Outsourcing: How you can make it Safe
If you’ve heard about IT outsourcing, you’ve surely also heard disheartening tales about scams being perpetrated on innocent people: fake companies that trick gullible customers into making down-payments and then disappear without producing any work, and other scam artists. Maybe you’ve even pondered using outsourcing services but decided not for fear of being ripped off by internet crooks.
It’s a sad truth that it happens, but not any more than in any business involving client-seller relationships. Outsourcing is just another venue professional scammers use to find victims, and it shouldn’t stop well-informed people from using outsourcing to reap its benefits.
In the past clients had to learn by trial-and-error to navigate safely through outsourcing, gaining experience as they went and taking risky steps. However, anyone can now learn a few tips on how to get into outsourcing without risk:
1) Know the company you’re doing business with. This might sound like a contradiction at first: after all, the whole point is that you’re doing business with someone who may be on the other side of the world. How the heck can you meet them? Well, if you are outsourcing, chances are you’re using GetACoder.com, a marketplace which keeps a tight grip on its sellers. These websites also offer sellers the chance of building reputations for themselves: for each project a seller develops, a buyer gets to publicly rate them. This will allow you to choose easily between the sellers who have a solid past history and those who have nothing to show for.
Remember that when a seller gets a reputation going he wants to keep it perfect, so he’ll want to keep you happy. One bad rating is enough to get a seller’s credibility shattered for a long time. Complaints about lack of communication, disappearing halfway through the project and taking down-payments without showing any work is a thing they don’t want to get.
2) Requesting that they show you previous work is a must. Checking whether it actually belongs to them is also essential. Make sure your seller has actually developed the projects he claims to; professional scammers just show buyers what they want to see, and manage to trick them into making fast down-payments just for the privilege of getting their work. So don’t rush in; take your time going through the seller’s work samples. If you find anything suspicious, beware.
3) Use the escrow payment system to pay. GetACoder.com offers this service for free. So just use it. Some coders will try to get you to work outside the website: this is convenient for them and always a mistake and a risk for you. It doesn’t matter what their reasons are – that it takes longer to withdraw from the website; that they have to pay withdrawal fees – think about your interests first. The escrow system is perfect for you and the seller since it allows you have the money available, lets the seller know you have the payment ready, and yet you don’t have to release it until the work has been finished. Honest sellers, so long as they know you have the money to pay them immediately, are happy in those conditions; it’s the ones that want quick payments that you should be wary of.
4) Think how you want to pay. If you have a large project and you don’t want to pay everything at first, consider establishing a milestone payment deal. This way you can pay in instalments as each work milestone is reached. Don’t pay until each milestone has been completed. If the seller is honest, we’ll work until the end to get the entire payment. And if you’re scammed, you won’t lose everything.
Ultimately, so long as you use GetACoder to do your business and pay through its escrow system, it’s virtually impossible you to get conned. These websites run tight controls and are always on the lookout for scammers. And if you have problems, you always have a friendly staff member to call for assistance.
So stop worrying and start outsourcing for all its benefits.
Madelyn Spencer is a retired Economics teacher of one of the most well- known Universities in North Carolina. She is now an expert speaker in Outsourcing and its importance in an era of Globalization and she participates in conferences, seminars, lectures and demonstrations in several universities across United States and Europe.
Article Source: Outsourcing: How you can make it Safe
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