There are many times when small business owners need help with various tasks. They don't want to take on new staff because the need is only temporary. Obviously there are lots of online classifieds sites to post ads asking for this kind of help. And the local papers are still effective and cheap.
But there are some sites popping up that are focused on fulfilling this need in particular -- which proves just how widespread it is. The biggest and most well established is Airtasker. This Australian site describes itself as "an online marketplace for people and businesses to outsource tasks".
It's not just your garden variety job board. It has some unique characteristics that make it a more productive and reliable method of finding good people to do stuff for you. The review system, for example, gives each "airtasker" a rating. So you can get an idea of what sort of service you're going to get in advance.
Another site with similar characteristics is Jobs and Services. This is billed as an "online tradie marketplace" that is probably more useful to individuals seeking workers than businesses. However, there are many B2B services such as commercial cleaning listed on the site. It caters to an Australia wide audience, but was created by a Perth local, and so a high proportion of its listings so far relate to this city.
It had an interesting genesis:
The website was created in response to the difficulties its founder, 24-year-old Ronan Bray, had in finding an accurate quote while renovating a family bathroom. At the same time, a close friend who was undertaking an apprenticeship in plumbing was struggling to find enough work.
The site has proved very popular. And much of this has come from promotion on social media. In my opinion this is yet another reason to establish a presence there if you haven't already:
In the few months since it launched, Jobs and Services has already accumulated 33,000 page visits and 3400 Facebook likes. It has also accumulated more than over 420 business/service postings, exceeding a personal target of 400 jobs by August.
“The majority was through social media – in particular Facebook – focusing locally on Perth,” Bray says. “I also contacted a lot of people directly just to let them know it existed, and networking through friends, because a number of my friends are tradespeople.
But there are some sites popping up that are focused on fulfilling this need in particular -- which proves just how widespread it is. The biggest and most well established is Airtasker. This Australian site describes itself as "an online marketplace for people and businesses to outsource tasks".
It's not just your garden variety job board. It has some unique characteristics that make it a more productive and reliable method of finding good people to do stuff for you. The review system, for example, gives each "airtasker" a rating. So you can get an idea of what sort of service you're going to get in advance.
Another site with similar characteristics is Jobs and Services. This is billed as an "online tradie marketplace" that is probably more useful to individuals seeking workers than businesses. However, there are many B2B services such as commercial cleaning listed on the site. It caters to an Australia wide audience, but was created by a Perth local, and so a high proportion of its listings so far relate to this city.
It had an interesting genesis:
The website was created in response to the difficulties its founder, 24-year-old Ronan Bray, had in finding an accurate quote while renovating a family bathroom. At the same time, a close friend who was undertaking an apprenticeship in plumbing was struggling to find enough work.
The site has proved very popular. And much of this has come from promotion on social media. In my opinion this is yet another reason to establish a presence there if you haven't already:
In the few months since it launched, Jobs and Services has already accumulated 33,000 page visits and 3400 Facebook likes. It has also accumulated more than over 420 business/service postings, exceeding a personal target of 400 jobs by August.
“The majority was through social media – in particular Facebook – focusing locally on Perth,” Bray says. “I also contacted a lot of people directly just to let them know it existed, and networking through friends, because a number of my friends are tradespeople.
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