 100% realistic)
- Material editing (combining and altering materials, realistic reflections and refractions, etc.)
- Lighting (area lights, point lights, spotlights, and a combination thereof)
- Rendering

This list is just off of the top of my head, but either way, it's up to you to decide what you know and what you don't know.

Even if you plan on outsourcing this work, you're going to have to know the basics to be able to communicate what you need to your outsourcer.

However...

If you can wait 2-3 weeks, I can tell you, step-by-step and with no experience needed in these categories, EXACTLY how to outsource anything that isn't 3D modeling, animation, or website programming.

I can tell you...

what you'll need to know
how to deliver the information
when to deliver the information
what to expect from your outsourcers

... and probably more, but, you'll need to wait 2-3 weeks to get it.

How does that sound?

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12 years ago

Wow ! I'm amazed, what a great response !! I'm so lucky I came across this topic. I'm seriously out of words ! I'm printing it right now. Thanks a lot for categorizing everything. Now I know how much is still left to learn.

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

For example, it sounds like you have a lot of graphic design experience (logos, stationary, flyers, document layouts, and banners), which is fantastic! I have no doubt that you could make a business model off of this, and many people have, so this category seems taken care of.

Yes, I feel graphic design is my strongest area. I have made lots of logos and stationary.

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

On top of that, people spend their entire lives learning just 1 of these skill sets. I honestly have a hard time believing that you've been properly taught to do all of these well enough to build a business off of them, especially at your age, and I'm a little concerned that if you don't know as much as you seem to think you know, you're going to get in over your head really quickly.That being said, without seeing your artwork, I can't say whether or not you know these things. For all I know, you could've been studying art since you were 3!

Haha

!! I'm not studying art since 3. I'm in Animation College, where they teach everything from basics to advanced.

In the first semester I studied the following softwares

Graphic Designing

Adobe Illustrator ( learnt logo designing, creating vector images, creating characters, little bit of animation, stationary )
Adobe Photoshop ( learnt image editing, retouching a photograph, web layouting, flyers, banners )
Adobe InDesign ( Not really learnt this a lot, just know how to do magazine and newspaper layout )
Adobe DreamWeaver ( Additional coaching of HTML and CSS )
Corel Draw

Studied color theory, sketching ( I'm very poor at sketching ) fundamentals of designing and illustrations, Typography.

2nd Semester of 2D Animation

Adobe Flash Pro ( Made a 1 min animation of "Down by the station" rhyme, I can do 2D animation )
Adobe Premier Pro ( learnt some video effect, easy software )
SoundForge ( cutting souds and mixing )
Adobe After Effects ( Very vast software and very demanding in the industry. I know how to make some slideshows in it )

Studied pre production, story boarding, post production

I'm currently in the 3rd semester where I'm learning 3D architecture in 3Ds Max.

I will be doing Maya, Nuke, zBrush Texturing after that.

That's too many things to learn in just 3 years.

You can see one my work here which was featured by Adobe Illustrator.

Code:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151474737658226&set=a.10151474737618226.1073741840.64138473225&type=1&relevant_count=1

I'm not in any hurry and I will wait for business response as well.

I really want to know how to outsource.

Thanks a lot.

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12 years ago

Hi Comphics!

I'm glad that my last post helped you!

And no wonder your artwork was featured by Adobe! Your motorcycle is really quite lovely! ^_^

How long had you been using Illustrator when you made that?

Also, I would love to see your portfolio if you have one.

Oh, and let's not forget that I still owe you a...

BUSINESS RESPONSE

Originally Posted by Comphics

What do I need to learn before I start all this?

Before starting a business, there are a number of things that you will need to consider, including:

1. Are you going to...

use your name for the company, and aim to be perceived as an expert in your field

OR

are you going to separate your name and reputation from the company, and aim to be perceived as a professional business?

If you are going to use your name and reputation in the design industry, you need to specialize in 1 thing and become THE go-to-guy for that thing. Being a generalist doesn't usually work very well if the business is centered around just 1 person, because clients will think that you know a little bit of everything, but not enough of anything to make it worth their time to hire you.

If you separate your name and reputation from the company, you won't have much to give you credibility, but it will allow you to offer multiple services without penalty, because people will assume that you are a business comprised of many people, each of whom is probably very good at the 1 thing that they do.

2. What businesses are you targeting? You mentioned that you wanted to cater to real estate and restaurant businesses, but that could create a conflict.

If you choose to target those 2 businesses specifically, you will need to become the master in those fields. That would suggest that you should use your name for the brand, except then you'd be splitting yourself between 2 unrelated things, and people would get confused as to why you're going after those 2 specifically. Now, if you want to sell to multiple types of businesses, that works too, but in that case, you wouldn't be targeting these 2 specifically; you'd be selling to many people in many industries.

So in short, I think that you should target any industry, target multiple related industries, or target 1 industry, but don't target 2 unrelated industries.

3. Who is your target audience? Where do they eat, sleep, shop, party, relax, go shopping, etc.? What do they buy? What do they wear? What hair styles do they have?

You need to know every last thing about who you're targeting if you are going to market to them.

4. How are you going to advertise to your audience? What platforms are you going to use? How often will you message them? What days will you message them? How will you promote your products? How do THEY want you to promote your products? etc.

5. Once you know your method of advertisement, you'll need to learn how to successfully put together advertising campaigns in that manner.

6. What tasks do you not want to do / what will you outsource? What kinds of outsourcers will you need? Where will you find them? How will you pay them (and get the money to pay them)? What resources will you have to provide for them? etc.

7. What will your visual identity / brand look like? I think that you know what tasks go with this one. ^_^ lol

... and so on.

Basically, you need to think about how you want to run your business, and all of the parts that make it up. Every single piece should be planned for, and the larger your business is, the more planning that will take.

Of course, plans never quite turn out the way that you'd expect, but even so, having a plan that needs to be altered slightly is much better than having no plan at all! XD lol

Originally Posted by Comphics

So, should I take action and just start offering the logos services first and then after some time add web design/ development.

Yes, personally, I would suggest that you build your business on what you can do now, and then grow it later. This is something that I always have trouble with, being a bit of a perfectionist and all, but it's important to do what you can while you can, because there will almost never be a perfect opportunity for you to take advantage of, and so there's no use waiting for one.

Originally Posted by Comphics

How do they deliver the work ? ( Do they mail the logo files ? )

There are many ways to deliver artwork. I'll go over that in my outsourcing strategy in 2-3 weeks.

Originally Posted by Comphics

I want a system that if people from India visits my website then it shows the prices in INR and if visitors come from USA then it shows the prices in USD. How to do that ?

That would entirely depend on the type of e-commerce system that you choose to use in your website, but I would imagine that most, if not all of them would be able to display different types of currency.

What you would probably need to do, is set up 2 websites for your business, one for India and one for America. That way you can customize and localize your business for the area that you are promoting to without having to worry about negatively influencing the other. ^_^

And I think that was everything!

I hope that this has been helpful for you!

Just as a heads up, I'll probably post in my WF blog when the free document pack comes out (hopefully on Friday!), and when the outsourcing documentation is ready (in about 2-3 weeks).

Be sure to keep a look out for them if you're interested! ^_^

Have a great day/night!

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12 years ago

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

Hi Comphics!

I'm glad that my last post helped you!

And no wonder your artwork was featured by Adobe! Your motorcycle is really quite lovely! ^_^

How long had you been using Illustrator when you made that?

It was my college assignment which was given after the day we finished the Adobe Illustrator. So, about 3 months since i had been using AI when I made that.

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

1. Are you going to...

use your name for the company, and aim to be perceived as an expert in your field

OR

are you going to separate your name and reputation from the company, and aim to be perceived as a professional business?

I have already decided the name of my company, which is : COMPHICS = Computer Graphics

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

If you separate your name and reputation from the company, you won't have much to give you credibility, but it will allow you to offer multiple services without penalty, because people will assume that you are a business comprised of many people, each of whom is probably very good at the 1 thing that they do.

That's such a valuable information ! thanks a lot.

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

2. What businesses are you targeting? You mentioned that you wanted to cater to real estate and restaurant businesses, but that could create a conflict.

If you choose to target those 2 businesses specifically, you will need to become the master in those fields. That would suggest that you should use your name for the brand, except then you'd be splitting yourself between 2 unrelated things, and people would get confused as to why you're going after those 2 specifically. Now, if you want to sell to multiple types of businesses, that works too, but in that case, you wouldn't be targeting these 2 specifically; you'd be selling to many people in many industries.

So in short, I think that you should target any industry, target multiple related industries, or target 1 industry, but don't target 2 unrelated industries

I will be targeting other industries as well but these 2 industries are hottest in Indian Market right now. These are the 2 industries, developing the most and looking for brand makeover.

Originally Posted by cajtrixie

And I think that was everything!

I hope that this has been helpful for you!

Just as a heads up, I'll probably post in my WF blog when the free document pack comes out (hopefully on Friday!), and when the outsourcing documentation is ready (in about 2-3 weeks).

Be sure to keep a look out for them if you're interested! ^_^

Have a great day/night!

Thanks a lot

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cajtrixie

cajtrixie

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12 years ago

Hi all!

For anyone who was hoping to get the free document pack today, I'm sorry to say that due to 6-9 hours of technical issues, I won't be able to post it tonight.

Instead, I'm going to have it up (come hell or high-water) by Wednesday morning at 11am EST. And, as an apology for being late, I'm going to throw in some extra special documents as my way of saying sorry.

Trust me; you won't mind having waited for these!

So once again, I'm really sorry for the delay, but I'll be sure to make it worth your while.

I'll see you then!
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12 years ago

Many thanks for such interesting questions and posts from people providing fabulous information. I've learnt a lot and now have a couple of more websites re outsources to access - thank you.
I've taken a very tiny step into hiring outsources and the first and foremost thing that people do need to consider is - the outsourcer is still a human being and apply good management practices one would apply to one's own staff in one's own country or workplace. This is especially important.

Just because it is far easier to cancel an outsourer's contract doesn't mean the above point should be ignored. However, in saying this, it doesn't mean that one has to retain an outsourcer who is really not performing to a standard that you have set - doesn't mean you make the outsourcer jump through hoops, however does mean setting a realistic standard and expectation of what you want of the outsourcer.

For example: I contracted 3 outsourcers for the same job - just gave each the same amount of hours that I wanted overall. It very soon became apparent which of the 3 outsourcers to retain and work with - For example: 1 keep making excuses every other day what the work wasn't undertaken - so I let the person go; a second simply did not perform the work to a credible standard so I let this person go; and the 3rd I worked with for a wee while and would work with the person again - was committed, also came up with some ideas on how to improve the reporting system we established and the like.

Hence, I would use outsourcers again.

My other main suggestion is don't rush in - take your time and really think about the tasks/activities you want an outsourcer or a VA to do; do your research that you're getting the best person for the job; and ensure you remember once you hire - the VA or outsourcer is a human being and ensure you keep this foremost in your mind when you are managing either 1 or a team.

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Desley
Connecting People Together.

12 years ago

Supremely grateful bump! OP, you rock.

Bookmarked.

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cajtrixie

cajtrixie

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11 years ago

Hi all!

I just got a second, so I thought I'd give you an update!

The free document pack is UP, and you can access it HERE.

I hope that you like it!

Enjoy! ^_^
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